Game Week Thread Week 2, 2023: Texas @ Alabama

South Austin · September 8, 2023

I've been meticulously breaking down game film all week, and I predict that Texas will win big, or Alabama will win big, or Texas will win a close one, or Alabama will win a close one.

txhorns · September 8, 2023

I hadn’t heard anything about this until this week but why do Bama fans keep claiming that they did not have a/c in their locker room last year? Seems kind of stupid to make that claim after LSU was proven wrong about their claim.

Red Five · September 8, 2023

IT had some notes this morning and said Conner and Campbell are starting at the guard spots.

OU Sucks · September 8, 2023

1 minute ago, txhorns said:

I hadn’t heard anything about this until this week but why do Bama fans keep claiming that they did not have a/c in their locker room last year? Seems kind of stupid to make that claim after LSU was proven wrong about their claim.

Because when everyone in the SECSEC world claimed that Bama would destroy Texas and it ended up being a 1 point game, they had to come up with some explanation why the result was so close. And they couldn't blame officiating because we all know they weren't doing Texas any favors.

honolulu horn · September 8, 2023

Just trying to keep up with the info over the past few days:

Cedric Baxter has a broken collarbone.

Sark has COVID.

Our visiting locker rooms have no AC.

Did I miss anything?

Orange&White · September 8, 2023

21 minutes ago, South Austin said:

I've been meticulously breaking down game film all week, and I predict that Texas will win big, or Alabama will win big, or Texas will win a close one, or Alabama will win a close one.

Mr. Blonde:
"Either he's alive or he's dead, or the cops got him... or they don't."

JBJ · September 8, 2023

21 minutes ago, txhorns said:

I hadn’t heard anything about this until this week but why do Bama fans keep claiming that they did not have a/c in their locker room last year? Seems kind of stupid to make that claim after LSU was proven wrong about their claim.

My honest take: they aren't used to the Texas heat - especially this time of year. The current temperature in Austin is higher than our high today, and the kids wore jackets this morning to go to school. It's like a weird pride thing to pretend that the weather in the south is eternal dry-season west Africa. We didn't even have a single 100 degree day this year.

The coaches and players aren't used to that level of heat and think there's something wrong when it takes more than a minute to cool off.

Edited September 8, 2023 by JBJ

NoName · September 8, 2023

Xavier Worthy’s untold story: From Michigan to Texas stardom to his best version yet

https://theathletic.com/4843763/2023/09/08/xavier-worthy-texas-football-michigan-alabama/

first time i've seen this about why he didnt end up being an EE at Michigan

Quote

In early January 2021, two weeks before Worthy would move to Ann Arbor with J.J. McCarthy, Donovan Edwards and the Wolverines’ freshman enrollees, a problem emerged. Michigan has strict admissions standards for midyear enrollees, one former staffer said, and wasn’t able to get Worthy admitted into school. He was told that based on his academic profile, it would be better to enroll in June for U-M’s summer bridge program. His mother was stunned.

“For me, that didn’t fly,” she said. “I turned in all of his academic paperwork and applications in September. As far as I had been told, up until two weeks before, he was on track to enroll early. There was nothing missing, nothing short, they’d waived the SATs. It didn’t make sense. Something wasn’t right. What’s the problem and why am I finding out about this now?”

Worthy still wanted to honor his commitment. He moved to Ann Arbor and got an apartment. When Michigan posted a video of midyear move-in day on Jan. 16, Worthy was missing. Two days later, he announced on Twitter that “to end all the drama and speculations I am not enrolling early.” But he was in town. Since he wasn’t enrolled, he wasn’t allowed to work out in the football facility. All he could do was join Zoom meetings. After a strange month of trying to make it work, he moved back home.

“Michigan messed that up,” Jones said. “The trust wasn’t there. For us, trust is so big in everything. We just never felt like we were getting the truth about what happened. It was just a lot of, ‘We’re sorry.’”

Texas:

Quote

If he wasn’t going to Michigan, Worthy knew where he needed to be.

“I was going wherever Sark went,” he said.

Sarkisian had landed the Texas job two weeks after signing day. Biggs has known him since 2010 and always believed he was trustworthy.

“I kind of hoped X was going to choose Alabama to be with Sark,” Biggs said. “So this whole thing was like, all right, well, maybe this wasn’t supposed to happen. We can get you teamed up and get you where you’re wanted, where people can take advantage of your ability.”

Worthy officially asked to be released from his National Letter of Intent in April and committed to the Longhorns during their spring game. He’d never been to Austin before and didn’t consider anywhere else. It felt like fate, and the fit was obvious after watching Sarkisian’s offense turn DeVonta Smith into a Heisman Trophy winner. He couldn’t wait to get started.

“It was really exciting,” Worthy said. “I was so young and I was coming into something that’s new, but Sark was new, too. I felt like I had a fresh start and a clean slate.”

on the broken hand:

Quote

Sarkisian revealed this spring that Worthy played with a broken hand for the second half of the season. When asked to explain how he did it, Worthy shrugs.

“Shoot, I truly couldn’t tell you,” he said.

He won’t say which hand was broken. Won’t say when or how he broke it. Did it happen in a game? “I don’t remember.” The truth is he didn’t initially know it was broken. He was under the impression it was a bone bruise, one that made pass catching a painful experience.

“I really couldn’t squeeze nothing,” Worthy said. “You let it hit your hands and you’ve got to try to hold onto it. I used to get taped before every game. Extra tape. A lot of tape.”

re: Texas throwing deep (they almost statistically can't be worse than this - targeted on 25% of his go routes, then to go 1/24 for 46 yards on those routes is historically aweful

Quote

Worthy ran 93 go routes, was targeted 24 times and had just one catch, a 46-yarder against Alabama.

transferring:

Quote

Despite his frustrations, Worthy insists he did not seriously consider transferring at the end of last year, as was widely rumored. “Just a lot of people talking,” he said. Why stay? Because he came to Texas to play for Sark and wants to finish it out with him.

text:

Spoiler

Xavier Worthy is standing outside of his comfort zone.

He’s on the turf at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, but he has to spend the day talking, not playing. It’s Big 12 media day. If he wants to be a team leader and in the mix for awards, he has to start doing these things. So here he is, standing in a black Texas polo, trying to abide and provide. He says his coach, Steve Sarkisian, reminded him of this: Not a lot of people know about you. There’s a reason for that.

“I feel like I’m kind of a closed-off person,” Worthy said. “I never really, like, open myself up.”

One of the best wide receivers in college football has mostly kept to himself during his rise. Worthy will do press conferences when asked but tends to keep his answers short. Coaches say that’s just how X is: quiet, humble, focused. His mother, Nicky Jones, prefers to say he’s reserved. But he’s working on that. This year, he’s trying to become a better version of himself.

“I feel like y’all haven’t seen the best of me yet,” Worthy said.

We’ve seen the 6-foot-1, 172-pound wideout deliver big plays. We’re going to see plenty of him on Saturday night when his No. 11 Longhorns face No. 3 Alabama. But most don’t really know what he’s gone through in his first two years of college, nor is he inclined to share.

Worthy doesn’t talk about why he signed with Michigan in 2020, his brief stint in Ann Arbor and why that plan fell apart. He hasn’t opened up much about playing six games with a broken hand last season and how frustrating that became. The highs, the lows and the pressure of being Texas’ No. 1 receiver since his first college game — it’s hard for outsiders to understand.

But as he enters a defining junior season for himself and Texas, his head coach can tell he’s in a much better place today.

“He’s smiling so much more,” Sarkisian said. “You can almost feel like there’s a weight lifted off his shoulders. He’s enjoying playing the game.”

In fifth grade, Worthy tried cross country. Growing up in Fresno, Calif., he played all the other sports, too. When he signed up for this one, he didn’t realize how much running was required. At the district championship meet, he finished second.

“He came home with his little medal,” Jones said, “and he was pissed off.”

Worthy vowed that he’d win next time. He kept running. Mom got him better shoes. One year later, the sixth-grader brought home a first-place medal. His mother still treasures a photo of him proudly holding it up.

“That’s Xavier,” she said. “His expectations for himself are so high. He’s extremely confident and he works hard to get it. He had to come in first because he put his mind to it.

“And once he did that? Yeah, no more cross country.”

(Courtesy of Nicky Jones)

Worthy became a top-100 recruit at Fresno Central East High School, but it didn’t happen right away. Though his blazing speed was no secret after a 10.55 PR in the 100 meters as a sophomore, Worthy caught 10 passes that year. His coaches pushed him, but what he responded to was competition. Jeremiah Hunter, their 1,500-yard receiver who now plays for Cal, was a year older, bigger and worked harder. Entering his junior season, Worthy didn’t have to match Hunter’s work ethic. He needed to exceed it.

“It was a great, healthy competition we had with those guys,” Central East coach Kyle Biggs said, “and that was the year we won state.”

Worthy’s lone scholarship offer before his junior year was San Jose State. The Pac-12 offers rolled in during that 15-0 season and CIF title in 2019. After 55 catches for 992 yards and 16 scores, the word was out. All of the schools in Worthy’s top six — Alabama, Auburn, Georgia, LSU, Michigan and Oregon — were far from home. He told his mother he was seeking new experiences.

“I told her I wanted to see the rest of the world and see what’s going on,” he said. “I kinda wanted to sprout and just be a man.”

Unfortunately, as his recruiting process heated up, a pandemic was going on. Worthy couldn’t take official visits and had to build relationships over video chats. He became a big believer in Michigan offensive coordinator Josh Gattis and his “Speed in Space” mantra, and that connection persuaded him to commit to Michigan in July 2020.

