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Texas recruiting notes 2019


bigup2dahorns

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2 minutes ago, Machinator said:

I'm guessing it's this thread. https://247sports.com/college/texas-am/Board/20/Contents/More-on-Tom-Herman-124723122/

They probably think that Buckeye poster is going to pull a Chip Brown and destabilize our recruiting class near signing day.

Cliffs notes of accusations for poors

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8 hours ago, NoName said:

This part of the story feels like something that would be in a commit article...

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“I love the program, primarily the coaches and the environment,” McCoy said. “Austin is a really cool city. The program is on the up and up. You look at Coach (Tom) Herman and what he did at Houston and now transferring that to Texas, you can see where the program is heading.”

“Coach Herman brings this up-tempo energy about himself, and he’s very charismatic,” McCoy said. “Coach Mehringer is a really genuine and nice guy. He cares a lot about his players, specifically the receivers, in all facets of life. The relationship between me and Coach Herman, Coach Mehringer and Coach Beck is strong.”

“The message they’ve conveyed to me is the best way to grow as a person is to make yourself uncomfortable,” McCoy said. “They think I can stay at home and be comfortable. But if you want to grow as a man, you have to step out of your comfort zone. Texas offers a great place to grow, and Austin is a great city.”

“Austin is different. The culture is very football based. They are all in football fans. Going to the game and watching 103,000 people scream chants, I’ve never experienced that, and you don’t get that experience in California given the number of teams. Texas is the football school that represents Texas, in my opinion."

“Austin has a lot of different aspects to it music wise, and you have the lakes. It’s gorgeous. And you have the city. It’s a cool place.”

 

 

I like the way he talks. 

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8 minutes ago, Red Five said:

The surprise was Floyd? Lulz.

I had an amazing surprise this morning as well. I went downstairs and all my stuff was still there and my car was still in the garage. It was great.

Something you should try tomorrow is turning the car on to listen to music and shutting the garage door. Ambiance is so peaceful you could practically sleep forever.

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11 minutes ago, Red Five said:

The surprise was Floyd? Lulz.

I had an amazing surprise this morning as well. I went downstairs and all my stuff was still there and my car was still in the garage. It was great.

We'd all be pretty stoked if pretty much anoy other OOS commit came in to visit. Floyd's just around ATX so often we take him for granted.

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3 minutes ago, utexas8 said:

Anything good here?
 

I'm constantly reminded that babies grow up in the blink of an eye, and to enjoy each of the stages of maturation while in the moment. It seems like weekly, if not daily, I see something new snap in my son's eyes, cognition that wasn't there when I put him to bed the night before. I think the parallels can be made to this Texas offense and its starting quarterback with the leaps and bounds it has made in not just the last year, but over the last few months. 



One day you're changing diaper after diaper as the offense baby craps itself at the most inopportune time, but before you know it, you're taking training wheels off your child's bike and watching him race up and down the street, holding your breath all the while. 

That offensive growth is the number one reason for optimism within the program going forward. This season has confirmed Tom Herman knows what he's doing on that side of the ball (though that should have already been understood) and that philosophically his style of play is conference agnostic. It's being made clear that his first year struggles were an aberration and much more credence should have been given to injuries and inexperience. That does not mean he has the ideal staff assembled and they get a full pardon from blame but it does mean the staff is nowhere near as poor as it was made out to be.

Defense is a different matter. It has Benjamin Buttoned year-over-year and isn’t inspiring confidence for next season, especially when juxtaposed to a much less experienced roster. Perhaps in this situation a teenager makes a better comparison than a baby. Many of us forget what we've been taught, lose our way for a while, and act stupidly before coming to our senses after repeated hard learned lessons.

In sticking with the theme, you can't forget the "parents" who bring home the bacon and hold the responsibility of providing structure.

While we should enjoy what we have left of the current developmental stage, it's hard not to look ahead and wonder what might be as the program matures.

2019 

Ideally Texas will be coming off of a bowl win and at least a Conference Championship Game appearance, but for practical purposes we have a basic understanding of what the team should be in 2019 (conference contenders) and what the biggest questions will be.

