Football season never really ends in the state of Texas, but the start of spring drills is one of the biggest days for every die hard fan. The team hits the field for their first practice tomorrow and several big pieces of news came out today. Injuries and a huge position switch have Longhorn fans buzzing.
The biggest and most surprising news is that second string quarterback [tag]John Chiles[/tag] went to the Texas coaches today and requested he be moved to wide receiver. This is a move many Internet coaches fans have been calling for for over a year, but not one expected to happen before he gave it at least one more shot during spring practices. Despite struggles, the Texas coaching staff felt Chiles was good enough to be the team’s clear number two quarterback but if he was going to have an NFL future it is clearly as a wide receiver. His position change leaves the Longhorns with only two scholarship players at QB and likely means incoming freshman [tag]Garrett Gilbert[/tag] will not be redshirting for the 2009 season.
It was also announced that 9 players would be missing spring practices due to injury. Sadly, safety [tag]ishie Oduegwu[/tag] has been forced to give up football after several serious injuries and surgeries. He made several starts as a sophomore and missed all of last season with a shoulder injury. Oduegwu, a former academic All-Big 12 selection, is on set to graduate on schedule with a Youth & Community Studies major.
Redshirt freshman defensive tackle [tag]Jarvis Humphrey[/tag] will also miss practices with what appears to be a serious kidney ailment. Team trainers said “that Humphrey’s condition would be watched.” Defensive tackle is one of the team’s greatest depth concerns, but with this news a young man’s health definitely takes primary concern.
The other players that will miss spring drills are P [tag]Trevor Gerland[/tag], TE [tag]Blaine Irby[/tag], DE [tag]Dominique Jones[/tag], DE [tag]Eddie Jones[/tag], WR [tag]Jordan Shipley[/tag], DB [tag]Kenny Vaccaro[/tag], and Alex Zumberge.
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Position Rating: C-
Starters: Earl Thomas, Blake Gideon
Reserves: Christian Scott, Nolan Brewster, Ben Wells
The Texas secondary has come under a lot of scrutiny after allowing a school record 3,306 yards passing (109th in the nation) last year. And if things weren’t already bad enough, junior [tag]Ishie Oduegwu[/tag] is out indefinitely with a shoulder injury forcing the Longhorns to start two freshman at the safety position, redshirt freshman [tag]Earl Thomas[/tag] and true freshman [tag]Blake Gideon[/tag].
So far this training camp, new defensive coordinator Will Muschamp has been impressed with Earl Thomas’ athleticism and explosiveness. When asked to name the most productive safeties of the spring, Will Muschamp said, “Earl Thomas — and then really it’s a toss-up after that.” So for now Blake Gideon has won out, but it looks like redshirt freshmen [tag]Christian Scott[/tag] and [tag]Ben Wells[/tag], along with true freshman [tag]Nolan Brewster[/tag] will be competing for that starting spot. Scott, Wells, and Brewster were all high-school all americans, but competing against the offenses of Oklahoma and Texas Tech is a whole other story.
One of the scariest things about starting such inexperienced players is summed up quite well by head coach Mack Brown. Brown said the terms “strong” and “free” have been dropped from the safety position, instead they have been replaced by the terms “right” and “left” so the players know what area of the field to cover. Brown is obviously trying to make things simple back there, but it sounds scary when the players need that much simplification.
Hopefully Muschamp can work his magic back there. At least so far he seems pretty pleased with the progress they are making. “We’ve got guys who can run vertically and judge the ball downfield, which is key. I think we’ve got guys who can tackle in space. I like our speed. We’ve got the tools. I’d rather be working with this than a bunch of experienced guys who can’t play,” said Muschamp.
Obviously this group has a lot of potential to become quite solid over the next few years, but for now I had to grade them on where they are at now.
Related Links
Update: Download named rosters for NCAA Football 10. (7/23/2009)
NCAA Football 09 is less than a month away, the demo is up on Xbox Live and the Playstation Network, and player ratings are starting to make their way on to the Internet. EA Sports released the team top 25 and player ratings for all those teams.
I went through the list and put the players’ real names in where possible. I had trouble with a lot of the true freshmen in the game so if you know who any of the blank names are or if I made any mistakes please let me know in the comments. It really looks like EA did a poor job this year on the roster and depth chart. Hopefully it’s a little more accurate when the game is released.
