Texas O-line talk

[gmr548 16617]

Sliding Jones down to LG and inserting Karic at LT makes the most sense but moving Jones down is hard to do at this point, unless they got him guard reps in the spring and/or fall camp. I’m not sure I buy any of the other second stringers would really be an upgrade.

Not optimistic tbh.

[Horn Dog 9999]

Watching the Oline last night-  “Its learning (hopefully)”

But then I remember it’s Rice:

Edited September 19, 2021 by Horn Dog

[taybo20 2887]

It really did seem the 2nd team OL had a little more nasty in them overall. 

[Burt Macklin 19060]

Karic>>>Jones. We’re gonna leave one of our top two or three OL on the roster standing on the sidelines all season because Flood wants an OL that averages 330+ more than an OL that’s actually good at blocking. 

[gmr548 16617]

Karic>>>Jones. We’re gonna leave one of our top two or three OL on the roster standing on the sidelines all season because Flood wants an OL that averages 330+ more than an OL that’s actually good at blocking. 

Yep.

[futureman 22562]

30 minutes ago, Burt Macklin said:

Karic>>>Jones. We’re gonna leave one of our top two or three OL on the roster standing on the sidelines all season because Flood wants an OL that averages 330+ more than an OL that’s actually good at blocking. 

I bet Herb Hand would start Karic. I wonder if he’s available. 

[LTtxfan 49390]

32 minutes ago, Burt Macklin said:

Karic>>>Jones. We’re gonna leave one of our top two or three OL on the roster standing on the sidelines all season because Flood wants an OL that averages 330+ more than an OL that’s actually good at blocking. 

 

Just doesn't make sense.  If Karic is kicking some ass, his size is big enough...

• Hide/Show Additional Information For Derek Kerstet
• OL 6'4" 300 LBS RS

  69      ANDREJ KARIC

  R-FR. UNDECLARED SOUTHLAKE, TEXAS CARROLL
  Hide/Show Additional Information For Andrej Karic
• 

  OL 6'6" 314 LBS 2L

  70  CHRISTIAN JONES

  JR. SPORT MANAGEMENT CYPRESS, TEXAS CYPRESS WOODS

[LTtxfan 49390]

So Karic didn't get any snaps before Rice --  WOW

 

Jeff Howe            ( Thx for this @satyanash ) 

Quote

— The best thing that happened for the offensive line is the game got to a point where Hayden Conner and Andrej Karic were able to play most of the second half. Through the first two games, Conner was the only backup linemen who logged any snaps (eight in the win over Louisiana), so getting the No. 2 group some much-needed experience is the first step in any potential lineup changes Kyle Flood might entertain down the road.

— Overall, it felt like a mixed bag for the O-line when summing up their performance. Thompson was under pressure early in the first half and Rice was able to get some free rushers into the backfield and in the face of the quarterback. Running behind the left side of the line was problematic and downright not happening at times, but it felt like running wide zone to the right side (behind or off of Derek Kerstetter) is something Texas is doing well in the running game right now. Thompson wasn’t sacked when he was playing behind the No. 1 line, but his 22-yard dart to Dixon came after Christian Jones had to tackle a Rice defender in pass protection to keep his quarterback clean. The holding penalty putting the offense behind the chains and it was one of only two fouls charged to the Longhorns over four quarters of play.

 

[DFW Horn 6403]

1 hour ago, Burt Macklin said:

Karic>>>Jones. We’re gonna leave one of our top two or three OL on the roster standing on the sidelines all season because Flood wants an OL that averages 330+ more than an OL that’s actually good at blocking. 

Karic doesn't need to be 330 when we're running outside zone against smaller Big 12 d-linemen. Why can't these coaches see that? Jones isn't great at pass-blocking, either.

[Duane Moore 5252]

6 hours ago, Thatguy said:

  Jones is probably playing too heavy. Maybe dropping a lil weight will quicken him up.

So while Jones is off at Fat Camp for a month or two, we’ll put in Karic to hold the spot for him. Sounds like a plan. 

[Thatguy 8929]

2 hours ago, DFW Horn said:

Karic doesn't need to be 330 when we're running outside zone against smaller Big 12 d-linemen. Why can't these coaches see that? Jones isn't great at pass-blocking, either.

  You guys and this outside zone stuff. I will keep saying this until I am blue in the face. Outside zone cuts half the field off for RPO's. These guys aren't going to simply run OZ all the time and obliterate 1/2 of their playbook.