Defense

In the day and age of graduate transfers it's much harder to forecast a roster a year out, but we do know Texas will lose a lot of experience on defense. Gone will be Charles Omenihu, Chris Nelson, Breckyn Hager, Anthony Wheeler, Gary Johnson, PJ Locke, Kris Boyd, and Davante Davis. Say what you will about some of them but replacing 8 starters is still replacing 8 starters. If there were much better options this season they wouldn't be replacing 8 starters next season. 

Still, that's not cause for alarm just yet. A greater concern is identifying the root cause for why this defense performed so poorly and addressing it. The talent on the 2018 defense is greater than its results. 

It's important to remember that players' development isn't stagnant and most will improve. It's impossible to know how much improvement we'll see, or who specifically will make those leaps, but holding expectations for next year based specifically on this year is a fool's errand.

Personnel-wise, Texas will be young but athletic across the board, though the d-line will have plenty of maturity, thankfully, with Malcolm Roach, TaQuon Graham, Marqez Bimage, Gerald Wilbon, and Jamari Chisholm. Behind them you have young guys with perhaps more upside who will be ready to compete and provide in-game depth. 

Linebacker will remain intriguing/concerning into next August as young players like De'Gabriel Floyd, Ayodele Adeoye, DeMarvion Overshown, and Marcus Tillman develop. It'll be the biggest question on the roster and the staff needs to do everything it can to add experience to the roster. Fortunately Floyd and Tillman are early enrollees. 

The secondary will be the most highly rated grouping on the team with Brandon Jones (likely returning) and Caden Sterns at safety, Anthony Cook and Jalen Green at corner, and BJ Foster and Josh Thompson working at Joker and Nickel. That will likely be re-tooled some in order to get the best five or six on the field but that's how it looks right now.

Finishing out the 2018 recruiting class with a couple of JUCO players is paramount. If Texas can land Caleb Johnson at linebacker and Jacoby Jones (helps more in 2020) on the defensive line that will round out positional concerns and mitigate the lack of maturity. Texas will also be very active in the grad transfer market with all those snaps to sell. Don't be surprised if you see a new face on all three levels of defense.

Schematically, Orlando will have to figure out how to get his best 11 on the field. Any best 11, at least athletically and physically, includes Foster, Overshown, and Joseph Ossai. If the defense stumbles the 'lack of talent' excuse is inapplicable, but inexperience and lack of cohesion is a big concern for a team already showing too many assignment busts. 

Offense

For now we'll assume that Collin Johnson and Lil'Jordan Humphrey will return. If that happens you'll see people use terms like explosive to describe the offense when it will more likely be devastatingly efficient. 

The biggest loss on offense will be Calvin Anderson, but the biggest questions will be who plays guard as four-year starter Patrick Vahe and fifth-year senior Elijah Rodriguez depart? Fortunately left tackle will be manned by future Sunday player Sam Cosmi, and Herb Hand has some intriguing guard options to throw at the position. Another question mark is whether or not Derek Kerstetter will return to right tackle. That's probable but not set in stone. Depth is going to be a little thin; some guys who are red-shirting now are going to have to be ready to provide snaps next season. We'll monitor them closely during the spring. Expect the staff to work hard in the grad transfer market for an o-lineman. Good depth and competition should be the expectation, not finding another Anderson.

Running behind that line will be Keaontay Ingram, Daniel Young, and then your guess is as good as mine. I think there's a slight chance Toneil Carter returns but that's dependent on his 'want to' not him wanting to. This is a position that true freshmen can play early and if Texas can land Noah Cain he'll see carries in his first game. A point of emphasis this off-season needs to be bulking up Ingram in a way that doesn't inhibit his uncommon movement skills. Like they should sell the Calvin Anderson story, the staff should also use Tre Watson as an example if any qualified grad transfer running backs become available. 