You can download Excel files of the player ratings at the bottom of this post or check out the overall ratings for the Texas team below:
Real Name | Name | Year | Position | Rating |
---|---|---|---|---|
[tag]Buck Burnette[/tag] | C #66 | Soph(RS) | C | 78 |
C #60 | Fresh | C | 72 | |
[tag]Deon Beasley[/tag] | CB #7 | Junior | CB | 85 |
[tag]Ryan Palmer[/tag] | CB #13 | Senior(RS) | CB | 84 |
[tag]Curtis Brown[/tag] | CB #3 | Soph | CB | 83 |
[tag]Aaron Williams[/tag] | CB #26 | Fresh | CB | 80 |
[tag]Chykie Brown[/tag] | CB #8 | Soph(RS) | CB | 80 |
[tag]Earl Thomas[/tag] | CB #12 | Fresh(RS) | CB | 78 |
[tag]DJ Monroe[/tag] | CB #27 | Fresh | CB | 76 |
[tag]Roy Miller[/tag] | DT #99 | Senior | DT | 90 |
[tag]Jarvis Humphrey[/tag] | DT #96 | Fresh | DT | 80 |
[tag]Brian Ellis[/tag] | DT #90 | Soph(RS) | DT | 78 |
[tag]Ben Alexander[/tag] | DT #92 | Junior | DT | 76 |
[tag]Kheeston Randall[/tag] | DT #88 | Fresh | DT | 76 |
[tag]Chris Ogbonnayya[/tag] | FB #3 | Senior(RS) | FB | 93 |
[tag]Cody Johnson[/tag] | FB #31 | Fresh(RS) | FB | 72 |
[tag]Ben Wells[/tag] | FS #5 | Fresh(RS) | FS | 84 |
[tag]Christian Scott[/tag] | FS #6 | Fresh(RS) | FS | 77 |
[tag]Blake Gideon[/tag] | FS #21 | Fresh | FS | 77 |
[tag]Vondrell McGee[/tag] | HB #2 | Soph(RS) | HB | 85 |
[tag]DeSean Hales[/tag] | HB #30 | Fresh | HB | 80 |
[tag]Antwan Cobb[/tag] | HB #24 | Soph(RS) | HB | 79 |
[tag]Fozzy Whittaker[/tag] | HB #22 | Fresh(RS) | HB | 78 |
[tag]Jeremy Hills[/tag] | HB #32 | Fresh | HB | 76 |
[tag]Tre Newton[/tag] | HB #23 | Fresh | HB | 73 |
[tag]Hunter Lawrence[/tag] | K #15 | Junior | K | 82 |
[tag]Justin Tucker[/tag] | K #9 | Fresh | K | 69 |
[tag]Lamarr Houston[/tag] | LE #33 | Junior | LE | 91 |
[tag]Aaron Lewis[/tag] | LE #95 | Senior | LE | 85 |
[tag]Henry Melton[/tag] | LE #37 | Senior | LE | 80 |
[tag]Charlie Tanner[/tag] | LG #52 | Junior(RS) | LG | 86 |
[tag]Tray Allen[/tag] | LG #70 | Soph | LG | 82 |
[tag]Chris Hall[/tag] | LG #71 | Junior(RS) | LG | 81 |
[tag]Aundre McGaskey[/tag] | LG #76 | Fresh(RS) | LG | 74 |
[tag]Sergio Kindle[/tag] | LOLB #2 | Junior | LOLB | 85 |
LOLB #16 | Fresh | LOLB | 80 | |
LOLB #57 | Fresh | LOLB | 76 | |
[tag]David Snow[/tag] | LT #78 | Fresh | LT | 78 |
[tag]Britt Mitchell[/tag] | LT #72 | Soph(RS) | LT | 78 |
[tag]Rashad Bobino[/tag] | MLB #44 | Senior(RS) | MLB | 90 |
[tag]Jared Norton[/tag] | MLB #11 | Junior | MLB | 85 |
[tag]Trevor Gerland[/tag] | P #17 | Junior(RS) | P | 83 |
[tag]Colt McCoy[/tag] | QB #12 | Junior(RS) | QB | 89 |
[tag]Sherrod Harris[/tag] | QB #17 | Soph(RS) | QB | 81 |
[tag]John Chiles[/tag] | QB #7 | Soph | QB | 79 |
[tag]Eddie Jones[/tag] | RE #32 | Soph(RS) | RE | 92 |
[tag]Brian Orakpo[/tag] | RE #98 | Senior(RS) | RE | 90 |
[tag]Russell Carter[/tag] | RE #97 | Fresh(RS) | RE | 77 |
[tag]Cedric Dockery[/tag] | RG #55 | Senior(RS) | RG | 89 |
[tag]Michael Huey[/tag] | RG #63 | Soph | RG | 81 |
[tag]Roddrick Muckelroy[/tag] | ROLB #38 | Junior(RS) | ROLB | 87 |
[tag]Keenan Robinson[/tag] | ROLB #53 | Fresh(RS) | ROLB | 82 |
ROLB #4 | Fresh | ROLB | 75 | |
[tag]Adam Ulatoski[/tag] | RT #74 | Junior(RS) | RT | 85 |
[tag]Mark Buchanan[/tag] | RT #54 | Fresh | RT | 74 |
[tag]Ishie Oduegwu[/tag] | SS #19 | Junior(RS) | SS | 88 |
[tag]Nolan Brewster[/tag] | SS #36 | Fresh | SS | 79 |
[tag]Peter Ullman[/tag] | TE #86 | Senior(RS) | TE | 81 |
[tag]Ahmard Howard[/tag] | TE #13 | Fresh(RS) | TE | 74 |