Sarkisian, Alabama’s offensive coordinator at the time, never backed off. Worthy and Jones took a November trip to Alabama to attend an Iron Bowl win over Auburn and do a self-guided campus tour, sparking rumors that a flip was incoming. But Worthy stuck with Michigan and signed in December. Coach Jim Harbaugh called him “one of the top players in the country.”

“I felt like that was where home was at,” Worthy said.

When he first picked Michigan, Worthy planned to be an early enrollee. His school district didn’t allow seniors to graduate early. Jones got creative. She got him enrolled in Apex Learning Virtual School, an online program, for the fall of 2020. It wasn’t easy to get that plan lined up without guidance counselors, but Jones ensured his class schedule met all graduation and NCAA initial eligibility requirements.

In early January 2021, two weeks before Worthy would move to Ann Arbor with J.J. McCarthy, Donovan Edwards and the Wolverines’ freshman enrollees, a problem emerged. Michigan has strict admissions standards for midyear enrollees, one former staffer said, and wasn’t able to get Worthy admitted into school. He was told that based on his academic profile, it would be better to enroll in June for U-M’s summer bridge program. His mother was stunned.

“For me, that didn’t fly,” she said. “I turned in all of his academic paperwork and applications in September. As far as I had been told, up until two weeks before, he was on track to enroll early. There was nothing missing, nothing short, they’d waived the SATs. It didn’t make sense. Something wasn’t right. What’s the problem and why am I finding out about this now?”

Worthy still wanted to honor his commitment. He moved to Ann Arbor and got an apartment. When Michigan posted a video of midyear move-in day on Jan. 16, Worthy was missing. Two days later, he announced on Twitter that “to end all the drama and speculations I am not enrolling early.” But he was in town. Since he wasn’t enrolled, he wasn’t allowed to work out in the football facility. All he could do was join Zoom meetings. After a strange month of trying to make it work, he moved back home.

“Michigan messed that up,” Jones said. “The trust wasn’t there. For us, trust is so big in everything. We just never felt like we were getting the truth about what happened. It was just a lot of, ‘We’re sorry.’”

The 17-year-old returned to Fresno to rethink his future. It didn’t make him feel any better that Central East was playing a five-game spring season and he couldn’t participate. During a loss to rival Buchanan, Biggs looked to Worthy on the sideline and told him, “Sure could use you right now.”

Jones and Worthy in Dallas before a Texas-Oklahoma game. (Courtesy of Nicky Jones)

If he wasn’t going to Michigan, Worthy knew where he needed to be.

“I was going wherever Sark went,” he said.

Sarkisian had landed the Texas job two weeks after signing day. Biggs has known him since 2010 and always believed he was trustworthy.

“I kind of hoped X was going to choose Alabama to be with Sark,” Biggs said. “So this whole thing was like, all right, well, maybe this wasn’t supposed to happen. We can get you teamed up and get you where you’re wanted, where people can take advantage of your ability.”

Worthy officially asked to be released from his National Letter of Intent in April and committed to the Longhorns during their spring game. He’d never been to Austin before and didn’t consider anywhere else. It felt like fate, and the fit was obvious after watching Sarkisian’s offense turn DeVonta Smith into a Heisman Trophy winner. He couldn’t wait to get started.

“It was really exciting,” Worthy said. “I was so young and I was coming into something that’s new, but Sark was new, too. I felt like I had a fresh start and a clean slate.”

He hadn’t played in a game in a year and a half. He didn’t work with trainers. During the pandemic, Worthy ordered a set of ladders and cones, laid them out in the backyard, studied YouTube videos and tore up the yard with his cleats. Mom asked whether he needed to work out in a helmet and pads. He assured her he’d be fine.

At Texas, Worthy was a starter from Day 1. He scored three touchdowns in his first Big 12 game. But it was the epic Red River Rivalry game in 2021 that put him on the national radar. First play of the game? A screen on the perimeter. Worthy stiff-armed a Sooner and raced down the sideline for a 75-yard score.

Midway through the fourth quarter, Worthy fumbled a kickoff return. Oklahoma scored right away to pull ahead 48-41. Worthy responded with a 48-yard reception, then a leaping 31-yard touchdown to tie it up in the final minutes. Mom tried to hold back the tears while watching him put up 261 receiving yards. For a freshman, it was an experience like no other.

“Everybody in the locker room expressed what kind of game that was. To me, I’m not from Texas. I’m from California. So I wasn’t really too nervous,” he said. “It’s basically like another game for me. And I go off in that game and everybody was chanting, ‘X! X! X! I’m like, oh shoot, that’s crazy.”

Caleb Williams, Oklahoma’s freshman quarterback, was the one who got the glory for a comeback victory. But another star was born that day. Worthy went on to have a Freshman All-America season and pick up first-team All-Big 12 and Offensive Freshman of the Year honors after leading his team with 981 receiving yards and 12 touchdowns. The Longhorns lost five of their last six after that thriller in the Cotton Bowl, but Sarkisian had a difference maker he could build around.

“I just want to build off that,” Worthy said after the season, “and go win a Big 12 championship.”

Texas was better in 2022. Worthy was not. What went wrong?

Sarkisian revealed this spring that Worthy played with a broken hand for the second half of the season. When asked to explain how he did it, Worthy shrugs.

“Shoot, I truly couldn’t tell you,” he said.

He won’t say which hand was broken. Won’t say when or how he broke it. Did it happen in a game? “I don’t remember.” The truth is he didn’t initially know it was broken. He was under the impression it was a bone bruise, one that made pass catching a painful experience.

“I really couldn’t squeeze nothing,” Worthy said. “You let it hit your hands and you’ve got to try to hold onto it. I used to get taped before every game. Extra tape. A lot of tape.”

You could see tape poking out of Worthy’s right glove when Texas played Kansas State on Nov. 5. His hand began bothering him during the Longhorns’ previous game, a 41-34 road loss at Oklahoma State. Quarterback Quinn Ewers threw his way 14 times. Worthy had three catches. Wind, inaccuracy and inexperience all contributed to that, but their connection wasn’t quite right that afternoon.

Worthy refused to sit out and tried to tough it out. He says his teammates needed him and he was playing for them. Some days in practice, Sarkisian said, they wouldn’t throw him the ball in an attempt to manage the injury. They managed to keep it a secret, too.

“I feel like everything isn’t everybody’s business,” Worthy said.

“That’s X, man,” Biggs said. “He’s not gonna tell you s—.”

When asked why he never disclosed the injury last season, Sarkisian offered a stern reply: “Because I don’t have to tell you.” Ewers, the Longhorns’ young starter, said they tried to keep that information “inside the four walls” of the football facility and praised Worthy’s selflessness.

“I think he handled it as best as he could,” Ewers said.

The trade-off for that privacy: If fans don’t know, they don’t get it. Worthy had four catches for 32 yards and two drops on 12 targets in a loss to No. 4 TCU. He had three more drops in the Alamo Bowl loss to No. 12 Washington. Worthy finished with 60 catches for 760 yards and nine scores on 113 targets. There were 53 receivers in the FBS last season who saw 100-plus targets, according to TruMedia. Worthy catching 53 percent of his ranked 49th among them.

One troubling development: Texas couldn’t hit the long ball. Ewers finished with 274 passing yards on throws of more than 20 yards last season, which ranked 120th out of 131 FBS teams. Worthy ran 93 go routes, was targeted 24 times and had just one catch, a 46-yarder against Alabama. Those growing pains combined with rising expectations and an injury that wasn’t improving made for a difficult year.

“I knew something was wrong with him,” Biggs said. “He didn’t have the same demeanor on the sideline and in games, that killer instinct. So to find out he was playing with a broken hand and not saying anything didn’t surprise me. Because he’s not going to make excuses. He’s not going to complain.

“When X plays, he’s smiling and he’s having fun. I didn’t see that last year.”

After the bowl game, Worthy was re-evaluated and learned he’d played with a broken right hand. He wore a cast for eight weeks. Fortunately, it healed without requiring surgery. He put a tennis ball machine in his apartment and built up his strength with one-handed catches. He feels fully healthy now and is glad all that’s in the past. But he kept another part of that struggle to himself.

“The mental aspect was kind of hard,” Worthy said. “It’s hard not to read everything. Social media is a big thing in the world. It was just hard. But now I’m past it. My mental got stronger, emotionally I’m stronger and physically I’m stronger.”

USATSI_19161680-scaled-e1694170424550.jp

(Aaron E. Martinez / American-Statesman via USA Today)

Worthy has found a new comfort zone.

On Saturday afternoon, he sat down in his uniform and leaned against the goal post in the south end zone of Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium. He closed his eyes and took time to meditate before hopping up to begin pregame warm-ups.

“He told me that before every game, he’ll sit for five minutes and silence everything,” Jones said.

She encouraged him to give it a try to refocus, stay centered and keep things in perspective. After what Worthy went through in 2022, he needed new methods for self-care to deal with pressure and get back in the right headspace. Jones reminded him of a saying that hangs in her office: Never become intoxicated by success or paralyzed by failure.

His first two seasons at Texas provided experience in both extremes. This year, he’s aiming for a healthier balance. Sarkisian has vowed people would start seeing a dramatically different version of Worthy. So far, so good. Worthy kicked off his junior season with seven catches for 90 yards against Rice. He made guys miss. He had zero drops. He looked like X again.

“I think the guy is having more fun now than he’s ever had here,” Sarkisian said.

Despite his frustrations, Worthy insists he did not seriously consider transferring at the end of last year, as was widely rumored. “Just a lot of people talking,” he said. Why stay? Because he came to Texas to play for Sark and wants to finish it out with him.