If Johnson and Humphrey return the starting wide receiver rotation is set along with Devin Duvernay, but wide receiver depth will be fairly thin in the spring before an influx of younger players arrive. Jordan Whittington (early enrollee) and Jake Smith will add some much needed dynamism to slot receiver immediately. Josh Moore will also be a player there. New arrivals will allow D'shawn Jamison to return to defense. Al'vonte Woodard's red-shirt will be off and he'll provide depth at Z behind Duvernay. Incoming freshman, Marcus Washington, will compete for snaps behind Collin Johnson upon arrival. This will be a much deeper and talented grouping next year before some questions have to be answered in 2020. Expect more rotation at receiver in 2019 in preparation of losing all three starters. 

Andrew Beck will be a loss but how much is unknown. Herman will discuss losing him as a leader but this is going to be Sam Ehlinger's team next year full stop. Despite Herman dedicating numbers to the position since he arrived, questions will remain heading into 2019. Can Cade Brewer approximate Beck's production? I think so. Will Reese Leitao take the next step and become a more physical blocker? We'll see. Will Malcolm Epps move to tight end from receiver? Hopefully. Can Max Cummins stay healthy and become an in-line brute? Will both talented true freshmen red-shirt? At least one will. It's been fun to watch tight end usage this season. From what I gather of Brewer, he'll afford the staff time to answer all these other questions.

If Sam Ehlinger didn't breakout this year we were headed for an interesting spring between he and Cameron Rising. Thank you from saving me from that, Sam. Ehlinger has not only met my high expectations for this season but raced right passed them. I did not see him reading the field and throwing this accurately this soon. This is a confident quarterback who understands the offense. Most amazing to me is he has re-worked his mental wiring. He's no longer trying to win the game on every play, often short-circuiting in the process. He's playing fully within himself and taking advantage of the talent around him. Ehlinger is playing at a level I expected, but not in year two. That's testament to him, but also the improved offensive line, surrounding skill players, and also the coaches who I don't feel have been given enough credit. 

Schematically I love this Big 12 counterculture offense and I can't wait to see it fully operational with the added dimensions of Jake Smith, Jordan Whittington, and hopefully Noah Cain. Assuming the staff gets the guards up to speed, we're looking at a much harder to defend offense than the current one. 

Coaching

Herman's vision for the program has been clear since his first press conference. His vision for the offense has also been made especially clear over the last few weeks. What's less clear is how he views his staff long-term.

The offense is improved for numerous reasons and Herman's fingerprints are all over each of them, but based on previous statements we can glean he feels he's a little tooinvolved. He's never wanted to be play-caller, and who can fault him? It's really hard to be attuned to the whole game while calling plays when you have the ball and thinking of adjustments when you don't. I think he's made some managerial mistakes because of his double duty.

From information I learned a year ago, Herman was all set to use the new 1oth assistant coach allocation on a defensive hire. Instead, given the discrepancy in success between the offense and defense, he hired Herb Hand who has been a resounding success. If Herman was only going to make one move it's hard to imagine someone with a better WAR. 

But after the defense's performance this season it may prove difficult to keep the org chart imbalanced. I'm not going to speculate or opine much in this regard, but the current make-up of the staff is sub-optimal. A person who knows nothing about football could point that out.

Fortunately, the roster looks to be set for the long-term but the staff is going to have to foresee any gaps in talent and address them before they become detrimental. It should inspire confidence how they attack the JUCO ranks and grad transfer market. Some will lament they should have seen the hole at linebacker and they would likely agree. I believe they've learned from that mistake and are better for it.

While 2019 has its share of questions, if Herman is as good as I think he is he'll have addressed most of them heading into 2020, when the program should be truly poised to compete with Alabama, Clemson, and whoever else is good that year.

The absolute top programs are on a good talent cycle every year, but as Texas builds to get to that point, 2020 sets up as the cycle where talent, experience, and depth converge. If the staff continues to recruit like they have, this program will be in contention in most years it can get passed Oklahoma.

Early story-lines for 2020:

Who replaces the starting wide receivers? We'll know that answer well in advance. It's not a huge concern as production at the position isn't he hardest to replace, but the manner in which the offense attacks defenses may look a little different. Ehlinger will be a senior and depending on his 2019 campaign, perhaps a Heisman front-runner. His play will largely mitigate losses from the year before at receiver.

