Texas needs a big 2013 from David Ash.
Big things are coming for Texas in 2013: Especially for Junior quarterback David Ash. I’m not calling for an improvement over his sophomore campaign. I’m calling for a transformative season. A season in which each and every one of us has to applaud and give credit where it is due. A season that will require Ash to be mentioned in the same conversation as (gasp!) Layne, Street, Applewhite, Young, and the McCoy (the good one, not the amateur film maker).
Yes. You’re correct — you just read that.
Colt McCoy left Texas as the winningest college quarterback of all time. His junior and senior seasons were two of the best ever by a Texas passer. Check out McCoy’s stats for a reminder of just how great he was in his career and his two Heisman finalist seasons:
Here’s where I feel Ash will be for the upcoming season. Yes, his predicted passing total of 4,014 yards surpasses McCoy’s best year of 3,859 yards (2008). The 36 touchdown prediction also surpasses McCoy’s best year of 34 (2008). This is where I get crazy, the point where if you had yet to question my sanity-you begin to. I think Ash out rushes McCoy’s best year as well. I should be on medication and a strong dose of it, correct? Ash will come away with a grand total of 780 yards and 9 rushing touchdowns. That total surpasses McCoy’s best season on the ground (561 yards in 2008), but falls short in the number of touchdowns (11, in 2008). It also surpasses the best single-season passing yardage and touchdown totals of Vince Young in 2004 (3036 yards/26 touchdowns), Chris Simms in 2002 (3357 yards/ 21 touchdowns), and Major Applewhite in 1999 (3357 yards/21 touchdowns).
Check out my predictions for each game in 2013:
This would be a monumental season for Ash and the Longhorns. An 11-1 record places them at the top of the heap come play-off time and poised to fight it out for a national championship. Quarterbacks over time have shown the most growth between their sophomore and junior seasons. It will be interesting to see how well Ash performs when he has an Offensive Coordinator that will make it imperative to get the ball to his best play makers in areas where they can maximize their abilities. No more multiple shifts and personnel groupings.
Yes, I am pumping sunshine. Bask in it. Soak it in.
I can’t wait to see the first time the Longhorns come out 4 wide with Jaxon Shipley, Mike Davis, Daje Johnson, and Cayleb Jones and either Jonathan Gray or Malcolm Brown in the backfield.
How do you cover that?
Whose the poor linebacker tasked with keeping up with Johnson or Gray/Brown?
Feel free to let me know just how crazy you think I am in the comments below. I’m sure many of you will have something witty to say. I will be more than happy to eat crow if I’m off base and rest assured I will say “I told you so!” if given the opportunity.
Here’s to hoping I get to do that a minimum of 12 times next year.
WTH?! (What the Heck?) moments are attempts to find the memorable and the off-beat perspective on Longhorns sports. Here are some interesting moments from the Texas’ game against the Bears.
Special Shout Out to Colt McCoy for having his number retired. Thanks #12 for 45 great wins!
1st Quarter (12:11) WTH Karate Kid?! Let’s not worry about the karate kick that Sam Acho delivered on QB Robert Griffin. The sack, fumble recovery and all out effort all game long proved to the 100,452 in attendance who is the defensive leader.
1st Quarter (9:23) WTH Matthews?! This play sums up the entire season for the Horns receivers. The right play was called but the concentration was not there. TE Barrett Matthews stone hands had a sure touchdown bounce off of them. On a positive note Garrett Gilbert played his best game of the year!
2nd Quarter (14:06) WTH Brown RD1?! The punt returners have been dismal. Thank God for the officials bailing out Curtis Brown trying to catch a punt inside his 10 yard line. Still cannot believe that the officials gave the Horns the ball on the twenty after all of that mess. Please make a change…
2nd Quarter (8:51) WTH Williams?! I hope the Longhorn receivers watched the excellent catch by Baylor’s Terrance Williams. The officials had to review it because they did not believe it. Now that is how you catch a bad pass! Great effort!
2nd Quarter (8:04) WTH Butter Fingers?! Both Alex Okafor and Keenan Robinson failed to recover a crucial fumble by Baylor. Both were trying hard to make a play but this team needs positive results.
2nd Quarter (:43) WTH Coach Blood?! Coach Muschamp calling a blitz on 3rd & 10 against the Bears when you have held them in check for most of the game? The play exposed Blake Gideon’s lack of tackling and the Bears had the first TD of the game which covered 59 yards.
3rd Quarter (10:05) WTH Defense?! Great job by Christian Scott for intercepting the ball and returning it to the Baylor 40 yard line. Too bad your defensive teammates were too eager to add two huge penalties to put the Horns back at their own 15 yard line.
3rd Quarter (1:18) WTH Briles?! I love the cool customer that is Baylor Coach Art Briles when he called two timeouts in a row to make sure he had the right 4th down call. Bears started the 4th quarter with the go ahead touchdown and all the momentum on their side.
4th Quarter (2:34) WTH Brown RD2?! Curtis Brown needs to be relieved of his punt return duties not because of his lack of skill. He was trying to make something happen when there was nothing to be had. His fumbled was recovered by Jordan Hicks but the subsequent unsportsmanlike penalty by Curtis put the Horns in a huge hole.
Next up for the Longhorn’s are the Wildcats of Kansas State in the “Little Apple” on November 6th.
Thanks for following my WTH articles throughout the season. I appreciate the opportunity to rant about the greatest University sports program in the country. You can continue to follow comments on all of UT sports on twitter at 40AcresSports or follow me at Horns1991. HOOK EM!!
