Orange-White Game Thread (2015)

Longhorn Network Schedule
12PM - Texas GameDay
1PM - Orange-White Scrimmage
3PM - Texas GameDay Final

(Craig Way begins his radio coverage at 11AM)

Post your responses to the pre/in/post-game here. Some of those who will be attending the scrimmage have said that they'll be posting comments and pictures throughout the game as well (until they're arrested for disturbing the peace and/or indecent exposure). It'll be great for those of us stuck at home to get their input.

I'm starting this today in order to share some pre-game thoughts from different articles. Even though most of us know what we want to see, they make some fairly decent points about people and things to watch for during the game. Enjoy!

 

5 players to watch at the Spring Game​

Per HD:
Chip Brown’s Take
1. QB Jerrod Heard - An uplifting showing Saturday would make for an uplifting summer for Horns faithful.

2. LB Ed Freeman - [He] has all the physical tools to be a sideline to sideline assassin.

3. DE Shiro Davis - [H]e needs to do more than shine - more like dominate or a player like Bluiett or Bryce Cottrell could pass him up.

4. OT Tristan Nickelson - Is he good enough to start?

5. WR Dorian Leonard - Let's see if he can get separation or make some kind of statement on Saturday.

William Wilkerson’s Take
1. QB Jerrod Heard - From those we’ve spoken to and from what we’ve seen Heard has improved. His velocity is up, he’s much more comfortable in this offense and is competing at a much higher level.

2. LB Malik Jefferson - Early reports suggest he’s going to be exceptional and has drawn nothing but praise from the coaching staff and teammates alike for his playmaking abilities and for his humble attitude.

3. RB Duke Catalon - He can be a true difference maker for this offense if he can stay healthy.

4. DB John Bonney - There have been few players who have impressed the HD staff this spring more than Bonney has. The coaches believe they have found something special in him as their nickel defensive back.

5. OL Connor Williams - Williams is a special talent who did himself a world of good by enrolling early. He’s the future of UT’s offensive line.
[Full article here]


Per BR:
1. QB Jerrod Heard - Heard's improvement through the air will be interesting in the biggest scrimmage of the year, but his legs will bring the real excitement. After all, the Longhorns are now running an offense he ran to perfection in high school, and his explosiveness adds an element that gives defenses nightmares.

With some big runs and a couple of nice throws in a game setting, Heard can do himself a lot of favors to close spring practice.

2. LB Malik Jefferson - The No. 1 recruit in the state this past cycle, Jefferson has lived up to the hype this spring. The remarkable young athlete looks no worse than the backup to Naashon Hughes at the hybrid "Fox" position, and he's been among the first players to get a look inside following Dalton Santos' injury.

To summarize, Jefferson is basically getting looks at three different positions within his first two weeks of collegiate practice. He's shown the size and strength to rush the passer, the speed to drop into coverage and the instincts to diagnose plays as a middle linebacker, though the latter hasn't come quite as naturally.

3. WR Dorian Leonard - Strong has mentioned Leonard's work in all three of his press conferences this spring, and it's easy to see why. At 6'3", 203 pounds, he's one of the few receivers on the roster with the length and size to play every down on the outside.

Even with only one career reception under his belt, those traits give Leonard a great chance at being a key contributor this season. Anyone who doubts Texas' desire to feed receivers of his type should note that 1,000-yard wideout John Harris only had nine catches before last season.

4. S Jason Hall - If you're a fan of old school, hard-hitting football, then Jason Hall should be one of your favorite Longhorns. He's also one of the most talented players on the team. When he's at full speed, there's nothing Hall can't do from the safety position. He's solid in coverage, and anyone who was on the business end of his aggressive style will check the closet for him next time they square off.

Seriously, Strong had to tell him to stop hitting his teammates so hard on Monday. Texas needs a fiery leader like this on the field as much as possible, and Hall has too much talent to be written off like that.

5. RB Johnathan Gray - The last time we saw Johnathan Gray going to work in an uptempo offense, he was slicing and dicing his way to a 1,000-yard season. Behind an improved offensive line, he should be even better as a senior. This season, Gray gets back to the scheme he excelled within, telling the media, "I love this offense."

Per CFBstats.com, Gray's 86.7 yards per game were among the nation's top 50 in 2013, all while working in tandem with Malcolm Brown. While there are some intriguing talents battling it out for starting jobs at receiver and along that improving offensive line, Gray's the workhorse the offense will lean on.
[Full article here]

 

5 things to watch for during the Spring Game​

Per IT:
1. Execution of the Option concepts by both QBs
As my pals at Cedar Park, who run a heavily RPO-oriented (run/pass option) offense, tell me, the quarterback is like a point guard in this system and his job is to get the ball to the best player in the most amount of space.

Swoopes should be thriving here at this point with the concepts they’re likely to exhibit on Saturday and if he’s not, that’s cause for concern.

The big question for the bigger signal-caller is how he looks making option reads when he’s choosing whether to hand off or keep it himself. If Texas can regularly run zone read/power read schemes next season and use Swoopes to help attack the edges or off-tackle, that will bring a totally different dynamic for this team.

For Heard, it’s the opposite. There’s little concern for his ability to execute concepts like zone read and power read since he won consecutive 4A state titles doing little else. The big question is how he does distributing the ball in the RPOs and play-action schemes that are the big complement in the 2015 offense to the run game.

