John Bonney recruit updates: 2014 safety

Bonney’s father, Jerry, spoke with ESPN to clarify his son’s comments to a Houston television station that had drawn some attention over the weekend and added that crucial bit of information about his son’s recruitment.

The consensus four-star safety has been committed to Texas since September, but recently took visits to Auburn and Baylor before traveling to Austin last weekend, where Bonney reportedly told another Texas commit that he was planning on sticking with the Longhorns.

The Bears, however, are a different story -- they were perceived as the other finalist when he made his original pledge, even though he didn’t release any lists prior to the decision. In fact, 38% of Bonney’s predictions in the 247Sports Crystal Ball were for Baylor.

The reason, besides the recent success and the appeal of helping the Baylor defense continue to improve, is that Bonney and his family have ties to Art Briles from Briles’ time at Houston, as Bonney’s father played basketball for the Cougars.

The 6’0, 180-pounder had long talked about making a decision before or around the start of his senior season, but there was little warning that a commitment to Texas was nearing. And no guarantees that his pick would be the Horns either after his 247Sports predictions trended dead even with Baylor in the summer before the pendulum of industry consensus swung slightly in favor of Texas in previous days.

The Bears remained in the mix in part because of his strong relationship with Art Briles from his days at Houston, a relationship aided by the fact that Bonney’s father played basketball at Houston.

BEAVERTON, Oregon -- Houston (Texas) Lamar safety John Bonney is part of a talented defensive backs class in the state of Texas for 2014. His offer list proves it, too, as he has 23 from all over country.

Bonney spoke to SB Nation Recruiting on Saturday after the SPARQ competition at The Opening, saying that he would like to make a decision before his senior season. The talented defensive playmaker also discussed his recent trip to California, the camps he attended this summer, and why he likes Texas -- the team that industry analysts believe has a 50-50 chance to land his services.

Houston safety John Bonney is likely to be one of the top defensive backs in the class of 2014, and has drawn interest from programs both in Texas and out.

Bonney, who measures in at 6’0 and 175 pounds, has top-notch speed - Rivals reports him as running a 4.5 40 - and as such has drawn high early rankings from various scouting sites. Rivals considers the Lamar High School (Texas) the No. 26 player in his state, while 247 ranks him the No. 15 safety in the country, with Scout a bit more pessimistic at No. 30.