Here's a bit of good Longhorns football news to start your weekend off right--ESPN.com recently released their Ultimate 300 rankings, and the Texas Longhorns received some love for their recruiting efforts over the past eight years.
Damon Sayles of ESPN.com lists the Texas Longhorns as being the second-best recruiter in the Big 12 since 2006, finishing only behind the rival Oklahoma Sooners.
Sayles cites the fact that Texas signed nine of ESPN's Ultimate 300 recruits, along with the fact that all of those players "are from the Lone Star State." Former Texas Longhorns head coach Mack Brown did a very solid job of protecting the Longhorns' home turf, which was an essential part of their seven bowl appearances over the past eight seasons.
A big factor in the Texas Longhorns landing so high on the list is their 2012 recruiting efforts, which yielded the second-ranked defensive end in the nation (Jordan Jeffcoat) and the second-ranked running back in the country (Johnathan Gray.)
In addition to finishing second in ESPN's Big 12 rankings, the site lists the Texas Longhorns as a national "honorable mention," placing them just outside their top-ten rankings for the entire FBS. The Oklahoma Sooners finished ninth.