[tag]Blaine Irby[/tag] | TE #19 | Soph | TE | 73 |
[tag]Quan Cosby[/tag] | WR #6 | Senior | WR | 89 |
[tag]Jordan Shipley[/tag] | WR #8 | Senior(RS) | WR | 84 |
[tag]Montre Webber[/tag] | WR #14 | Soph(RS) | WR | 83 |
[tag]Dan Buckner[/tag] | WR #4 | Fresh | WR | 79 |
[tag]Malcolm Williams[/tag] | WR #9 | Fresh(RS) | WR | 78 |
[tag]DJ Grant[/tag] | WR #80 | Fresh | WR | 75 |
[tag]Antoine Hicks[/tag] | WR #81 | Fresh | WR | 75 |
[tag]James Kirkendoll[/tag] | WR #87 | Soph | WR | 74 |
Downloads
The last scrimmage/practice of the spring is about to get underway on Fox Sports Southwest. The Orange-White Game is most fans’ first look at a lot of players and it’s always interesting to see who is playing where. We won’t see much (if any) new scheme or plays, but it’s football and gosh darnit I like it. The most important thing in this type of event is always that nobody gets seriously injured.
I’ll be posting my live thoughts and opinions below.
First Quarter
Nice to see we tackled more this spring, much more so that we did more full contact drills than in a scrimmage like this.
Here’s the spring roster off the official site. Definitely going to be needed today.
[tag]Tray Allen[/tag] gets the start today at left tackle with [tag]Adam Ulatoski[/tag] out.
I thought [tag]Brandon Collins[/tag] had dropped that pass but on the replay cornerback [tag]Deon Beasley[/tag] made a nice diving play to break it up. Collins probably needs to use his body better though to prevent the defender from being able to do that so easily.
I don’t know about that interference penalty on Beasley. [tag]Colt McCoy[/tag] threw a nice pass but put it over [tag]Quan Cosby[/tag]’s wrong shoulder. He had the position and Colt should have been able to put it in a more catchable position.
Not a good job on the [tag]Jordan Shipley[/tag] reverse by [tag]Henry Melton[/tag]. As the backside defensive end his responsibilities are RCC (reverse, counter, or cutback) and while he held his spot for a moment he started to pursue too quickly. Not a good job by the corner/safety over there either, the moment they saw Shipley going back the other way they should have been screaming at the top of their lungs.
[tag]Ishie Oduegwu[/tag] is in street clothes on the sideline, I didn’t realize he was hurt. I assume that’s why true freshman [tag]Blake Gideon[/tag] got the start at safety for Team Tradition. Okay that’s the last time I’ll mention these lame team names.
[tag]John Chiles[/tag] and [tag]Fozzy Whittaker[/tag] screwed up the hand-off on their first play of the day. Zone read and Chiles tried to change his mind and keep it but they put in on the turf.
On his first pass attempt Chiles makes a decent throw to Collins but he looked like he was tripled covered. The pocket was still holding so I think John could have waited another tick, bought himself some time, and looked for a more open receiver.
Nice run by [tag]Vondrell McGee[/tag] ended with him delivering a blow to [tag]Earl Thomas[/tag]. Good play though by Thomas to hold on despite the big hit and make the tackle.
I hope we’re not planning on playing freshman kicker [tag]Justin Tucker[/tag]. We’ve already got [tag]Ryan Bailey[/tag] and [tag]Hunter Lawrence[/tag] and I want one of them to win the kicking job this year so we can afford to redshirt Tucker.
[tag]Russell Carter[/tag] sure looks like a football player. Big old sucker. Nice play by him bringing down Whitaker.
