The offseason has been much better for Texas football fans than the prior season (though at 5-7, that is not saying much).
The addition of Quinn Ewers gave fans reasons to stop staring at their shoes and start looking towards Dallas, where the Big 12 championship is played. Landing a top five recruiting class along with the additions of Agiye Hall, Isaiah Neyor, Ryan Watts, and Jahleel Billingsley has the Kool-Aid flowing in Austin and elsewhere.
Is it enough? What do those players have in common? They are all skill players, not trench players where the game is won and lost. Brandon Marcello of 247Sports recently discussed Sarkisian’s approach to the offseason.
That’s what makes Sark’s philosophy so intriguing. He searched for immediate help at the skill spots and, yet, at the weakest spots he turned to youth and development, a process that usually requires two years to build suitable starters in the trenches. It’s certainly curious for the former Alabama offensive coordinator to not seek at least one or two linemen who could make an impact — and then supplement the new starters with first-year backups (five instead of seven high school seniors) who can develop into starters in 2023 and beyond.
It would be a shame to see the aforementioned talent from the portal go to waste in 2022 if the offensive line isn’t repaired this fall. Texas has top 10 talent but a bad offensive line will drop he program to a borderline top-25 team. Alabama’s march into Austin in Week 2 will show whether Sark’s offseason approach was equal parts substance and style, or if he just purchased a shiny new car with no engine.
Marcello is not wrong, but keep in mind that among the 2022 recruiting class is five-star offensive tackle Kelvin Banks and five-star offensive guard Devon Campbell, who will surely make their presence felt.
Edge rusher Ochuan Mathis and linebacker Caleb Johnson, who Sarkisian is hot on the trail after, is also available via the transfer portal at positions of need.
The story of the offseason is not finished yet.
[mm-video type=playlist id=01eqbz52bnpekkafqb player_id=none image=https://longhornswire.usatoday.com/wp-content/plugins/mm-video/images/playlist-icon.png]
Contact/Follow us @LonghornsWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Texas news, notes and opinions.