The exact minute that the 2009 Texas Longhorns football season will start is no longer a mystery. The kick-off time for the team’s season opener against [tag]Louisiana-Monroe[/tag] has been announced. The game will be September 5th at 6pm and will air only on FSN pay-per-view. The lack of a free TV option is disappointing but not unexpected when you start every season with a cupcake.
Update: From Statesman.com (9/2/2009):
Here’s what we know so far about ordering the pay-per-view telecast of Saturday’s opener against Louisiana-Monroe:
You’ll have to wait until later this week to order it from a conventional digital cable outlet, including Time Warner. The Texas athletic department also still is waiting for more channel information from DirecTV and Dish Network. For AT&T U-Verse customers, the viewing channel is 103. Cost is $40.
Update: Current PPV TV info:
- AT&T U-verse Ch. 103
- Time Warner Cable Austin Ch. 437
- DirectTV Ch. 785
- Dish Network Ch. 466
- More info
Texas head coach [tag]Mack Brown[/tag] was on ESPN SportsCenter this weekend talking about preseason rankings, expectations, going undefeated, and of course the [tag]BCS[/tag]. Watch:
Posted July 23rd, 2009 by Brian
Filed under: Feature, Football, Recruiting
Lake Travis' Garrett Gilbert will continue the spread quarterback lineage at Texas.
ESPN has several excellent articles this week on the spread offense in college football and some on it’s origins as well. Their articles feature Longhorn QB’s all over, from several generations. They think the perfect spread quarterback starts with Colt McCoy’s accurate arm and their history article gives a lot of love to future Horn [tag]Garrett Gilbert[/tag] and former Horn and current UNT coach [tag]Todd Dodge[/tag].
ESPN Spread Offense Articles
- Spread concepts around for decades
- Spread traces its roots to Depression-era Texas high school football
- Who runs the spread offense?
- Defending the spread offense
- Andre Ware: ABC’s of the spread
- Crosshairs: Building a spread quarterback
- The 10 most dangerous spread offense QBs (*)
- Is 7-On craze helping?
Download named rosters and put Colt McCoy into NCAA 10.
Finally, the named rosters for NCAA Football 2010 is available for both your PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 consoles. Simply go into the EA Locker area and search for the username ‘pastapadre’ to get the rosters with all your favorite Longhorns “in the game”. More info below and on pastapadre.com:
Search for the Gamertag and PSN name pastapadre and they will be available to download. These have only been named and no other changes have been made meaning they can be used for online play and the names will be displayed… After downloading from the locker make sure to save the file and then manually load it up to see all the names appear for the first time. I’ll continue to update this posting if any changes are made to the roster files being held in the lockers.
Please, nobody tell Sam Keller.
It’s that time of year again, EA Sports’ NCAA Football 10 hits stores this week and college football fans everywhere will finally be getting their yearly fix. Finally some digital football to distract us from our lives and families before the real thing gets here in mid-August!
It looks like the game is another evolution from previous years’ games and not a revolution, but the new features including online dynasty mode and TeamBuilder seem aimed right at the diehard college football fan that reads this site. Check out the video review from IGN below:
Will Keenan Robison blow up at linebacker in 2009?
Football has become a 24/7, 365 days a year sport. We talk about football in the fall. We watch the spring games in April. And we even follow recruiting with the fervor of a Saturday night in Baton Rouge.
But the one aspect of college football that is overlooked is the work done in the summer with 7-on-7 workouts. Vince Young and the 2005 Championship team proved that chemistry and timing built in the summer can propel a team to the top. After a near perfect season in 2008 Colt McCoy and the Texas football team are looking to duplicate the blue print of the last team to make it to the Rose Bowl and win.
The similarities of this year’s team to the 2005 squad are alarming and are sure to be talked about like McCoy and Jordan Shipley’s fishing plans.
Not all aspects of the game can be worked on over the summer without pads, but plenty can be accomplished. Even with more answers than questions lingering to enter this season there is room for improvement. And here are five questions that could be answered over the summer?
1. What will be the base offensive formation?
The lack of a viable tight end may force Greg Davis’ hand when it comes to “go to” formations. In the biggest games of the year, and when Texas needed to move the ball, they abandoned the tight end set for a four wide receiver spread. With McCoy’s accuracy and the depth at the receiver position having a tight end on the field may be a detriment to the team.
From a skill stand point there is no question the fourth receiver will be more talented than any healthy tight end on the roster, unless we assume DJ Grant can emerge as a catcher and a blocker in his first year at the position. Frankly, it would be unfair to ask that of Grant so the question becomes – is it more important to disguise your play calls by being multiple on offense with a tight end or is the talent difference so great that putting a tight end on the field is holding the team back?
I don’t know the answer, maybe Davis and McCoy don’t either, but a huge summer by the receivers combined with no progress from the tight ends might equal a wide open spread attack for the majority of the snaps.
2. Can Garrett Gilbert handle being the backup quarterback right away?
Anyone who has seen or followed the career of the incoming freshman from Lake Travis knows that all signs point to a successful career at Texas and beyond. But all the skill, and smarts, in the world don’t necessarily spell success as a true freshman. In a perfect world Gilbert will only see the field in controlled situations. The plan is to bring him along slowly at the end of games that Texas has in the bag.