Sarkisian frequently praised Worthy throughout the offseason for the way he “re-committed” himself to the program and to his teammates. Now that Bijan Robinson is off to the NFL, Worthy is the dude who sparks Texas’ offense. But it’s so much more than that.

Worthy needed to build up his chemistry with Ewers. He had to keep refining and become a more complete receiver. It was time to become a leader and help bring along touted freshmen like Johntay Cook. He’s been the first guy on the practice field and one of the last to leave. He got serious about his nutrition. He’s sitting in the front row of meetings. He’s wearing No. 1 now, his old high school number. He’s playing more relaxed. The confidence that impressed everyone during his freshman campaign is back.

“I don’t think people get how hard he works, because nobody sees it,” Texas receiver Jordan Whittington said. “But that’s one of the good things about him. He doesn’t need a spotlight to go to work. He’s a guy who behind the scenes has been really working on perfecting his craft. I’m really excited to see him play. He’s truly one of the best receivers in the nation.”

Worthy is ready to remind everyone of that against Alabama. He grinned this week and said he feels like he’s living his best life. The past few years have left Jones thoroughly convinced that all these good and bad things happened for a reason.

They’ve changed Worthy for the better. If you know him, you’ll notice.

“Seeing him evolve as a man and a person, I think that’s been the best part for me,” she said. “Everybody just sees a football player. But that’s my son. I’m seeing him grow up and make decisions and become this man. I’m just really proud.”

Edited September 8, 2023 by NoName

Longboard Horn · September 8, 2023

25 minutes ago, South Austin said:

I've been meticulously breaking down game film all week, and I predict that Texas will win big, or Alabama will win big, or Texas will win a close one, or Alabama will win a close one.

WelfareBuysMyWeed · September 8, 2023

26 minutes ago, South Austin said:

I've been meticulously breaking down game film all week, and I predict that Texas will win big, or Alabama will win big, or Texas will win a close one, or Alabama will win a close one.

hell yeah, fuck ties

Daichee Bell · September 8, 2023

17 minutes ago, Orange&White said:

Mr. Blonde:
"Either he's alive or he's dead, or the cops got him... or they don't."

South Austin’s mom:

Edited September 8, 2023 by Daichee Bell

Longboard Horn · September 8, 2023

3 minutes ago, WelfareBuysMyWeed said:

hell yeah, fuck ties

Man when I was a boy you could still tie. Ties never hurt your ranking.

NoName · September 8, 2023

another Athletic Article:

What is Steve Sarkisian’s blueprint for Alabama? Inside Texas’ motion package

https://theathletic.com/4838978/2023/09/08/texas-alabama-steve-sarkisian-ewers-worthy/

Quote

One year ago, Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian put a scare into Alabama, coming within a point of the nation’s top-ranked team. Now, as he prepares for Saturday’s rematch in Tuscaloosa, Sarkisian is armed with the blueprint that had the Crimson Tide defense reeling, especially before Quinn Ewers got hurt.

That blueprint is a fluid pre-snap motion package, which Sarkisian has continued to build on since his days as the offensive coordinator at Bama. His ability to move players pre-snap provides him with the mismatches needed to exploit perimeter defenders. Expect it to be a constant in his game plan this week, especially with Crimson Tide defensive backs Jaylen Key and Malachi Moore already nursing injuries from last week.

Sarkisian moved his pieces on offense on at least 52 percent of snaps last year, according to TruMedia. While this may not seem like much, it ranked 20th at the FBS level

re: Orbit Motion

Quote

Perhaps no other coach — save for military academies running the triple-option — uses orbit motion more than Sarkisian does. He puts a premium on having receivers, like Worthy, work around the quarterback to the opposite side of the formation pre-snap. This forces another defender to match Worthy. It’s easy for a defense to game plan taking him away pre-snap, but when he allocates himself to another end of the formation, it puts an extensive amount of stress on defenses to communicate and cover.

Text - it's long with a lot of screenshots videos

Spoiler

One year ago, Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian put a scare into Alabama, coming within a point of the nation’s top-ranked team. Now, as he prepares for Saturday’s rematch in Tuscaloosa, Sarkisian is armed with the blueprint that had the Crimson Tide defense reeling, especially before Quinn Ewers got hurt.

That blueprint is a fluid pre-snap motion package, which Sarkisian has continued to build on since his days as the offensive coordinator at Bama. His ability to move players pre-snap provides him with the mismatches needed to exploit perimeter defenders. Expect it to be a constant in his game plan this week, especially with Crimson Tide defensive backs Jaylen Key and Malachi Moore already nursing injuries from last week.

Sarkisian moved his pieces on offense on at least 52 percent of snaps last year, according to TruMedia. While this may not seem like much, it ranked 20th at the FBS level. Let’s look at the four pre-snap build-ins Sarkisian uses to out-leverage defenses and generate space in the passing game, exploring how he builds upon them — coaches call it layering — during the course of a game and season.

Example 1: Formation into boundary structures

When you put on Texas tape, the first thing you notice is how much space Sarkisian and offensive coordinator Kyle Flood allow their skill players to work with. The second thing is how many times defenses allow it to happen. In the coaching profession, it is called “FIB,” which stands for aligning the “formation into the boundary.” This is where an offense aligns the strength of the formation into the short side of the field, which Sarkisian and his staff did on more than 70 percent of snaps last year, which was 12th in the country, according to TruMedia.

Because so many defensive structures are generated to align toward the passing strength of the formation, this often leaves fewer defenders and more space for offensive players to work with. This is Sarkisian 101; if the defense gives you space, take it. Last week against Rice, Sarkisian repeatedly lined up star receiver Xavier Worthy to the field side, prompting a man-to-man matchup with an inferior cornerback.

Ewers sees the matchup and delivers a speed out (or Omaha route in Sarkisian’s system) to Worthy, which generates a 25-yard gain.

Sarkisian has plenty of weapons on the perimeter aside from Worthy, including Ja’Tavion Sanders, one of the best pass-catching tight ends in the country. Sanders is 6 feet 4, 243 pounds and armed with the innate ability to stretch defenses vertically. His 54 catches last season were the most for a tight end in Longhorns history.

Sarkisian will also align him to the boundary, presenting a nub side (no receiver) surface to the field.

For most two-high defenses like Kansas State, this produces a hard Cover 2 check, which gives the corner flat responsibility to the field while the safety plays the first deep route. The problem is Sanders has the athleticism to get on the toes of the near safety and has the ball skills to out-muscle them at the point of catch.

Sarkisian knows this and runs a typical smash route, getting Sanders matched up on a high safety for a 15-yard completion.

How FIB is layered

Defenses are formationally based, so most times they will have one to two checks against FIB surfaces. Quite simply, if they feel like their corner can play the receiver to the field, they lock him up. Such was the case in the Alamo Bowl against Washington. Though the Longhorns lost 27-20, Ewers threw for a career-high 369 yards and Texas had some of its biggest chunk plays on formation into boundary concepts.

The Huskies played a healthy dose of man coverage, particularly on third down. In the image below, Sarkisian may not have the matchup he wanted at wideout, but he did match up running back Keilan Robinson on an interior linebacker. A simple wheel route out of the backfield produced a 10-yard gain and moved the chains.

Similar to FIB checks, most defenses will only have one or two checks to empty formations, and that usually revolves around playing some sort of man. Sarkisian will again align his top skill players to the boundary, where there is more space.

In the image below, Worthy converts on a third-down slant against a Washington corner for a first down.

Example 2: Orbit motion

Perhaps no other coach — save for military academies running the triple-option — uses orbit motion more than Sarkisian does. He puts a premium on having receivers, like Worthy, work around the quarterback to the opposite side of the formation pre-snap. This forces another defender to match Worthy. It’s easy for a defense to game plan taking him away pre-snap, but when he allocates himself to another end of the formation, it puts an extensive amount of stress on defenses to communicate and cover.

In the image below, Sarkisian brings Worthy back across the formation against ULM with the purpose of throwing him a bubble screen. With two receivers already aligned to the field, the nearest tackler to Worthy is a deep safety at 10 yards.

Ewers throws the screen and Worthy picks up an easy 8 yards.

How orbit motion is layered

The next week against Alabama, Sarkisian again motioned Worthy quite a few times behind the quarterback. These were done early in the game and Alabama defensive coordinator Pete Golding made the decision to have corner Kool-Aid McKinstry shadow him across the field. The problem was, by the time Worthy caught the ball he had a 15-yard head start on McKinstry, generating a first down.

The second time Texas ran it, Alabama tagged a blitz right into it. This time, the problem was that the ball was already thrown to the flat and Worthy was matched up with an inside linebacker who was the nearest threat to tackle him. Again, a 13-yard gain.

Sarkisian’s eyes in the booth were on it, so the final time he ran the orbit motion a series or two later, Worthy drew defenders over to the field, allowing for a screen into the boundary for a 12-yard gain.

And later in the year, Sarkisian built in various elements to throw off the orbit motion such as the wheel concept, which outnumbered the defense. In the image below against Oklahoma, Ewers gets the ball to Sanders, who runs the wheel off the double slant concept.

Example 3: Return motion

While defenses start to clue in on these orbit motion tags by rotating defenders over, Sarkisian progresses to using what is known as “return motion” — or having receivers end up where they started pre-snap. The speed of Worthy and others puts a great deal of stress on defenders who are forced to think on the fly and make adjustments.

In the image below against Oklahoma, Sarkisian gives the presentation that he’s pairing orbit motion to run the screen on the opposite side of the formation.

But Worthy stops before reaching the midline and works back to the boundary for a bubble screen and a 10-yard gain in the red zone.

