May/June/JULY Football

NFL.com has announced their "Top 15 true sophomores in college football."

[Cue drum roll]

#12....
Malik Jefferson

#7....
Connor Williams

Jefferson has an athletic, muscular frame and has the speed to cover giant swaths of grass on any given play. The league loves size, but truly covets playmaking speed, and Jefferson has that along with a physical nature. If Jefferson plays a more instinctive brand of football, we might start to compare his game to Jaylon Smith's.

Williams wasn't a high-end blue-chipper coming out of high school, but he played his freshman season with outstanding body control, consistency and an advanced understanding of technique. Williams' ultimate position fit could be tied directly to his weight and arm length by the time he comes out.
 
Texas Freak Show

​

Who might Texas' freaks be? A few come to mind:

Malik "Predator" Jefferson, perhaps the most impressive athlete in ALL of college football. That is not hyperbole. This young man comes with an amazing nickname as well, for good reason. Malik's athleticism places him outside of most, if not all, of his contemporaries. He’s 6'3"/240 lbs., runs a 4.38 40 yard dash (!!!), 4.19 shuttle, and a 40 inch vertical (!!!). THAT is incredible!

Collin Johnson, another absolute freak and a Texas legacy. Standing at 6'5", weighing a little bit north of 200 lbs., Johnson is fast and explosive, "Young Megatron" can literally perform standing back flips! He likely runs in the 4.5/40 range. If and when Collin develops his release and route separation skills, there'll be no stopping him.

Devin Duvernay will immediately become one of the fastest players in college football as he is a 10.2 100-meter and a legitimate 4.3 40-yard dash sprinter. This young man simply runs faster than anyone else and he's also a dynamic football player who can slow himself down and utilize change of pace to fool would-be tacklers' angles.

Kent Perkins, if you’ve seen his blocking, particularly in the run game, it’s easy to tell he possesses extreme strength. No matter the position in 2016, expect Kent to mash. If the staff can solidify the right tackle position with a freshman, don’t be surprised if Kent becomes one of the best guards in college football.

Patrick Hudson could deadlift and squat well over 600 lbs., as a senior in high school! FREAK is definitely an appropriate term for Patrick; and on top of that, the big guy's got sweet feet, very nimble for such a large young man.

Brandon Jones could excel at any defensive back position and is the most talented safety prospect since Earl Thomas to arrive on the 40 Acres. Great person, great football player, and can flat-out fly, as he is a 4.3/40 runner himself and a tackling machine.

[TFB]
 
Godz40acres said:
Texas Freak Show

​

Who might Texas' freaks be? A few come to mind:

Malik "Predator" Jefferson, perhaps the most impressive athlete in ALL of college football. That is not hyperbole. This young man comes with an amazing nickname as well, for good reason. Malik's athleticism places him outside of most, if not all, of his contemporaries. He’s 6'3"/240 lbs., runs a 4.38 40 yard dash (!!!), 4.19 shuttle, and a 40 inch vertical (!!!). THAT is incredible!

Collin Johnson, another absolute freak and a Texas legacy. Standing at 6'5", weighing a little bit north of 200 lbs., Johnson is fast and explosive, "Young Megatron" can literally perform standing back flips! He likely runs in the 4.5/40 range. If and when Collin develops his release and route separation skills, there'll be no stopping him.

Devin Duvernay will immediately become one of the fastest players in college football as he is a 10.2 100-meter and a legitimate 4.3 40-yard dash sprinter. This young man simply runs faster than anyone else and he's also a dynamic football player who can slow himself down and utilize change of pace to fool would-be tacklers' angles.

Kent Perkins, if you’ve seen his blocking, particularly in the run game, it’s easy to tell he possesses extreme strength. No matter the position in 2016, expect Kent to mash. If the staff can solidify the right tackle position with a freshman, don’t be surprised if Kent becomes one of the best guards in college football.

Patrick Hudson could deadlift and squat well over 600 lbs., as a senior in high school! FREAK is definitely an appropriate term for Patrick; and on top of that, the big guy's got sweet feet, very nimble for such a large young man.

Brandon Jones could excel at any defensive back position and is the most talented safety prospect since Earl Thomas to arrive on the 40 Acres. Great person, great football player, and can flat-out fly, as he is a 4.3/40 runner himself and a tackling machine.

[TFB]
Click to expand...
Texas football is going to fly its freak flag this year.
 
Things little birdies tell me ...

Here’s a smattering things I’ve heard in the last week regarding the Texas program ...

