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Texas Summer Football Thread


Reese Bennett

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WVU - They'll be really good if literally no one gets hurt: https://www.sbnation.com/college-football/2018/6/7/17418580/west-virginia-football-2018-preview-schedule-roster

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WVU is going to start with a pretty awesome starting 22. There is star power at QB (Grier), WR (Jennings, Sills), OL (Cajuste), LB (Long), and safety (Askew-Henry, Robinson), and another batch of exciting transfers is arriving, too.

You don’t usually keep your intended 22 on the field the entire year, though, and where the injury bug bites will determine much of WVU’s success. Depth issues are impossible to describe with certainty because we simply don’t know how much it will cost a team.

S&P+ sees two pretty likely losses (24 percent win probability against OU, 29 percent at OSU) and two likely wins (82 percent vs. Kansas, 90 percent vs. Youngstown State). The other eight games are projected within 7.1 or fewer points. A team with Grier, Sills, etc., could survive just fine — the Mountaineers had won three straight one-possession finishes when Grier went down, after all.

Because of depth and this ridiculous schedule, there might not be a more mysterious team in the country than WVU. Theoretically, 3-9 and 10-2 are on the table.

 

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43 minutes ago, texifornia said:

Thankfully we play them in November. They'll be the most interesting squad in the Big 12 next year. As long as Grier stays healthy, they'll put up a ton of points and if their defense stays healthy, it could be just barely be not bad enough to cause them to lose games in the Big 12. However, the odds of them all staying healthy are low and if they suffer even a couple bad injuries on defense, they'll become a total sieve.  They may have the largest range of realistic outcomes of any team in the conference. 

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49 minutes ago, Walden Ponderer said:

North Korea has nukes. People actually fear what they might do. The only thing people fear about aggy is that they will move into the neighborhood.

Ehh.  They talk a good game.  Just like the aggys.

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13 minutes ago, texifornia said:

 

So glad he's on campus! Do yourselves a favor and watch his hudl, titled "All my Victims." He straight up demolishes fools and is way faster and more agile than any man his size should be. I pity those poor LBs who had to face him when he's pulling.

https://www.hudl.com/video/3/4038774/587c88b75b3cb03b40f5b9ed

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The Eyes of Texas: Let’s talk a little football

Everyone wants to know who’s looking good in summer workouts now that incoming freshmen and transfers are finally getting on campus. Well, even though it’s early, we can report Cal grad transfer running back Tre Watson is making it clear he doesn’t lack confidence. “Tre Watson has basically let most of his teammates know he is the best running back on the team, if not the conference,” said one source close to the situation. “It’s not being cocky if you can back it up. So, we’ll see if he can back it up once the pads go on.”

That's all I've got for now 😕 Not much summer workout news from the $9.95-ers yet

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Mike Blackwell: Texas defense should thrive against unproven quarterbacks

People who are into these sorts of things will tell you that spring is the season of love. Texas coach Tom Herman would undoubtedly agree. After this year's Orange-White game in the spring, he was downright gushing about many topics, not the least of which was the state of his defense. He said he loved his front seven (linemen and linebackers) in particular, and with Todd Orlando and his jaw line still controlling that side of the ball, the entire defense has high expectations.

People now expect the Texas defense that was seen late in 2017, not the one that gave up a half-a-hundred to the Maryland Terrapins in the opener. Those lofty expectations come despite some rather significant pieces missing from last year's team that by the end of the year had been the best and brightest aspect of the bowl-bound Longhorns (Michael Dickson notwithstanding).

A month ago, the National Football League scooped up a wide swath worth of Texas defenders: Poona Ford, Malik Jefferson, Antwuan Davis, Jason Hall, Holton Hill, Naashon Hughes and DeShon Elliott are now in the "business" of football and are no longer wrecking havoc from Orlando's toolbox. But further evaluation reveals perhaps the REAL reason Herman is so optimistic about his defense. One look at the Big 12's list of likely starting quarterbacks, and it's clear that Herman might very well be spewing verbal rainbows and sunshine because he can see that the league is chock-full of unproven signal callers.