The problem is Texas cannot be comfortable with Sherrod Harris as the primary backup. The coaches and the players love Harris but he has never shown he could carry the team if needed. And with the junior recovering from surgery Gilbert has the chance to secure the backup spot if he can prove he has what it takes on the field, in his head, and in the huddle.
Like it or not Texas is one freak play away from starting a quarterback with no experience. With Chiles at receiver the only real hope is Gilbert. There is no doubt the pressure and expectations will not be fair or realistic for the prodigy, but he should have never expected them to be. This is Texas; he’ll learn that soon enough.
3. Who will be the running back?
Realistically this could be a question that isn’t answered at all this season. Mack Brown and Major Applewhite have proven they’ll mix backs in and out as much as they deem necessary. And while they’ll do it again this year, one has to think the staff wants a “go to” guy. A lot of the inconsistencies last year can be attributed to the lack of familiarity with the backs and the offensive line. The running game can be about timing as much as anything and UT had none last year.
It is true that the full running game cannot be featured without pads, but Applewhite has shown he values pass protection and ball security over big play ability. Vondrell McGee, maybe the most complete runner in the backfield, learned this lesson the hard way when he was benched for the entire Fiesta Bowl.
McGee may be the best runner, but it is Foswhitt Whittaker that can excel in 7-on-7 drills because of his ability to catch the ball and run in space. If he can stay healthy and prove he is willing to block Whittaker may finally break out this season.
The other option is freshman Chris Whaley. All reports have the physical freak as being impressive. The coaching staff has all but said he’ll get his shot to compete, so if he can pick up the small things this summer he’ll have a huge chance this fall.
4. Who will start as the third linebacker?
Roddrick Muckelroy and Jared Norton have starting jobs locked up in the 4-3 alignment, but with Sergio moving to defensive end one of the outside linebacker spots are open. The two candidates for the position are Keenan Robinson Emmanuel Acho. Both can rush the passer and both can make plays.
The skill that may separate them, and determine who plays more, will likely who can play in pass coverage the best. This is where 7-on-7 comes into play. With the Big 12 becoming football version of the Blue Angels air show finding linebackers that can stop the run and cover the pass is invaluable. In his short time on campus Robinson has shown the ability to play the pass and that’ what puts him at the top of the depth chart at strong side linebacker.
Texas will play with five defensive backs a lot this season, and that means only two linebackers on the field. Norton, who is a prototypical middle linebacker in the 4-3, has struggled in the nickel formation so if Robinson plays well enough he may be alongside Muckelroy when teams are spread out.
5. Is the work ethic there?
For the first time in a long time Texas overachieved last season. It had more to do with expectations, but the Longhorns had a workman like feel that wasn’t the norm in the last decade. Will Muschamp has gotten a lot of credit for the attitude change, but more credit needs to go to the players and especially the leaders on the team. More than talent, UT lost some big time leaders in Quan Cosby, Roy Miller, and Brian Orakpo.
Those guys kept the young guys in check in practice, off the field, and in the locker room. Texas still has established leaders in Colt McCoy and Sergio Kindle and new leaders are stepping up like Earl Thomas. But until the team faces some adversity no one will know if the team has the backbone they showed in games against Oklahoma and Ohio State last year.
The 2005 team established that ethic in the summer with many players pointing out that they had worked too hard in June and July to let anyone beat them. If this year’s team comes out of the summer with the same feeling another special year could be on the horizon.
Former Longhorn and current Houston Texan defensive tackle [tag]Frank Okam[/tag] talks about losing weight, showing a commitment to football, and what he could do on the field in 2009:
Former Texas quarterback [tag]Vince Young[/tag] lost a mentor and hero when former Titans’ star Steve McNair was murdered last week. Yesterday Vince spoke briefly at McNair’s funeral service and he had trouble keeping his emotions in check. With tears in his eyes Young said, “Steve was like a hero to me, and heroes are not supposed to die.”
Our thoughts go out to McNair’s family and friends.
Posted July 12th, 2009 by Brian
Filed under: Baseball, Basketball, Football, Swimming
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#ESPN says contract talks btwn Blazers & LaMarcus Aldridge have stalled, but that he “will be here for a long time”: http://tr.im/rO6o #UT
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RT @InsideTexas: Texas-Ex Aaron Peirsol breaks world record in 100-meter back with time of 51.94 at 2009 USA Swimming National Championships
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RT @Lesleymccaslin: Just called WKRN in Nashville – They say the reports that QB Steve McNair is dead are true and they don’t know much more
The 2009 college football season is quickly approaching and with it brings the annual ritual of naming the [tag]Red River Rivalry[/tag] as one of the top games of the upcoming season. This time it is ESPN blogger Bruce Feldman putting the [tag]Texas[/tag]/[tag]Oklahoma[/tag] match-up at the top of his list for “must-see” games of the year:
1. Texas vs. Oklahoma, Oct. 17
You won’t find a better QB battle this year than when Sam Bradford and Colt McCoy get together. It’s no stretch to think the Heisman, the Big 12 title and possibly a BCS title game berth will be on the line here. Oh, and there’s also the jilted feeling from the Longhorns for being passed over by the Sooners last year, a team they beat in this one in 2008. The Sooners, who have lost three of the past four, need to reassert themselves in the rivalry.
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