A strong junior season on the defensive line for the Lake Travis Cavaliers had Gus Cordova soaring up the 2025 recruiting ranks. The 6’5″, 250-pound prospect from Austin, Texas, revealed an official visit itinerary for this spring full of blue chip hosts — Alabama on March 8, LSU on March 9, Ohio State on March 18, USC on March 23, Texas A&M on April 6 and Texas on April 20.
At least one of those programs, Texas, has rescinded its offer after an alleged incident surrounding a peanut allergy prank in the Lake Travis locker room before a game last season.
Why Did Texas Take Back Gus Cordova’s Offer?
In two seasons on varsity for the Cavaliers, Cordova has racked up 124 career tackles, eight for a loss, with three sacks in the trenches for one of the top high school programs in Texas. His efforts on the field were rewarded with around 40 offers from across the country.
Recently, his off-field character has come under public scrutiny after a November report from KXAN in Austin resurfaced this month. The report details an incident involving Cordova’s teammate, who suffers from a peanut allergy, finding peanuts in his locker before a game on October 5.
According to the player’s mother, he reported having hives but quickly washed his hands before touching his face and even went on to play in the game a couple of hours later. The peanuts were believed to have been left in his locker by some of his teammates, who may have been aware of his allergy.
Over a month later, the player’s mother, named in the report along with her son, appeared in front of the Lake Travis school board for a disciplinary hearing. The players alleged responsible were disciplined internally and forced to sit out an undisclosed number of games.
After meeting with law enforcement agencies and consulting with the assistant district attorney’s office, the school police department decided not to pursue criminal charges, according to the KXAN report.
The district determined the incident didn’t meet the legal standards of bullying, while admitting it didn’t open an investigation to determine if it was bullying until after the disciplinary hearing on November 16.
Not satisfied with that decision and feeling the punishment for the ones alleged to be responsible wasn’t harsh enough, the player’s mother went public with the story.
“These boys were handed minimal consequences,” the mother said in the report. “Since this incident, my son has faced backlash and retaliation almost daily.”
Cordova’s name or any name of the alleged offenders aren’t named in the KXAN report because they are minors. Still, the alleged victim, who is also a minor, and his mother are identified in the story because they came forward with the information and gave consent to be associated with it.
While the story was reported locally by multiple outlets around the time of the hearing, it recently gained traction after former Texas football players started posting about the KXAN story.
KEEP READING: Top 10 Players in the 2025 College Football Recruiting Class
Since then, rumors have swirled about Cordova’s alleged involvement in the incident.
Amidst the allegations, Texas has reportedly severed ties with the local standout by withdrawing its offer to Cordova.
I was told by multiple sources that Texas is no longer recruiting Lake Travis defensive lineman Gus Cordova.
Steve Sarkisian and his staff were unaware of the allegations surrounding Cordova before offering him a scholarship. Since being made aware, Texas has backed off.— Anwar Richardson (@AnwarRichardson) February 21, 2024
Cordova has yet to address the allegations publicly, and it is unclear if more programs will follow suit and rescind their offers.
Miss any action from the top college QB Rankings during the 2023 football season? Want to track all the movement with the college football transfer portal? College Football Network has you covered with that and more!