A signal-caller who can handle classic option reads and run the ball is useful but the ability to distribute the ball on RPOs and play-action is arguably more essential since it allows the offense to attack the perimeter, to attack deep, and to involve the wide receivers as playmakers.

2. Who’s starting out there?
This may not mean too terribly much given the long summer and fall ahead, as well as the coming infusion of freshmen talent that will be better than much of what’s currently on the roster in terms of raw ability. However, it’ll be instructive to see who sits where in the pecking order on this team and which of the better athletes are within striking distance of starting spots and which positions might be vulnerable to surging freshman.

The offensive and defensive fronts will be particularly interesting since there are fewer spots on the lines up for grabs, though some shuffling is still in the works.

No matter what happens on Saturday, the secondary is anything but set. We may however see which players are more likely to be unseated than others.

3. Changes in the OL’s techniques?
Because Texas played so much 12 personnel last season (double tight end sets), the blocking schemes were often a bit different from what Wickline typically ran at Oklahoma State and what made him a famous coach in the first place.

With Texas now featuring more 10, 11, and 20 personnel sets (zero tight ends, one tight end, or one H-back/fullback) it’ll be interesting to see if Texas adopts more spread-typical varieties of zone blocking that emphasize drop steps and quickness at tackle and surging motion inside by the interior.

If so, that probably portends a better performance by the offensive line this season.

4. How do the LBs look?
Regardless of Dalton Santos’ injury status, Texas really needs Malik Jefferson to figure out inside linebacker. It’s a featured position in this defense and one that Texas needs to get a pass-rush from, particularly if the defensive backs are going to take a step back from last season.

The reads and play from the middle are much different than on the edge and are unlike anything Malik was asked to do in high school. Texas needs him, so it’ll be very interesting to see how he’s doing in his new role.

With the move to Mike still so recent, I expect MJ to look a little lost out there. I think he’ll take some false steps, get caught up by some interior linemen, and maybe even get pushed around inside. I also expect him to make up for some of his missteps through sheer athleticism. I also think he’ll play on the edge some, too, when Tim Cole is in the middle.

5. Overall team speed
This spring will be illuminating in discerning how much speed this team has at the skill positions on both sides of the ball. Enough to run a spread/up-tempo offense and actually make Big 12 defenses worry about handling these athletes in space? Enough to defend Big 12 squads that do have athletes that are hard to handle in space?
[Full article here]

 

What fans should say after the Spring Game​

Per 247Sports:
1. The quarterbacks didn't have bad performances

Most realistic expectations for Texas in 2015 have the Longhorns having a chance to improve by a win or two over last year's total of six victories, but the quarterbacks are a huge piece (perhaps the biggest) as to where the ceiling ultimately resides.

2. There's legitimate hope the offensive line will be better

Everyone expects the line play to improve, and Wickline certainly has more bodies he can throw in the mix if things aren't going right. Nobody is going to expect this line to look like the 2005 crew, but Saturday needs to be a step in the right direction.

3. Some big-play ability at wide receiver was on display

Saturday is the last chance some of these veterans have to prove they're worthy of reps before the four newcomers at the position arrive on campus this summer.

4. The guys who've had good camps finished strong

If Texas can have a handful of players emerge from role players to contributors after the spring, it'll be an important occurrence for a program currently suffering from a lack of depth across the board.

5. It looks like there's some depth being established on defense

The defense will take some degree of a step back in 2015. That's going to happen considering the personnel losses suffered on that side of the ball, but in order to cushion the blow, the Longhorns need to establish depth and make sure there's plenty of quality bodies to put on the field.
[Full article here]

 

Good work!

 

We will have 6 freshman LB on the roster this Fall (including Freeman). Surely 3 will redshirt.

 

GameDay starts in 10 minutes.

WorsterMan texted - he's in ATX, headed to DKR.

 

Marcus Johnson and Duke Thomas won't play today due to injury (not serious).

 

Looks like they have to earn their Horns

 

The HF Roadies are sitting in Sec 6 Row 38. Look for them!

Roadies include BevoBeef, VolHorn4, WorsterMan, Dionysus (and wife), BaoklaHorn.

 

HEARD!! Nice run.

 

Heard has the physical ability, if he can learn the offense, and limit the mistakes.

I'm here and it's not baseball.

 

Swoopes had a good first series. Heard looked really good in his first.

Swoopes looked too familiar in his 2nd.

 

Heard's speed and quickness can be a difference maker.

 

Heard pick up the 4th and 7 working with some 2nd/3rd teamers.

 

We made it!

 

Heard looking good. Good touch, smooth and seems very comfortable.

 

The last series with Heard looked like last year's play calling by Watson. Yuck!

 

Pic from Dion

 

Still hard to tell a lot about some things, with tacklers still pulling up and not going full speed.

 

Looked like a TD from Swoopes to Leonard to me.

 

Isn't that the same rule about having to control the ball, all the way to the ground and then maintain control. Would think Brooks and Dunn would know that.

Brooks and Dunn were a good singing duo. "Boot Scoot Boogie."

 

Slow motion replay looked like a TD.

 

I thought so too. Nice pass.

 

Malik is a monster. Three great plays already.

 

Jefferson is being beasty.

 

He lost control of the ball when he hit the turf, doesn't matter if your out of bounds, that's the rule I believe. You have to maintain control.

 

Has anyone seen us run the QB read option? I haven't, or I missed it somehow. That's a staple play - one that Heard is supposed to excel with.

 

Daje has a muffed punt and a fumble + 1 catch.

 

The offensive line play still looks horrible, just like it did last year.