40 Acres Sports

Texas junior running back [tag]Jamaal Charles[/tag] announced today he will skip his senior season and enter the NFL Draft.

This isn’t surprising news but it is definitely disappointing. I was looking for a huge season out of Jamaal next year and thought he might break out as a Heisman contender. It looked like he (and just as importantly Greg Davis) had finally figured things out late in the season and he was really tearing it up. Charles finished with 897 yards and 10 touchdowns in the Longhorns’ final five games.

In just three seasons, including two in which he split time with Selvin Young, Charles was able to climb into the top 5 all time in both career rushing and career TDs. His big play ability will be sorely missed next season.

From his official statement:

“I can’t thank Coach Brown, Coach Rucker, everyone at UT and all of the fans enough,” Charles said. “They gave me a great opportunity and supported me so much. UT is a wonderful place and everyone has been so good to me. But playing in the NFL has always been my dream and when the NFL report came back I was happy with the grade and felt like it was best for me to enter the draft.”

“I had fun playing with a lot of great players and winning a bunch of games. I have so many friends at UT and everyone is close, like a family, so it’s really hard to leave. But, after finishing the season strong, I think I’m ready. I’ve worked really hard and the coaches have done a great job preparing me. I had a lot of success this year but I wouldn’t have been able to accomplish anything if it wasn’t for the great job the offensive line and all of the coaches did. We got better every game and it showed in how we played so I can’t thank them, especially my O-line, enough.”

“Now, it’s my job to get ready for all of the NFL workouts and make everyone proud. I may be going to the NFL but I’ll always be a Longhorn. I’m definitely going to continue working towards my degree. Finishing school is really important to me because I want to have a good life after football.”

Charles’ draft prospects probably couldn’t get much higher than they are now. The NFL Draft is all about potential and forty times and Jamaal is off the charts in both those categories. After Arkansas‘ Darren McFadden this isn’t a particularly deep draft for running backs and in my opinion Charles is easily one of the top five guys available. Depending on team needs and what other underclassmen declare I can’t see him falling further than the middle of the second round.

Looking forward to next year for the Horns, young Vondrell McGee will have to grow up fast. He showed potential this year in limited time but he’s going to be expected to carry the load next year and we haven’t seen enough yet to know if he can do it. Maybe the newly wide open running back depth chart will entice 5-star Darrell Scott to come to Austin and show his stuff?

What round will Jamaal Charles be drafted?

• Second (48%)
• Third (23%)
• First (21%)
• Fourth or later (8%)

Total Votes: 291

 Loading ...

Titans place Bo Scaife on injured reserve. Out with a lacerated liver suffered when Vince left one a little high over the middle.

Freshman forward [tag]Gary Johnson[/tag] finally received medical clearance to play Saturday and he’s already been inserted into the starting lineup. Johnson, the Longhorns’ highest rated incoming player, has sat out the entire season with an undisclosed heart ailment but he’ll make his debut as the starting power forward against [tag]TCU[/tag] Wednesday. He replaces [tag]Justin Mason[/tag] who has been in the midst of a horrid shooting slump the last few games.

Head coach Rick Barnes has described Johnson as a more athletic PJ Tucker, a comment that should really excite Texas fans. At 6-foot-7 he’ll play the 4 and Damion James will slide to the 3, giving the Horns a much bigger lineup. Johnson should bring energy, interior defense, and most importantly rebounding to a team that has been lacking all three during the current two game losing streak.

Mason is a good defensive player but his lack of size causes match-up problems at the 3 spot. Now he should be great asset as a defensive stopper off the bench. Hopefully the kid doesn’t get too down on himself about being sent to the bench, he should still see solid minutes and be a valuable member of the team.

Purely from a depth standpoint this team just got a lot better. I can’t wait to see what Johnson can do and how this team will perform in Big 12 play.

Holiday Bowl Marred by Herbstreit and Musberger. I bitched about the awful job they did during my live blog, glad I wasn’t the only one who noticed.

Kentucky fans are booing Billy Gillispie. He never should have taken that job. Coaching basketball at UK is like coaching football at A&M, you can’t win.

Gary Johnson: “It’s a gift just to be able to play again.” Glad he’s back, I hope it’s in his best interest to be playing.

After starting the season 11-0, the Texas basketball team has now lost two straight to Big 10 foes. The unranked [tag]Wisconsin[/tag] Badgers nailed a long game winning three pointer with three seconds left to beat the Horns on their home court 67-66. Texas might have had a chance for one more play but Wisconsin’s Michael Flowers, who had just hit the three, then stole the inbounds pass and flung it high in the air to finish off the game.

