Whenever a coach takes over at a new university, they always try to find a cornerstone/foundational player to add to the program. I think Steve Sarkisian has found that player in freshman defensive lineman Justice Finkley.

Justice Finkley

Justice Finkley was, in my opinion, the biggest defensive signee in the 2022 recruiting class. In a head-to-head battle against Nick Saban, Steve Sarkisian was able to win over Finkley, a four-star defensive end out of Trussville, Alabama. Winning any recruiting battle is difficult but winning one over the greatest coach of all time is nearly impossible.

It is pretty clear why Saban fought so hard for Finkley. Finkley was a top 130 player according to On3’s consensus rankings, but I believe he is severely underrated. At the Under-Armour All-American game practices Finkley absolutely dominated top ranked offensive linemen in one-on-one drills.

Finkley is also a former wrestler. What does that have to do with football, you might ask. Well, a big part of wrestling is using leverage. That can very easily translate to the football field as defensive and offensive linemen have to understand and use leverage every single play. It is pretty obvious that Finkley utilizes that knowledge of leverage to his advantage.

Enough of what I think though, let’s look at what Clint Brewster a 247sports recruiting analyst thinks of Justice Finkley.

“Brawny rocked up compact frame, Finkley has a thick lower half that can generate force. Powerful leverage rusher in a 3-4 scheme at the high school level. Also shifts down to play defensive tackle at times. Excellent crossing the face of offensive lineman and getting an inside rush. Good chase athleticism and lateral movement skills. Gets underneath opponents and can forklift with great leverage. Play strength and physicality upon contact standout with Finkley. Can move down to the interior shades on the defensive line at the next level depending on physical development.”

-Clint Brewster via 247sports.com

In Closing

Finkley is one of those guys you can’t miss on, and Sark didn’t miss. As a Texas fan you should be ecstatic to have this guy on campus. I promise you when 2023 rolls around Justice Finkley will be dominating opposing offensive lines every single game. Finkley is a cornerstone for this defensive line that Texas hasn’t had since Mack Brown. Now let’s see if Sark can start to stack these elite recruiting classes like Nick Saban has come accustomed to.

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