[LTtxfan 49390]

27 minutes ago, Thatguy said:

  You guys and this outside zone stuff. I will keep saying this until I am blue in the face. Outside zone cuts half the field off for RPO's. These guys aren't going to simply run OZ all the time and obliterate 1/2 of their playbook.

But they certainly did have more running success with outside zone against Rice.  Agree that they shouldn't just "simply run OZ all the time".

It's ok for SARK to add more OZ plays for right now, while also continue running the other stuff too so as not to "obliterate 1/2 of their playbook".

[maninblack 7975]

OVR/RBLK/PBLK

Edited September 19, 2021 by maninblack

[Burt Macklin 19060]

43 minutes ago, Thatguy said:

  You guys and this outside zone stuff. I will keep saying this until I am blue in the face. Outside zone cuts half the field off for RPO's. These guys aren't going to simply run OZ all the time and obliterate 1/2 of their playbook.

You’re right. Calling a bunch of running plays that don’t work seems like a much better idea.
 

Sark ran plenty of OZ at Bama. He can figure out how to run enough of his offense that works with OZ. It’s not that much of an issue for him. 

[Thatguy 8929]

10 minutes ago, Burt Macklin said:

You’re right. Calling a bunch of running plays that don’t work seems like a much better idea.
 

Sark ran plenty of OZ at Bama. He can figure out how to run enough of his offense that works with OZ. It’s not that much of an issue for him. 

   My daughter struggles at Math. So I told her to stop taking Math classes and focus on the stuff she is good at like Art.

[Bobby_Batronic 1994]

56 minutes ago, Thatguy said:

  You guys and this outside zone stuff. I will keep saying this until I am blue in the face. Outside zone cuts half the field off for RPO's. These guys aren't going to simply run OZ all the time and obliterate 1/2 of their playbook.

You know what obliterates your playbook? Getting IZ blown up play after play and ending up in third and Orlando so that we can show off our dismal pass blocking.

Running outside with half field RPO’s will keep the staff employed long enough to recruit players that will allow them to call the plays they want to instead of the plays they have to. Every running play need not be a sprint to the sideline. There’s plenty of things you can counter with once you’ve established your ability to get wide. But this offense needs some bread and butter to build an identity off of, and the coaches can jack off to their multiple offense wet dreams another day. OZ right, and boot against it left is a fine cornerstone on which to build a foundation.

[LTtxfan 49390]

4 minutes ago, Thatguy said:

   My daughter struggles at Math. So I told her to stop taking Math classes and focus on the stuff she is good at like Art.

Art's almost 80 though...

[Bobby_Batronic 1994]

6 minutes ago, Thatguy said:

   My daughter struggles at Math. So I told her to stop taking Math classes and focus on the stuff she is good at like Art.

Poor analogy. Sports are not academics. The goal is to win the game. Not beat yourself up trying to be well rounded at all aspects of the it. Simply being really good a few things will suffice until the do it all studs can be recruited.

Running what we want to run whether or not we can actually run it is a fine way for a coach to find themselves in a nice comfy analyst position in the near future.

[Thatguy 8929]

 

 

4 minutes ago, Bobby_Batronic said:

Poor analogy. Sports are not academics. The goal is to win the game. Not beat yourself up trying to be well rounded at all aspects of the it. Simply being really good a few things will suffice until the do it all studs can be recruited.

Running what we want to run whether or not we can actually run it is a fine way for a coach to find themselves in a nice comfy analyst position in the near future.

   No it's the perfect analogy. Math is the building block for education. You don't have to be great at it, but damn if you don't need it to be successful. Inside zone is a basic play that is used all across the country. It's pretty much required to be able to run inside zone. It is necessary for so many reasons. First, any play action off of OZ exposes your QB. Second, the flow of it hinders your ability to throw playside as you are bringing so much traffic in play. You guys want us to run Kyle Shanahan's offense.

    We are 3 games into a New coaching regime. Give the guys some time to teach it. Did you see Bill O'Brien yesterday stagnate against Florida? I am not proclaiming Sark is a good HC, but maybe Sark knows how to build on his plays to break down defenses over the course of a game. Remember Pedro Martinez? What made that guy good was different pitches came with the same arm angle/speed as his fastball.