The Texas Longhorns held their annual football banquet Friday night (photos) where they honored team members for their accomplishments on and off the field. Though fans and recruits do attend, the event is definitely a night for the players to look back on the season and to honor the careers of the outgoing seniors.
Quarterback [tag]Colt McCoy[/tag] and running back [tag]Jamaal Charles[/tag] were deservedly named the team MVPs. McCoy didn’t have as good of a season as he did his freshman year but he definitely is the player that made this team go (when it went anywhere). Charles was also named Darrell K. Royal Most Valuable Offensive Player while the Mike Campbell Most Valuable Defensive Players were [tag]Brandon Foster[/tag] and [tag]Marcus Griffin[/tag].
In a team vote [tag]Dallas Griffin[/tag], [tag]Tony Hills[/tag], and [tag]Derek Lokey[/tag] were honored with the D. Harold Byrd Leadership Award. Also, in a shocking development quarterback McCoy was given the Outstanding Quarterback Award.
In a move that infuriated Internet Coaching and Motivational Experts [tag]Rashad Bobino[/tag], [tag]Scott Derry[/tag], and [tag]Robert Killebrew[/tag] shared the honor of being the team’s Outstanding Linebackers. I’m not sure what else you can really do though as no linebacker really deserved the honor and it would be pretty embarrassing to not hand out an award for the position.
A list of all the award winners is after the jump.
Nothing gets me more fired up than watching Ducks Unlimited TV before a big Longhorn game. Do you think Versus would show a show about hunting and killing ducks if Oregon was playing instead of Texas and [tag]Baylor[/tag]? That might be a little awkward.
If you’re not one of the many Texas fans who made the trip to Waco you’ll have to surf through about 1,000 channels before you’ll find Versus and you’re probably only getting it if you have satellite or digital cable. Versus is on channel 603 on DirecTV, channel 151 on Dish Network, and on 470 if you’ve got Time Warner digital cable in Austin.
Here we go…
First Quarter
- I like the straight zone run play with [tag]Jamaal Charles[/tag] than the zone read or the counter. Gives Jamaal a chance to hit the hole fast and get going north/south quicker.
- I like that a professional football announcer doesn’t know the difference between the zone read and a counter. Not even run out of the shotgun is a zone read.
- Three attempts towards [tag]Jermichael Finley[/tag] already. One good completion, one ball he should have caught, and one that he and [tag]Colt McCoy[/tag] had a miscommunication on.
- And another pass towards Finley. Texas attempts a fake field goal after he goes out wide and uncovered but [tag]Jordan Shipley[/tag] can’t get the play off quickly enough and then can’t get the ball out to him before the defense adjusted. Versus missed the whole play because we were zoomed in on kicker Ryan Bailey’s helmet.
- [tag]Erick Jackson[/tag] has been serviceable at safety this season but he is absolutely awful at adjusting to the ball in the air. He was there in coverage on a terrible Baylor pass but couldn’t make a play on the ball. Looked similar to the unnecessary pass interference penalty he picked up last week.
- Baylor offensive lineman Dan Gay IV commits a holding penalty. How unfortunate is that last name? Especially with the IV after it. You can essentially put any noun after that and hilarity will ensue.
- I’m surprised how empty Floyd Casey Stadium is. Enough Texas fans normally make that trip to fill up the place a little better.
- Second time already that I thought the Baylor defensive back got there early on pass coverage. [tag]Quan Cosby[/tag] doesn’t drop many passes, it looked like he got bumped early.
- Great punt but Jackson can’t down it before it bounces into the end zone. The only good thing to come out of the Kansas State game is punter Justin Moore.
- Versus really likes to use the camera angle from the roof of the press box. The damn thing is so high i can’t tell anybody’s number.
- [tag]John Chiles[/tag] and the second team offense is in there for this series. I actually like the timing of this one better than last week. The first team offense didn’t have much momentum so it’s not really going to disrupt them.
- Chiles has to be more careful with the football. First downs are important but not as important as holding onto the football. Don’t stretch the ball out in traffic on your own 40 yard line.
- Smithson Valley sucks!
- Big run by [tag]Vondrell McGee[/tag] up the middle. 18 yards on the carry is probably the second teamers biggest gain against first team defenses. I think as Chiles gains more experience running the zone read the whole offense opens up. Right now he looks a little like he’s keeping and handing off randomly and not doing a great job reading the defensive end. That’s a tough read and you can only really learn in live game situations.
- Set your feet before you throw John.