1. OL Patrick Hudson continues to be the most talked-about freshman in the program. “I wish all of our linemen looked like him,” one source said this week.

2. A former NFL/Longhorns player told me this week that Collin Johnson has been the most impressive receiver he’s seen in offseason workouts this summer.

3. The same former NFL/Longhorns player told me that Davante Davis is a three-year college player. “He’s a little different than the rest of the guys they have. Tell Orangebloods to enjoy him now.”

4. Another former player told me this week that expectations for the incoming freshmen defensive tackles should be tempered quite a bit for this season. “I don’t really see anyone like Patrick Hudson (in the group),” the source said.

5. Don’t expect any movement on the school hiring a new athletic director until 2017. It’s not anything specific that anyone told me, it’s just a vibe I’m picking up. I don’t expect to see progress towards a full-time hire until after the football season.

[Per another poster]
 
So You're Telling Me There's A Chance​

I asked big Kent Perkins if they were excited to push people around this coming year in the run game and he lit up.

“I’m very excited and I know my boys are excited to. We’ve got this different vibe like we head-hunters, we ready to take some heads off.”

There’s clearly genuine excitement on the team about loosing the dogs of war and seeing the years of hard work and low reward pay off for the line.

I asked Perk if this was a “Texas pay back tour” kind of season and he said, “We want teams afraid to play us.” It’s clear that another year in a power run game system with the same group of linemen has the confidence level up.

Honorary “6th OL” Caleb Bluiett also expressed a genuine excitement to initiate violence against the rest of the league, “The Big 12 has been more of a pass, spread league and not a power, run downhill type conference. That’s one play I love, is power. I get to maul the guy in front of me; I get to grab him and try to put him in the dirt. That’s it.”

This is exactly the kind of tight end Sterlin Gilbert is looking for in this system and the pieces look to be in place for the Longhorn run game to do real damage next season.The players can feel it.

I think the Texas defense is still a year away.

Dylan Haines was asked several questions about who the leaders were on this team and what leadership looks like. He tended to name himself as more of a “lead by example” type that wasn’t particularly vocal and Malik in a similar fashion.

To me this begged the question of who the emotional leaders of this team are that can keep guys riled up, passionate, and afraid to let down their teammates. Haines answered that Paul Boyette was the guy that tends to fit into this role, and this is why I think the 2016 Longhorns are still a year or so away.

Paul Boyette, Dylan Haines, and Tim Cole are all major assets to the program that are bought in and excellent examples to the younger players, but can any of them command the full respect of the team?

A theme to watch for in 2016 will be if one of these upperclassmen plays well enough to really galvanize the unit or if one of the younger guys like Malik, Davante Davis (doubtful, the silencer is apparently pretty silent himself), Holton Hill, Kris Boyd (maybe), or Anthony Wheeler starts to grow into a leader over the course of the year.

Boyette, Haines, and Cole are all guys that can be valuable role players on a great or even elite unit. They each have some valuable skills combined with a willingness to work hard and do what it takes to fit into a team concept, every team needs guys like that.

The problem is that Texas still doesn’t have guys with the talent to define the team’s identity and the leadership skills to take advantage of that position to lead the rest of the squad on defense.

In 2016, Texas has a physical run game with upperclassmen prominently involved, a passing game with unbelievable potential but also an unbelievable lack of experience, and a defense led by upperclassmen role players and dependent on up and coming talents in the underclassmen ranks.

It’s probably fair to expect that this team will show flashes of total dominance interspersed with head-scratching moments where they give away games thanks to inexperience and lack of cohesion.

The bright side is that the rest of the league is ill equipped to handle a team with Texas’ talent levels properly executing a power run game. Charlie will be able to hang his hat on the run game but the establishment of a defensive identity and the shoring up of the passing game will be critical to making the most of this team’s potential.

[IT]
 
Reports are that Junior TE Blake Whiteley and senior WR Ty Templin will probably take medical schollies due to ACL injuries.

If this happens, we'll be down to 84, leaving one for DE Erick Fowler if he passes his final summer class.
 
Sad to hear about Whitely and Templin. Although their football careers are over, I hope they will use the medical scholarships to get one hell of an education and continue to be longhorns for life.

Good to hear about Fowler. With our unproven D-line, I want as many potential contributors as possible to get a shot at playing.
 
Scattershooting on the Longhorns ...…

… The most under-the-radar important player to the 2016 season is sophomore defensive end Charles Omenihu. His play in the spring and work in the weight room give hope that he has a chance to be an impact player at end this season and if he doesn’t emerge, I’m not sure the Longhorns have an impact player at a position in which they so desperately need one.

