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Texas lands commitment from top 100 OL Neto Umeozulu

Joe Cookby:Joe Cook•12/13/21•

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Neto Umeozulu
Neto Umeozulu has made his college commitment. (Will Gallagher/Inside Texas)

Texas’ search for quality offensive linemen led Steve Sarkisian and Kyle Flood to Allen High School, a place the Longhorn program has not had much success with on the recruiting trail. That is, until Neto Umeozulu wanted to buck the trend.

The 6-foot-4 Under Armour All-American committed to Texas, choosing the Longhorns over 30-plus offers including Alabama, Arizona State, Auburn, Baylor, Florida, LSU, Ohio State, Oklahoma, TCU, Texas A&M, and USC.

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Umeozulu is the No. 66 prospect in the On3 2022 player rankings with a 95 grade.

Excerpt from the Recruiting Notebook

How he fits at Texas: Umeozulu is a natural athlete for the offensive line which is why all the schools known for pumping out NFL linemen have offered him scholarships. He has a promising kick step, good overall athleticism, and reach that suggests left tackle is his future. He was the right tackle for Allen last year and was dominant as a wide zone blocker, securing the edge, pulling on gap schemes, and also getting wide in the screen game to pancake defenders in space. His floor is as a multi-year starter at guard or tackle in a spread concept and the ceiling is as a multi-year starting left tackle. – Ian Boyd

Coach Says: Strengths — Good sized player who is already at a collegiate size. Arms look to be tackle-length. Not too much gut in the mid-section. Looks comfortable and balanced in and out of his stance. Shows good explosiveness out of the stance for a man this size. Good hip flexibility and waist-bending is at a minimum. Excellent feet and this allows for both smooth pulls inside and great outside-zone reaches. Has plenty of quickness for a man this size and accelerates pretty well. Reaches second level easily and is a force in the screen game. Uses his long arms effectively and creates good leverage in the run game. Consistently good hand placement. Finishes blocks consistently and plays through the whistle. Pass sets show a decent kick step and he’s clearly been well-coached as his hands are consistently in good position. Could start early at RT and has potential to be a multi-year starter. Has position versatility although if his arms are as long as they appear, I’d rather he not get pushed inside to guard.

Areas for Improvement / Concern — As with many high school offensive linemen, will get too upright at times coming out of his stance. On pass sets, will overset to the outside which then results in the invitation inside. It doesn’t always cost him but I’d rather he trust his feet and athleticism to mirror the rusher. Will let the pass rusher inside his reach and more than a couple of opponent highlights show him losing leverage, getting stood up and walked back to the QB.

Excerpt from the Inside Texas Top 75 for 2022

Gerry Hamilton: The junior season video checked the boxes. This guy is physical on contact showing initial pop/strength. He can run his feet and be devastating in the run game. He is impressive moving his feet and playing in his hips in space. He also has body quickness in pass pro. If he maximizes his ability, he will play on Sundays.

Eric Nahlin: I think he could play tackle, but his ceiling at guard is extremely high. He wants to move people in the run game but he’d be elite in pass pro from the interior.

Umeozulu is the 23rd commit in Texas’ 2022 recruiting class.

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