Inexperienced quarterbacking from top to bottom in the league has to make Orlando maybe even happier than Herman. Case in point: the Dallas Morning News recently listed its top Big 12 quarterbacks, and sitting atop the heap is Will Grier, who will be running the West Virginia offense. Number two? None other than Sam Ehlinger, who might very well also be the number two quarterback ON HIS OWN TEAM.

Heisman Trophy winner Baker Mayfield of Oklahoma? Gone, replaced by Kyler Murray, who has never been a collegiate starting quarterback but who is listed by the Morning News as the third-best QB in the league. Mason Rudolph of Oklahoma State? Gone to Pittsburgh, where he will be picking up Ben Roethlisberger's laundry this year while drawing a check from the Steelers. Kenny Hill of TCU? Gone, replaced by Shawn Robinson. Texas Tech's Nic Shimonek? Gone. 

All of which to say that, yes, Herman is impressed by a lot of his new faces he sees when he looks at his defense. But his optimism is also enhanced by an unproven group of Big 12 quarterbacks, a fact that bodes well for Year Two of the Herman Era in general and for the Texas defense in particular. If Texas ends up with the second-best quarterback in the Big 12 this year, then 2018 is going to be a big year Longhorns. Love is in the air.

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Personally, I am going to be quite surprised if Kyler Murray plays a down for OU going forward. Guy just went 1st round in MLB draft, with a 4+million figure being waved at him. He is not an NFL type talent, and should take the money and run. And can't see any MLB team that would allow him to play college football with that kind of investment.

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7 hours ago, ausjala said:

Personally, I am going to be quite surprised if Kyler Murray plays a down for OU going forward. Guy just went 1st round in MLB draft, with a 4+million figure being waved at him. He is not an NFL type talent, and should take the money and run. And can't see any MLB team that would allow him to play college football with that kind of investment.

You know, somebody ought to start a thread on this.

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12 hours ago, satyanash said:

The Eyes of Texas: Let’s talk a little football

 

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Everyone wants to know who’s looking good in summer workouts now that incoming freshmen and transfers are finally getting on campus. Well, even though it’s early, we can report Cal grad transfer running back Tre Watson is making it clear he doesn’t lack confidence. “Tre Watson has basically let most of his teammates know he is the best running back on the team, if not the conference,” said one source close to the situation. “It’s not being cocky if you can back it up. So, we’ll see if he can back it up once the pads go on.”

 

 That's all I've got for now 😕 Not much summer workout news from the $9.95-ers yet

If the coaches want to keep everything locked down, that's fine by me. I'll be impatient, but also have to respect how well they've plugged the leaks.

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https://www.sbnation.com/college-football/2018/6/8/17420264/texas-tech-football-2018-preview-schedule-roster

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Because of the extreme returning production on defense, and the extreme lack of it on offense, Tech’s S&P+ projections are ... interesting. The Red Raiders are expected to move up to 47th overall, which makes sense, but they’re projected to fall to 63rd on offense and rise to 39th on defense.

Based solely on recent history, it’s hard to imagine both of those things happening. But ... what if only one does? If the offense craters to average levels and the defense doesn’t make another jump, then Tech probably only wins about three games in 2018.

But if the defense is indeed at a top-50 level, combined with the typical Good Kingsbury Offense? Then basically every game on the schedule is winnable.

That makes Tech awfully intriguing, even if the overall S&P+ projection of 6-6 with a bunch of tight games (seven projected within 6.8 or fewer points) is still the most likely scenario.

It does feel like Kingsbury can’t afford another down year. With a typically good offense and the most experienced (and, sadly, proven) defense he’s ever had, he’s got a chance to finally stand out.

 

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2 hours ago, texifornia said:

If the coaches want to keep everything locked down, that's fine by me. I'll be impatient, but also have to respect how well they've plugged the leaks.