  Being good at a few things will suffice against Rice, but that won't beat OU. Ask Tom Herman. He was 1-4 vs OU. I would rather tank a whole season doing things right, then to be mediocre now by running mainly OZ, and end up having to go through growing pains again next year when we try to feature it.

[LTtxfan 49390]

 

[Hank Scorpio 17731]

My daughter is terrible at math but she knows how to reach a 3 technique. 

[Bobby_Batronic 1994]

7 minutes ago, Thatguy said:

 

 

   No it's the perfect analogy. Math is the building block for education. You don't have to be great at it, but damn if you don't need it to be successful. Inside zone is a basic play that is used all across the country. It's pretty much required to be able to run inside zone. It is necessary for so many reasons. First, any play action off of OZ exposes your QB. Second, the flow of it hinders your ability to throw playside as you are bringing so much traffic in play. You guys want us to run Kyle Shanahan's offense.

    We are 3 games into a New coaching regime. Give the guys some time to teach it. Did you see Bill O'Brien yesterday stagnate against Florida? I am not proclaiming Sark is a good HC, but maybe Sark knows how to build on his plays to break down defenses over the course of a game. Remember Pedro Martinez? What made that guy good was different pitches came with the same arm angle/speed as his fastball.

  Being good at a few things will suffice against Rice, but that won't beat OU. Ask Tom Herman. He was 1-4 vs OU. I would rather tank a whole season doing things right, then to be mediocre now by running mainly OZ, and end up having to go through growing pains again next year when we try to feature it.

Doing things right? Here’s what’s right in football.  Do something well. Preferably a few things well. Build constraints off of those things, and do the constraints well. And then adjust each for specific opponents.

Or we can do it the meathead way and fail running inside trying to teach ourselves to run inside so we can then suck at the constraints built off of running inside, because it’s not especially hard to stop in the first place.

No one is saying abandon every run inside. Just de-emphasize them until we have the players that can execute them, or the coaches can coach it up in practice. You act as though fanatical fans haven’t watched the same players fail to do the same things under 2-3 coaching staffs now. Sorry, these aren’t blank slates. On the sidelines or on the field.

Tom Herman is an appropriate example of what not to do. He spammed inside zone for years despite our never being particularly good at it. According to you he should have been successful since, ya know, it’s the building block of all offenses in your eyes. But, in a point in both his and my ledger, he figured out LJH  was nigh indefensible  in the slot on option routes, and kept calling it’s number. It probably kept him employed a year past his expiration date.

It’s real simple. Have some success doing  what we are capable of, or bash our heads against the wall doing what we wish we were capable of. I just want to win as much as possible. Attempting that through forcing shitty line play in the name of multiplicity is a poor strategy to apply to that whole win as much as possible thing.

Btw, winning as much as possible usually earns a staff the right to attain players who can indulge their dogmas. And then you and the coaches can get hard thinking about success up the middle buoying full field RPO’s.

[jdhorn92 1560]

2 hours ago, Thatguy said:

   My daughter struggles at Math. So I told her to stop taking Math classes and focus on the stuff she is good at like Art.

I was told there would be no math

[Burt Macklin 19060]

2 hours ago, Thatguy said:

   My daughter struggles at Math. So I told her to stop taking Math classes and focus on the stuff she is good at like Art.

Don’t be too hard on her. Considering her genes, she probably never had a chance. 

[6th Street 6509]

I like the inside zone play where Bijan is hit immediately then has to dive forward for 1 yard

[HenryJames 66231]

7 hours ago, LTtxfan said:

So Karic didn't get any snaps before Rice --  WOW

He was sick and it wasn’t made public.

[Nivek 17016]

4 hours ago, LTtxfan said:

Art's almost 80 though...

But is 80 old for a rock, or an island?

[Huckleberry 33184]

It's not impossible to run RPOs with an outside zone concept, it's just not as common. Hell, it presents a nice opportunity for some innovation. Instead of the QB stretching to hand it off, you could have him read his key as he's preparing to toss to the RB and if the key says pass then he holds onto it and throws it. The timing would take work and that might not even be the way to do it (I recognize the danger there for fumbles if you're trying to install something like that midseason). But I'm not the one being paid millions of dollars because I'm an offensive genius. The guy who is should be able to figure it out.

[Thatguy 8929]

2 hours ago, Bobby_Batronic said:

Doing things right? Here’s what’s right in football.  Do something well. Preferably a few things well. Build constraints off of those things, and do the constraints well. And then adjust each for specific opponents.