How return motion is layered

Later in the game, Sarkisian scaffolds the return motion into a downfield shot. In the image below, Robinson draws both Oklahoma defenders into pressure, allowing him to sneak out on a wheel for a 15-yard gain.

But he won’t always use return motion from perimeter receivers. One of his most successful variations is from the slot, where he will use receivers like Jordan Whittington to simulate jet sweep in one direction, only to come back the other way with the ball.

In the image below, it affects the Kansas secondary, which rotates to the boundary but is unable to redirect to the field in time.

Example 4: Motion to stack

The final pre-snap movement build-in that the Texas offense implements is what is known as “motion to stack,” where Ewers will call in receivers to align more tightly together.

The stress this puts on defensive backs is two-fold: One, they need to communicate their coverage responsibilities quickly; and two, these condensed splits provide for more spacing for receivers to run vertical routes. Sarkisian used these build-ins exclusively in last season’s matchup against Alabama.

In the clip below, Worthy motions to stack, aligning on the hash, then runs a vertical pipe past the corner for a 46-yard completion.

And if Sarkisian prefers the matchup with Worthy on a safety, he’ll use the same pre-snap motion package and run what’s known as a “vertical switch” where the outside receiver runs a seam route down the middle of the field.

He used this concept against West Virginia last season to generate a 46-yard explosive play to Worthy.

How motion to stack is layered

Sarkisian won’t always use these motion build-ins to produce explosives. Often, he’ll use them to generate quick throws for Ewers, who is able to get the ball out to athletes on the perimeter.

In the image below, Ewers calls in Worthy to motion to stack so that he can get the ball to him on a bubble screen. Because the receivers stack, the nearest defender is 10 yards removed.

They will be paired to both two-receiver and three-receiver formations.

In the image below against Kansas, Ewers motions in tight end Sanders to get a bigger body to block on the perimeter for Keilan Robinson, who scores a 15-yard touchdown.

Expect Sarkisian to use these same motion packages on Saturday against Alabama. And why wouldn’t he? It’s the cornerstone of his system and part of the reason why the Longhorns had the Crimson Tide on the ropes a season ago.

We’ll see how Nick Saban and his staff adjust this time around.

Codaxx · September 8, 2023

16 minutes ago, NoName said:

Xavier Worthy’s untold story: From Michigan to Texas stardom to his best version yet

https://theathletic.com/4843763/2023/09/08/xavier-worthy-texas-football-michigan-alabama/

first time i've seen this about why he didnt end up being an EE at Michigan

Texas:

on the broken hand:

re: Texas throwing deep (they almost statistically can't be worse than this - targeted on 25% of his go routes, then to go 1/24 for 46 yards on those routes is historically aweful

transferring:

text:

Reveal hidden contents

Xavier Worthy is standing outside of his comfort zone.

He’s on the turf at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, but he has to spend the day talking, not playing. It’s Big 12 media day. If he wants to be a team leader and in the mix for awards, he has to start doing these things. So here he is, standing in a black Texas polo, trying to abide and provide. He says his coach, Steve Sarkisian, reminded him of this: Not a lot of people know about you. There’s a reason for that.

“I feel like I’m kind of a closed-off person,” Worthy said. “I never really, like, open myself up.”

One of the best wide receivers in college football has mostly kept to himself during his rise. Worthy will do press conferences when asked but tends to keep his answers short. Coaches say that’s just how X is: quiet, humble, focused. His mother, Nicky Jones, prefers to say he’s reserved. But he’s working on that. This year, he’s trying to become a better version of himself.

“I feel like y’all haven’t seen the best of me yet,” Worthy said.

We’ve seen the 6-foot-1, 172-pound wideout deliver big plays. We’re going to see plenty of him on Saturday night when his No. 11 Longhorns face No. 3 Alabama. But most don’t really know what he’s gone through in his first two years of college, nor is he inclined to share.

Worthy doesn’t talk about why he signed with Michigan in 2020, his brief stint in Ann Arbor and why that plan fell apart. He hasn’t opened up much about playing six games with a broken hand last season and how frustrating that became. The highs, the lows and the pressure of being Texas’ No. 1 receiver since his first college game — it’s hard for outsiders to understand.

But as he enters a defining junior season for himself and Texas, his head coach can tell he’s in a much better place today.

“He’s smiling so much more,” Sarkisian said. “You can almost feel like there’s a weight lifted off his shoulders. He’s enjoying playing the game.”

In fifth grade, Worthy tried cross country. Growing up in Fresno, Calif., he played all the other sports, too. When he signed up for this one, he didn’t realize how much running was required. At the district championship meet, he finished second.

“He came home with his little medal,” Jones said, “and he was pissed off.”

Worthy vowed that he’d win next time. He kept running. Mom got him better shoes. One year later, the sixth-grader brought home a first-place medal. His mother still treasures a photo of him proudly holding it up.

“That’s Xavier,” she said. “His expectations for himself are so high. He’s extremely confident and he works hard to get it. He had to come in first because he put his mind to it.

“And once he did that? Yeah, no more cross country.”

(Courtesy of Nicky Jones)

Worthy became a top-100 recruit at Fresno Central East High School, but it didn’t happen right away. Though his blazing speed was no secret after a 10.55 PR in the 100 meters as a sophomore, Worthy caught 10 passes that year. His coaches pushed him, but what he responded to was competition. Jeremiah Hunter, their 1,500-yard receiver who now plays for Cal, was a year older, bigger and worked harder. Entering his junior season, Worthy didn’t have to match Hunter’s work ethic. He needed to exceed it.

“It was a great, healthy competition we had with those guys,” Central East coach Kyle Biggs said, “and that was the year we won state.”

Worthy’s lone scholarship offer before his junior year was San Jose State. The Pac-12 offers rolled in during that 15-0 season and CIF title in 2019. After 55 catches for 992 yards and 16 scores, the word was out. All of the schools in Worthy’s top six — Alabama, Auburn, Georgia, LSU, Michigan and Oregon — were far from home. He told his mother he was seeking new experiences.

“I told her I wanted to see the rest of the world and see what’s going on,” he said. “I kinda wanted to sprout and just be a man.”

Unfortunately, as his recruiting process heated up, a pandemic was going on. Worthy couldn’t take official visits and had to build relationships over video chats. He became a big believer in Michigan offensive coordinator Josh Gattis and his “Speed in Space” mantra, and that connection persuaded him to commit to Michigan in July 2020.

Sarkisian, Alabama’s offensive coordinator at the time, never backed off. Worthy and Jones took a November trip to Alabama to attend an Iron Bowl win over Auburn and do a self-guided campus tour, sparking rumors that a flip was incoming. But Worthy stuck with Michigan and signed in December. Coach Jim Harbaugh called him “one of the top players in the country.”

“I felt like that was where home was at,” Worthy said.

When he first picked Michigan, Worthy planned to be an early enrollee. His school district didn’t allow seniors to graduate early. Jones got creative. She got him enrolled in Apex Learning Virtual School, an online program, for the fall of 2020. It wasn’t easy to get that plan lined up without guidance counselors, but Jones ensured his class schedule met all graduation and NCAA initial eligibility requirements.

In early January 2021, two weeks before Worthy would move to Ann Arbor with J.J. McCarthy, Donovan Edwards and the Wolverines’ freshman enrollees, a problem emerged. Michigan has strict admissions standards for midyear enrollees, one former staffer said, and wasn’t able to get Worthy admitted into school. He was told that based on his academic profile, it would be better to enroll in June for U-M’s summer bridge program. His mother was stunned.

“For me, that didn’t fly,” she said. “I turned in all of his academic paperwork and applications in September. As far as I had been told, up until two weeks before, he was on track to enroll early. There was nothing missing, nothing short, they’d waived the SATs. It didn’t make sense. Something wasn’t right. What’s the problem and why am I finding out about this now?”

Worthy still wanted to honor his commitment. He moved to Ann Arbor and got an apartment. When Michigan posted a video of midyear move-in day on Jan. 16, Worthy was missing. Two days later, he announced on Twitter that “to end all the drama and speculations I am not enrolling early.” But he was in town. Since he wasn’t enrolled, he wasn’t allowed to work out in the football facility. All he could do was join Zoom meetings. After a strange month of trying to make it work, he moved back home.

“Michigan messed that up,” Jones said. “The trust wasn’t there. For us, trust is so big in everything. We just never felt like we were getting the truth about what happened. It was just a lot of, ‘We’re sorry.’”

The 17-year-old returned to Fresno to rethink his future. It didn’t make him feel any better that Central East was playing a five-game spring season and he couldn’t participate. During a loss to rival Buchanan, Biggs looked to Worthy on the sideline and told him, “Sure could use you right now.”

Jones and Worthy in Dallas before a Texas-Oklahoma game. (Courtesy of Nicky Jones)

If he wasn’t going to Michigan, Worthy knew where he needed to be.

“I was going wherever Sark went,” he said.

Sarkisian had landed the Texas job two weeks after signing day. Biggs has known him since 2010 and always believed he was trustworthy.

“I kind of hoped X was going to choose Alabama to be with Sark,” Biggs said. “So this whole thing was like, all right, well, maybe this wasn’t supposed to happen. We can get you teamed up and get you where you’re wanted, where people can take advantage of your ability.”

Worthy officially asked to be released from his National Letter of Intent in April and committed to the Longhorns during their spring game. He’d never been to Austin before and didn’t consider anywhere else. It felt like fate, and the fit was obvious after watching Sarkisian’s offense turn DeVonta Smith into a Heisman Trophy winner. He couldn’t wait to get started.

“It was really exciting,” Worthy said. “I was so young and I was coming into something that’s new, but Sark was new, too. I felt like I had a fresh start and a clean slate.”

