Spring Football. The time of year where a fan and a team shakes off or tries to build on the previous season. Spring is a time of growth for everything all around us, the time of year where the caterpillar becomes a butterfly and the roses bloom.
In keeping with that theme, one could call the Texas Longhorns the unopened rosebud or caterpillar of the last few years. The potential to transform into something far greater was there, but winter never gave way to spring…….until now. Under the command of a new staff and a strength and conditioning program the likes of which have not been in Austin for years, a new day, perhaps a new era of Texas Football dawns this March.
When the cocoon finally opens on August 30, 2014, will we see a moth or a monarch? That depends on how much the Longhorns offense can grow in next few months. Â Let’s take a look at what’s in the cupboard for Charlie Strong and the new staff.
QUARTERBACK
David Ash – Junior
Tyrone Swoopes – Sophomore
Jerrod Heard – Freshman
This position more than any other will dictate how the offense performs in 2014. David Ash can play the position, but he is not the type of player I think can thrive under new “QB Coach†Shawn Watson. One must also take into account Ash is a hit away from disaster after severe concussion problems kept him out the bulk of the 2013 season.
Swoopes, in my opinion, has to be the front runner going into the spring on his athletic ability, superior durability on paper, and now level playing field with Ash. Jerrod Heard will not arrive until August and must be redshirted if at all possible. USC QB Max Wittek appears to have Texas in the lead for his services as a transfer and would bring badly needed depth and experience to a position which clearly lacks it.
RUNNING BACK
Malcolm Brown – Senior
Joe Bergeron – Senior
Johnathan Gray – Junior
Donald Catalon – Freshman
Donta Foreman – Freshman
Gray is the best of the bunch but is coming off a torn achilles and may not be ready to play this season. Brown can carry the load and carry it well, but needs a true #2 to emerge to help him out, as Bergeron has a knack for the untimely turnover. Freshman Donald Catalon is a guy I’d have picked to play this year even if Gray was healthy, and one can’t discount Donta Foreman in a rotation that needs five or six players and right now has one reliable and one serviceable back headed into the spring. Jalen Overstreet could have helped here in some capacity but needs to get his grades right before he can begin to be considered as a help to the position.
WIDE RECEIVER
Jaxon Shipley – Senior
Kendall Sanders – Junior
Marcus Johnson – Junior
Jacorey Warrick – Sophomore
Montrel Meander – Redshirt Freshman
Jake Oliver – Redshirt Freshman
Armanti Foreman – Freshman
Dorian Leonard – Freshman
Lorenzo Joe – Freshman
Daje Johnson – Sophomore
There are a ton of bodies at the position, headlined by Jaxon Shipley, an outstanding possession receiver who should have a great year with much more help around him and a better arm throwing the ball. Kendall Sanders had a good year, and with strong leadership at the helm should break out in 2014.
Behind those two young men is quite a bit of potential, headed up by Marcus Johnson, who has the early lead for the third receiver spot. I expect Lorenzo Joe to redshirt and a nice battle to ensue for the fourth and fifth spots which will carry over into the season. Look for Dorian Leonard, a 6-4 freshman with mega potential, to see playing time this season. Of any position group on the team, this one is the most stable and well stocked by the prior regime.
Daje Johnson has all the tools to be an electric playmaker, but is currently on the fence with maturity and grade issues. The next few months will tell if he’s Ramonce Taylor II or not, but he’s got to earn his place back before being a thought in this mix.
TIGHT END
Geoff Swaim – Senior
Greg Daniels – Senior
Miles Onyegbule – Senior
M.J. McFarland – Junior
Blake Whiteley – JUCO Transfer
Daniels and Swaim are great blockers who can catch a pass if needed. MJ McFarland should have been something special but has done next to nothing in his time at Texas. Onyegbule could have done something but moved around too much. The position as a whole hasn’t been an asset at Texas in years and needed an infusion of talent like Blake Whiteley, who should immediately become the starter. Whiteley has great hands, enough size to get the job done, and is already on campus to build chemistry with his signal callers. Pencil in Whiteley for 25-30 catches this season with several being those key third down conversion catches Longhorns tight ends haven’t made since Rick Perry was still popular.
OFFENSIVE LINE
Joe Wickline, Offensive Coordinator/Line Coach
Wickline deserves mention because of just how massive his impact is at Texas. Known throughout the coaching world as a “guru,†an outstanding evaluator of talent and one of the foremost authorities on the position in the world today, he instantly makes the Texas offense better. With that said, he’s got a bunch of work to do right away. Keep in mind this is a projection of the two deep with no regard to incoming players or reserves as that entire group is so far from being ready to play right now it is impossible to project where they might go in the disaster scenario where they are having to contribute meaningful snaps.
Left Tackle
Desmond Harrison – Senior
Kennedy Estelle – Junior
You are worried looking at this and I can feel it. The honest answer? You should be. Harrison was billed as a monster and never lived up to it last year, and Estelle has to prove he actually wants to play football. If you believe in Wickline, you pray his mojo works on one of these two and makes them be the monsters they should have already become.
Left Guard
Sedrick Flowers – Junior
Darius James – Redshirt Freshman
I feel much better about these two, as Flowers is on his way to being a good lineman and Darius James is going to develop into a beast. James could end up landing at center if Espinosa continues to struggle with one on one matchups as he has his entire career.
Center
Dominic Espinosa – Senior
Jake Raulerson – Redshirt Freshman
The good news is Espinosa is a Senior, which is also the bad news, as the “leaders†of this offensive line (by age anyway) headed into the spring are two Seniors who have yet to “show me the money†so to speak. I said this about Searles and was wrong, but (this time for sure) if anyone can get Espinosa to produce, Wickline and new strength and conditioning coach Pat Moorer can.
Raulerson is a guy who brings a hard hat and a lunch pail with him and in time is going to be grow into a big contributor somewhere on this team. If he supplanted Espinosa, there would be a few growing pains, but he would do just fine.
Right Guard
Curtis Riser – Sophomore
Rami Hammad – Redshirt Freshman
Curtis Riser can be a good player, and this is not a knock on him, but Rami Hammad will be the opening day starter at a guard spot. Hammad is mean, physical, intelligent, and a prospect who looks like he would have fit right in with the bulldozers who helped win the BCS title. We’ve lacked a warrior at guard for awhile now, and that streak ends in 2014.
Right Tackle
Kent Perkins – Sophomore
Camrhon Hughes – Redshirt Sophomore
I’ve got no complaints about Kent Perkins, who is the best of the four I’ve got plugged in at tackle. The worry is with Camrhon Hughes, a guy with the size and athleticism to be an excellent tackle, but who lacks the motor. Coming off an ACL tear was tough, but Hughes should have been contributing much more by now, and is more Kennedy Estelle than he is Kent Perkins. In 12 months, this isn’t as big an issue, but right now Hughes needs to step up and be the player he was recruited to be.
Overall, this offensive line “should†be ok as long as no one gets hurt, and would be much better off if Swoopes is under center August 30th.
FULLBACK
Alex De La Torre – Junior
Chet Moss – Senior
De La Torre has this spot locked down. If he should be injured, Moss is a concern given his propensity to worry more about social media than football, but seems to have rededicated himself to the sport under the new regime.