Or we can do it the meathead way and fail running inside trying to teach ourselves to run inside so we can then suck at the constraints built off of running inside, because it’s not especially hard to stop in the first place.

No one is saying abandon every run inside. Just de-emphasize them until we have the players that can execute them, or the coaches can coach it up in practice. You act as though fanatical fans haven’t watched the same players fail to do the same things under 2-3 coaching staffs now. Sorry, these aren’t blank slates. On the sidelines or on the field.

Tom Herman is an appropriate example of what not to do. He spammed inside zone for years despite our never being particularly good at it. According to you he should have been successful since, ya know, it’s the building block of all offenses in your eyes. But, in a point in both his and my ledger, he figured out LJH  was nigh indefensible  in the slot on option routes, and kept calling it’s number. It probably kept him employed a year past his expiration date.

It’s real simple. Have some success doing  what we are capable of, or bash our heads against the wall doing what we wish we were capable of. I just want to win as much as possible. Attempting that through forcing shitty line play in the name of multiplicity is a poor strategy to apply to that whole win as much as possible thing.

Btw, winning as much as possible usually earns a staff the right to attain players who can indulge their dogmas. And then you and the coaches can get hard thinking about success up the middle buoying full field RPO’s.

    

   You said it yourself. We failed to do it for 3 coaching cycles now. That's not a player problem, that's decades worth of players being rotated through, with who knows how many groupings of linemen. The real truth, we weren't good at running the football against high level talent dating back to VY. Then before him we struggled too. We struggled dating back to the 90's. Thank goodness for Cedric being good after contact. No, our problem is in our attitude towards it. We get decent linemen recruits, but they all come in and turn into the same guy. Meanwhile TCU, OU, Arkansas, and a host of other institutions get supposedly lesser guys and do more with them. In fact, I will take it a step further. How about I tell you that outside of a few shining examples, we largely fail to coach up anyone we get on offense, and it's been that way dating deep into Mack's tenure. It's a cultural problem on that side of the ball, and it needs to change. We have to coach up our offensive talent like other teams do. Simple as that!!!

  

   

[Thatguy 8929]

4 minutes ago, Huckleberry said:

It's not impossible to run RPOs with an outside zone concept, it's just not as common. Hell, it presents a nice opportunity for some innovation. Instead of the QB stretching to hand it off, you could have him read his key as he's preparing to toss to the RB and if the key says pass then he holds onto it and throws it. The timing would take work and that might not even be the way to do it (I recognize the danger there for fumbles if you're trying to install something like that midseason). But I'm not the one being paid millions of dollars because I'm an offensive genius. The guy who is should be able to figure it out.

   It's not impossible at all.

[Bobby_Batronic 1994]

2 hours ago, Thatguy said:

    

   You said it yourself. We failed to do it for 3 coaching cycles now. That's not a player problem, that's decades worth of players being rotated through, with who knows how many groupings of linemen. The real truth, we weren't good at running the football against high level talent dating back to VY. Then before him we struggled too. We struggled dating back to the 90's. Thank goodness for Cedric being good after contact. No, our problem is in our attitude towards it. We get decent linemen recruits, but they all come in and turn into the same guy. Meanwhile TCU, OU, Arkansas, and a host of other institutions get supposedly lesser guys and do more with them. In fact, I will take it a step further. How about I tell you that outside of a few shining examples, we largely fail to coach up anyone we get on offense, and it's been that way dating deep into Mack's tenure. It's a cultural problem on that side of the ball, and it needs to change. We have to coach up our offensive talent like other teams do. Simple as that!!!

  

   

Your premise is flawed. 3 of our 5 starters are what they are at this point having been in the program 4-6 years, and are on their second and third staffs. They’re not getting coached up. Christian Jones might get there one day, but his current developmental path isn’t congruent with success this year. The guys who can get coached up are either not on campus or are decorating the sideline.

Anyone who’s paid attention took the preseason news of the deployment of our OL with a grain of salt. We’re past game three and it was justified. I agree that Sark wants to have backside protection for his RPO’s and Play pass stuff, and that he doesn’t like using OZ and wide concepts because the backside defender is free. He’s on record as saying that.  Tough shit. The preferred stuff isn’t isn the cards at this time, and he and the OL coach need to get over the fact that one of our five best OL isn’t the NFL ideal, and accept what he and others can do.