He hadn’t played in a game in a year and a half. He didn’t work with trainers. During the pandemic, Worthy ordered a set of ladders and cones, laid them out in the backyard, studied YouTube videos and tore up the yard with his cleats. Mom asked whether he needed to work out in a helmet and pads. He assured her he’d be fine.

At Texas, Worthy was a starter from Day 1. He scored three touchdowns in his first Big 12 game. But it was the epic Red River Rivalry game in 2021 that put him on the national radar. First play of the game? A screen on the perimeter. Worthy stiff-armed a Sooner and raced down the sideline for a 75-yard score.

Midway through the fourth quarter, Worthy fumbled a kickoff return. Oklahoma scored right away to pull ahead 48-41. Worthy responded with a 48-yard reception, then a leaping 31-yard touchdown to tie it up in the final minutes. Mom tried to hold back the tears while watching him put up 261 receiving yards. For a freshman, it was an experience like no other.

“Everybody in the locker room expressed what kind of game that was. To me, I’m not from Texas. I’m from California. So I wasn’t really too nervous,” he said. “It’s basically like another game for me. And I go off in that game and everybody was chanting, ‘X! X! X! I’m like, oh shoot, that’s crazy.”

Caleb Williams, Oklahoma’s freshman quarterback, was the one who got the glory for a comeback victory. But another star was born that day. Worthy went on to have a Freshman All-America season and pick up first-team All-Big 12 and Offensive Freshman of the Year honors after leading his team with 981 receiving yards and 12 touchdowns. The Longhorns lost five of their last six after that thriller in the Cotton Bowl, but Sarkisian had a difference maker he could build around.

“I just want to build off that,” Worthy said after the season, “and go win a Big 12 championship.”

Texas was better in 2022. Worthy was not. What went wrong?

Sarkisian revealed this spring that Worthy played with a broken hand for the second half of the season. When asked to explain how he did it, Worthy shrugs.

“Shoot, I truly couldn’t tell you,” he said.

He won’t say which hand was broken. Won’t say when or how he broke it. Did it happen in a game? “I don’t remember.” The truth is he didn’t initially know it was broken. He was under the impression it was a bone bruise, one that made pass catching a painful experience.

“I really couldn’t squeeze nothing,” Worthy said. “You let it hit your hands and you’ve got to try to hold onto it. I used to get taped before every game. Extra tape. A lot of tape.”

You could see tape poking out of Worthy’s right glove when Texas played Kansas State on Nov. 5. His hand began bothering him during the Longhorns’ previous game, a 41-34 road loss at Oklahoma State. Quarterback Quinn Ewers threw his way 14 times. Worthy had three catches. Wind, inaccuracy and inexperience all contributed to that, but their connection wasn’t quite right that afternoon.

Worthy refused to sit out and tried to tough it out. He says his teammates needed him and he was playing for them. Some days in practice, Sarkisian said, they wouldn’t throw him the ball in an attempt to manage the injury. They managed to keep it a secret, too.

“I feel like everything isn’t everybody’s business,” Worthy said.

“That’s X, man,” Biggs said. “He’s not gonna tell you s—.”

When asked why he never disclosed the injury last season, Sarkisian offered a stern reply: “Because I don’t have to tell you.” Ewers, the Longhorns’ young starter, said they tried to keep that information “inside the four walls” of the football facility and praised Worthy’s selflessness.

“I think he handled it as best as he could,” Ewers said.

The trade-off for that privacy: If fans don’t know, they don’t get it. Worthy had four catches for 32 yards and two drops on 12 targets in a loss to No. 4 TCU. He had three more drops in the Alamo Bowl loss to No. 12 Washington. Worthy finished with 60 catches for 760 yards and nine scores on 113 targets. There were 53 receivers in the FBS last season who saw 100-plus targets, according to TruMedia. Worthy catching 53 percent of his ranked 49th among them.

One troubling development: Texas couldn’t hit the long ball. Ewers finished with 274 passing yards on throws of more than 20 yards last season, which ranked 120th out of 131 FBS teams. Worthy ran 93 go routes, was targeted 24 times and had just one catch, a 46-yarder against Alabama. Those growing pains combined with rising expectations and an injury that wasn’t improving made for a difficult year.

“I knew something was wrong with him,” Biggs said. “He didn’t have the same demeanor on the sideline and in games, that killer instinct. So to find out he was playing with a broken hand and not saying anything didn’t surprise me. Because he’s not going to make excuses. He’s not going to complain.

“When X plays, he’s smiling and he’s having fun. I didn’t see that last year.”

After the bowl game, Worthy was re-evaluated and learned he’d played with a broken right hand. He wore a cast for eight weeks. Fortunately, it healed without requiring surgery. He put a tennis ball machine in his apartment and built up his strength with one-handed catches. He feels fully healthy now and is glad all that’s in the past. But he kept another part of that struggle to himself.

“The mental aspect was kind of hard,” Worthy said. “It’s hard not to read everything. Social media is a big thing in the world. It was just hard. But now I’m past it. My mental got stronger, emotionally I’m stronger and physically I’m stronger.”

(Aaron E. Martinez / American-Statesman via USA Today)

Worthy has found a new comfort zone.

On Saturday afternoon, he sat down in his uniform and leaned against the goal post in the south end zone of Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium. He closed his eyes and took time to meditate before hopping up to begin pregame warm-ups.

“He told me that before every game, he’ll sit for five minutes and silence everything,” Jones said.

She encouraged him to give it a try to refocus, stay centered and keep things in perspective. After what Worthy went through in 2022, he needed new methods for self-care to deal with pressure and get back in the right headspace. Jones reminded him of a saying that hangs in her office: Never become intoxicated by success or paralyzed by failure.

His first two seasons at Texas provided experience in both extremes. This year, he’s aiming for a healthier balance. Sarkisian has vowed people would start seeing a dramatically different version of Worthy. So far, so good. Worthy kicked off his junior season with seven catches for 90 yards against Rice. He made guys miss. He had zero drops. He looked like X again.

“I think the guy is having more fun now than he’s ever had here,” Sarkisian said.

Despite his frustrations, Worthy insists he did not seriously consider transferring at the end of last year, as was widely rumored. “Just a lot of people talking,” he said. Why stay? Because he came to Texas to play for Sark and wants to finish it out with him.

Sarkisian frequently praised Worthy throughout the offseason for the way he “re-committed” himself to the program and to his teammates. Now that Bijan Robinson is off to the NFL, Worthy is the dude who sparks Texas’ offense. But it’s so much more than that.

Worthy needed to build up his chemistry with Ewers. He had to keep refining and become a more complete receiver. It was time to become a leader and help bring along touted freshmen like Johntay Cook. He’s been the first guy on the practice field and one of the last to leave. He got serious about his nutrition. He’s sitting in the front row of meetings. He’s wearing No. 1 now, his old high school number. He’s playing more relaxed. The confidence that impressed everyone during his freshman campaign is back.

“I don’t think people get how hard he works, because nobody sees it,” Texas receiver Jordan Whittington said. “But that’s one of the good things about him. He doesn’t need a spotlight to go to work. He’s a guy who behind the scenes has been really working on perfecting his craft. I’m really excited to see him play. He’s truly one of the best receivers in the nation.”

Worthy is ready to remind everyone of that against Alabama. He grinned this week and said he feels like he’s living his best life. The past few years have left Jones thoroughly convinced that all these good and bad things happened for a reason.

They’ve changed Worthy for the better. If you know him, you’ll notice.

“Seeing him evolve as a man and a person, I think that’s been the best part for me,” she said. “Everybody just sees a football player. But that’s my son. I’m seeing him grow up and make decisions and become this man. I’m just really proud.”

I think Babers said Texas ran 7 different personnel groupings last year, so I would suspect Sark will be very creative again.

Herpa Derpa · September 8, 2023

46 minutes ago, South Austin said:

I've been meticulously breaking down game film all week, and I predict that Texas will win big, or Alabama will win big, or Texas will win a close one, or Alabama will win a close one.

Zeus · September 8, 2023

Pig Bellmont · September 8, 2023

26 minutes ago, Longboard Horn said:

Man when I was a boy you could still tie. Ties never hurt your ranking.

What was the depression like grandpa?

mwaadeeb · September 8, 2023

35 minutes ago, NoName said:

Xavier Worthy’s untold story: From Michigan to Texas stardom to his best version yet

https://theathletic.com/4843763/2023/09/08/xavier-worthy-texas-football-michigan-alabama/

first time i've seen this about why he didnt end up being an EE at Michigan

Texas:

on the broken hand:

re: Texas throwing deep (they almost statistically can't be worse than this - targeted on 25% of his go routes, then to go 1/24 for 46 yards on those routes is historically aweful

transferring:

text:

Reveal hidden contents

Xavier Worthy is standing outside of his comfort zone.

He’s on the turf at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, but he has to spend the day talking, not playing. It’s Big 12 media day. If he wants to be a team leader and in the mix for awards, he has to start doing these things. So here he is, standing in a black Texas polo, trying to abide and provide. He says his coach, Steve Sarkisian, reminded him of this: Not a lot of people know about you. There’s a reason for that.

“I feel like I’m kind of a closed-off person,” Worthy said. “I never really, like, open myself up.”

One of the best wide receivers in college football has mostly kept to himself during his rise. Worthy will do press conferences when asked but tends to keep his answers short. Coaches say that’s just how X is: quiet, humble, focused. His mother, Nicky Jones, prefers to say he’s reserved. But he’s working on that. This year, he’s trying to become a better version of himself.

“I feel like y’all haven’t seen the best of me yet,” Worthy said.