… If Shane Buechele doesn’t take off this season as the starter, I don’t think Charlie Strong will have any reservations about throwing Sam Ehlinger into the mix next season. Strong loves him some Ehlinger.

Buy or sell …...

(As always, all of these questions were submitted by actual Orangebloods subscribers.)

BUY or SELL: Texas wins at least one extra game with the addition of LSU grad transfer kicker?

(Sell) I’m not sure I look at the schedule quite like that, but the good news is that Texas might not lose a game it would have otherwise won because of the kicking position.

BUY or SELL: The Big 12 expands, new members only get a fraction of the money, the others rake in the rest and a few teams (UT included) bolt at the end of the GOR?

(Buy) That’s exactly how I see it going down.

BUY or SELL: Texas will sneak into the top 25 some time during the season?

(Buy) I spent about five minutes thinking about this question and I’m very much on the fence. A win over the Irish gets Texas there pretty quickly.

BUY or SELL: UH gets into the Big 12?

(Sell) It’s going to take eight of 10 schools to vote yes and I believe there are enough schools in the conference that believe the league is already too saturated with Texas schools and doesn’t need a roadblock into Houston high schools in recruiting.

BUY or SELL: Colin Cowherd is wrong about Texas not being in "Tier 1" of the Top 6 college programs?

(Buy) Texas is first all-time in money, third in all-time wins, has played in two national title games in the last 11 seasons, has its own network and plays in one of the top three talent-beds in the nation.

BUY or SELL: With only two weeks to go, Erick Fowler is in a Texas Longhorn practice uniform on the first day of Fall camp.

(Buy) I’m all-in at this point.

[Per another poster]
 
One of the most useful positional conference macro views is returning aggregate OL starts. The Big 12 has a massive deficit of OL experience in 2016 and the teams with a surfeit of experience should realize an advantage vis a vis their peers. Particularly early in the season.

[Excluding Oklahoma State and West Virginia, the conference] has poor to terrible returning OL experience. No P-5 league is worse off. So while the Longhorns are ranked 3rd in the Big 12, they're still in the bottom quartile nationally. Anyone touting Texas "as having the conference's 3rd most experienced OL!!!" is technically correct....and needs to be kept far away from statistical analysis of any kind.

The most concerning declines in OL experience are Baylor and Oklahoma.

Last year, Baylor's skill players received undue praise. It was their OL that carried them to a ten win season despite a plague of injuries and distractions. It was their OL that saw them amass 645 rushing yards in their bowl game against North Carolina running three plays. They were run blocking savages who operated in concert more beautifully than a Viennese orchestra.

Oklahoma is a different story. Like the Texas OL, they're up-and-coming. While I take nothing away from Baker Mayfield's remarkable 2015, we'll see how his extended plays play out with an OL lacking skins on the wall and a year of film to ponder in the offseason. OU's OL has promise, but they'll play their best ball over the back half of the year and in 2017/2018. I expect a healthy dose of Perrine and Mixon until they find their sea legs.

[BC]

This post discusses how the 'Horns can take advantage of the conference OL drop-offs, while this post talks more about Texas' OL outlook.
 
Godz40acres said:
If Shane Buechele doesn’t take off this season as the starter, I don’t think Charlie Strong will have any reservations about throwing Sam Ehlinger into the mix next season. Strong loves him some Ehlinger.
Click to expand...
If Boo fails; Herman will be the coach who puts Ehlinger in.
 
Jerrod Heard “in WR meetings”

I’d mentioned previously that Heard had been getting a little bit of work with the receivers in 7-on-7 drills, but was told by a good source that Heard is now also going to WR meetings.

This doesn’t necessarily mean that Heard is moving to WR immediately or even that one is imminent, but it’s sure starting to sound like he has a foot or so out the door.

Charlie Strong said at his availability during Big 12 media days that he doesn’t make players change positions, and that he leaves it up to them to change positions if that is what they want to do.

With this understood, it would be hard to believe that Strong would be as welcoming of a move from QB to WR from Heard as he would be one from … say … Kai Locksley. Strong would have Tyrone Swoopes and a freshman as the only somewhat-reasonable QB options next season in the absence of Heard.

My guess is that Strong will tell him to get back in the QB room for at least one more year.

[Per another poster]
 
Inside The Numbers​

3 — Texas had three freshmen All-Americans in 2015, tied for most in the nation with Alabama.

