Seahorn's Spring Game Takeaways

[Daniel Seahorn]

It's never as bad or as good as you think. That's what coaches will always tell you when they go back and look at the film from games, practices, and scrimmages. Today's spring game provided us with the good, bad, and the ugly of the Texas Longhorn football team from the big plays made on both sides of the ball to the lack of quality depth at some key positions. 

Here are some of my takeaways from Texas' final scrimmage of the spring, as they prepare to head into the summer portion of the calendar.

1. One of the biggest and most notable things was the play of Shane Buechele today. Buechele was sharp, crisp, and accurate for majority of the scrimmage and while he had the one interception he didn’t make many bad passes or decisions out there and was impressive. Buechele finished 23 of 39 for 369 yards and two touchdowns.
    
2. Sam Ehlinger on the other hand a rough go throughout the day and much of it can be attributed to the fact that the second team offensive line didn’t protect him well at all. While the numbers weren’t great and he definitely looked like a kid who just graduated from high school, he flashed at times and made some nice throws. Ehlinger finished the day 10 of 31 passing for 148 yards and a touchdown.
    
3. All things considered, Buechele seems to be much further along right now and looked more comfortable out there today. Herman mentioned that they are still in the hunt for a grad transfer and I think that would be ideal so that Ehlinger can redshirt. I think that would be most beneficial in the long run.
    
4. Freshman running back Toneil Carter received the bulk of the carries today with injuries piling up and while he ran hard and broke some tackles I was a little underwhelmed. He also put the ball on the ground and as Tom Herman noted will have to improve in pass protection.
    
5. I would be lying if I said I wasn’t worried about the state of the running back position. I think they need to be checking the waiver wire for a back as well personally.
    
6. While the first team offensive line held up well and protected Buechele, the second team unit had a very forgettable day at the office and had Ehlinger running for his life for most of the day. Depth on the OL is going to be a concern and coaches probably hope they won’t have to give Terrell Cuney meaningful snaps anytime soon.
    
7. The wide receiver threesome of Collin Johnson, Devin Duvernay, and Lil’Jordan Humphrey is going to give defenses headaches. Johnson looked as advertised and tallied two touchdown catches, Humphrey made a grown man touchdown catch over Kris Boyd, and Duvernay had a nice catch run as well. A nice surprise today was Reggie Hemphill-Mapps, who consistently got open and moved the chains and you also have to mention Dorian Leonard. This group is deep and talented and is only going to get better with time.
    
8. While the second team defense surrendered plenty of yardage to the offense, the first team defense absolutely terrorized the second team offensive line and Sam Ehlinger. The sacks and pressures came in bunches for Todd Orlando’s first team defense, and it no doubt gave the offensive coaches plenty of things to coach up going into the summer.
    
9. Jordan Elliott notched at least two sacks today during the scrimmage. If he gets his weight down and keeps coming along he is going to be quite the player.
    
10. Jeff McCulloch notched a nice sack against a future first round pick in Connor Williams and continues to get better. I bet we will see a lot of The Shark in the fall.
     
11. Chris Brown notched himself a pick against Shane Buechele and also had the big hit of scrimmage along the sideline on Toneil Carter on a swing pass. Brown was a big hitter in high school and continues to lay the wood in Austin.
     
12. Eric Cuffee had a rough day at the office. He got picked on a bit throughout the game and he also took the worst of a collision with Toneil Carter.
     
13. Anyone else listen to how Herman talked about the upgraded lockers when asked about it during the scrimmage? He’s definitely aware of the gap in facilities between Texas and schools in close proximity to Austin.
     
14. Love that Herman tried to ice Josh Rowland during a spring game to try to throw him off. Rowland went 3 for 4 today with his lone miss coming from 49 yards out.
     
15. Also love that Herman didn’t end the scrimmage in a tie and had the first team offense and defense go at it on 4th down at the two yard line. Constantly putting the players in a position to compete.

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[gmcc]

Jordan Elliott notched at least two sacks today during the scrimmage. If he gets his weight down and keeps coming along he is going to be quite the player.

Daniel, I agree most of your assessment, but not the part about Jordan.  When he was first recruited, I was extremely high on him, but his effort today was disappointing to me.  Even on the sidelines he seemed dis-interested.  Both his sacks were plays that come directly to him.  He merely stood there and allowed the play to come to him.  He made no special effort of any kind that I saw.  In just my opinion his overall grade for today will be poor.  I certainly hope with some weight loss he will do better, but as of now I would not have him running second team.  I hope I'm wrong. 

 

[Daniel Seahorn]

Jordan Elliott notched at least two sacks today during the scrimmage. If he gets his weight down and keeps coming along he is going to be quite the player.

Daniel, I agree most of your assessment, but not the part about Jordan. When he was first recruited, I was extremely high on him, but his effort today was disappointing to me. Even on the sidelines he seemed dis-interested. Both his sacks were plays that come directly to him. He merely stood there and allowed the play to come to him. He made no special effort of any kind that I saw. In just my opinion his overall grade for today will be poor. I certainly hope with some weight loss he will do better, but as of now I would not have him running second team. I hope I'm wrong.

Oh I don't disagree one bit that he is still a work in progress and needs to improve his effort. I also won't disagree that his overall grade may not be as glowing even with the sacks.

I will disagree that he is a third string guy right now and I can't dock him because of the degree of difficulty of the sacks he got. Getting sacks are hard and you take them however you get them.

 

[Coot]

I know you mentioned several of the wide receivers and you can't just list every one, but I thought Jerrod Heard played well.  I can also see him running that slot receiver pass during some game.

 

[Daniel Seahorn]

I know you mentioned several of the wide receivers and you can't just list every one, but I thought Jerrod Heard played well. I can also see him running that slot receiver pass during some game.

