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1 hour ago, Burt Macklin said:

The schematic wrinkles mentioned make sense. Ossai is big enough to play WDE in a 4 man, but mobile enough to also line up at B-backer. I could care less where he lines up. It's clear Ossai is one of our best 11 and he'll be on the field all the time. Orlando wants to have a B-backer. It's the best version of his defense and he killed it with Bowser at UH, but he just hasn't had that guy at UT until now. Whether you count Ossai as a DL or LB, I expect that we'll only play one ILB very often once we hit conference play (La Tech and LSU will be misleading becuase we'll play a little heavier early due to their schemes). Whether that guy is McCulloch, Johnson, Floyd, or someone else, we don't have the talent or speed at LB to play 2 ILBs plus Ossai, so I expect our standard in-conference defense will be 3 down linemen with Ossai on the Edge, one ILB, plus 6 DBs with Overshown at Joker (hopefully) and Foster at Nickel.  That personnel grouping could function in a 4-3 alignment almost as easily as it could a true dime alignment.  If Overshown turns out to be the guy we think he could be, it would be liking having 2 BJ Foster from last year on the field. Orlando could kill it with that talent and versatility. He could disguise coverage and be the aggressor, forcing offenses to adjust to him, instead of the other way around. 

On offense, I hope we play more 4 WR. We have too much talent there to not get it on the field. CJ is a stud. I think the combo of SR Duvernay and Eagles will be significantly more productive than Duvernay was last year, and we're unbelievably stacked at slot. I think both Moore and McCoy are going to be guys you just have to get on the field. Moore looked extremely explosive coming off his cuts in some of the offseason videos. He looked unguardable. He can be a rich man's RHM from 2 years ago. Reliable, sits in zones, but he's much more explosive than RHM and he'll get more YAC.  

Hope Horns base defenses are good enough early during the season that Orlando can hold back some surprises for the BlowU game as far as formations and scheme.

If Josh stays healthy, he will be better than RHM.  Just my 2 cents,  could we start comparing Josh to better players going forward..... maybe a Jarvis Landry, JuJu Smith-Schuster or Cooper Kupp?

Thx 😁

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48 minutes ago, LTtxfan said:

Hope Horns base defenses are good enough early during the season that Orlando can hold back some surprises for the BlowU game as far as formations and scheme.

If Josh stays healthy, he will be better than RHM.  Just my 2 cents,  could we start comparing Josh to better players going forward..... maybe a Jarvis Landry, JuJu Smith-Schuster or Cooper Kupp?

Thx 😁

Moore and Smith/McCoy splitting time in the slot, or running at 2 inside WRs is going to be nasty. Josh has been a pleasant surprise, I figured he would flame out at the college level but he is a good player. He is going to have a hell of a time fending off the freshmen long term though. 

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It seems our offense is developing akin to our defense.

A whole lot of 'tweener players that don't have a true position. WR's that can easily line up as RB, TE's that can flex to WR to back to RB. A DC tries to match his defensive package to the the offensive players (a reason why the offense has to commit inside the numbers), but with so many flex players, Texas could run different attacks from the same player grouping.

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7 hours ago, GoldAppleCorps said:

It seems our offense is developing akin to our defense.

A whole lot of 'tweener players that don't have a true position. WR's that can easily line up as RB, TE's that can flex to WR to back to RB. A DC tries to match his defensive package to the the offensive players (a reason why the offense has to commit inside the numbers), but with so many flex players, Texas could run different attacks from the same player grouping.

Good point.

This is the new way to not tip your hand. Teams started getting offenses tendencies by formation. Then they started figuring out what you liked to do with certain personel on the field. Then you can mix up both to keep defenses on their heels. It’s all smoke and mirrors. Run power, inside zone and throw the ball vertical. Win games. 

 

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The dog is way more in sync than the blond. Wait, this thread is about football, right? 

Regarding the frequent, “Hey, that Wiley kid may be something” posts, count me among the believers. For an 18 year old to have that frame and the athletic ability to be your HS team’s quarterback is something special. He’s already put on 20-25 pounds since high school. I know we need tight ends, but I wouldn’t be surprised to see him grow into an agile tackle one day, which could mean a pretty nice payday. I await the $9.95ers reports on his blocking ability in pads.

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IT with some team notes and stuff on Tyler Owens and Jake Ehlinger:

From: EN

I caught up with a team source to get an idea on how some guys are looking as spring ball enters week-two. Some of this is redundant, which is actually a good thing.

--Wide receiver Brennan Eagles is much more physical this year, and it doesn't look forced like he's being someone he's not. Having seen him in practice in high school a handful of times I understand this. He was a physical blocker who through his weight around.

