Kicks off next Tuesday the 7th, runs through the Spring Game on April 15. We can post news and updates and whatnot here. I’ll start with some of the new graphics being posted on social media. The creative team is pumping out great work.
Spring Practice arrives tomorrow...FINALLY!!! It's another new staff and a new start for what appears to be some very talented players. I feel confident that these coaches will put these ballers in the best positions to succeed. In fact, I'll just go ahead and vomit out my season prediction of 14-0. Oh, yeah! Hopefully, we'll get more updates and insights on what's happening on and off the field than we did during Winter Workouts. Since I'm cheap, I don't have access to paywall info, so any and all help with posts are welcomed and appreciated. NCAA rules state that teams get a maximum of 15 spring practice days, including a "Spring Game." This doesn't include sessions when players are limited to the film and/or weight rooms. Practices must take place within a 34-day window (not including spring break and exam days). Texas will have practices on Tuesday and Thursday, then break for spring break. Only 12 practices can have contact, but the first two must be non-contact. Of those 12, only eight can involve tackling. Of those eight, only three can devote more than half their time to full scrimmaging (the spring game counts as one of the three). Practices cannot run for more than four hours per day or 20 hours per week. HOOK 'EM!
Competitive Competition “[There is] a bunch of competition, which I’m excited about,” said cornerbacks coach Jason Washington. “The first thing I talked about, I talked about we’re coming in here and it’s a clean slate for everybody.” Since winter conditioning began, the Longhorns have been solely focused on the weight room and football without pads on — building relationships, watching film, etc. But in these next few weeks leading up to the Orange-White game on April 15, Texas has a chance to see how players react when they’re pitted against each other and going full swing with pads bumping. And the staff has a checklist of what they’re looking for. “I think we’ll find out who cares the most, who goes the hardest, who’s the toughest guy, and then you have to produce in this business,” said defensive coordinator Todd Orlando. The good thing for the staff is that there should be plenty to watch. The Longhorns are returning 38 players from their 44-man depth chart in 2016 and have a talented group of underclassmen filling much of the roster as well. That gives several position groups an enormous amount of depth to work with. Texas’ receivers room has four freshmen, three sophomores, three juniors and three seniors. The quarterback position has two underclassmen that hold immense competition while the running backs room currently has seven scholarship players. The offensive line? That has eight players with starting experience. On the defensive side of the ball, Orlando’s linebackers are returning experience such as Malik Jefferson, Breckyn Harger, and Anthony Wheeler. Washington’s cornerbacks are mostly veterans as well. Pit the [offense and defense] against each other and that’s where the real competition will surface, Orlando said. [More @ 247]
Team Notes (from last week) Defensively everything going to be to be simple so the players can play faster. Strong simplified the defense in the second half of the season and the defense improved. Expect the new defense to focus on simplicity, pressure and competition. The team will tackle all spring. This is a mark of an Urban Meyer defense and is something Strong did his first year but then backed off it as time wore on (presumably due to injuries). There is “no let up,” even the coaches compete. “They want their position group to be the best.” Reggie Hemphill is making big improvements. Still expect guys like Foreman, Heard, etc to be the main guys but source noted Hemphill has made big improvements. Kirk Johnson is a guy to keep a close eye on. He’s gotten bigger and he’s explosive. John Bonney is working on the dime back position but I’m told the staff feels like he’s a guy they can trust to play and understand each position. Deshon Elliot is starting and playing a lot faster. Starting cornerbacks will likely