4-star WR Ffrench devotes to Texas over Miami

Eli Lederman, ESPN Staff WriterAug 30, 2024, 09:02 AM ET

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Eli Lederman covers college football and recruiting for ESPN.com. He joined ESPN in 2024 after covering the University of Oklahoma for Sellout Crowd and the Tulsa World.Texas and Miami battled to the finish before four-star pass receiver Jaime Ffrench, No. 17 in the 2025 ESPN 300, committed to Steve Sarkisian and the Longhorns on Friday early morning during a pep rally at Mandarin High School in Jacksonville, Florida.Ffrench is the second-ranked pass receiver in the 2025 class and No. 3 player in the state of Florida in this cycle. A previous Alabama dedicate, Ffrench got in Friday with finalists Texas, Miami, LSU and Tennessee following check outs to each school in the spring. The experienced playmaker is now the second-ranked member of the Longhorns’rising 2025 class, which sits at No. 17 in ESPN’s latest group rankings for the present cycle.Editor’s Picks 2 Associated Ffrench informed ESPN that a tight recruitment ultimately boiled down to Texas and

Miami in current days. The Hurricanes

battled into the last hours of the process, pitching a Power 4 experience closer to home, before Ffrench picked the Longhorns, swayed by Texas’ current success in the 2025 class, the program’s advancement track at pass receiver and a strong relationship with wide receivers coach Chris Jackson.”The people and the coaching personnel– they show you why they want you,” Ffrench said.”And what they’ve developed as a class is really attractive.”Ffrench’s commitment continues a huge month for Texas on the recruiting trail.He follows four-star pass receiver Kaliq Lockett( No. 23 in the ESPN 300 )and first-class defender Jonah Williams(No. 8)as the third top-30 possibility to pick the Longhorns since Aug. 7. Ffrench is now the leading offensive promise in a Texas class that consists of Lockett, quarterback K.J. Lacey(No. 110 ), tight end Nick Townsend (No. 196 )and running backs James Simon(No. 287)and Rickey Stewart (No. 295). The Longhorns now have 11 ESPN 300 potential customers dedicated in the present cycle.Ffrench will end up being the 3rd of his brothers to reach major college football when he signs up with Texas in 2025. Maurice Ffrench broke Larry Fitzgerald’s single-season reception record at Pitt in 2019 before drop in the NFL and CFL. Another bro, James Tarver, signed with UCF in the 2019 cycle.Ffrench’s own recruitment took off after he caught 44 passes for 671 lawns and 5 goals in an efficient sophomore season at Mandarin. He committed to Alabama in July 2023, then pulled his promise and resumed his recruitment following Nick Saban’s retirement in January, eventually narrowing his finalists to

Miami, Texas, LSU and Tennessee, taking official sees to each school in between Might 31 and June 21. Ffrench, who spent a part of his youth in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, said he felt the pull of LSU. The Tigers provided an opportunity to play in front of household and an opportunity to deal with LSU wide receivers coach Cortez Hankton, who first provided Ffrench as an assistant at Georgia. In Tennessee, Ffrench saw an enticing offense scheme and held a relationship with coach Josh Heupel, who had recruited Tarver to UCF in 2019. Ffrench established a strong connection with Jackson, Texas’second-year pass receivers coach, and the Longhorns became front-runners in his recruitment in the final week of the process.However, a late push from Miami fixated connections with Hurricanes pass receivers coach Kevin Beard, in addition to a pitch to stay near to home, nearly turned Ffrench up to his

dedication to Texas Friday early morning.”I wanted to play in the SEC,”Ffrench stated.”I’m excited to close it up and be made with everything, devoted to the place I wish to be. “Ffrench tape-recorded 62 catches for 1,247 yards and 14

touchdowns as a junior last season. He captured four passes for 116 in Mandarin’s season-opener Aug. 23. The fourth-ranked Longhorns open the 2024 season against Colorado State at 3:30 p.m. ET Saturday.