In his daily Morning Brew (except for weekends, because people are presumably asleep), Chip Brown of Horns247 listed his top five developments for Texas football this offseason.
Gary Patterson joining Steve Sarkisian’s staff as a special assistant was atop the list.
It’s hard to imagine Texas’ defense giving up 31.1 points and 202 yards rushing per game (5.2 yards per carry) again in 2022 with Patterson providing input. – Brown
This is arguably an odd analysis for two reasons. First, the primary reason the defense was porous in the second half of the season was due to losing pass rusher Jacoby Jones and having no capable edge player to replace him with. No coordinator can survive without an edge in modern college football.
Second, it is not clear what Patterson’s role is on the staff yet. His title is deemed the special assistant to the head coach, and he is not a coach on the field.
If the defense does improve, it will be mostly due to having better players (such as Ochuan Mathis, who Patterson will be of help in landing) and Pete Kwiatkowski, not Gary Patterson.
The hiring of Patterson was certainly an important piece of Texas’ offseason, and his defensive knowledge will be valued, but it’s too early to deem it the highlight.
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