Weekend Recruiting Roundup: Longview’s Travin Howard Commits to UTSA + Two Offers Go Out
One of East Texas' best defensive players is headed to Conference-USA.
The 6-foot, 178-pound Howard had one of the best defensive seasons in recent memory in East Texas. He finished with 89 tackles, 10 for loss, one sack, eight interceptions, three forced fumbles, one fumble recovery, and eight pass breakups.
Four of Howard's interceptions resulted in return touchdowns, while he took two punts back for scores as well.
Howard's combination of athleticism and versatility should prove him to be a steal for UTSA, which enjoyed a 7-5 season punctuated by a six-game winning streak to end the year.
Howard had a standout performance at the ETSN.fm Football Recruiting Combine at APEC training facility in May, when tied Kilgore senior Aaron Foy for the event’s best broad jump (10-4 1/2) of the 100 participants. He also clocked a 4.54-second laser-timed 40-yard dash, leaped 36 inches in the vertical, and registered 14 bench press reps of 185 pounds. Those 14 put him fourth among the combine’s 63 defensive backs, receivers, running backs, and quarterbacks, who all tested the bench at 185 pounds.
Howard is the second East Texan in the 2014 class to commit to UTSA, which also has a pledge from Carthage quarterback Blake Bogenschutz. The 6-foot-1, 180-pound gunslinger enters Friday's Class 3A Division I state championship against Kilgore with more than 3,800 yards, 55 touchdowns, and three interceptions this season, in addition to almost 300 rushing yards and seven touchdowns.
UTSA also has offers to Longview senior safety Stephan Maxey (5-11, 186) and Carthage senior receiver Terian "Tee" Goree (6-2, 170), who is committed to North Texas and holds nine Division I FBS offers.
---
Central Arkansas Offers Whitehouse's Reggie Long
Whitehouse senior linebacker Reggie Long received an offer from Central Arkansas, he tweeted Saturday afternoon.
The 6-foot, 218-pound Long had a big senior year despite missing the final three games of the year with a shoulder injury he suffered during the first half of the Wildcats' 55-54 regular season-closing home win against John Tyler. Long had 92 tackles, 17 for loss, five sacks, two interceptions, three forced fumbles, and one fumble recovery for a touchdown.
The offer could become an SFA offer considering Central Arkansas head coach Clint Conque was hired over the weekend by the Lumberjacks.
---
Navarro College Offers Kilgore's Aaron Foy
One of East Texas' most explosive seniors received his first offer Saturday afternoon after helping his team clinch a berth in the Class 3A Division I state championship.
Kilgore's Aaron Foy announced via Twitter that perennial junior college power Navarro offered him following Saturday's 44-6 rout of defending 3A D-I champion Stephenville at Corsicana's Tiger Stadium. Foy had a big day for the Bulldogs -- who improved to 14-0 entering Friday's 12 p.m. title game vs. Carthage -- carrying the ball three times for 89 yards and catching a 47-yard touchdown pass.
Foy has 762 yards and seven touchdowns on 34 offensive touches for an average of 22.4 yards per touch. That includes 368 yards on only 21 carries -- 17.5 yards per carry -- and 394 yards on only 13 grabs (30.3 per catch).
Foy tied Longview senior safety Travin Howard, who committed to UTSA on Sunday, for the best broad jump (10-4 1/2) at the ETSN.fm Football Recruiting Combine at APEC training facility in May. He also clocked a laser-time 4.51-second 40-yard dash and recorded a 39.1-inch vertical jump.
More From East Texas Sports Network
