Horns still in the lead for Houston

This is an example of a premium article on BuffStampede.com. Football recruiting really heats up this month. Don't miss the boat - sign-up for a free 7-day trial.

No prospect in the state of Colorado has improved his stock more since the football season began than Michael Houston. The young running back from Denver (Colo.) Montbello played 20-pounds lighter as a senior and it improved his ability to make defenders miss in the open field. He finished with more than 1,400 yards and 28 TDs.

Since Montbello lost to Columbine in the second round of the state playoffs, Houston has been able to shift his focus to recruiting and preparing for the next level. The 6-foot-0, 230-pounder will enroll at the college of his choice in January.

“I’m going to be training with a track coach and I’m going to be working on my forty time,” Houston said. “I’m also going to be working on getting stronger with Coach Herman White. I have about six weeks to do that before I go to college.”

Houston holds scholarship offers from Texas, Colorado, UCLA and Iowa State. He visited Texas back in early November and he is set to visit UCLA officially next weekend.

Do the Longhorns still lead for his signature? “I would say that they are leading just because that was my first visit," he said.

“I’m looking forward to visiting UCLA,” Houston added. “Coach Eric Bieniemy, the running backs coach, played under my current coach back when my coach was coaching at CU. My coach speaks highly of him. I really like their program because there are a lot of young guys and it seems like an up and coming program. I also like UCLA’s campus.”

Houston took a train up to watch the Buffaloes big win over Nebraska last Friday.

“I took that trip with my friend and some of her family,” Houston explained. “Her brother, Stephone Robinson, plays for Colorado. They want me to take an official visit on December 11th. I haven’t decided yet if I will take that visit or not.”

“The whole experience was pretty cool,” he added. “They have a pretty strong team even after what happened in the beginning of the year. That’s also a pretty good situation now that Bobby Purify is going to be leaving. The fans were real cool, they knew who I was and they were talking to me. So I had a good time with it all.”

Houston has his first in-home visit lined up with Texas for this Tuesday. “I’ll probably make my decision before Christmas,” he said. “I haven’t decided the actual date yet.”

Houston tries to patent himself after Kansas City Chiefs’ running back Priest Holmes.

“I’m a big back,” he said. “But what sets me apart from most big backs is the fact that I have very good feet. I can make the moves that a smaller back makes but I still have the power to hit the holes. I can make moves in the open field. I’m big with good feet.”

Houston carries a 3.8 GPA and he scored 19 on the ACT. He plans to study Theatre.