There’s a lot of hay to be made with a mobile OL and our RB room. It needs to be made. We’re not doing the whole build it back up over 4-5 years patiently thing. This thing needs to be humming in the next two given the conference shift. Sark was gifted a talented enough roster, recruitable school and transfer portal to make that happen. We need to win now. It needs to get rolling now. We don’t have Alabama’s OL group, but it’s far and away better than the unmitigated, fiery shit shows that Strong and Herman inherited. 

[Thatguy 8929]

7 hours ago, Bobby_Batronic said:

Your premise is flawed. 3 of our 5 starters are what they are at this point having been in the program 4-6 years, and are on their second and third staffs. They’re not getting coached up. Christian Jones might get there one day, but his current developmental path isn’t congruent with success this year. The guys who can get coached up are either not on campus or are decorating the sideline.

Anyone who’s paid attention took the preseason news of the deployment of our OL with a grain of salt. We’re past game three and it was justified. I agree that Sark wants to have backside protection for his RPO’s and Play pass stuff, and that he doesn’t like using OZ and wide concepts because the backside defender is free. He’s on record as saying that.  Tough shit. The preferred stuff isn’t isn the cards at this time, and he and the OL coach need to get over the fact that one of our five best OL isn’t the NFL ideal, and accept what he and others can do.

There’s a lot of hay to be made with a mobile OL and our RB room. It needs to be made. We’re not doing the whole build it back up over 4-5 years patiently thing. This thing needs to be humming in the next two given the conference shift. Sark was gifted a talented enough roster, recruitable school and transfer portal to make that happen. We need to win now. It needs to get rolling now. We don’t have Alabama’s OL group, but it’s far and away better than the unmitigated, fiery shit shows that Strong and Herman inherited. 

    My premise is not flawed. We are soft and reactionary in our O-line, and it's been that way a long time, before and after VY. Jamaal Charles used to run into the back of that O-line for 2 yards a carry all game before popping two long runs to get 200. It was infuriating to watch 14 years ago as it is now. We are speaking the same language and recognizing the same things, the difference, I believe, is you think it's who they are and I think it's their attitude. Run blocking is about being physical. Fire off the got-damned ball, hit someone, and be angry about it. Keep driving them after the play. Put a couple people on their back.

   This is the last thing I will say about it. I don't buy into the SEC superiority thing, but damned if they don't play physical on both sides of the ball. We are gonna get whipped in the trenches if we don't change our mentality up there and get some pride in these men. The Gators ran for 258 on Bama with lesser talent at every position. We just have to quit making excuses for line after line and coach them to be physical. We lose the Cotton Bowl before we even walk in there every year and I am tired of it. We lost to Pig for the same reason we lose to OU.

[Royale with cheese 1470]

11 hours ago, Nivek said:

But is 80 old for a rock, or an island?

Yeah, but a rock feels no pain. And an island, unlike Texas fans over the last 12 years or so, never cries. 

[LTtxfan 49390]

Outside Zone Helped OL and Offense:

"Last week (against Arky), Texas ran outside zone only four times for 15 yards. Compare that to the 15 times the Longhorns ran it against Louisiana for 115 yards.  Sarkisian recognized getting the ball on the perimeter was beneficial for not just his offensive line, but for his team. That emphasis helped the offensive line help the running backs. Whatever the number of outside running plays was, it dwarfed the total run at Arkansas. All the Texas running backs made plays running outside, and a few scored on plant-and-go runs."

 

Thanks for the following article @satyanash

Jeff Cook: Texas' perimeter emphasis boosts entire offense versus Rice

Quote

Try as they might versus Arkansas, and the Longhorns tried a lot versus Arkansas, Texas’ offense could not make consistent gains lining up behind the offensive line and running between the tackles. The effects of the failure to run the football seeped into other aspects of the offense and led to a dismal performance that only put 21 points on the scoreboard. Rather than make changes to the starting five linemen immediately following the disappointing performance, Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian and offensive coordinator Kyle Flood emphasized an approach where even small lapses received ridicule.

The work done throughout the week, and a solid performance in Texas’ perimeter emphasis, showed up in the offensive line Saturday, when Texas ran for 427 yards in a 58-0 win over Rice. “(Flood) was on them this week,” Sarkisian said following the game. “We weren’t just going to let the little things slide, and we challenged them on, never mind the result of the play or whatever it was. It was about, did you do your job exactly how it was supposed to be done and then beyond? That’s how the week was, that’s how we coached it in game, and we saw the results.”