-- I heard even more effusive praise around Roschon Johnson, with the caveat that he can only be touched outside of the pocket. He's made some pretty throws and has been more accurate than Casey Thompson. His arm is better than Thompson's as well. Johnson is actually making more noise with his arm than legs. I've heard he's not as fast as Thompson and not as elusive as Ehlinger, but he looks good as a runner. The source reiterated, "can he play this under pressure, in front of a huge crowd?"

-- On the corners. "They could play a Big 12 schedule with Boyce and Green starting and Jamison #3 and be fine, but you wonder who would lock up the true #1 receivers. But those are the guys Cook will likely draw." I've heard of no timetable for Cook to return from his hamstring injury.

-- I haven't heard much about the new arrival defensive ends, Peter Mpagi and Jacoby Jones. Not surprising but Mpagi has a long way to go and won't be ready anytime soon. He needs to get bigger, stronger, and more aggressive. On Jones, he's got it all except the necessary size. He may be the hardest worker on the team and eat, sleeps, and breathes football. The source said on Jones, "if they red-shirted him he'd be special as a senior." We don't foresee him red-shirting but I'll be filing that quote away.

-- I had to check in on tight end Jared Wiley. He's been mainly flexed out so it's too early to get a feel for him as a blocker. What we want to hear is that he's aggressive and fights. Of course everybody is in awe of his raw materials.

-- With Denzel Okafor repping at right tackle I asked about Christian Jones. "Next year would be early for him. It would be a lot of learning on the job. They'd have to live with growing pains. Could he be about average? Maybe so." He has a bright future but I'm not sure he has a bright present. He's ahead of schedule, though, so a little experience could go a long way."

-- Sterns was very comfortable in the back-end getting everyone lined up with Brandon Jones out. It appears Texas will have two steady hands in the secondary as Sterns matures. That's something that will benefit the young corners.
 

From: JW

TYLER OWENS 

We knew UT's 2019 safety signee was a keeper during his senior campaign.

Despite lackluster junior tape, Owens became more of a ball player his final year at Plano East. And according to A&M conspiracists, his five-star ranking was a figment of recruiting bias. Ohh, Billy. 

"I compete in the 100, 4x1 and 4x2," said Owens, after his last track meet. "My personal record in the 100 is 10.29. I also long jump and triple jump, but I’m waiting until later this season so I don’t get hurt. Think 22-something is my best long jump, and 45’5 for triple."

10.29? At 6-foot-2, 207 pounds? Lord, Jesus.

So why the Longhorns?

“The coaches and their relationship with the players," said Owens. "And how cool they were with me when I got on campus.”

Two coaches in particular, stood out; Craig Naivar and Jason Washington.

“Those two coaches are good people, for real,” Owens said. “And they said I’d be good in all those positions in the secondary. I can see myself getting corner action too.”

Cornerback? At that size? Lord, help me. I also suggested the Joker spot.

"I like being in the middle of the field," Owens said. "I can watch and dissect."

Owens' demeanor might be the most pleasant to deal with in the 2019 class as well.

“I make sure to stay humble through all of it." Owens said. "Because someone can humble me at any time.”

This is a guy a lot of people can't wait to see on the 40 Acres this June. I'm one.

EHLINGER: First Blood; Part II

There’s another one.

As if having another Ehlinger at the University of Texas wasn't enough, Austin Westlake senior Jake Ehlinger will follow in his family's tradition of attending the school and his brother's footsteps of playing on the gridiron.

Ehlinger had suitors. When you boast an 4.0 GPA and high SAT score, the Ivy Leagues come calling. Tulsa, SMU, and Rice did too. But for Jake, it was more than that.

“Attending the McCombs School of Business, staying in Austin with family, the Texas football team and legacy, and thirst to prove myself and earn myself a scholarship," Jake explained, on why he passed up scholarships to stay close to home. It was always on the back of his mind.

“I thought I could after my junior year because I was getting rewards such as all state and things like that, said Jake. "And being recruited from schools made me feel good. From that point on, I thought I could but what convinced me to instill confidence that I really could was after our Brandeis playoff game this year, round 4 of the playoffs. Sam had been at the game and told me after that he knows I can do big things because he saw me play then and there and how much I had grown.”

That reassurance from big brother was key to this going down.

The 6-foot, 212-pound linebacker had a stellar senior campaign tallying 106 tackles, two sacks, nine TFL, and three TDs to go with a District MVP award.

But it hasn't been decided where Jake fits best yet. That won't become clear until August.

“I honestly think that it’ll be up to the coaches wherever they see me best at," said Jake. "I played FB/H-back this year as well and had a lot of fun and was successful doing so.”

For Jake's mother, Jena, this is becoming more surreal by the day. The opportunity for both of her sons to play at Texas is more than faith, it's divine intervention.

