Texas is heading into another season full of anticipation and expectations. In order for Tom Herman to fulfill those expectations, some new faces are going to have to step up.
Athlon Sports has named two players who could be those guys for Texas in 2020. Labeled as ‘wildcards’, they look at both the offensive and defensive side of the ball, starting with Jordan Whittington at wide receiver.
Offense: Jordan Whittington, WR
Whittington appeared in just one game last year before an injury ended his season. The highly touted RB/WR has the skills to make defenses pay in a variety of ways. Head coach Tom Herman will look to deploy him accordingly.
Whittington had a ton of hype going into the 2019 season as a five-star recruit. Originally, he was going to play running back but sadly picked up an injury in the season opener against Louisiana Tech and sat out the rest of the year.
Thanks to the solid play of Keaontay Ingram and Roschon Johnson, plus the addition of five-star Bijan Robinson, Whittington will be moving to wide receiver.
Scheduled to line up in the slot for most of the year, Whittington just needs to get the ball in his hands to become dangerous. Big 12 defenses are going to have a tough time trying to bring him down.
On defense, Athlon Sports points out another freshman, who is hoping to improve Texas’ worst position group form last year.
Defense: Vernon Broughton, DL
The UT defense fell apart last season in part due to lackluster play on the defensive line. That cracks open the door for a true freshman like Broughton to get on the field right away. He already has the frame (6-5, 286) to handle the leap to the college level.
One of the Longhorns’ early enrollees back in January, Broughton was a four-star defensive tackle recruit. From the Houston area, Texas beat out Ohio State and Texas A&M for his signature.
Because of his size, Broughton has the ability to play up the middle or on the outside. Keondre Coburn and Moro Ojomo are expected to start at nose tackle and defensive tackle respectively but Broughton could become a legitimate role player.
The success of young players will help Texas, despite all of the returning talent on this year’s team. With Sam Ehlinger departing after the 2020 season, the Longhorns will need to find a new leader for the future.
Guys such as Jordan Whittington and Vernon Broughton could become leaders with big freshman seasons.
[lawrence-auto-related count=3]