Tag: Barryn Sorrell

Texas Football: Five defensive players to watch vs. Alabama

Texas needs big games from these defensive players against Alabama.

Texas’ defense looked like an improved unit in their season-opening win over UL Monroe. The Longhorns played fundamentally sound football and did a great job limiting explosive plays.

While the performance against UL Monroe inspires some confidence moving forward, Texas faces a huge test this week against No. 1 Alabama.

The Crimson Tide offense is led by 2021 Heisman Trophy winner Bryce Young and a deep group of weapons at the skill positions. Young seems to have not skipped a beat from last season as he accounted for 300 yards and six touchdowns in Bama’s 55-0 win over Utah State.

Alabama is breaking in multiple new faces at the wide receiver position. Traeshon Holden and Jermaine Burton each hauled in two scores and look comfortable with Young in the process.

Georgia Tech transfer Jahmry Gibbs is the lead running back for Nick Saban’s squad. He is a do-it-all player with the ability to make a difference in the running game and passing attack.

Texas’ defense has a tough task in front of them trying to slow down the dynamic Alabama offense. Here are five Texas defensive players to keep an eye on this week against the Tide.

Familiar with Foes: Longhorns players Alabama fans need to know ahead of Week 2

Get to know some of the potential impact players on the Texas roster ahead of Alabama’s showdown with the Longhorns!

Alabama will be traveling to Austin, Texas this Saturday for the first game of a home-and-home series with Steve Sarkisian and the Texas Longhorns.

While this is currently a non-conference contest, within the next two years, Texas will have made the move from the Big 12 over to the SEC along with Oklahoma.

This highly-anticipated matchup between two of college football’s most recognizable brands may not be a top-25 showdown, but this is a game that will be talked about on both teams’ resumes for the remainder of the season.

The Longhorns roster is loaded with difference makers, so here are a few that Crimson Tide fans need to know about ahead of Week 2.

Five takeaways from Texas’ 52-10 win over UL Monroe

Ja’Tavion Sanders is a future star.

Texas took care of business on Saturday night in the season opener against UL Monroe. The Longhorns controlled the game from start to finish en route to a 52-10 victory.

Texas special teams’ unit set the tone for the game early on. D’Shawn Jamison, normally known for his return skills, blocked a punt UL Monroe punt which was scooped and scored by Keilan Robinson.

Quarterback Quinn Ewers had a nice debut after an early interception. Ewers finished throwing for 225 yards and two touchdowns while completing 67% of his passes. Steve Sarkisian would like to see him connect better on his deep ball, but it was an overall good start to Ewers’ Texas career.

Ja’Tavion Sanders was the best player on the field for the Longhorns. The tight end caught six passes for 85 yards and a touchdown. He proved great support as a run blocker as well. Sanders looks the part of a future star.

UL Monroe provided Texas a good tune-up before its heavyweight matchup with No. 1 Alabama next week.

Here are five takeaways from Texas’ season-opening victory over UL Monroe.

Impressions from the season kickoff between Texas and ULM

Looking at where the Longhorns can improve after a strong opening win.

In front of an emotionally charged crowd, Texas defeated the ULM Warhawks, 52-10. The game had multiple positives to build on as the season progresses.

The pass rush is perhaps the biggest positive takeaway from Saturday’s game. Barryn Sorrell proved capable and disruptive on the night and could be in store for a big year.

Justice Finkley and Jaylon Guilbeau played like starters. In my estimation, Texas appears to be a more imposing and deeper defense than in years past, but certainly looked more technically sound.

Excellent pursuit from the defense became a consistent theme on the night. The Texas defense consistently swarmed to the football. Multiple defenders surrounded ball carriers on outside runs, making life difficult on ULM running backs.

Albeit, the game did unearth a couple of deficiencies on both sides of the football.

On the defensive side, edges allowed outside runs failing to set the edge.

On offense, Quinn Ewers made some great plays but the deep ball did not connect. Nevertheless, after an early interception Ewers settled in and played well overall.

The team is a work in progress, but the defense appears to be improved from last season. We will see if that trend continues after this week.

[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.

Horns Up: Seven Texas players trending up after Saturday’s game

Texas is back in the win column after Saturday’s win.

Texas started its 2022 season with a 52-10 win over the ULM Warhawks. Despite some sloppiness and struggles in different phases, the Longhorns provided a solid performance overall.

Several Texas players emerged as game changers Saturday. Barryn Sorrell had perhaps the biggest impact, accounting for two sacks. If you were wondering where Texas would get its pass rush this year, Sorrell’s two-sack performance may have given you your answer.

Keondre Coburn also had a good night, earning a sack of his own. The defensive line was noticeably more disruptive and explosive which could pay dividends this year.

Several freshman made an immediate contribution on Saturday also. Cole Hutson frequently unlocked early runs for Bijan Robinson by sealing off defenders. Justice Finkley had a good play early, both setting the edge and making an impressive tackle. Kelvin Banks certainly looked like he belonged, while Jaylon Guilbeau looked like a seasoned veteran.

Steve Sarkisian did a solid job involving multiple players offensively. Casey Cain featured his explosiveness, but the biggest news among skill players was the arrival of Ja’Tavion Sanders. Sanders’ performance led all receivers and could be the beginning of a special connection with Quinn Ewers.

Here’s a look at Texas players’ whose stock is rising following Saturday’s game.