There were still plays where Texas offensive linemen were beaten by Owl defenders, most notably on Casey Thompson’s first quarter interception. For the most part, the O-line played a better game compared to its outing against the Razorbacks. Part of what helped them find more success were play calls that didn’t show up in Fayetteville. Last week, Texas ran outside zone only four times for 15 yards. Compare that to the 15 times the Longhorns ran it against Louisiana for 115 yards.

Sarkisian recognized getting the ball on the perimeter was beneficial for not just his offensive line, but for his team. That emphasis helped the offensive line help the running backs. Whatever the number of outside running plays was, it dwarfed the total run at Arkansas. All the Texas running backs made plays running outside, and a few scored on plant-and-go runs. Keilan Robinson rushed 65 yards on an outside zone give, and Jonathon Brooks scored his first career touchdown running toward the perimeter behind the second offensive line.

The emphasis on the perimeter was also evident in how receiver Xavier Worthy received touches. Texas tried to put the ball in the freshman from Fresno’s hands via slants, deep shots, and back shoulder throws. They also put him in motion and got him moving laterally and completed several two-foot pop passes to Worthy. He finished with seven catches for 88 yards and one score.

“I do believe in both aspects, whether it was the passing game or the running, we did try to get the ball a little bit more in space and not play as much internal football and get the guys the ball in space,” Sarkisian said. “I think we had success there.”

Sarkisian added he thought Texas succeeded running internally, but there was far more variety in Texas’ play calling displayed versus the Owls than versus the Razorbacks in both the run and pass game. The scoreboard at Darrell K Royal – Texas Memorial Stadium was lit up several times as a result. “The ball on the perimeter is good, and I thought the runners ran it well,” Sarkisian said. “But again, getting the ball in space to the wide outs I think was effective, too.”

 

 

Edited September 20, 2021 by LTtxfan
fixed

[LTtxfan 49390]

On 9/19/2021 at 3:08 AM, LTtxfan said:

Burton:  I couldn’t help but be impressed with the second team Texas OL. I don’t know how Andrej Karic doesn’t see the field as a first-teamer at one position or another. He is the nastiest OL Texas has on the roster. Whoever he was blocking ate turf at least half the time. 

Ian Boyd:  The first team line had a great day but the second unit came out looking to maul people. Kyle Flood needs to think long and hard about why Karic isn’t somewhere in the starting lineup. 

 

Adding Others...

Nahlin:  I feel they played much better as a unit this week, though we saw too many individual breakdowns. A case could be made Andrej Karic would upgrade each position across the o-line, save center, and that’s only due to lack of reps. The coaches telling me he’s not one of the five best is nearing gas-lighting levels. I did like a number of combo blocks and the running backs often took advantage of numbers being in their favor. The tight ends (Brewer) had a number of good kick outs as well.

Scipio Tex:  Observation: our 2nd team OL has a nastier disposition than our 1st team. A lot of of that is because of Andrej Karic. He had six pancakes and Karic repeatedly made a point of punishing Rice defenders with finishing blocks at a juncture in the game where most guys are striking deals to let up. Karic is very chippy. I have to accept that I simply have a different view of football than Flood. I want edge, motor, and cruelty in my starting lineup. Even at a tiny 6-4, 290. 

 

 

Edited September 20, 2021 by LTtxfan

[LTtxfan 49390]

Thx for this @satyanash 

(Eric Nahlin) In the rear view mirror: Texas vs Rice

Let’s revisit my pre-game post from Saturday.

Quote

1. OL unit cohesion: The good thing about the Rice defense is they change up fronts and looks quite a bit so Kyle Flood’s unit will have to show the ability to adjust on the fly and block the kitchen sink. They’ll bring pressure from different angles. What Rice lacks in talent they attempt to make up for by creating mistakes. Despite the amount of career starts going into the Arkansas game last week, confusion was a very big issue on the UT offensive line.

I feel they played much better as a unit this week, though we saw too many individual breakdowns. A case could be made Andrej Karic would upgrade each position across the o-line, save center, and that’s only due to lack of reps. The coaches telling me he’s not one of the five best is nearing gas-lighting levels. I did like a number of combo blocks and the running backs often took advantage of numbers being in their favor. The tight ends (Brewer) had a number of good kick outs as well.