“She is unbelievably happy," said Jake. "But she wouldn’t admit that to me because she wouldn’t want me to feel pressured into going to UT and would want me to be happy with where I go. She really is the most caring and giving person and wants the best for everything and everyone around her.”

Jena explains why having both Sam and Jake at Texas is such a big deal to the family.

“Both (Sam and Jake) have dreamed of playing football at UT since they were little boys playing football in back yard," Jena said. "Now, they get to do it together. Just amazing. And they are both in the business school together."

The same school where their dad, Ross, graduated in 1988.

"I knew when Sam was older, and naturally stronger, that all the wrestling was going to pay off for Jake," Jena said with laughter. "And I remember the day Jake took him down with a Gatorade bottle to the face. That was the day the QB respected the LB and realized he was just as Strong."

Losing his father at the age of 11, it was a stunning tragedy the family still feels.

"Ross never went easy on them and they have never gone easy on each other," said Jena. "I love that they get to push each other and support each other on the 40 acres. On the football field and in the same classrooms."

With both Ehlinger boys set to play in their family's dream backyard, DKR, Jena attributes most of it to their faith. 

“Angels are real and that hard work truly does pay off,” said Jena. “This is all too good to be true without a grand plan from the man above and our angel.”

Amen.

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Brief practice notes from IT

 

Off the bat, there didn’t seem to be any noticeable absences with this being the first practice following spring break, though that will be something we will confirm with Tom Herman when he begins his availability right when this goes up. 

What was noticeable was who was back. Devin Duvernay, Collin Johnson, and Anthony Cook all were suited up today. Duvernay and Cook ran through drills with their respective groups, while Johnson appeared to go through a more limited number of reps. Caleb Johnson was also out of his green “no touch” jersey. The only green jersey still on the field was Marqez Bimage.

De’Gabriel Floyd wasn’t in a green jersey, but he wasn’t in pads either. He stood and observed in his practice jersey and was not participating. 

Although Cook was back on the field he wasn’t the first string corner in pursuit drills, which usually tells the tale of the depth chart.

I’ll note that many players had their jerseys tucked underneath their shoulder pads, obscuring their front numbers. From what I could tell, here’s I saw on defense today:

DL: Malcolm Roach - Gerald Wilbon - Ta’Quon Graham
MLB: Ayodele Adeoye
RLB: Jeffrey McCulloch
BLB: Joseph Ossai
S: Caden Sterns, Chris Brown
NB: BJ Foster
CB: Kobe Boyce, Jalen Green

DL: Jacoby Jones - Jamari Chisholm - Moro Ojomo
MLB: Cort Jaquess 
RLB: Caleb Johnson
BLB: Byron Vaughns
S: DeMarvion Overshown, Montrell Estell
NB: Josh Thompson
CB: D’Shawn Jamison, Donovan Duvernay

I didn’t see the OL today, but I did see the WRs run on air. The order:

Z: Brennan Eagles, Al’vonte Woodard, Kai Jarmon, Devin Duvernay
X: Malcolm Epps, Bru McCoy, Kartik Akkihal
H: Joshua Moore, Jordan Pouncey, Travis West, Joshua Matthews, Kai Money

Edited by Machinator
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IT:  From what I could tell, here’s who I saw on defense today:

DL: Malcolm Roach - Gerald Wilson - Ta’Quon Graham
MLB: Ayodele Adeoye
RLB: Jeffrey McCulloch
BLB: Joseph Ossai
S: Caden Sterns, Chris Brown
NB: BJ Foster
CB: Kobe Boyce, Jalen Green

DL: Jacoby Jones - Jamari Chisholm - Moro Ojomo
MLB: Cort Jaquess 
RLB: Caleb Johnson
BLB: Byron Vaughns
S: DeMarvion Overshown, Montrell Estell
NB: Josh Thompson
CB: D’Shawn Jamison, Donovan Duvernay

I didn’t see the OL today, but I did see the WRs run on air. The order:

Z: Brennan Eagles, Al’vonte Woodard, Kai Jarmon, Devin Duvernay
X: Malcolm Epps, Bru McCoy, Kartik Akkihal
H: Joshua Moore, Jordan Pouncey, Travis West, Joshua Matthews, Kai Money

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Wow, checking out this depth chart really shows how young this 2019 Texas squad is.....

LB is definitely thin.

 

Edited by LTtxfan
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DGF's neck and stinger problems may linger, but with something this protracted, I like the fact that he has a positive MRI. Heaven forbid, but if he does not get better with time (bulging and extruded discs can resorb naturally), there is a clear surgical target. The frustrating ones to treat are the ones that have poorly focused physical findings or deficits that do not correspond to imaging.