6 — Texas LB Malik Jefferson garnered six preseason honors in 2016.

8 — Texas had eight 100-yard rushers in last eight games of 2015’s season. Seven were by underclassmen.

10 — Ten true freshmen started a game during the 2015 season – a Texas record. The 10 frosh combined to start 73 games, another record.

12 — All but one of UT’s 13 interceptions a season ago were recorded by underclassmen.

17 — Of the 23 signees in Strong’s ’15 class, 17 of them played as true freshmen.

33 — Of the Longhorns’ 40 touchdowns in 2015, 33 (82.5%) of them came from players returning in 2016.

47 — Texas had 47 student-athletes named to the Big 12 Commissioners Honor Roll during the Spring semester. Of those players, two had 4.0 GPAs and 40 will return in 2016.

89 — UT had 89 explosive plays of more than 20 yards last season.

276 — Texas RB Chris Warren III set a new freshman record with 276 yards against Texas Tech.

527 — Texas QB/WR Jerrod Heard set a UT record with 527 all-purpose yards against Cal in 2015.

575 — The Longhorns were active in the community during the Spring semester, volunteering more than 575 hours between January and May.

[IT]
 
I want to believe in this season but I just watched the spring game again. Despite a dearth of d-line talent, our o-line struggled to get displacement early. Pass protection was ok but not great.

I think our o-line and defensive tackles are a year away yet again.

Please tell me someone from hornfans will have a drone watching our first practices next week to give me more hope.
 
p_town_horn said:
I want to believe in this season but I just watched the spring game again. Despite a dearth of d-line talent, our o-line struggled to get displacement early. Pass protection was ok but not great.

I think our o-line and defensive tackles are a year away yet again.

Please tell me someone from hornfans will have a drone watching our first practices next week to give me more hope.
Click to expand...
I went into it expecting more out of the defense and kind of expected vanilla with the offense. New coaches new system new QB spring wasn't enough time to get all that in and even if they did they wouldn't have exposed it all
 
Heard/Swoopes Can Still Help Horns

650x366

While the odds are against senior Tyrone Swoopes or sophomore Jerrod Heard beating Buechele out for the starting job, both veteran signal-callers are going to play big roles offensively. That’s especially true for Swoopes as Charlie Strong said during Big 12 Media Days.

“That package produced a lot of points for us and that was a good package for us,” Strong said. “That’s something you don’t just eliminate from your offense.”

Strong insists Heard will get a fair shake at quarterback, but he said earlier this summer that even if Heard isn’t the starter then he too could have a specialty package.

With a pair of quarterbacks who boast starting experience and have the ability to impact the game with their feet on the roster, Strong said the options are almost endless for how to use them.

“With those quarterbacks, you look at them and they can all do different things,” Strong said. “If you want a specialty package for one of them, you can always get that worked out. I think Sterlin’s smart enough to do that.”

[Horns247]

-------

I need help with this... I'm on the fence without a cup.

I get that, with a tru-fresh QB, the unknown is... unknowable. So, having experienced backups is absolutely essential. But two things have my gastric juices firing:

1. Packages ain't gonna cut it if Boo goes down for multiple games, whether through injury or ineptness. Heard and Swoopes had better be preparing to be the starter from the start of Fall Camp.

2. Someone on here (apologies for not remember who) recently posted an astute observation that Heard began to falter last season when the use of the 18 Wheeler increased. It seemed to hinder his flow. That could happen to Boo as well. Then again, maybe it could help him not feel like he has shoulder the full burden of leading the team. Then again, being the competitor and leader he is, shouldering the burden is what he loves.​

Help.

On another note, IMHO, Jerrod should be the backup and Tyrone the package handler. Heard is much better suited to this offense than Swoopes.
 
Heard was faltering before the 18 wheeler package.
The last 3 games or so, I was wondering why they even put him in.
It wasn't his flow.
He was holding the ball and taking sacks.
 
It would be best if Heard was #2 and Swoopes was the package guy.

Practice starts week of Aug 8, right?
 
I think Heard began to have problems when the defenses started game planning to contain his creative running ability.

I can't remember exactly when the 18 wheeler package began, but I think it was after Norvell took over as OC, maybe even as early as game 2. He had prior experience with the Bell Dozer at OU and was well aware of how to configure it.

I figure any of these QB's could and should be substituted whenever the other guy(s) fail to produce offense. They each have unique skill sets that should require extensive game planning by the opposing DC.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Recent Threads

Prediction Results Threads

2024 Schedules

Back
Top