The story of quarterback JT Daniels is one that starts with him being a football prodigy that left high school a year early to start at the college level right away.
The former five-star out of Mater Dei began his career at USC where he started immediately and was viewed as the quarterback that would help turn the program around. While he did show flashes, injuries derailed his time there which led to him transferring to Georgia where he had similar issues. Following his stint at Georgia, he transferred to West Virginia where things simply didn’t work out.
He is now on his fourth stop at Rice, and will be matching up against Texas for the third time with his third different team. He has yet to beat the Longhorns, and the oddsmakers are not high on what will be his final shot against Texas as the Longhorns are favored by nearly 40 points.
In the previous two meetings combined, Daniels has completed 59-of-96 passes (61%) for 575 yards with a touchdown and interception. Obviously a lot has changed over the course of his career, as he first squared off against Texas led by Tom Herman and Sam Ehlinger and last season played against Steve Sarkisian and Hudson Card who was filling in for Quinn Ewers.
The Longhorns know what they are getting in Daniels. He has a big arm and can be accurate when he has time to throw. He isn’t the most mobile quarterback, which should give Texas’ young pass rushers a chance to make a statement early.
If Texas gets pressure on him and prevents him from linking up with Luke McCaffrey, this game should be handled by halftime.