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2024 Off-Season Thread

BurntOrange&White

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UDontKnow

UDontKnow 10439

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13 hours ago, billfromlaketravis said:

Red is 5’10’’ish right? That is way, way too heavy unless he’s Jerome Bettis. 
 

We all laugh about Sweat’s weight, but UW zeroed his fat ass out and the weight is going to make him drop in the draft. Don’t repeat this lesson with Mitchell. 

 

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stork642

stork642 4498

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On 3/4/2024 at 9:14 AM, Park Gothic said:

It's true. He might be the only coach in FBS history be both the OC and DC at the same school. 

Greg Davis did a lot for opposing defenses so he should count as well. 

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TankedBevo

TankedBevo 2480

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16 hours ago, billfromlaketravis said:

Red is 5’10’’ish right? That is way, way too heavy unless he’s Jerome Bettis. 
 

We all laugh about Sweat’s weight, but UW zeroed his fat ass out and the weight is going to make him drop in the draft. Don’t repeat this lesson with Mitchell. 

Sweat played his role perfectly. It was our DE's and pass rush that never got close to the QB that was the issue. 

 

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Sgt Hulk

Sgt Hulk 13537

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23 hours ago, billfromlaketravis said:

Red is 5’10’’ish right? That is way, way too heavy unless he’s Jerome Bettis. 
 

We all laugh about Sweat’s weight, but UW zeroed his fat ass out and the weight is going to make him drop in the draft. Don’t repeat this lesson with Mitchell. 

What The Hell Wtf GIF

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D3zii

D3zii 3621

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I’m kinda skeptical about all this weight gain with these guys. 
 

I hope Sark and Tory aren’t over thinking this making everyone big going into the SEC just for us to be tight and slow

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MuellerHorn

MuellerHorn 4051

Posted
Posted

OTF: "Position Battles Heading into Spring Camp"

Spoiler

There are not many true position battles headed into the 2024 spring camp, but there are a number of positions to keep a close eye on.

The 2024 Texas roster consists of plenty of talent on both sides of the ball, but it will take some interesting configurations from the staff to maximize the rotations and on-field performance.

***

Quarterback:

Quinn Ewers & Arch Manning

This is not expected to be too much of a battle. Quinn Ewers has the vocal support of Steve Sarkisian and entering year three in the Texas system, Ewers is the man for the Longhorns in 2024.

Running Back

CJ Baxter vs. Jaydon Blue + Savion Red, Tre Wisner, Christian Clark, Jerrick Gibson

At the moment we suspect the first team RB carries to be split into Baxter and Blue for the most part this spring. Though there is plenty of depth which comes with a ton of talent. At 240 pounds, Savion Red provides a build and skillset no other Longhorn possesses at the moment. Either of the freshmen can make a splash as well. Talented room, we will see how the splits work itself out.

Wide Receiver

Isaiah Bond and Johntay Cook vs. Matthew Golden, Ryan Wingo, DeAndre Moore

A completely new room for Quinn Ewers to throw to this spring. Only Johntay Cook has caught a pass from Ewers in a Longhorns uniform before. Outside of theorizing, it is tough to pinpoint the starting three wide receivers for the spring, meaning this group is wide open for Ewers and Sarkisian to adopt into the vaunted Circle of Trust. 

Right now, my gut tells me to lean on the receivers with experience – Bond and Golden, with Cook being the top returner from 2023.

Tight End

Gunnar Helm vs. Amari Niblack

This is a fun, interesting battle for the Longhorns. There is a clear discrepancy in the skillsets provided by both tight end. Helm has plenty of in-line experience which overshadows his role as a downfield receiver, which is a 180 from what we know of Amari Niblack. To begin the spring, you can expect to see Helm as your TE1. Will that change? We will see, but there will be plenty of competition here.

Offensive Line

LG: Hayden Conner, Cole Hutson & Neto Umeozulu

You can lock in left tackle, center, right guard and potentially right tackle for starting spots in the spring. Though we know there will be some movement at left guard. Can you expect Hayden Conner to fight off Hutson and Umeozulu? A fully healthy Cole Hutson has plenty of talent and experience to make noise here. Plus, the final month of practice from Neto Umeozulu revealed a prospect that has turned the corner here. Left guard is going to be very interesting this spring.

