Rivals100 WR Woodard talks Horns, Aggies ahead of Top 10 release

Four-star Houston-area wide receiver Al’Vonte Woodard announced at Texas’s junior day event last weekend that he’d be releasing his top-ten list of schools in the near future.

No surprise two teams that made the list are the Longhorns - who Woodard said will get a return visit over his spring break - and nearby Texas A&M. He didn’t make public all the teams that would round out the group, but he did give a nice preview, mentioning that LSU, Ohio State, and West Virginia would also be on the list.

The junior day was Woodard’s first hard look at Texas’ campus and program, so the natural question arose of how it stacked up with A&M - where he’s been on numerous occasions. Woodard also attended the Aggies’ junior day at the end of January.

“(A&M’s) junior day was nothing that I hadn’t seen before,” he said. “I go to A&M so often. This was really my first time coming to UT and just seeing everything. I come back here for the Texas Relays, but it’s really eye-opening for what they have coming in June when everything’s finished.”

The reference to what’s on tap for June is the completion of facilities upgrades at Texas, including updates to the locker and weight rooms.

The Aggies were the first team that Woodard mentioned as being included in his top-ten after being asked to confirm if the Longhorns would also be included. Familiarity aside, he said that he had to consider his potential opportunity on either roster after National Signing Day 2017.

“UT - they hit me up every day, I talk to my position coach all day, every day,” he said. “With A&M, my position coach hits me up every once-in-a-while, but with I know how it is with A&M; they signed four receivers in their 2017 class and over here they only signed two.”

Impressions of Texas

“On this visit, what’s going to have stood out to me was just the vibe of the coaches,” he said. “When I asked the players what they think about the coaches - they love the coaches. They said now that they’ve been with them a couple of weeks, they love the coaches.”

“I came, it felt like home,” he said. “Seeing the coaches in person and what they’ve been texting me about - what could be my future home ... I would say the relationship has built more.”

On Ohio State

“That’s a recent offer, but they’re making me feel big-time,” he said. “Offensively, they’ve been there, done that. They’ve been to the college football playoffs, they’ve been in the national championship - they know what they’re doing.”

Woodard said that when it came to the inclusion of West Virginia to his top-ten, it was all about his relationship with receivers coach Tyron Carrier.

“He’s going to keep it real with you,” he said. “He’s going to tell you what you need to work on and what are you good at.”

Woodard’s next significant recruiting event will be Ole Miss’ junior day on April 1. Woodard received his offer from former receivers coach Grant Heard, but the relationship with the Rebels has continued. He said that the recent news regarding penalties involving the football team is not a deterring factor in his consideration of Ole Miss.

“All the news that has come out doesn’t really affect me,” he said. “The bowl suspension doesn’t affect me, it affects the dudes that are there now.”