The offensive line will be quite seasoned. Here is where we'll really see the value of red-shirting Denzel Okafor in 2018. I don't anticipate Cosmi leaving after year-three. The staff is already concerned about losing Zach Shackelford in 2019 so they should have center figured out well in advance. Kerstetter and Tope Imade (hopefully he breaks out in 2019) will be seniors. 

The class of 2018 will be in its third year in the program and already quite seasoned. Between the over-achieving 2017 group and this one, the team will be chauffeured by talented upperclassmen with high football character. 

Losing Brandon Jones will hurt in the secondary but there should be plenty of experience to help ease the younger, talented players along. 

The defensive line will have lost Malcolm Roach and Gerald Wilbon, but there will be tons of younger guys waiting in the wings. The defensive line should be able to rotate in waves by 2020 and be close to Herman and Orlando's goal of an assembly line of upperclassmen who beat up on physically inferior Big 12 offensive lines.

Who will the freshmen impact players be? If UT can put together a promising 2019 and land guys like Demond Demas and Zach Evans, the roster will get a jolt of athleticism. Perhaps Evans mimics what Jamaal Charles gave the 2005 team as a true freshman. 

Closing:

There is plenty for Tom Herman to iron out within his program, much of it on the headsets, but he has plenty of time before 2020 when expectations should be to win the National Championship. Pretty much every personnel decision, coaching or otherwise, should answer the question: 'how does this help the team win big in 2020?'

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1 hour ago, Jojen said:

So Zach Smith posts on the Buckeye 247 web site? Because that’s how that reads to me.

yep, apparently when you're fired it's currently called retirement...and now he's bringing up hookers and blow.  Each time it escalates without proof of the first accusation.  WTF ever. 

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5 minutes ago, Mdhorn said:

yep, apparently when you're fired it's currently called retirement...and now he's bringing up hookers and blow.  Each time it escalates without proof of the first accusation.  WTF ever. 

Zack Smith posting all of this shit on a message board should just about put the nail in the coffin of his credibility. Nobody except Rocko puts any weight into message boards. 

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This part of the story feels like something that would be in a commit article...
Spoiler  

“I love the program, primarily the coaches and the environment,” McCoy said. “Austin is a really cool city. The program is on the up and up. You look at Coach (Tom) Herman and what he did at Houston and now transferring that to Texas, you can see where the program is heading.”

“Coach Herman brings this up-tempo energy about himself, and he’s very charismatic,” McCoy said. “Coach Mehringer is a really genuine and nice guy. He cares a lot about his players, specifically the receivers, in all facets of life. The relationship between me and Coach Herman, Coach Mehringer and Coach Beck is strong.”

“The message they’ve conveyed to me is the best way to grow as a person is to make yourself uncomfortable,” McCoy said. “They think I can stay at home and be comfortable. But if you want to grow as a man, you have to step out of your comfort zone. Texas offers a great place to grow, and Austin is a great city.”

“Austin is different. The culture is very football based. They are all in football fans. Going to the game and watching 103,000 people scream chants, I’ve never experienced that, and you don’t get that experience in California given the number of teams. Texas is the football school that represents Texas, in my opinion."

“Austin has a lot of different aspects to it music wise, and you have the lakes. It’s gorgeous. And you have the city. It’s a cool place.”

 
 
The second to last paragraph just earned Bru a lifetime aggy boycott.

Of course I would consider that a good thing, but still.
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5 minutes ago, ousux said:

Also, is it wrong that the thought of Herman sniffing blow off a strippers tits with Michelle present makes me actually like him now? Not that I believe a word of that drivel, but still..emoji23.png

Wrong?  I think we would all knight him.  Or make him King.   This shit makes me want Tyrian Lannister's ass to be the last seated on the iron throne.

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20 minutes ago, billfromlaketravis said:

181 likes on Bucknuts. Yes. Seriously. 

They'll try to tip over the team bus the next time Texas plays in Columbus. CDC, please stealthily cancel the tOSU home and home series.

yeah they might until Floyd, Bimage, Graham, Dele, Overshown, and Foster get off the bus and politely ask them to move away from the bus...

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