Texas QB Commit KJ Lacey Opens Up About Official Visit Plans, Arch Manning Connection

K.J. Lacey is set for his official visit with the Texas Longhorns this weekend, where he will be hosted by none other than Arch Manning.

KJ Lacey at the Elite 11 Finals / Photo Credit: Brooks Austin

LOS ANGELES, CA - Texas Longhorns quarterback commit KJ Lacey just wrapped up an impressive showing at the 2024 Elite 11 Finals in Los Angeles and was in the thick of the race for the coveted MVP Award all week.

However, with the event now over, Lacey turns his attention toward a trip to Austin for this official visit to the 40 Acres, where he is set to be hosted by none other than Texas backup QB Arch Manning.

On Thursday in a one-on-one interview with Longhorns Country, Lacey opened up about his plans of his upcoming visit, as well as his growing relationship with Manning.

"Just have fun while I'm out there and get to know the coaches even better," Lacey said. "I think Arch (Manning) will be the host for my (official visit), so I want to get to know Arch a little bit more, and why he chose Texas... We have a pretty good relationship. We talk here and there. Every time I go up there I ask him a lot of questions."

Lacey won't be the only big-time recruit visiting Austin this weekend either, with the Saraland (AL) four-star QB set to be joined by a star-studded group of prospects, headlined by the five-star receiver duo of Jaime Ffrench and Kaliq Lockett.

And for Lacey, one of the main priorities on his official visit will be to show Ffrench and Lockett exactly why Texas is home.

"It'll be Jaime Ffrench's I think second time back to Austin, so just let him have the best time of his life while he's out there, let him know what's home, and get him locked in," Lacey said on Thursday. "Also with Kaliq, I'm not sure how many times he's been there but he's from Texas, so I'm pretty sure he's been a few times. I think those are the main two targets for me just on the receiver side right there that I want to get at."

In fact, Lacey already got to spend some time with Ffrench this week, as the Mandarin (Jacksonville, FL) five-star took part in Day 1 of the Elite 11 Finals on Tuesday, and spending some time with the other prospects on the sidelines on Wednesday.

Lacey, of course, did his best to take advantage of that chance, sharing a significant amount of reps with Ffrench on Day 1 in particular.

Now, heading into the O.V., Lacey wants to improve that connection even more.

"The connection has been there for a while," Lacey said. "I met him at Future 50 last year, and the one-on-one's he did pretty good out there. He was on the opposite team from me on the 7-on-7... All the way around I feel like our connection is really strong and it's going to be there for a long time. He's really fast and his hands are just different. His IQ is also up there, He's also outgoing. He's a really nice guy."