When a major program loses a key recruit, Rivals.com takes a look at how big of a blow it is to the respective school, analyzing it from a local and national level. To quantify the “sting” of each decommitment, we assign a score from one to 10, with one being no big deal and 10 being a catastrophic hit.
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THE STORYLINE
Jaylon Guilbeau was the longest-standing commitment in the Texas recruiting class but the four-star cornerback backed off his pledge in recent days as he wants to look around at other programs.
The Port Arthur (Texas) Port Arthur Memorial standout had been committed to the Longhorns since September 2020 when coach Tom Herman was still in charge.
Guilbeau stuck with Texas during the coaching transition to Steve Sarkisian and was in the class as the Longhorns started loading up with high-level prospects. Through the last many months, there have been some significant decommitments as well including five-star QB Quinn Ewers and four-star WR Evan Stewart.
And now Guilbeau.
Things are in flux but TCU should be one team to watch as the Horned Frogs definitely left an impression on him. But Guilbeau is a talented, physical cornerback and so many other programs should start getting involved more in his recruitment.
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LOCAL REACTION
Guilbeau is a very good talent as his ranking would suggest, but Texas does have two other defensive back commitments and is still in pursuit of guys like Bryce Anderson and Denver Harris. Where this one hurts is in that there aren't a ton of back-up options for the Longhorns right now should they need to find a replacement, and the sting is compounded a bit when you factor in other recent recruiting losses on guys like Terrance Brooks, Kelvin Banks and Cameron Williams. - Jason Suchomel, OrangeBloods.com
Sting factor: 6
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NATIONAL REACTION
Texas is going to land some very talented in-state prospects by signing day but at this moment the Longhorns have a lot of work to do especially with so many high-level local prospects headed elsewhere. Twelve of the top 22 players in the state rankings have committed and none are going to Texas. Still, there are massive fish left on the board including Harris, Kam Dewberry, Devon Campbell, Anderson and others but keeping talented players like Guilbeau in the fold is crucial for the Longhorns to return to national relevance. The decommitment is unfortunate but not a backbreaker for the Longhorns as I think a lot of elite prospects are going to be very, very interested in Texas once again when they see the product Sarkisian puts on the field this season. - Adam Gorney, Rivals National Recruiting Director
Sting factor: 5