We’ve seen the 6-foot-1, 172-pound wideout deliver big plays. We’re going to see plenty of him on Saturday night when his No. 11 Longhorns face No. 3 Alabama. But most don’t really know what he’s gone through in his first two years of college, nor is he inclined to share.

Worthy doesn’t talk about why he signed with Michigan in 2020, his brief stint in Ann Arbor and why that plan fell apart. He hasn’t opened up much about playing six games with a broken hand last season and how frustrating that became. The highs, the lows and the pressure of being Texas’ No. 1 receiver since his first college game — it’s hard for outsiders to understand.

But as he enters a defining junior season for himself and Texas, his head coach can tell he’s in a much better place today.

“He’s smiling so much more,” Sarkisian said. “You can almost feel like there’s a weight lifted off his shoulders. He’s enjoying playing the game.”

In fifth grade, Worthy tried cross country. Growing up in Fresno, Calif., he played all the other sports, too. When he signed up for this one, he didn’t realize how much running was required. At the district championship meet, he finished second.

“He came home with his little medal,” Jones said, “and he was pissed off.”

Worthy vowed that he’d win next time. He kept running. Mom got him better shoes. One year later, the sixth-grader brought home a first-place medal. His mother still treasures a photo of him proudly holding it up.

“That’s Xavier,” she said. “His expectations for himself are so high. He’s extremely confident and he works hard to get it. He had to come in first because he put his mind to it.

“And once he did that? Yeah, no more cross country.”

(Courtesy of Nicky Jones)

Worthy became a top-100 recruit at Fresno Central East High School, but it didn’t happen right away. Though his blazing speed was no secret after a 10.55 PR in the 100 meters as a sophomore, Worthy caught 10 passes that year. His coaches pushed him, but what he responded to was competition. Jeremiah Hunter, their 1,500-yard receiver who now plays for Cal, was a year older, bigger and worked harder. Entering his junior season, Worthy didn’t have to match Hunter’s work ethic. He needed to exceed it.

“It was a great, healthy competition we had with those guys,” Central East coach Kyle Biggs said, “and that was the year we won state.”

Worthy’s lone scholarship offer before his junior year was San Jose State. The Pac-12 offers rolled in during that 15-0 season and CIF title in 2019. After 55 catches for 992 yards and 16 scores, the word was out. All of the schools in Worthy’s top six — Alabama, Auburn, Georgia, LSU, Michigan and Oregon — were far from home. He told his mother he was seeking new experiences.

“I told her I wanted to see the rest of the world and see what’s going on,” he said. “I kinda wanted to sprout and just be a man.”

Unfortunately, as his recruiting process heated up, a pandemic was going on. Worthy couldn’t take official visits and had to build relationships over video chats. He became a big believer in Michigan offensive coordinator Josh Gattis and his “Speed in Space” mantra, and that connection persuaded him to commit to Michigan in July 2020.

Sarkisian, Alabama’s offensive coordinator at the time, never backed off. Worthy and Jones took a November trip to Alabama to attend an Iron Bowl win over Auburn and do a self-guided campus tour, sparking rumors that a flip was incoming. But Worthy stuck with Michigan and signed in December. Coach Jim Harbaugh called him “one of the top players in the country.”

“I felt like that was where home was at,” Worthy said.

When he first picked Michigan, Worthy planned to be an early enrollee. His school district didn’t allow seniors to graduate early. Jones got creative. She got him enrolled in Apex Learning Virtual School, an online program, for the fall of 2020. It wasn’t easy to get that plan lined up without guidance counselors, but Jones ensured his class schedule met all graduation and NCAA initial eligibility requirements.

In early January 2021, two weeks before Worthy would move to Ann Arbor with J.J. McCarthy, Donovan Edwards and the Wolverines’ freshman enrollees, a problem emerged. Michigan has strict admissions standards for midyear enrollees, one former staffer said, and wasn’t able to get Worthy admitted into school. He was told that based on his academic profile, it would be better to enroll in June for U-M’s summer bridge program. His mother was stunned.

“For me, that didn’t fly,” she said. “I turned in all of his academic paperwork and applications in September. As far as I had been told, up until two weeks before, he was on track to enroll early. There was nothing missing, nothing short, they’d waived the SATs. It didn’t make sense. Something wasn’t right. What’s the problem and why am I finding out about this now?”

Worthy still wanted to honor his commitment. He moved to Ann Arbor and got an apartment. When Michigan posted a video of midyear move-in day on Jan. 16, Worthy was missing. Two days later, he announced on Twitter that “to end all the drama and speculations I am not enrolling early.” But he was in town. Since he wasn’t enrolled, he wasn’t allowed to work out in the football facility. All he could do was join Zoom meetings. After a strange month of trying to make it work, he moved back home.

“Michigan messed that up,” Jones said. “The trust wasn’t there. For us, trust is so big in everything. We just never felt like we were getting the truth about what happened. It was just a lot of, ‘We’re sorry.’”

The 17-year-old returned to Fresno to rethink his future. It didn’t make him feel any better that Central East was playing a five-game spring season and he couldn’t participate. During a loss to rival Buchanan, Biggs looked to Worthy on the sideline and told him, “Sure could use you right now.”

Jones and Worthy in Dallas before a Texas-Oklahoma game. (Courtesy of Nicky Jones)

If he wasn’t going to Michigan, Worthy knew where he needed to be.

“I was going wherever Sark went,” he said.

Sarkisian had landed the Texas job two weeks after signing day. Biggs has known him since 2010 and always believed he was trustworthy.

“I kind of hoped X was going to choose Alabama to be with Sark,” Biggs said. “So this whole thing was like, all right, well, maybe this wasn’t supposed to happen. We can get you teamed up and get you where you’re wanted, where people can take advantage of your ability.”

Worthy officially asked to be released from his National Letter of Intent in April and committed to the Longhorns during their spring game. He’d never been to Austin before and didn’t consider anywhere else. It felt like fate, and the fit was obvious after watching Sarkisian’s offense turn DeVonta Smith into a Heisman Trophy winner. He couldn’t wait to get started.

“It was really exciting,” Worthy said. “I was so young and I was coming into something that’s new, but Sark was new, too. I felt like I had a fresh start and a clean slate.”

He hadn’t played in a game in a year and a half. He didn’t work with trainers. During the pandemic, Worthy ordered a set of ladders and cones, laid them out in the backyard, studied YouTube videos and tore up the yard with his cleats. Mom asked whether he needed to work out in a helmet and pads. He assured her he’d be fine.

At Texas, Worthy was a starter from Day 1. He scored three touchdowns in his first Big 12 game. But it was the epic Red River Rivalry game in 2021 that put him on the national radar. First play of the game? A screen on the perimeter. Worthy stiff-armed a Sooner and raced down the sideline for a 75-yard score.

Midway through the fourth quarter, Worthy fumbled a kickoff return. Oklahoma scored right away to pull ahead 48-41. Worthy responded with a 48-yard reception, then a leaping 31-yard touchdown to tie it up in the final minutes. Mom tried to hold back the tears while watching him put up 261 receiving yards. For a freshman, it was an experience like no other.

“Everybody in the locker room expressed what kind of game that was. To me, I’m not from Texas. I’m from California. So I wasn’t really too nervous,” he said. “It’s basically like another game for me. And I go off in that game and everybody was chanting, ‘X! X! X! I’m like, oh shoot, that’s crazy.”

Caleb Williams, Oklahoma’s freshman quarterback, was the one who got the glory for a comeback victory. But another star was born that day. Worthy went on to have a Freshman All-America season and pick up first-team All-Big 12 and Offensive Freshman of the Year honors after leading his team with 981 receiving yards and 12 touchdowns. The Longhorns lost five of their last six after that thriller in the Cotton Bowl, but Sarkisian had a difference maker he could build around.

“I just want to build off that,” Worthy said after the season, “and go win a Big 12 championship.”

Texas was better in 2022. Worthy was not. What went wrong?

Sarkisian revealed this spring that Worthy played with a broken hand for the second half of the season. When asked to explain how he did it, Worthy shrugs.

“Shoot, I truly couldn’t tell you,” he said.

He won’t say which hand was broken. Won’t say when or how he broke it. Did it happen in a game? “I don’t remember.” The truth is he didn’t initially know it was broken. He was under the impression it was a bone bruise, one that made pass catching a painful experience.

“I really couldn’t squeeze nothing,” Worthy said. “You let it hit your hands and you’ve got to try to hold onto it. I used to get taped before every game. Extra tape. A lot of tape.”

You could see tape poking out of Worthy’s right glove when Texas played Kansas State on Nov. 5. His hand began bothering him during the Longhorns’ previous game, a 41-34 road loss at Oklahoma State. Quarterback Quinn Ewers threw his way 14 times. Worthy had three catches. Wind, inaccuracy and inexperience all contributed to that, but their connection wasn’t quite right that afternoon.

Worthy refused to sit out and tried to tough it out. He says his teammates needed him and he was playing for them. Some days in practice, Sarkisian said, they wouldn’t throw him the ball in an attempt to manage the injury. They managed to keep it a secret, too.

“I feel like everything isn’t everybody’s business,” Worthy said.

“That’s X, man,” Biggs said. “He’s not gonna tell you s—.”

When asked why he never disclosed the injury last season, Sarkisian offered a stern reply: “Because I don’t have to tell you.” Ewers, the Longhorns’ young starter, said they tried to keep that information “inside the four walls” of the football facility and praised Worthy’s selflessness.

“I think he handled it as best as he could,” Ewers said.