I hope that we are all happy as we start heading into the new season with a brand new quarterback and new expectations. The past five years have been an incredible run for the Longhorn football team with more wins in the programs history than at any other time in our 127 year history.
Let’s all take a moment to reflect back when this run all started in the mountains of California. (love the personal videos!)
“The Kick” coupled with the maturation of one of the greatest Longhorn players, Vince Young, brought us the momentum we needed to achieve greatness. This greatness was realized the very next year with a 13-0 record and a BCS National Championship when the Horns beat the glitzy boys from Southern Cal 41-38. The ultimate responsibility of following up such a legend was laid upon the shoulders of a young face quarterback from Tuscola Texas. That young player named Colt McCoy had the support of an energized and confident coach in Mack Brown to continue that success for the next four years. Those four years culminated in three bowl wins including a Big XII championship.
This historic kick put the Longhorns once again on the brink of success in the BCS National Championship game until the story book run came to an end. Colt McCoy none the less provided more wins than any Longhorn or college quarterback has ever delivered with 45 wins.
Why do I recap these moments that everyone clearly has experienced themselves? The reason is the fear that we will forget the past and not appreciate the run as we start the 2010 season. This year’s team is loaded with standout defensive players all led by Coach Blood. Our offense has a few question marks, but blue chips can be found including the quarterback who grew up quickly before our eyes against Alabama. I know that we have questions at running back and we are changing our offense scheme to be a more running team, but we should win every game, right?!
I feel good about going into this year but not with the type of success that we have seen around here over the past five years. Garrett Gilbert is the real deal, but I see growing pains along with our offensive line struggling with him. I still see us reaching 10 wins, but I see that 10th win coming at Jerry World (aka the Cotton Bowl) after we finish the regular season 9-3. Who will we lose to… be sure to check out all of our predictions at 40 Acres Sports throughout the season before every game. I hope that I am wrong, but I do not see Dusty Mangum or Hunter Lawrence on our team so I will just appreciate the season before us.
Thanks for following my WTH articles throughout the season. I appreciate the opportunity to rant about the greatest University sports program in the country. You can continue to follow comments on all of UT sports on twitter at 40AcresSports or follow me at Horns1991. HOOK EM!!
Great early coverage of Texas football moving on from Colt McCoy to new quarterback Garrett Gilbert from ESPN. Read Ivan Maisel’s excellent article on Gilbert with quotes from Texas coach Mack Brown, McCoy, and current teammates, and then be sure watch the video of on the story.
So far I have been pretty underwhelmed with the overall performance of the 6 Texas Longhorns taking part in the NFL combine. Colt McCoy performed pretty well in the 2 drills he took part in, coasting easily to a 4.79s 40 yard dash. Earl Thomas wasn’t among the fastest safties, but got some love from one NFL Network announcer who said he was the most instinctive safety he has seen in the last 8 or 9 years.
Below are the results so far. I will update when more information comes in.
Colt McCoy
40 yard dash: 4.79s (5th)
Broad jump: 9’6″ (4th)
Earl Thomas
Bench press: 21 reps (6th)
Sergio Kindle
40 yard dash: 4.71s (7th)
Bench press: 25 reps
Vertical jump: 36.5″ (7th)
Broad jump: 9’10”
Jordan Shipley
40 yard dash: 4.57s
Bench press: 16 reps (8th)
Lamarr Houston
40 yard dash: 4.85s
Bench press: 30 reps
Vertical jump: 33.5″
Broad jump: 9’6″
Roddrick Muckelroy
40 yard dash: 4.73s
Bench press: 19 reps
Broad jump: 9’2″
Adam Ulatoski
40 yard dash: 5.53s
Bench press: 24 reps
Broad jump: 7’10”
Don’t tell Jordan Shipley, but Texas QB Colt McCoy has a new roomie. As he prepares for the upcoming NFL Draft, Colt is rooming with Stanford running back (and Doak Walker Award winner) Toby Gerhart for workouts out in California. Funny Photoshops on EDSBS ensue.
According to ESPN blogger Tim Griffin, Garrett Gilbert’s job may be the toughest in the Big 12 for 2010…
Texas QB Colt McCoy: He leaves school as the most statistically proficient quarterback in school history, although his career will forever be marked by his near misses in the Heisman Trophy balloting over the past two seasons and his injury in his final college game against Alabama. Garrett Gilbert will be facing some big shoes to replace when Texas practice starts later this month.
Should Texas retire Colt McCoy's #12 jersey?
As we approach the Davey O’Brien award ceremony on February 15th in Fort Worth, let us think about the legacy that was handed down to Colt McCoy.
Legacy is defined as what is handed down from the past. The legacy and legend that is Vince Young will forever be the heaviest burden that any first year quarterback could have ever faced. Maxwell, Davey O’Brien and National Championship are awards that will forever seal VY’s legacy for all Texas fans. What you do with that legacy in this case is what is truly remarkable. Colt McCoy added another record by becoming the winningest quarterback in history with 45 wins.
Here is a list of accomplishments Colt put up in just his senior year:
- Big XII Offensive Player of the Year
- First Team All American by Associated Press
- Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award
- Davey O’Brien Award
- Archie Manning Award
- Maxwell Award
- Walter Camp Award
Posted February 3rd, 2010 by Brian
Filed under: Football, Recruiting
Texas head coach Mack Brown talks to ESPNU about the incredible haul of recruits he brought in today and about Garrett Gilbert replacing Colt McCoy. Watch…
Texas quarterback Colt McCoy sits down with ESPN to talk about his shoulder injury, how he’s recovering from the mental aspect of missing the biggest game of his life, and his future in the NFL…
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