There's also not much to say right now, as the summer session started yesterday and it's barely been a week since most of the players made it to campus.

That said, TFB is saying that Moro Ojomo looks college-ready already and all the sites have said that Joseph Ossai is impressing early. closetojumping was saying the same thing about Ossai based on wherever he gets his info, so take that for what it's worth.

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https://athlonsports.com/college-football/big-12-football-2018-predictions

Athlon with some interesting Big 12 predictions:

  • Picks OU to win the conference, picks Texas 2nd at 9-4 (6-3)
  • Optimistic on Baylor, not so much on Tech
  • Doesn't think our WR unit is in the top half of the conference, but our OL is.
  • They seem to think highly of our LBs. All three of our defensive units are ranked first in the conference.
  • Hager, Calvin Anderson, Orlando, Herman, and Gary all get some individual appreciation
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IT offseason notes:

The freshmen are struggling like us olds in the customary IT August get-in-shape thread.

WELCOME, FRESHMEN

There are a few answers to why recruits "want to enjoy the process."

-It's a once in a lifetime experience.
-It is fun to see knew places, meet knew people, and to be wined and dined.
-They know from friends or former teammates who have been in their shoes that real college football life is nothing like the recruiting process when the recruit holds the leverage.

Hopefully they all enjoyed that process!

As we mentioned last week the freshmen are going through their normal struggles. That continued this week as workouts were ramped up. The rest of the team had an excellent week of work. Unfortunately, this only underscored how much the freshmen were struggling. In two workouts this week the freshmen were sent home in the middle for not matching the intensity of the rest of the team. Essentially, "go home and come back tomorrow." And then again.

We've discussed a part of culture being breaking down a player before building him back up. That's where the freshman class is. This excludes the early enrollees, by the way, who came in at a much more fortuitous time after the season.

WORKOUTS

Same old schedule for the team with morning run and lift sessions. The sessions differ of course, with speed and power days mixed in. As an example, one day may be heavy squats, then later in the week they'll squat with less weight and more explosively off a box.

7 on 7 is also taking place. The coaches give them a script to work off of. Absent the lines, the quarterbacks have looked pretty good. Even most of the picks have come off tipped balls. We continually hear positives about both Cameron Rising and Casey Thompson. Both are finding receivers quicker and Thompson is throwing more accurately. 7 on 7 caveat applies; no defensive line or blitz is going to help matters.

RETURN FROM INJURIES

I checked on sophomore tight end Cade Brewer. He appears close to being 100%, at least from a movement standpoint. He is a bit tentative when he needs to plant, which is normal. Physically I hear, "he looks like a tight end now." He's added needed mass but the question will be his level of lower body strength after the ACL injury. He was robbed of significant developmental time that would have greatly improved his efficacy as a blocker. 

Montrell Estell is the only name I've heard who isn't 'full go'. Judging by him doing high intensity work like pulling sleds, he's probably only a week or two away. The big question we'll be following is what position he ends up at. We've heard receiver is a possibility. 

TWO FRESHMEN WE EXPECT TO SEE THIS SEASON

I don't care that Moro Ojomo is 16 right now. He came in at about 10% body fat. He's mature, already powerful, and very quick off the ball. It will be easy to assimilate him at defensive tackle in four-man fronts, which we'll see a lot of.

DeMarvion Overshown arrived at 215 pounds. Whoa, Kemosabe! They'll get him on the field this season -- likely in the Jason Hall role -- in order to get him ready for 2019 where he'll be needed in a major way (likely at Rover).

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1 hour ago, Machinator said:

I don't care that Moro Ojomo is 16 right now. He came in at about 10% body fat. He's mature, already powerful, and very quick off the ball. It will be easy to assimilate him at defensive tackle in four-man fronts, which we'll see a lot of.

Are folks expecting to see our defense run a lot of four-man fronts? 

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