- [tag]Ryan Bailey[/tag] nails the 46-yard field goal into the wind. Right down the middle.
Texas 3, Baylor 0
- How sad is Baylor that the announcers are talking about their defense getting a victory by holding the second team defense to only a field goal?
- Not sure if this is their first series or not, but the young group of linebackers are in there now for Texas.
- What did they rule that play on the field? I thought I saw an official pointing that he was down before the fumble. Looks to me like the ball is coming loose a little before the Baylor running back hits the ground.
- Not sure how they ruled he was down after reviewing that play. Looked pretty clear from one angle that the ball was loose before his butt hit the ground.
With the first official depth chart released for the [tag]Arkansas State[/tag] we can officially do our first second guessing of the 2007 season. Let’s complain examine the defensive side of the ball first:
Position | Player | Player | Player | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
DE (Quick) | Brian Orakpo |
|
|
Eddie Jones | ||
I think everyone is expecting a big sack total from [tag]Brian Orakpo[/tag] this season, I’m thinking he could be our breakout defender. I’m excited to see [tag]Eddie Jones[/tag] play, kid is a future star. | |||||
Nose Tackle | Derek Lokey |
or
|
Roy Miller |
|
|
Ben Alexander |
If [tag]Derek Lokey[/tag] doesn’t get hurt, Texas wins the Big 12 and ends up in the Fiesta Bowl last year. A healthy Lokey helps the entire defense. | |||||
Tackle | Frank Okam |
or
|
Roy Miller |
|
|
Thomas Marshall |
There were all-world expectations for [tag]Frank Okam[/tag] when he arrived in Austin and he’s yet to perform at that level. He’s still got a chance to be a high draft pick if he can be healthy and active this year. | |||||
DE (Power) | Aaron Lewis |
|
|
Lamarr Houston | ||
Maybe the weakest spot on the defensive line but a couple of guys that impressed in limited time last season. [tag]Aaron Lewis[/tag] and [tag]Lamarr Houston[/tag] are both about a biscuit short of becoming defensive tackles. | |||||
Strongside LB | Robert Killebrew |
|
|
Dustin Earnest | ||
Any chance [tag]Sergio Kindle[/tag] comes in and takes this position over after his suspension? [tag]Robert Killebrew[/tag] needs to make more plays. | |||||
Middle LB | Rashad Bobino |
|
|
Jared Norton | ||
[tag]Rashad Bobino[/tag] is consistent but has trouble getting off blocks, [tag]Jared Norton[/tag] will knock your teeth out but is inexperienced. We’ve got to find the right mix of heady guys and playmakers at linebacker. | |||||
Weakside LB | Scott Derry |
or
|
Roddrick Muckelroy |
|
|
Keenan Robinson |
[tag]Roddrick Muckelroy[/tag] was our best linebacker before he tore up his finger against Rice and this season he’s listed as a co-starter. I think Muck ends up being on the field as much as any of the other guys. | |||||
Right CB | Ryan Palmer |
|
|
Deon Beasley |
or
|
Chykie Brown |
Uh oh. Now we’re into the area where fans are making a little noise. [tag]Ryan Palmer[/tag] has the makings of a solid player but he hasn’t performed well when he had opportunities. [tag]Deon Beasley[/tag] has a chance to take the starter’s job if he wants it. | |||||
Free Safety | Marcus Griffin |
or
|
Drew Kelson |
|
|
Tyrell Gatewood |
Everyone knew [tag]Marcus Griffin[/tag] was the starter but I was surprised to see [tag]Drew Kelson[/tag] the number two guy here and not at strong safety. Maybe Kelson plays in likely running situations. | |||||
Strong Safety | Erick Jackson |
or
|
Ishie Oduegwu | ||
Glad to see [tag]Erick Jackson[/tag] earn himself a chance. Kid has some bad luck but he was has all the measureables and was highly rated coming out of high school. And [tag]Ishie Oduegwu[/tag] is named Ishie, you’ve got to root for him just for that. | |||||
Left CB | Brandon Foster |
|
|
Curtis Brown |
or
|
Earl Thomas |
Even more worrisome than the other corner spot. [tag]Brandon Foster[/tag] is about the same as Palmer but an inch and a half shorter. He’s got two true freshmen behind him so it looks like a experience versus potential battle. |
It’s just Arky State so I’m not going to get to worked up over anything on this depth chart. It’s the first game of the year so I think guys who have been here longer are going to have the edge over the young guys who have only been on campus a month. It’ll be interesting to see if the freshmen and sophomores battling for spots can show enough against ASU to see increased time against TCU.