One thing the line has going for it collectively is the running backs. That quartet tends to overcome mistakes and elevate average line play, especially against poor competition. I can’t help but compare the line to the Houston Astros bullpen. The Stros have a stellar lineup complemented by good defense, but they’re only going to go as far as the bullpen takes them. Stros fans are headed for heartbreak in predictable fashion and it feels Texas will be similarly undone by it’s o-line as it meets more resistance

Quote

4. Wide running game: This is also attached to OL play (noticing a theme?) but also game planning and play calling.

Against ULL it was 15 carries for 110 yards.

You can easily attach a QB run and RPO game to OZ, but most importantly it’s the run scheme that best fits both the offensive line and Bijan Robinson. Robinson is great regardless, but with his patience and ability to find a crease, not to mention his plant and go, he should be devastating running outside. Besides all his other qualities, he is incredibly strong running through contact. His best trait is probably how he barely loses speed running through off-balance tackle attempts. Contact on the outside is easier to break for big gains because Bijan is far too powerful for players his size and smaller plus defenders usually aren’t square when they try to tackle him like they are on inside zone.

To me this is the season defining scheme and I’d love to see the coaches lean into it.

A thorough critique of the run game will be kind to this section. The wide run game needs to become the offensive identity going forward. All four (hell, maybe five counting Watson) running backs took advantage of opportunities afforded by outside zone. Keilan Robinson showed his jets. Roschon took a direct snap to the house and also reversed field on another big gain. Bijan was allowed to be Bijan. Once the staff configures the best offensive line, the running backs will really benefit in this scheme, even when not playing Rice.

[Longhornlove 4902]

We fix the O line with the 4 dudes we have stacked in the backfield. We will be very good offensively for a few years. We might even make a few bowl games........lol

Edited September 20, 2021 by Longhornlove

[Had Enough 2089]

When is the last time you saw a team with 3 60-yard TD runs in one game?

Yes, our backfield is loaded. No matter how good those guys are you do not get long runs unless you are blocking lots of guys.

But give the OLine credit. I believe two of those were untouched. The third involved one broken tackle and two sorta missed tackles. The missed tackle I believe was a guy we couldn’t account for.

Still too many misses but absolutely no reason to shit your pants after this one. Vast improvement. Nice effort. Rice attempted to take away the run game. They couldn’t.

[kingkoopa6 8406]

this is bad ass

 

edit. gif not working... dang

 

http://freegifmaker.me/img/res/1/6/3/2/1/5/1632158867371034.gif?1632158885

 

 

Edited September 20, 2021 by kingkoopa6
nm

[Slacks 6900]

16 hours ago, Thatguy said:

   It's not impossible at all.

But it requires good backside OT play since QB has to hold the ball a bit longer... 

[HenryJames 66231]

1 hour ago, kingkoopa6 said:

this is bad ass

 

edit. gif not working... dang

 

http://freegifmaker.me/img/res/1/6/3/2/1/5/1632158867371034.gif?1632158885

 

 

[Thatguy 8929]

41 minutes ago, Snacks said:

But it requires good backside OT play since QB has to hold the ball a bit longer... 

Exactly!  Not OZ, but we tried to run a pass play off counter action. What we did on the line damn near got Casey killed. Gotta be even better protecting on play action that exposes your QB.

 

https://twitter.com/Ian_A_Boyd/status/1439663926048968705?ref_src=twsrc^tfw|twcamp^tweetembed|twterm^1439663926048968705|twgr^|twcon^s1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.surlyhorns.com%2Fboard%2Findex.php%3Fapp%3Dcoremodule%3Dsystemcontroller%3Dembedurl%3Dhttps%3A%2F%2Ftwitter.com%2Fian_a_boyd%2Fstatus%2F1439663926048968705%3Fs%3D21

 

 

Edited September 20, 2021 by Thatguy

[JBJ 3676]

5 hours ago, LTtxfan said:

A thorough critique of the run game will be kind to this section. The wide run game needs to become the offensive identity going forward. All four (hell, maybe five counting Watson) running backs took advantage of opportunities afforded by outside zone. Keilan Robinson showed his jets. Roschon took a direct snap to the house and also reversed field on another big gain. Bijan was allowed to be Bijan. Once the staff configures the best offensive line, the running backs will really benefit in this scheme, even when not playing Rice.

None of the TD runs were OZ although Bijan did have a nice gain on one.