The trade-off for that privacy: If fans don’t know, they don’t get it. Worthy had four catches for 32 yards and two drops on 12 targets in a loss to No. 4 TCU. He had three more drops in the Alamo Bowl loss to No. 12 Washington. Worthy finished with 60 catches for 760 yards and nine scores on 113 targets. There were 53 receivers in the FBS last season who saw 100-plus targets, according to TruMedia. Worthy catching 53 percent of his ranked 49th among them.

One troubling development: Texas couldn’t hit the long ball. Ewers finished with 274 passing yards on throws of more than 20 yards last season, which ranked 120th out of 131 FBS teams. Worthy ran 93 go routes, was targeted 24 times and had just one catch, a 46-yarder against Alabama. Those growing pains combined with rising expectations and an injury that wasn’t improving made for a difficult year.

“I knew something was wrong with him,” Biggs said. “He didn’t have the same demeanor on the sideline and in games, that killer instinct. So to find out he was playing with a broken hand and not saying anything didn’t surprise me. Because he’s not going to make excuses. He’s not going to complain.

“When X plays, he’s smiling and he’s having fun. I didn’t see that last year.”

After the bowl game, Worthy was re-evaluated and learned he’d played with a broken right hand. He wore a cast for eight weeks. Fortunately, it healed without requiring surgery. He put a tennis ball machine in his apartment and built up his strength with one-handed catches. He feels fully healthy now and is glad all that’s in the past. But he kept another part of that struggle to himself.

“The mental aspect was kind of hard,” Worthy said. “It’s hard not to read everything. Social media is a big thing in the world. It was just hard. But now I’m past it. My mental got stronger, emotionally I’m stronger and physically I’m stronger.”

(Aaron E. Martinez / American-Statesman via USA Today)

Worthy has found a new comfort zone.

On Saturday afternoon, he sat down in his uniform and leaned against the goal post in the south end zone of Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium. He closed his eyes and took time to meditate before hopping up to begin pregame warm-ups.

“He told me that before every game, he’ll sit for five minutes and silence everything,” Jones said.

She encouraged him to give it a try to refocus, stay centered and keep things in perspective. After what Worthy went through in 2022, he needed new methods for self-care to deal with pressure and get back in the right headspace. Jones reminded him of a saying that hangs in her office: Never become intoxicated by success or paralyzed by failure.

His first two seasons at Texas provided experience in both extremes. This year, he’s aiming for a healthier balance. Sarkisian has vowed people would start seeing a dramatically different version of Worthy. So far, so good. Worthy kicked off his junior season with seven catches for 90 yards against Rice. He made guys miss. He had zero drops. He looked like X again.

“I think the guy is having more fun now than he’s ever had here,” Sarkisian said.

Despite his frustrations, Worthy insists he did not seriously consider transferring at the end of last year, as was widely rumored. “Just a lot of people talking,” he said. Why stay? Because he came to Texas to play for Sark and wants to finish it out with him.

Sarkisian frequently praised Worthy throughout the offseason for the way he “re-committed” himself to the program and to his teammates. Now that Bijan Robinson is off to the NFL, Worthy is the dude who sparks Texas’ offense. But it’s so much more than that.

Worthy needed to build up his chemistry with Ewers. He had to keep refining and become a more complete receiver. It was time to become a leader and help bring along touted freshmen like Johntay Cook. He’s been the first guy on the practice field and one of the last to leave. He got serious about his nutrition. He’s sitting in the front row of meetings. He’s wearing No. 1 now, his old high school number. He’s playing more relaxed. The confidence that impressed everyone during his freshman campaign is back.

“I don’t think people get how hard he works, because nobody sees it,” Texas receiver Jordan Whittington said. “But that’s one of the good things about him. He doesn’t need a spotlight to go to work. He’s a guy who behind the scenes has been really working on perfecting his craft. I’m really excited to see him play. He’s truly one of the best receivers in the nation.”

Worthy is ready to remind everyone of that against Alabama. He grinned this week and said he feels like he’s living his best life. The past few years have left Jones thoroughly convinced that all these good and bad things happened for a reason.

They’ve changed Worthy for the better. If you know him, you’ll notice.

“Seeing him evolve as a man and a person, I think that’s been the best part for me,” she said. “Everybody just sees a football player. But that’s my son. I’m seeing him grow up and make decisions and become this man. I’m just really proud.”

I didn't realize how bad Michigan fucked that up. Crazy.

Ghost of Shag · September 8, 2023

1 hour ago, Red Five said:

IT had some notes this morning and said Conner and Campbell are starting at the guard spots.

NoName · September 8, 2023

Bill C's preview

tl;dr

Quote

Bama remains an obvious favorite here. But if Milroe isn't able to make solid passes when he has to, and if Ewers again saves all his most successful deep balls for the biggest games on the schedule, it won't take many more breaks for the Horns to pull a shocker. They almost did it last year, after all.

on long passes:

Quote

Against Bama and Oklahoma, he went a combined 4-for-7 on passes of 20-plus yards.

...

Over the final six games of 2022, Ewers was a ghastly 6-for-32 on those 20-plus-yard passes, with three interceptions and no touchdowns. Easy points disappeared, and receiver drops added up. According to Sports Info Solutions, which categorizes the reasons for a given incompletion, Ewers had the most "receiver at fault" incompletions in the country. Texas receivers dropped 18 passes, a miserable 6.3% drop rate led by Worthy's eight and tight end Ja'Tavion Sanders' four. Ewers constantly failed to help himself, too. While he avoided pressure and typically got the ball out of his hands quickly, he also just made poor reads. He was 10th in raw QBR on passes thrown while he was moving and improvising, but he was a dreadful 93rd while planted. Defenses figured out how to fool him. As of mid-October, Ewers ranked sixth in QBR among players with at least 90 dropbacks. From that point forward, he ranked 81st.

text:

Spoiler

No. 11 Texas at No. 3 Alabama (7 p.m., ESPN)

All times Eastern

It was one of the strangest high-profile games of the 2022 season. Texas' Quinn Ewers completed a couple of deep balls (which turned out to be a misleading sample) before getting injured. Hudson Card filled in and nearly led the Longhorns, three-touchdown underdogs, to a massive upset, but Alabama's Bryce Young overcame some line-of-scrimmage disadvantages -- and solidified his "future No. 1 draft pick" status -- to lead the Crimson Tide on a brilliant, late field goal drive and snag a 20-19 win in Austin.

Three hundred sixty-four days later, we get our rematch. Young plays for the Carolina Panthers and Card plays for Purdue, so this year it's Ewers vs. Jalen Milroe. It's also SEC vs. Future SEC.

Texas vs. SEC expectations

The Longhorns head-coaching job is one of the most difficult in college football.

We don't usually think of it that way, of course. Any time someone on the internet ranks jobs, UT inevitably lands at least in the top five. There's plenty of logic to this, of course: The money is immense, the fan base is enormous, the school certainly has all the built-in confidence you could ask for, and its proximity to star recruits is almost unrivaled. But if you think about it, you can find a pretty good indication of the quality of a given job by looking at the record of the program doing the hiring. And Texas has made one genuinely successful hire in 40 years.

David McWilliams (1987-91) and Charlie Strong (2014-16) combined for one winning season in seven years. John Mackovic (1992-97) mostly topped .500, but enjoyed just one top-15 finish in six seasons. Tom Herman (2017-20) had one in four. Steve Sarkisian (2021-present) enters Saturday's game just 14-12 overall at Texas.

Everything we believe about Texas' potential comes from basically two men: Darrell K Royal, after whom Texas' stadium is named, and Mack Brown. Brown is the only modern hire who figured it all out. He maximized recruiting to a level that even other Longhorns coaches haven't been able to match. Far more importantly, he was able to actually keep the boosters mostly happy and keep all the behind-the-scenes arrows pointed in the right direction for a while. Of Texas' eight top-10 finishes in the past 40 years, seven came in a nine-year span from 2001 to '09. The Longhorns played for the national title twice in that run, winning once.

Texas' upside is forever undeniable, but how good can a job really be when almost no one actually wins while holding it? And what kind of success can Texas expect once it moves into an absurdly deep Southeastern Conference in 2024?

You might have to squint a bit, but you can certainly find reasons for hope from Sarkisian. He began his Texas tenure just 7-9, but has gone 7-3 since. All three losses came by a single touchdown and two were to teams that finished in the top 10. But eventually you have to actually beat top-10 teams to consider yourself a top-10 program. That has been an issue.

Since its win over No. 5 Georgia in the 2019 Sugar Bowl -- a victory that prompted Sam Ehlinger's famous "We're baaaaaack" moment -- UT has faced six top-10 opponents. Every single game has been decided by one score, but the Horns have won only one of them.

2019: lost to No. 6 LSU (45-38)
2019: lost to No. 6 Oklahoma (34-27)
2020: defeated No. 6 Oklahoma State (41-34)
2021: lost to No. 6 Oklahoma (55-48)
2022: lost to No. 1 Alabama (20-19)
2022: lost to No. 4 TCU (17-10)

Their only win in this span wasn't proof of their own top-10 bona fides so much as proof of their opponent's lack thereof -- Oklahoma State ended up going just 8-3 in 2020. But almost every one of these games gave us the same "Maybe it's real this time? Ah, no. Well, maybe?... no" impression that the Longhorns have left us since 2010.

Because of how successful it seems this program should be, we never stop reading the tea leaves. We never stop looking for clues that everything is finally coming together. On six different occasions over the past 12 years, including this season, the Longhorns have begun the year ranked higher in the polls than they finished the year before. And in the previous five instances, they failed to live up to the preseason ranking four times. We know how good things might look if they ever come together just right, and we endlessly try to anticipate it. With an upset Saturday night, we wouldn't have to worry about anticipating it anymore.

How good is Quinn Ewers?

One tried-and-true way of pulling an upset: winning the quarterback battle. It looked for a bit as if Texas might do that against Bama last year. For all of Bryce Young's clutch, late play, Ewers' performance early in the game was staggering.

Texas seemingly caught Bama off-guard by attacking the Tide secondary out of the gate. Ewers began the game 9-for-12 for 134 yards, leading a field goal drive on the Horns' first possession, then using a 46-yard bomb to Xavier Worthy to set up a game-tying touchdown early in the second quarter. Unfortunately, he wasn't in the game by the time of the touchdown, having suffered a sprained collarbone after a hit from Bama's Dallas Turner. Hudson Card would lead a trio of field goal drives, and it was almost, but not quite, enough.

Ewers returned four weeks later and posted his best full-game performance to date, throwing for 289 yards and four touchdowns in Texas' 49-0 rout of Oklahoma. Against Bama and Oklahoma, he went a combined 4-for-7 on passes of 20-plus yards. With a pretty deep ball and Bijan Robinson's outstanding work in the ground game, Texas' offense looked unstoppable. But then it began stopping itself.

Quinn Ewers went down early in last year's game against Alabama. Tim Warner/Getty Images

Over the final six games of 2022, Ewers was a ghastly 6-for-32 on those 20-plus-yard passes, with three interceptions and no touchdowns. Easy points disappeared, and receiver drops added up. According to Sports Info Solutions, which categorizes the reasons for a given incompletion, Ewers had the most "receiver at fault" incompletions in the country. Texas receivers dropped 18 passes, a miserable 6.3% drop rate led by Worthy's eight and tight end Ja'Tavion Sanders' four. Ewers constantly failed to help himself, too. While he avoided pressure and typically got the ball out of his hands quickly, he also just made poor reads. He was 10th in raw QBR on passes thrown while he was moving and improvising, but he was a dreadful 93rd while planted. Defenses figured out how to fool him. As of mid-October, Ewers ranked sixth in QBR among players with at least 90 dropbacks. From that point forward, he ranked 81st.

You're only going to learn so much against Rice, but what we saw in Saturday's season opener wasn't incredibly encouraging. Ewers threw for 260 yards and three touchdowns, and the Longhorns eventually pulled away for a comfortable 37-10 win. But Ewers' receivers dropped four more passes (Sanders had two, Worthy one), an alarming 13% drop rate. And on passes of 20-plus yards, Ewers went 0-for-7. He scrambled effectively a few times, but he also took three sacks.

Granted, Ewers didn't exactly dominate in last year's season opener against ULM, either, and that didn't hold him back when Bama came to town. Plus, two Bama starters, slot corner Malachi Moore and free safety Jaylen Key, are considered day-to-day with injuries. Expect Ewers to test the Tide's big-play-prevention abilities.

An effective run game would help with that. The Texas running back trio of Jaydon Blue, Jonathon Brooks and CJ Baxter rushed 27 times for 145 yards last week, a decent 5.4 yards per carry. But 32 of those yards came from a single Baxter run, and Texas had a pre-garbage-time success rate (gaining a percentage of necessary yards on a given down) of just 36%. Alabama ranked 64th in rushing success rate allowed last season, and we don't know how much it has improved in that regard -- MTSU barely even tried to run the ball last week. But even if the Tide's run defense remains less than elite, it's probably better than Rice's.

How good is Jalen Milroe?

What we saw from Alabama quarterback Jalen Milroe last week was awfully impressive. It was also an incomplete impression.

Milroe ranks 10th in (opponent-adjusted) QBR one week into the season, and he created serious Jalen Hurts flashbacks by combining explosive rushing (five non-sack carries for 64 yards and two touchdowns) with 13-for-18 passing, 194 yards and three more scores. He didn't overdo it with his legs, and he threw a trio of gorgeous deep-ball touchdowns.

Breaking his passing down into a bit more detail, however, you'll see what I mean by "incomplete."

Milroe was 3-for-4 for 124 yards and the three scores on passes 20-plus yards downfield. On passes shorter than 10 yards, he was an efficient 10-for-12 for 70 yards. But in-between, in the oft-important 10-to-19-yard range? He was 0-for-2.

Milroe was Young's backup last season and played an integral role in wins over Arkansas and Texas A&M when Young was hurt. He was both tantalizing and one-dimensional. Not including sacks, he rushed 19 times for 197 yards and a touchdown. He ripped off a 77-yard scramble against Arkansas that showed speed far beyond Hurts'.

He also never flashed Hurts' passing upside. Milroe went 16-for-28 for 176 yards against the Hogs and Aggies and had four touchdown passes. But he also threw an interception and took four sacks against A&M. His one-dimensionality was the main reason he didn't earn the starting job until right before the season. Nick Saban was unsure enough about his quarterback situation that he brought in Notre Dame's Tyler Buchner after spring practice. Saban didn't officially hand the keys to Milroe until the day before the MTSU game.

The run-and-deep-pass combo did more than enough against Middle Tennessee. Bama ranks 10th in rushing success rate after one game, but five Alabama running backs ran 30 times for just 136 yards (4.5 per carry). Efficiency is the No. 1 goal of any run game, but there was no explosiveness to be found outside of a 25-yard Milroe scramble. Texas will likely contain the Bama run game well enough that Milroe will be forced to expand the passing repertoire a bit. Sure, that could work out great for the Tide, but it's something we won't know he can do until he does it.

Current line: Bama -7 | SP+ projection: Bama by 12.8 | FPI projection: Bama by 13.8

Bama remains an obvious favorite here. But if Milroe isn't able to make solid passes when he has to, and if Ewers again saves all his most successful deep balls for the biggest games on the schedule, it won't take many more breaks for the Horns to pull a shocker. They almost did it last year, after all.

NoName · September 8, 2023

3 minutes ago, mwaadeeb said:

I didn't realize how bad Michigan fucked that up. Crazy.

to be fair, pretty much everyone thinks

Spoiler

Josh Gattis banged Worthy's mom.

IIRC Gattis was not allowed to recruit on the road anymore during the season

Da Fino · September 8, 2023

SIAP

https://sports.yahoo.com/he-was-a-ticking-time-bomb--steve-sarkisian-takes-texas-back-to-the-place-that-may-have-saved-his-life-124508057.html

Don't remember hearing about these heart issues

gmr548 · September 8, 2023

to be fair, pretty much everyone thinks
Spoiler
Josh Gattis banged Worthy's mom.

IIRC Gattis was not allowed to recruit on the road anymore during the season

4th and 5 · September 8, 2023

What is Steve Sarkisian’s blueprint for Alabama? Inside Texas’ motion package

AUSTIN, TEXAS - SEPTEMBER 10: Head coach Steve Sarkisian of the Texas Longhorns talks with head coach Nick Saban of the Alabama Crimson Tide before the game at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium on September 10, 2022 in Austin, Texas. (Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images)

By Mike Kuchar

6h ago

3

One year ago, Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian put a scare into Alabama, coming within a point of the nation’s top-ranked team. Now, as he prepares for Saturday’s rematch in Tuscaloosa, Sarkisian is armed with the blueprint that had the Crimson Tide defense reeling, especially before Quinn Ewers got hurt.

That blueprint is a fluid pre-snap motion package, which Sarkisian has continued to build on since his days as the offensive coordinator at Bama. His ability to move players pre-snap provides him with the mismatches needed to exploit perimeter defenders. Expect it to be a constant in his game plan this week, especially with Crimson Tide defensive backs Jaylen Keyand Malachi Moore already nursing injuries from last week.

Sarkisian moved his pieces on offense on at least 52 percent of snaps last year, according to TruMedia. While this may not seem like much, it ranked 20th at the FBS level. Let’s look at the four pre-snap build-ins Sarkisian uses to out-leverage defenses and generate space in the passing game, exploring how he builds upon them — coaches call it layering — during the course of a game and season.

Example 1: Formation into boundary structures

When you put on Texas tape, the first thing you notice is how much space Sarkisian and offensive coordinator Kyle Flood allow their skill players to work with. The second thing is how many times defenses allow it to happen. In the coaching profession, it is called “FIB,” which stands for aligning the “formation into the boundary.” This is where an offense aligns the strength of the formation into the short side of the field, which Sarkisian and his staff did on more than 70 percent of snaps last year, which was 12th in the country, according to TruMedia.

Because so many defensive structures are generated to align toward the passing strength of the formation, this often leaves fewer defenders and more space for offensive players to work with. This is Sarkisian 101; if the defense gives you space, take it. Last week against Rice, Sarkisian repeatedly lined up star receiver Xavier Worthy to the field side, prompting a man-to-man matchup with an inferior cornerback.

Ewers sees the matchup and delivers a speed out (or Omaha route in Sarkisian’s system) to Worthy, which generates a 25-yard gain.

Sarkisian has plenty of weapons on the perimeter aside from Worthy, including Ja’Tavion Sanders, one of the best pass-catching tight ends in the country. Sanders is 6 feet 4, 243 pounds and armed with the innate ability to stretch defenses vertically. His 54 catches last season were the most for a tight end in Longhorns history.

Sarkisian will also align him to the boundary, presenting a nub side (no receiver) surface to the field.

For most two-high defenses like Kansas State, this produces a hard Cover 2 check, which gives the corner flat responsibility to the field while the safety plays the first deep route. The problem is Sanders has the athleticism to get on the toes of the near safety and has the ball skills to out-muscle them at the point of catch.

Sarkisian knows this and runs a typical smash route, getting Sanders matched up on a high safety for a 15-yard completion.