GoCoogs has attended 11 of 15 practices this spring (basketball travel prevented from attending the other four). We’ve done some solid content on spring ball – check it out.
Final news and notes heading into the Spring Game:
Dean Connors is a Swiss Army Knife. A quick Swiss Army Knife. Expect him to be used in special teams (kick return), the running game, blocking, and the passing game – out of the backfield, lined up in the slot, and perhaps even throwing the ball. He adds a versatility that Willie Fritz loves to exploit. They wanted Joseph Manjack to be that guy last year, but it did not work out. Players tell me Connors is a fantastic teammate, too. I’ve seen Austin Carlisle asking him questions numerous times.
Speaking of Austin, he moves up to third string with the departure of Caleb McMickle. With patience, McMickle could have moved up to second team in the fall, but he chose to enter the portal, having never played a snap at UH. Carlisle has been in a blue QB jersey all spring and has not worked at any other spot. But he could be used in a number of packages, due to his speed. However, I’d expect that to be limited to four games so that he can redshirt, unless circumstances dictate otherwise.
Two Thursdays ago, the energy to start practice was low, so Willie had the team line up for sprints. In his heat, Carlisle was two steps ahead of everyone, including WRs and running backs. Zion Chriss also won his heat.
Connor Weigman is solidly in the QB1 spot with Zeon Chriss running second team. Weigman is a vocal leader and is clearly in command of the offense. Without full contact, I’m projecting some, but it appears Chriss is throwing the ball a little better and making faster decisions.
UH practices punt and punt return in every practice, and with Mekhi Mews out all of Spring with injury, several other guys have gotten the chance in the return game. The two I’ve seen most are the two #0 jerseys: junior wide receiver Amare Thomas (UAB transfer) and senior defensive back Keionte Scott (Auburn). Latrell McCutchin has worked on returns, as has freshman Zaylen Cormier. Two weeks ago, I first noticed Jeremiah Wilson out before practice working to catch punts. Thursday, he was in the rotation catching them in swirling winds. Friday, he entered the transfer portal.
Redshirt freshman WR Koby Young is running with the first team most of the time. He’s made a ton of plays in spring, and he’s standing out in a stacked receiver room. Young and Devan Williams have both taken big steps, and I like what I’ve seen from Amare Thomas, Harvey Broussard, and Stephon Johnson. Mews, when healthy, will get a lot of snaps in the fall, too. Of the early enrollees, Zaylen Cormier and Blake Hogshooter have made plays. Both need to add weight in the summer and have good fall camps.
The most common first team offensive line group I’ve seen:
LT – Alvin Ebosele (Baylor)
LG – Jason Brooks Jr (Oklahoma State)
C – Demetrius Hunter
RG – Matthew Wykoff (Cal)
RT – David Ndukwe
They’ll continue to mix and match some through Fall Camp. The group that is put out there needs time to gel, though. How they’ll work together is the biggest question mark going forward.
Defensive coordinator Austin Armstrong told me this week that the way they designed the defense installation this year was ideal for a new coordinator. UH introduced first- and second-down schemes in the February offseason workouts and started working on third-downs in the second week of spring practice. He says they won’t have the entire playbook installed until summer, but he’s pleased how it’s gone so far.
I ran into former kicker Jack Martin in San Antonio ahead of the Final Four. He had a great day at the Big 12 combine, which led to additional workouts with various teams. He did the Texans’ local pro day last week and has a couple of invites to training camp. But he’s loving life in San Antonio, where he moved in December for a job.
I’ve seen a good amount of work on three tight end sets, with Jayden York in the slot to either run a seam route or get to the second level blocking a linebacker or DB. We saw some of this last season, and with the commitment of tight end Tanner Koziol on Thursday, you’ll see it a lot more. Koziol played for Ball State before transferring to Wisconsin this spring. He entered the portal again after Spring Football in Madison.
There have probably been 75 high school coaches at practice this spring and half a dozen or so former coaches. Willie Fritz makes a point to talk to all of them for an extended time. I’ve seen over 100 recruits (and I missed two Saturday scrimmages, where recruits are more likely to attend). Most recruits are from the 2026 class, but I’ve seen plenty of 2027 and even a handful of 2028 guys. On Thursday, c/o 2027 Braiden Graves from Bridgeland and Tramon Williams, son of the former NFL cornerback of the same name, were in attendance. Williams announced earlier this week that Houston was his first offer.
Some notable recent recruits in attendance:
Charlie Ward – 6’6″ OT from Walker, La. (2026).
Kobe Haynes – 6’0″ ATH from Whitney, TX (2027). Baylor offer.
Devontrae Kirkland – 6’1″ CB from Waco (2027). UH, Arizona, ASU, Baylor, OU, OSU, A&M, Tech, and TCU have offered.
Thompson Bennett – 6’1″ S from Austin Westlake. Utah offer.
Wayne Shanks – 5’10” RB Kinkaid School (2027). UH, FSU, OU, Ole Miss, Kansas, and Tech have offered.
Rodney Thomas – 6’2″ DB from Episcopal (2026). LSU offer.
Brayden White – 6’3″ DL from Shepherd, TX (2027). UH offer.
Jayden Mack – 6’2″ OL from Hutto, TX (2027). UH, Baylor, Ole Miss, A&M, and Tech have offered.
Tylan Henderson 6’1″ WR from Pflugerville (2028). Tech offer.
A group from West HS in Salt Lake City was at practice on Tuesday. There were approximately 10 players, with one, Samiu Taukiuvea, picking up an offer that day. He’s a 6’4″ DE/OT in the 2028 class. Takeshi Savery from West is a 6’2″ edge in the 2028 class, also has a UH offer.