be Kris Boyd and Holton Hill. Holton has regained his confidence and is looking more like the guy folks expected him to be after his freshman year. Overall, the whole team has bought in. A large portion of the team is doing extra work and even working with outside private trainers. A ton of competition on the field, and no one wants to lose. The losing team has to eat outside on the ground and they will burn their toast or pour water on their eggs. Herman constantly challenges players and coaches and the players are looking to hate losing at anything and everything. Herman is opening up more. He came in as a “no nonsense guy” but now the players are connecting with him. He’s showing his real side, but he’s going to be hard on them because he wants them to win. Naashon Hughles is a freak. They will use him to blitz off the edge and up the middle. Kris Boyd is the alpha male. When he talks everyone listens. He pushes everyone and will get in your face if you’re slacking. [More @ TFB]
The Football Staff provided heights/weights of some Longhorn players coming out of Winter conditioning. (Per TFB) QB: Shane Buechele: 6’1 205 Sam Ehlinger: 6’2 225 RB: Chris Warren: 6’3 250 Kirk Johnson: 6’0 215 Toniel Carter: 6’0 205 WR: John Burt: 6’3 200 Armanti Foreman: 6’3 215 Lil’Jordan Humphrey: 6’5 220 Collin Johnson: 6’6 215 Dorian Leonard: 6’5 210 Devin Duvernay: 6’0 210 Jerrod Heard: 6’3 200 OL: Connor Williams: 6’6 320 Zach Shackelford: 6’4 305 Patrick Hudson: 6’5 325 Jake McMillon: 6’3 305 Patrick vahe: 6’4 325 Denzel Okafor: 6’4 310 Brandon Hodges: 6’5 310 Jean Delance: 6’5 320 TE: Peyton Aucoin: 6’5 250 Garrett Gray: 6’4 230 DL: Charles Omenihu: 6’7 270 Jordan Elliott: 6’5 330 Gerald Wilbon: 6’3 320 D’Andre Christmas: 6’2 315 Poona Ford: 6’0 310 Chris Nelson: 6’3 300 Chris Daniels: 6’3 330 Malcolm Roach: 6’3 270 LB: Malik Jefferson: 6’3 240 Anthony Wheeler: 6’3 240 Breckyn Hager: 6’4 245 Erick Fowler: 6’2 260 Jeffrey McCulloch: 6’3 245 Naashon Hughes: 6’4 260 DB: Holton Hill: 6’3 205 PJ Locke: 5’11 215 Jason Hall: 6’3 220 Davante Davis: 6’3 205 Kris Boyd: 6’0 195 John Bonney: 6’1 200 Brandon Jones: 6’0 215 DeShon Elliott: 6’2 205
Coach Herman met with the media on Monday afternoon in advance of the start of spring practice. 54 minute video.
SPRINGING INTO A NEW JOB Tom Herman, Texas – Alignment: It might be a buzz word for Herman, but the phrase means plenty to Herman’s debut season in Austin. The administration, boosters and football program have rarely been on the same page in Austin the last half decade, yet Herman’s arrival helped spur a complete overhaul in terms of facilities, social media and attitude. Alignment also applies on the field in terms of the team pushing toward the same goal (from the staff to the players to the medical assistants). Herman will probably say “alignment” 1,000 times between now and opening day as he attempts to orient everyone to his vision. It's the type of all-together mindset the Longhorns have needed since late in Mack Brown's tenure. FIVE [Beg12] NEWCOMERS TO WATCH Josh Rowland, K (Texas) – The top-ranked junior college kicker in the country, Rowland should shore up a position of need for Texas right away. The Longhorns haven’t had a reliable place kicker since Anthony Fera graduated in 2013. With Rowland on campus, Longhorn fans will be able to tell right away if Texas finally has a solution for that woe. [More @ 247]
The one thing that stands out on the roster to me is still the lack of SR's. Also, it doesn't seem like Jason Hall should be a Sr already and hard to believe Antuan Davis is still around. I thought he had already used up his 6th year.
Hager and Roach Could Look Different In The Hermanator PC yesterday, it was mentioned that Breckyn "Kill Everything" Hager could get looks at ILB and "B-Backer" or boundary linebacker during the spring. There's no question that Hager belongs on the field early and often, and DC Todd Orlando will be wanting to put him in the best position(s) to achieve maximum damage. As with Hager, the staff wants to utilize the cruise missile abilities of Malcolm Roach. He's fast, agile, and deadly; and now at 4320 ounces, he could end up as a full-time DE. A stellar true-freshman year warrants more field time and focused attention for the Roach.