Defensive Line

Nose Guard

Vernon Broughton and Alfred Collins don't necessarily have the ideal bodies for the nose guard spot – someone who can plant their feet and hold their ground on a double team. Tiaoalii Savea is added to the group of Aaron Bryant and Jaray Bledsoe as well. At 372 pounds, I am a bit skeptical of what to expect from Sydir Mitchell this spring. And then of course that leads us to early enrollee Alex January who has lost 10+ pounds and comes in with plenty of hunger. This is my favorite battle of the spring.

Defensive End

Ethan Burke and Barryn Sorrell vs. Colin Simmons, Trey Moore and Justice Finkley

The two returning starters from a year ago are going to be pushed and tested from the moment pads get thrown on this spring. Adding Trey Moore from UTSA will provide the most immediate heat on Burke and Sorrell. Texas has not seen a pass rushing prospect with the hype and talent arrive in Austin with the level of Colin Simmons in over a decade. Plus, we saw spurts of Justice Finkley towards the end of the season, can he turn that corner to become a true contestant for a starting job? 

Linebacker

Mike Position – David Gbenda vs. Kendrick Blackshire, Liona Lefau and Derion Gullette

You can lock in Anthony Hill Jr. for a starting spot in the middle of the defense – I believe it is safe to assume it will be at the WILL backer. Now, where does the Robin to Hill's Batman come from? David Gbenda will be the first backer out of the bunch with the Texas starting 11 when spring football gets going. Kendrick Blackshire may not possess the best skillset for a three-down backer, but moving into the SEC his role is significantly larger than it would have been a year ago. Then of course what emerges out of Lefau and Gullette, two ultra-talented backers hungry to crack the starting 11.

Nickel

Jahdae Barron

Jahdae Barron is back and is rocking a new No. 7 at the nickel spot. There won't be too much of a battle here. But the question becomes, when or if Barron sees snaps at outside cornerback, who takes his spot? Austin Jordan and Jaylon Guilbeau will be battling for a third consecutive year. Plus, early enrollee Wardell Mack is getting run at nickel as well.

Cornerback

Malik Muhammad and Terrance Brooks vs. the rest of the room

Ryan Watts departs for the NFL, but luckily for the Longhorns, there were extended snaps in 2023 for guys like Malik Muhammad and Gavin Holmes. The Longhorns leaned heavier to the side of Muhammad than they did Holmes and there is reason to believe it will be the two former DFW stars to begin spring as the CB duo. Warren Roberson will enter year two as a backup and Kobe Black will be a freshman looking to make noise on the outside.

Safety

Andrew Mukuba, Derek Williams, Michael Taaffe, Xavier Filsaime

This unit is significantly more talented than we saw a year ago with the athleticism noticeably more abundant. As a result, the back half of the Texas defense should be able to bring more splash plays to the Texas defense in 2024. Now, we know the Longhorn staff likes to rotate in the backend of the secondary very often. Derek Williams and Michael Taaffe were the two DBs to play the majority of second half snaps against Washington in the Sugar Bowl last year, though it is hard to imagine Mukuba not seeing the field early and often in 2024. Pretty fun battle when you added in what is arguably the early enrollee who has made the most noise in winter conditioning so far.

 

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Park Gothic

Park Gothic 4896

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3 hours ago, Red Five said:

No because Hayden Conner won't be playing LG.

Ideally, he'll be the "down the line" back up. I think he's better suited to tackle than guard - maybe his ideal spot is back up RT - but he can play four spots on the o-line and be solid at all of them. 

My sincere hope is that he gets beat out for a starting spot because we've raised the floor past his level, but that he'll stick around. He should get plenty of playing time as the first man off the bench, and we don't want to lose an experienced player from the room. 

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closetojumping

closetojumping 62010

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2 hours ago, Park Gothic said:

Ideally, he'll be the "down the line" back up. I think he's better suited to tackle than guard - maybe his ideal spot is back up RT - but he can play four spots on the o-line and be solid at all of them. 

My sincere hope is that he gets beat out for a starting spot because we've raised the floor past his level, but that he'll stick around. He should get plenty of playing time as the first man off the bench, and we don't want to lose an experienced player from the room. 

I think the guy is soft and barely at replacement value. Fine as a backup, but if Texas is trotting him out there as a starter again, we’re overrating someone, whether that is Flood or his recruited players. 

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Red Five

Red Five 40451

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28 minutes ago, closetojumping said:

I think the guy is soft and barely at replacement value. Fine as a backup, but if Texas is trotting him out there as a starter again, we’re overrating someone, whether that is Flood or his recruited players. 

Throwing red meat on a Thursday: Nahlin said a while back that he expects Conner to win the RT job over Cam.

(ducks)

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closetojumping

closetojumping 62010

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1 hour ago, Red Five said:

Throwing red meat on a Thursday: Nahlin said a while back that he expects Conner to win the RT job over Cam.

(ducks)

The further and further that moron gets from anyone actually able to do evaluations or get good insights, the more idiotic he’s going to appear. If Cam Williams doesn’t have the fight in him to push Conner to the bench, many, many people have been way off. Williams is considered to have Day 1 potential and Conner will be scrambling as a UFA. 

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Fud

Fud 9522

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Conner is adequate in pass pro at guard, but in the run game you have to game plan around him likely fucking up his assignment. I'm skeptical that he'd be adequate in pass pro at tackle

He's good depth if he'll stick around for it. If he's beating our others in our "best five" on merit and not injuries, that's a really bad sign 

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NoName

NoName 16241

Posted
Posted
15 hours ago, Red Five said:

Throwing red meat on a Thursday: Nahlin said a while back that he expects Conner to win the RT job over Cam.

(ducks)

is he even taking snaps at RT? i thought someone said Baker was taking 2nd string snaps behind Cam W.

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Red Five

Red Five 40451

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7 minutes ago, NoName said:

is he even taking snaps at RT? i thought someone said Baker was taking 2nd string snaps behind Cam W.

Don't know. But yeah I'd imagine at some point in the season, if not by the end of spring practice, Baker will be the third OT. 

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closetojumping

closetojumping 62010

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48 minutes ago, SuckitKevin said:

Taaffe was a smart and instinctive guy that really helped give us a solid floor last year but if he’s still starting next year and not just depth that’s not great.

I can tell you for a fact that the Texas staff thinks Taafe is vital to the success of the program in this next cycle. I am not saying that with any amount of pleasure, but I am saying it with certainty.

Does that mean he’s starting? I don’t think so. It could, but more likely, it means what we’ve already witnessed - heavy rotations at safety that cause anyone paying attention and unrelated to Blake Gideon to roll their eyes every fucking game. 

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Red Five

Red Five 40451

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Taaffe was probably our best safety by the end of the year. On one hand, good for him. On the other, Michael Taaffe should not be the best safety on the team at a place like Texas. 

Re: Conner and the OL, IT had a humidor this morning and said Conner may not even be moving to tackle. 

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Mother mopar

Mother mopar 3275

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Taaffe was probably our best safety by the end of the year. On one hand, good for him. On the other, Michael Taaffe should not be the best safety on the team at a place like Texas. 
Re: Conner and the OL, IT had a humidor this morning and said Conner may not even be moving to tackle. 
Jokes on you for reading anything by IT.
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ousux

ousux 5566

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Posted
Throwing red meat on a Thursday: Nahlin said a while back that he expects Conner to win the RT job over Cam.
(ducks)
What is Nahlin Palin basing this belief on, Cam not getting better at pass pro?

Guess we'll see, but I'll be surprised if this happens.
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Jimmy Two Times

Jimmy Two Times 727

Posted
Posted
On 3/17/2024 at 1:51 PM, Biff Tannen said:

Well, since baseball seems like it may be a complete loss this year, I'm wading over into this mess way earlier than normal.  Anything good happening in the offseason?

Yes, Colin Simmons is currently playing close to Aaron Donald's weight but has retained his speed and bend. That's been a nice development. 

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D3zii

D3zii 3621

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Hamilton and Burton seemed very pleased. Idk if I’ve seen Bobby try to contain his excitement as hard as in this video.

 

you could tell he loved what he saw!!

 

FUCK IT 12-0

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BurntOrange&White

BurntOrange&White 38889

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Posted (edited)
6 minutes ago, D3zii said:


Hamilton and Burton seemed very pleased. Idk if I’ve seen Bobby try to contain his excitement as hard as in this video.

 

you could tell he loved what he saw!!

 

FUCK IT 12-0

16-0 or is it 17-0?

 

Hearing Bobby talk about Wingo is gruntling. 

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BurntOrange&White

BurntOrange&White 38889

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CJ Report:

 

Quote

The Texas Longhorns were on the football field this morning!

Gerry and Bobby are going live on YouTube as I write this (9:45 a.m.) but I have some notes I wanted to get over to the site.

I spent a lot of time watching the front seven of the defense with a number of new faces and additions to the field. But here is the full run down of tidbits from day one.

*** 

OFFENSE

Quinn Ewers broke the team out and led the last bit of the opening stretching period.

First Team Offense:

QB – Quinn Ewers

RB – CJ Baxter

WR – Johntay Cook

WR – Isaiah Bond

Slot WR – DeAndre Moore

TE – Gunnar Helm

LT – Kelvin Banks

LG – Hayden Conner

C – Jake Majors

RG – DJ Campbell

RT – Cam Williams

No true surprises here. DeAndre Moore was also the first Longhorn on the field this morning and looked completely bought in on the field today. 

RB Jaydon Blue saw time with the first team as well. Just mixed in with Baxter at times.

Second Team Offense:

QB – Arch Manning

RB – Jaydon Blue / Savion Red

WR – Matthew Golden

WR – Ryan Niblett

WR – Ryan Wingo

TE – Amari Niblack

LT – Trevor Goosby 

LG – Neto Umeozulu

C – Connor Robertson

RG – Cole Hutson

RT – Andre Cojoe

Five-star freshman Brandon Baker began on the third unit, as did Daniel Cruz. This is bound to change as the freshmen across the field were littered in the backhalf of drill lines all morning. Reminder that it is their first practice in college, this will take time.

RB Savion Red did not looked 240 pounds to me. Credit to him I suppose for carrying it well.

Freshman TE Jordan Washington looked tremendous at his 240-pound designation. He was smooth, he was physical in pad blocking drills. He looked like he has a very bright future for Jeff Banks.

There is something about DeAndre Moore that will be difficult to keep off the field. He is tremendously smooth in and out of cuts in his routes. Going back to freshman WR Ryan Wingo, he looks the absolute part. Incredibly bright future.

The Quarterbacks looked good. Ewers, Manning and Owens were all accurate throwing the ball from what I was able to see. Ewers had a very good passing day when going deep. He connected with Isaiah Bond and Ryan Niblett on sluggo routes.

I saw some passes hit the ground today, but none were the result of errant throws. A number of younger wide receivers were seen doing pushups after routes if that gives you any inclination as to why that was the case. (Drops)

Malik Agbo was your third team left guard.

 

DEFENSE

First Team:

EDGE – Barryn Sorrell

DT – Alfred Collins

NT – Vernon Broughton

EDGE – Ethan Burke

LB – Anthony Hill Jr.

LB – David Gbenda

nCB – Jahdae Barron

CB – Malik Muhammad

CB – Terrance Brooks

S – Michael Taaffe

S – Derek Williams

The second team unit was a bit of a hodge podge, but I did see Trey Moore with that unit to begin. 

Sydir Mitchell did not have the best start to practice. He was asked to take a lap at the beginning of practice from what I noticed. Kenny Baker is asking a lot of him, he was showing some great intensity at the beginning of practice. Taioalii Savea and Alex January were two others I watched a good bit.

Only seven true interior defensive linemen today: Collins, Broughton, Savea, Bryant, Bledsoe, January, and Mitchell.

As for the EDGE spot, a few things: First, Trey Moore won't shock anyone with his physical size. He is a good looking prospect, but he won't 'Wow' anyone when he steps into a room. 

To the two most impressive looking prospects on the EDGE, that goes to Colton Vasek who was back in pads for the first time in a while. I was very encouraged from what I saw from Vasek today. Early Enrollee Zina Umeozulu certainly is an impressive looking prospect as well. He has a perfect build for the edge position.

As for Colin Simmons, his body looks tremendous. In the drills that the EDGE worked in moves off the snap, Simmons was smooth and quick, as you would expect.

Man, no one on this roster is more physically impressive with the athleticism to back it up than Anthony Hill Jr. He looks like he could play on Sundays immediately.

You can really tell Terrance Brooks added weight to his frame. He looks like an NFL DB.

I was really impressed with the movement of both Xavier Filsaime and Jelani McDonald at the safety position. Andrew Mukuba looks incredibly smooth in coverage skills.

 

Punt Return:

A whole slew of guys returning punts in practice today:

Johntay Cook and Isaiah Bond were the first out for the drills today. Following by Aaron Butler, Matthew Golden, Ryan Wingo and Parker Livingstone.

 

Misc.

The SEC had a camera crew that arrived prior to any of the local media and stuck around after. You can expect some cool footage from that later on.

The reigning Outland Award winner, T'Vondre Sweat, was also late to arrive for the practice. He watched on the sidelines.

 

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speed817

speed817 18926

Posted
Posted
49 minutes ago, BurntOrange&White said:

The Quarterbacks looked good. Ewers, Manning and Owens were all accurate throwing the ball from what I was able to see. Ewers had a very good passing day when going deep. He connected with Isaiah Bond and Ryan Niblett on sluggo routes.

I've heard enough.....Arch should start!  /s

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Vertigo

Vertigo 20208

Posted
Posted
2 hours ago, D3zii said:

Neto is coming for Hayden!!

 

I wouldn’t be surprised if Neto is starting over Hayden next season

Conner couldn't get push in the run game in the B12, I don't see how they are realistically going into spring thinking he would be a starter in the SEC. I would imagine either/both Neto and Hutson pass him in the spring or summer. They may keep him as a starter in the spring in order to keep from losing him in a transfer window.  

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DanTheHorn

DanTheHorn 4873

Posted
Posted (edited)
9 minutes ago, Vertigo said:

Conner couldn't get push in the run game in the B12, I don't see how they are realistically going into spring thinking he would be a starter in the SEC. I would imagine either/both Neto and Hutson pass him in the spring or summer. They may keep him as a starter in the spring in order to keep from losing him in a transfer window.  

I rather they give the better projected starter the spring reps because the other side of the coin is that we lose a great player to the portal because the better player knows he should have overtaken the player in front of him on the depth chart. Just like losing coaches is a good thing losing players because they lost their starting position will be a good thing.  It will hurt depth but I rather not risk the better player.

Edited by DanTheHorn
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Park Gothic

Park Gothic 4896

Posted
Posted
9 minutes ago, Vertigo said:

Conner couldn't get push in the run game in the B12, I don't see how they are realistically going into spring thinking he would be a starter in the SEC. I would imagine either/both Neto and Hutson pass him in the spring or summer. They may keep him as a starter in the spring in order to keep from losing him in a transfer window.  

I don't know what his degree status is, but I doubt he transfers unless its as a grad. Isn't he a big math guy?

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UDontKnow

UDontKnow 10439

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Posted
45 minutes ago, Park Gothic said:

I don't know what his degree status is, but I doubt he transfers unless its as a grad. Isn't he a big math guy?

He started off as Physics and now apparently Geography unless it's changed again.

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closetojumping

closetojumping 62010

Posted
Posted
13 minutes ago, UDontKnow said:

He started off as Physics and now apparently Geography unless it's changed again.

What would one do with a Geography degree? I think I'm kind of stunned that that degree exists these days. I have a 10 year old who is quite gifted in geography and I always tell him that that talent will be worthless outside of trivia night at his local dive bar.

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