I caught myself naming so many that I had to stop myself. Heard just needs to keep coming along and be more consistent. He's got a ton of talent, but is still learning the position.

 

[DMAC]

It was gratifying to finally watch some horn football.  The only thing that puzzles me is why we have 1st Team vs 2nd team?  I don't see how this can be a barometer at all.  Sam didn't have near the time in the pocket Shane did.  Collin will be a beast no doubt but I would have liked to see him go against the 1st team defense other than the last goal line stand.

Not sure what the purpose of 1st vs 2nd was other than to build confidence for the 1st?  Maybe to push the 2nd team players and see who can shine against better talent?  

I have no doubt Herman is the guy for this team.  He did it at UH and will do it here as well.  

Collin Johnson, Lil Jordan, Boo, Shark, and Chris Brown all had great games.  Wasnt that impressed with Carter especially since he broke Rule 1 Protecting the ball.  He had some good runs but I sure hope Warren gets better.

 

[tejasrulz]

Freshman running back Toneil Carter received the bulk of the carries today with injuries piling up and while he ran hard and broke some tackles I was a little underwhelmed. He also put the ball on the ground and as Tom Herman noted will have to improve in pass protection.

I admit to not seeing the whole game but from what I saw I thought he played pretty well, especially since he should be in his senior year of HS. I especially liked how he ran over Cuffee as you mentioned above.

 

[Bear19]

I am also one who thought Carter looked pretty good.

 

[Daniel Seahorn]

I am also one who thought Carter looked pretty good.

Maybe my expectations were on he high side. He had some nice moments, but nothing that blew me away.

 

[Daniel Seahorn]

It was gratifying to finally watch some horn football. The only thing that puzzles me is why we have 1st Team vs 2nd team? I don't see how this can be a barometer at all. Sam didn't have near the time in the pocket Shane did. Collin will be a beast no doubt but I would have liked to see him go against the 1st team defense other than the last goal line stand.

Not sure what the purpose of 1st vs 2nd was other than to build confidence for the 1st? Maybe to push the 2nd team players and see who can shine against better talent?

I have no doubt Herman is the guy for this team. He did it at UH and will do it here as well.

Collin Johnson, Lil Jordan, Boo, Shark, and Chris Brown all had great games. Wasnt that impressed with Carter especially since he broke Rule 1 Protecting the ball. He had some good runs but I sure hope Warren gets better.

Having the 1 O and 2 D on one team and the 1 D and 2 O on another is typically how coaches try to balance out the teams in a spring game. I would have loved to have seen 1s v 1s, but it is what it is.

 

[Sirhornsalot]

I hope no one thinks they got a fair assessment of skills between Buechele and Ehlinger. Ehlinger was running for his life most of the time. Buechele was able to carry out plays comfortably. If you don't put them both in the same situation, how can you know which one is better? 

 

[DMAC]

Having the 1 O and 2 D on one team and the 1 D and 2 O on another is typically how coaches try to balance out the teams in a spring game. I would have loved to have seen 1s v 1s, but it is what it is.

The score doesnt really matter to me for a scrimmage but I understand from a competition standpoint.

 

[UTfish]

Did anyone else notice that the entire team held the "Hook 'em" sign high in the traditional way, rather than at the waist? I liked that. Plus, the ones I saw during the National Anthem stood straight with their hands over their hearts. Display of detail, pride, and team unity, IMO.

 

[Daniel Seahorn]

I hope no one thinks they got a fair assessment of skills between Buechele and Ehlinger. Ehlinger was running for his life most of the time. Buechele was able to carry out plays comfortably. If you don't put them both in the same situation, how can you know which one is better?

I just wanted to see a few series with Sam with the first team around him. Trying to figure out why they didn't do that.

 

[gmcc]

Oh I don't disagree one bit that he is still a work in progress and needs to improve his effort. I also won't disagree that his overall grade may not be as glowing even with the sacks.

I will disagree that he is a third string guy right now and I can't dock him because of the degree of difficulty of the sacks he got. Getting sacks are hard and you take them however you get them.

I certainly hope you are correct but please watch the Top 10 plays article on Burnt Orange Nation blog.  Watch #92 (Jordan) on plays 10, 4, 3, 2 and tell me that is the effort you want from your prized defensive lineman.  He never gets low enough to force any type of penetration.  As I say I hope I'm wrong but I have a tendency to watch the linemen rather than the ball.  I don't remember which play it was, but Vahe (whom is not suppose to be a good pass blocker) goes one on one with him and stands him straight up with no chance of him penetrating into the back field.

 

[Sirhornsalot]

I just wanted to see a few series with Sam with the first team around him. Trying to figure out why they didn't do that.

Exactly. Apples to apples.

 

[Embrey]

Exactly. Apples to apples.

Yep. If you want a true assessment run the #1 offense versus the #1 defense. Allow players who are vying for a spot the opportunity to play with the #1 unit. There was no assessment of Sam. I have no problem if they decide to redshirt him. History tells us most benefit from the time in the system. But let's not pretend that this game was an example of Sam competing for the starting job.

PS

Beuchele is still a shrimp.

 

[Sirhornsalot]

Yep. If you want a true assessment run the #1 offense versus the #1 defense. Allow players who are vying for a spot the opportunity to play with the #1 unit. There was no assessment of Sam. I have no problem if they decide to redshirt him. History tells us most benefit from the time in the system. But let's not pretend that this game was an example of Sam competing for the starting job.

PS

Beuchele is still a shrimp.

He is, but he's a larger shrimp. lol I could see the pounds he's put on. But he needs to keep going.

Ehlinger is a big kid.

 

[North Texas Golfer]

I could be wrong about this but I seem to remember when reading all the practice reports from the different site that 1's went against 1's a lot and that Sam got time with the 1's during those practices.