Herman Trying to Change a Mindset Two decades ago, with the state’s flagship university searching for ways to fund new scholarships, professorships, construction and renovation, it launched an ambitious billion-dollar capital campaign with a catchy name. Officials called it “We’re Texas,” and the slogan quickly caught on. Walter Cronkite added gravitas to those two words by intoning them for a memorable series of TV commercials, and before long they came to represent an entire mindset. This worked for a while, but gradually the sentiment became less and less convincing. Mack Brown, Rick Barnes and Charlie Strong each tried in their own ways to battle the “We’re Texas” issue, and each of them failed. And now, as he is set to conduct his first official practice as UT’s head football coach Tuesday, Tom Herman gets his turn. He cannot do anything about what he calls “the lore of it.” But like many of his predecessors, he is confident he can exterminate every last lingering bit of entitlement, one wind sprint at a time. “There’s just no room for any of that,” Herman said. “It gets stamped out in such a hurry around here that it really has no time to breathe.” Whether Herman is right about that will determine the fate of his entire tenure. UT football will not be restored to greatness by an improved defensive scheme, or by creative offensive play-calling, or by a non-disastrous special teams unit, although all of that might help. The only way the Longhorns will win games again is if they stop believing victories are owed to them. And during his first few months in Austin, that has been the central part of Herman’s message to his new team. “It is absolutely exhausting to change a culture and to keep your thumb on the human nature side of it,” Herman said. “You feel like the police out there at times as a coach. But you have to set the expectation level early when developing a culture and developing a program.” So beginning [with Spring Practice], every spot will be earned. Herman never wants a player to look at a starting teammate and wonder, “How did that guy get promoted?” He will lend no credence to last year’s game tapes, or to who talks the biggest game. He does not care for “Twitter tough guys.” And if during the course of the next month it seems as though he is obsessing too much over minor details, well, that’s the point. Herman said if you do not make a mountain out of every molehill, and stamp it out immediately, you end up with “a program full of molehills.” [More @ ExpressNews]
Question of the Week: What are your biggest storylines to watch entering Tom Herman's first spring football at Texas? Bobby Burton Personnel, particularly personnel on defense. Is Jordan Elliott going to be a great player or is he going to be good? I'm only using Elliott as an example. It could just as well be Erick Fowler or Marcel Southall. I also want to see what to make of Davante Davis and Holton Hill. Both of them had sophomore slumps. Jeff Howe I want to see if Chris Warren can take off and develop into an elite back. I think he can be that guy... but running with a physical edge consistently and avoiding the nagging injuries (like the hamstring that bothered him last offseason) are two things he can do to take him to the next level. EJ Holland I really want to see how Sam Ehlinger performs. Shane Buechele had a great freshman season, but Tom Herman doesn't officially have a starting quarterback. Ehlinger is a good fit for the offense and was one of my favorite players to watch as a junior in high school. If he is fully healthy, it will be interesting to see if he can make this an interesting battle. Garrett Callahan M[ine] is who comes out as leaders on both sides of the ball. According to several assistants, everyone has a clean slate meaning everyone has a chance to show exactly what they can do on the field with no past judgments. If that's true, then there are plenty of candidates to take Texas to the next level, but it's now a matter of who is taking advantage of the opportunity. Mike Roach I'd be lying if I said I wasn't fascinated by the quarterback battle going into spring. I got the chance to cover both Sam Ehlinger and Shane Buechele during their recruitments, and both players are extremely competitive. Both players are close enough in age to make things interesting, but Buechele does have the edge in experience. [More @ 247]
One of the things I noticed in the press conference is that Herman never once mentioned Malik Jefferson's name. He praised some guys, dogged some position groups, but Malik? Not a single word. I like the psychology of that.
Tuesday's practice started out a bit rocky. The guys have to get in their heads that this staff takes no time off, doesn't slack off, and tolerates nothing under 100%. Video below via Hookem.com:
