Tag: Texas football recruiting

Texas Football: Grading each position group prior to spring game

We grade each position on the football team.

Texas has a stacked roster heading into the 2023 season. We feel strongly about that fact. Barring a colossal breakdown in the Orange and White game, that judgment of the roster won’t change.

The biggest development of the 2023 spring sessions has been the emergence of defensive tackle Alfred Collins. Bobby Burton and Paul Wadlington of Inside Texas detailed his improvement in a podcast episode last week.

If Collins can step into his potential, the Texas defense can be disruptive and destructive in the upcoming season. While much of the focus for the current roster will go to the offense, defensive coordinator Pete Kwiatkowski might have a unit capable of carrying the team.

While there are plenty of strong position groups, there are a handful of question marks heading into the 2023 season. With that in mind, let’s grade each position group heading into the spring game.

Texas Football: What we want to see in the spring game

What to watch in the annual Orange-White game on April 15.

Spring football is in full force across college football. And while there’s not much we can glean from the sessions, we would still like to see progress in a few areas.

Some are of the belief that spring practices are wholly unimportant. For the cemented starter that might be true. For those pushing for starting roles, the sessions could have significant bearing on depth chart positioning.

Sophomore offensive lineman Cole Hutson won a starting spot last spring. Hutson won a starting bid in a room that included five-star lineman DJ Campbell and highly regarded freshmen Neto Umeozulu, Malik Agbo, and Cam Williams among others. 2023 early enrollees will look to follow Hutson’s blueprint by putting in the work prior to fall camp.

Here’s a look at what we want to see from Texas’ annual Orange-White game on April 15.

LOOK: Texas RB Savion Red looks the part this spring

Some might have written off Savion Red at running back too soon.

Texas has a loaded running back room. Savion Red could not care less. Continue reading “LOOK: Texas RB Savion Red looks the part this spring”

Texas LT Kelvin Banks listed as Bleacher Report’s top sophomore lineman

The list of top sophomore linemen is Kelvin Banks, then everyone else.

Texas’ Kelvin Banks is a freight train. He’s simultaneously a brick wall. He is the most interesting left tackle in college football. Continue reading “Texas LT Kelvin Banks listed as Bleacher Report’s top sophomore lineman”

Texas receives recruiting prediction for five-star WR Micah Hudson

The Longhorns appear to be in good shape for Micah Hudson early on in his recruitment.

Five-star wide receiver Micah Hudson is a top priority for Steve Sarkisian and his staff. Continue reading “Texas receives recruiting prediction for five-star WR Micah Hudson”

Steve Sarkisian updates Texas WR Isaiah Neyor’s health

Isaiah Neyor is back on the practice field running routes.

Texas wide receiver Isaiah Neyor is making his comeback. The talented pass catcher made his way onto the practice field and looked good running routes and catching passes.

Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian said the following of Neyor’s ramp up toward playing in the 2023 season.

He looked as good as he’s looked. His rehab has gone really well for him, not only physically but mentally. Any time you have surgery like that, as much as it is the physical rehab, it’s the mental rehab … I think that gradually working him back in at the rate that we’re going is a good sign for where we need to be come the fall.

Neyor is a true X-Factor for the football program heading into a pivotal third season with head coach Steve Sarkisian. In many ways, he presents some of the offense’s greatest upside because of his versatility. Texas hopes he will return to the player he was prior to his injury.

Texas Football: Reacting to a bold power ranking of Big 12 QB rooms

Texas ranks second among JD PicKell’s top five Big 12 QB rooms.

Jackson Arnold has transformed the Oklahoma Sooners quarterback room. That is, if On3 Sports analyst JD PicKell is to be believed.

PicKell ranked the Oklahoma quarterback room as the best in the Big 12 Conference as of Friday. The ranking is surprising given the Sooners quarterback debacle in last year’s 49-0 loss to Texas.

Oklahoma quarterback Dillon Gabriel is a good quarterback. He’s not great or elite given his struggles to pass outside the numbers. Even so, one could argue he is one of the two or three best quarterbacks in the Big 12. After him is a still rebuilding quarterback unit. I shared my thoughts on the Oklahoma depth chart earlier this week.

The Longhorns check in at No. 2 on the list with Quinn Ewers, Arch Manning and Maalik Murphy. Oklahoma head coach Brent Venables would likely take any of the Longhorns three quarterbacks over the current backup Davis Beville. Certainly, Texas would relish the opportunity to face a freshman version of Jackson Arnold.

It will be interesting to see how much each quarterback room improves over the next season.

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Texas LB Anthony Hill mentioned as Big 12 newcomer to watch

Anthony Hill is set to make a splash in 2023.

Texas freshman linebacker Anthony Hill is getting national attention this offseason. Fox Sports college football analyst RJ Young deemed Hill one of his five Big 12 newcomers to watch.

Young said the following about the former Denton Ryan player.

At 6-foot-2, 225 pounds, a five-star in the 2023 class and No. 18 overall recruit, he could develop into the kind of destructive force Kenneth Murray Jr. was at Oklahoma in 2018 when he had 155 tackles, 12.5 tackles for loss and four sacks.

Recently, the Fox analyst ranked Texas at No. 24 in his spring football Top 25. Ahead of Texas were No. 21 Oklahoma and No. 23 Kansas, both of which Texas defeated by more than 40 points away from Austin last year. Those predictions were somewhat bold. What’s not so bold is the assumption that Texas will need Anthony Hill to produce at the linebacker position.

Leading Hill’s position group is All-American linebacker Jaylon Ford. After Ford, there are a few question marks from the unit. David Gbenda is likely to be called upon to step up, but the Longhorns could need Hill to be a difference maker. If he plays up to potential, Texas could bring back a conference title trophy to Austin.

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Longhorns Wire dissects the Oklahoma Sooners depth chart

The Oklahoma Sooners look like a beatable opponent for Texas again in 2023.

In case you missed it, the Texas Longhorns defeated the Oklahoma Sooners last season, 49-0. It was the Sooners’ most lopsided loss in its rivalry against the Longhorns and the first shutout they had suffered in the game since 1965.

Some scoffed at the notion that the Sooners would fall off following the departure of former head coach Lincoln Riley to USC. The game put into perspective just how far the program had fallen. This offseason, Oklahoma head coach Brent Venables transformed the roster through the transfer portal and in recruiting.

Our Sooners Wire colleague John Williams shared a predicted spring two-deep depth chart for the team to give insight into what Oklahoma could look like this season. Although the team improved in more than one area, Texas has a good opportunity to start a winning streak over Oklahoma in the series.

Let’s analyze what the Sooners bring back this season.

LOOK: Texas RB Jonathon Brooks returns to practice following surgery

Jonathon Brooks’ road to a breakout season starts following hernia surgery.

Texas running back Jonathon Brooks is back on the practice field. On Tuesday he was spotted as a ball carrier during the day’s spring practice session.

Brooks’ return is big news for a talented but inexperienced running back room. Though he and Keilan Robinson return after contributing the last two seasons, the majority of carries went to NFL Draft hopefuls Bijan Robinson and Roschon Johnson.

The Halletsville product shined in limited action last season. Brooks ran for five touchdowns on just 30 carries on the year. His 197 rushing yards averaged out to a strong 6.6 yards per carry in four games played.

The high point for Brooks came against Kansas where the emerging talent rushed for 108 yards on 11 carries. His two-touchdown performance punctuated the Longhorns’ 55-14 win over the Jayhawks.

We have given plenty of shine to five-star freshman running back Cedric Baxter, and rightfully so. Nevertheless, the unheralded third year back from Halletsville could be primed for a breakout season in Austin.