Not a well played game for the Horns and bad execution in the final minutes as well. Most notably, guard [tag]AJ Abrams[/tag] had a chance to put the team up three in the final moments but could only hit one of two free throws. [tag]Justin Mason[/tag] had a horrible game, playing nearly all 40 minutes and not scoring a single point. He was 0 for 7 from the field and another 0 for 2 from the charity stripe. That’s not good. Mason’s minutes may be in trouble when [tag]Gary Johnson[/tag] makes his debut this week.

Maybe the lone bright spot for Texas, [tag]Damion James[/tag] had an incredible game. James played great on offense and defense, and as usual was a monster on the glass. He scored 21 points on 10 of 16 shooting and had 15 rebounds. He’s definitely stepped on his game this season after an inconsistent freshman year.

Next up for the Longhorns is a home game against TCU Wednesday afternoon at 4 pm. The game can be seen on FSN if you’re in the state of Texas.

Aggies eat their boogers. Seriously. This is no school yard taunt, an Aggie fan picked his nose and ate it on national TV tonight during their Alamo Bowl loss to Penn State. Watch below:

I’d rather be Chris Jessee than that guy right now.

(Thanks to Voltronjacko on Orangebloods for the clip.)

It featured one of the wildest and weirdest plays in recent memory, but the 2007 [tag]Holiday Bowl[/tag] ended up being an easier Texas win than anyone expected. The Horns came out fired up and got up on the [tag]Arizona State[/tag] early before finishing with a 52-34 victory.

Here’s how the team did with my keys for the game:

1. Pressure Rudy Carpenter.

The Longhorns not only pressured Carpenter but they eventually knocked him out of the game. Carpenter was rattled early and did not perform well when the Horns were able to hurry him. The team finished the night with four sacks but more importantly was in the quarterback’s face all game long. Defensive coordinator [tag]Duane Akina[/tag] brought blitzes from every direction and every position. Defensive end [tag]Brian Orakpo[/tag] had a heck of a game (two sacks, tons of pressure) was named the game’s defensive MVP. Verdict: Passed.

2. Don’t turn the ball over.

[tag]Colt McCoy[/tag] didn’t throw any interceptions but did put the ball on the turf with alarming frequency. McCoy fumbled the football four times, but only lost a critical one on a boneheaded play at the end of the first half that could have cost Texas dearly. He also botched two snaps and was bailed out big time (after a great long scramble) when Jermichael Finley fell on his fumble in the end zone for a touchdown. The Horns didn’t protect the football very well but they only turned it over once, so… Verdict: Passed.

3. Don’t forget about the run game.

I don’t think the coaches gave the ball enough to [tag]Jamaal Charles[/tag] early in the game, but as the game wore on he ended up getting more than his share of touches. Thanks to the big second half lead Charles finished the game with 27 carries and 161 yards. Colt McCoy did what he’s been doing this season, finding a way to make big plays with his feet. The team also went to freshman quarterback [tag]John Chiles[/tag] early to spark the offense and he carried the ran the ball very successfully. Overall the team ran the ball 54 times for a whopping 300 yards in the game. Verdict: Passed.

After Texas’ big victory over [tag]Arizona State[/tag] in Thursday night’s [tag]Holiday Bowl[/tag], [tag]Chris Jessee[/tag] was making the most of the news. That’s not the only thing people were talking about as the Longhorns win impressed many of the doubters the team had earned over the course of the season. Check out all the reports on the game from around the Web below. The Austin American-Statesman in particular has several good articles on the game, be sure to check their stuff out.

Here you go:

Austin American-Statesman

• Texas wins wild Holiday Bowl
• Game photos
• Solid win shows what Longhorns could’ve been.
• Is the best yet to come for Horns?
• Holiday Bowl notebook
• The (sometimes warped) view from the press box
• Brown’s stepson made bizarre appearance

Bevo Sports

• Live: Holiday Bowl versus Arizona State
• Video: Chris Jessee wants to get away
• Chris Jessee: I Did Not Touch the Ball

Dallas News

• Longhorns handle Arizona State
• Longhorns playing their best at end
• Texas’ Lokey finds the gravy in grunt work

Blogosphere

• Texas Dominates Holiday Bowl and Arizona State, 52-34
• Texas Staffer Getting the Bartman Treatment
• The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly – Holiday Bowl Version
• Texas’ Out-of-Control Sideline
• On Those Frauds at Arizona State

Other Media

• Instant Analysis: Holiday Bowl
• McCoy, Charles rush Texas past Arizona State
• McCoy shines at Holiday, gaining momentum for 2008
• UT uses Holiday for push into 2008
• Identities revealed in wild Holiday Bowl
• Texas overcomes bizarre interference by Brown’s stepson in 52-34 victory
• Texas starts fast, finishes big
• Un-Holiday Bowl end as ‘Horns hook, line, sink ’em
• McCoy and Orakpo take MVP trophies
• Texas dominates ASU
• Texas is good, but ASU hurt itself