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15 minutes ago, Magus Ossis said:

DGF's neck and stinger problems may linger, but with something this protracted, I like the fact that he has a positive MRI. Heaven forbid, but if he does not get better with time (bulging and extruded discs can resorb naturally), there is a clear surgical target. The frustrating ones to treat are the ones that have poorly focused physical findings or deficits that do not correspond to imaging.

Yeah, well, if this is something recurring that can be repaired with surgery, then he as well as us as fans should count ourselves fortunate. 

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On 3/22/2019 at 11:58 PM, ztejas said:

This gave us our last national championship so I'm on board with it for 2019. 

Agreed,  schematically. Same as 2005 - emotionally have the team feed off the leadership at QB and DL on defense. 

 

Edited by Zavala
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6 hours ago, Machinator said:

On Jones, he's got it all except the necessary size. He may be the hardest worker on the team and eat, sleeps, and breathes football. The source said on Jones, "if they red-shirted him he'd be special as a senior." We don't foresee him red-shirting but I'll be filing that quote away.

I hadn’t heard this.  I thought his recruiting profile had him at 6’4” 250?  not big enough?

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(Chip Brown) Spring practice: Devin Duvernay returns to the offense, more

AUSTIN, Texas — The Longhorns returned from spring break for practice No. 4 of spring football and welcomed back receiver Devin Duvernay, who missed the first three spring practices with a stress reaction in his pubic bone. As is the case with any player working back from injury, Duvernay was last in line for drills at Z-receiver behind Brennan Eagles and Al'Vonte Woodard. But Duvernay was moving well.

Receiver Collin Johnson, who is still working his way back from off-season knee surgery, was in full pads Monday but was still working with the rehab unit that also includes defensive end Marqez Bimage (shoulder). Both are expected back to practice soon. The Longhorns will practice and host Pro Day on Wednesday and will have a scrimmage on Saturday.

The running back rotation on Monday had Keaontay Ingram working with the No. 1 offense, while Kirk Johnson got the first reps with the No. 2 offense, followed by Jordan Whittington and Daniel Young. In the 20 minutes of practice the media was allowed to watch Monday, the first-team offensive line continues to be: Samuel Cosmi at left tackle, Tope Imade at left guard, Zach Shackelford at center, Derek Kerstetter at right guard and Denzel Okafor at right tackle. The second-team O-line: Reese Moore at left tackle, Junior Angilau at left guard, Rafiti Ghirmai at center, JP Urquidez at right guard and Christian Jones at right tackle. Herb Hand got after freshman Tyler Johnson, who is working with the third team offensive line at left tackle during a drill in which players were firing into a blocking sled out of a pass set.

Johnson didn’t make very good contact with the sled on his first attempt, and Hand made him do it again. Then, Hand wasn’t satisfied with the second attempt and made Johnson do it a third time. Johnson knew it before Hand said anything, clapping his hands together in disgust both times. But I’ll say this — Johnson, who is listed at 315 pounds, is put together and looks notably bigger than Moore, who is listed at 300 pounds. The early enrollee, winter conditioning appears to have served Johnson well.

One note at tight end: While Cade Brewer continues to get the first-team reps, Reese Leitao got the first reps with the second-team offense, but split those second-team reps with early enrollee freshman Jared Wiley (whom coaches are very high on).

At receiver, Malcolm Epps lined up with the first team at X (where Collin Johnson will be lined up when he returns) with early enrollee freshman Bru McCoy working with the second team offense at X. Joshua Moore was the slot receiver with the first-team offense, followed by Jordan Pouncey. Eagles was the first-team Z-receiver (where Duvernay lines up when fully healthy), followed by Woodard.

After having a week off, the quarterbacks, led by Sam Ehlinger, looked sharp in early throwing drills against air. I was particularly impressed with the footwork and setup of early enrollee freshman Roschon Johnson, who transitions his weight onto his front foot well and was throwing an accurate, tight spiral on Monday.

Couple other notes: When the team broke into two-on-two drills involving the slot and an outside receiver against two defensive backs, DeMarvion Overshown showed impressive speed in closing on the outside receiver to make a hit almost as soon as the receiver caught the ball. Overshown’s speed popped for sure. Andrew Beck, UT's first-team All-Big 12 H-back/tight end last season, was at practice Monday and said he's ready for the Longhorns' Pro Day on Wednesday. Beck, defensive end/outside linebacker Breckyn Hager and defensive tackle Chris Nelson were among the notable UT players who weren't invited to the NFL combine and are hoping to make a big impression on NFL personnel attending Pro Day.

"Oh yeah, I'm ready," Beck said smiling. Texas coach Tom Herman said he contacted some NFL personnel to see about getting Beck and Nelson invited to the combine but was unsuccessful.

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