[Stunns38 3611]

Exactly!  Not OZ, but we tried to run a pass play off counter action. What we did on the line damn near got Casey killed. Gotta be even better protecting on play action that exposes your QB.
 
https://twitter.com/Ian_A_Boyd/status/1439663926048968705?ref_src=twsrc^tfw|twcamp^tweetembed|twterm^1439663926048968705|twgr^|twcon^s1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.surlyhorns.com%2Fboard%2Findex.php%3Fapp%3Dcoremodule%3Dsystemcontroller%3Dembedurl%3Dhttps%3A%2F%2Ftwitter.com%2Fian_a_boyd%2Fstatus%2F1439663926048968705%3Fs%3D21
 
 

Looks like Junior A missed that assignment while pulling. The whole line is a mess.

[Burt Macklin 19060]

5 minutes ago, Stunns38 said:

Looks like Junior A missed that assignment while pulling. The whole line is a mess.

Nope. Jones fucked it, leaving two guys unblocked when he got there. Usually you’re taught to pick up the most inside rusher, but in that scenario, it really didn’t matter. One of those guys was going to be coming free at Casey and it wasn’t Junior’s fault.
The only other thing he could’ve done is hold both guys and hope the refs miss it. 
 

Jones is just awful at everything. It’s unbelievable he’s still starting. 

Edited September 20, 2021 by Burt Macklin

[Codaxx 5913]

20 minutes ago, Burt Macklin said:

Nope. Jones fucked it, leaving two guys unblocked when he got there. Usually you’re taught to pick up the most inside rusher, but in that scenario, it really didn’t matter. One of those guys was going to be coming free at Casey and it wasn’t Junior’s fault.
The only other thing he could’ve done is hold both guys and hope the refs miss it. 

I keep watching. OL sliding to the right. Major initiates with the tackle over Junior, who ends up stunting and hitting Casey. He ends up standing and blocking air. Okafor gets on his horse and gets the tackle slanting to the right. Jones picks up the Blitzer coming through where the tackle vacated. He leaves the DE for Junior. Guessing on a blackboard Okafor and Major needed to pass the stunt off, but that isnt happening because of the blitzer and Jones having to chase him down. You seem pretty good on this, seriously wondering the correct way to block this. 

Edited September 20, 2021 by Codaxx

[Thatguy 8929]

1 hour ago, Burt Macklin said:

Nope. Jones fucked it, leaving two guys unblocked when he got there. Usually you’re taught to pick up the most inside rusher, but in that scenario, it really didn’t matter. One of those guys was going to be coming free at Casey and it wasn’t Junior’s fault.
The only other thing he could’ve done is hold both guys and hope the refs miss it. 
 

Jones is just awful at everything. It’s unbelievable he’s still starting. 

  It's the same play look that we fucked up against Arky, just a simple counter play but they sent one more than we could account for and no one was fooled. Junior is pulling, the center and guard block down and Jones takes the tackle. Looks like Jones saw the blitzer and tried to jump over there but..... this is the reason I keep harping on OZ constrsint plays. IZ lends a natural barrier for the QB on RPOs. Counters and OZ do not. If you aren't sound on the back end your QB is going to get blown the fuck up just like here. Add in the limited options on RPOs off of OZ and that's why most teams go with IZ as their base.

[BurntOrange&White 40080]

1 hour ago, Burt Macklin said:

Nope. Jones fucked it, leaving two guys unblocked when he got there. Usually you’re taught to pick up the most inside rusher, but in that scenario, it really didn’t matter. One of those guys was going to be coming free at Casey and it wasn’t Junior’s fault.
The only other thing he could’ve done is hold both guys and hope the refs miss it. 
 

Jones is just awful at everything. It’s unbelievable he’s still starting. 

Jones getting pushed off his positioning completely screws this play.  RB should be chipping the left side before continuing on his route. Jones should be hooking to the inside but keeping his feet to hold up the left defender with Angilau pulling to get outside threat. Jones completely gets dominated and pushed 2 positions spaces over. 
 

 

[Duane Moore 5252]

I’m really enjoying this back and forth on offensive philosophy. Both sides are making good cases by people who know their X’s and O’s very well. This is high level discussion for a message board. 

[BurntOrange&White 40080]

Also Should mention that Jones was so late getting to his guy. 
 

 

 

Edited September 20, 2021 by BurntOrange&White