Texas football coach Charlie Strong wrapped up his last media obligation of the spring by participating in the Big 12 coaches conference call on Tuesday. The next time Strong will likely speak is during Big 12 Media Days, which will be held July 18-19 at the Omni Dallas Hotel.
As expected, Strong’s first question was about freshman quarterback Shane Buechele, and he did not shy away from any of the building hype after Saturday’s spring game performance. Here are the highlights from his 10-minute media session:
- Strong was asked to address the excitement from Longhorn fans who want to see Buechele play this season and said, “There’s still a competition. It’s still there at the quarterback position. They’ll get a chance to see Shane … Just no promises to be made (as to when Buechele will play). We have to continue to compete at every position at get better.”
- In addition, Strong said Tyrone Swoopes played well on Saturday, too. Strong said his receivers dropped more passes from Swoopes than Buechele. He also said Jerrod Heard is still in the mix.
- One of Strong’s biggest priorities is addressing the defensive line this offseason. He said they are thin right now and counting on a lot of incoming freshmen to contribute right away. Strong said, “We have to get better. If we can’t stop people, you have no chance.”
- Here is what Strong said when I asked him about the potential difficulty of relying on so many freshmen defensive linemen this season: “When you look at it, I’ve been around where we started true freshmen. I was at Notre Dame and started a player by the name of Anthony Weaver, who was a true freshman – ended up being a (second-round pick) with the Baltimore Ravens. At Florida, Carlos Dunlap started as a true freshman. Jermaine Cunningham started as a true freshman. It’s about them learning the system, coming out and going to work, giving them an opportunity to go and compete.”
- Strong praised the freshmen who arrived on campus in January (Collin Johnson, Zach Shackelford and Buechele). He said they have been able to become bigger, stronger and faster, plus grasp the offense. Strong also said freshman linebacker Demarco Boyd improved during the spring.
- Texas still needs to find a kicker, but Strong has not hit the panic button yet: “We have guys that are on the team right now. It’s just a matter of them being consistent and stepping up and kicking the ball and making sure they are accurate when they do kick it. A lot of times they rushed it. There’s no need to rush the ball. We didn’t even rush them the whole spring. Just step up there and hit the football and put it where it needs to be. We have enough leg strength now. It’s more mental than anything. We just need to continue to let those guys battle it out.”
- Strong is not interested in pursuing graduate transfers to add depth on either side of the line. He believes they have enough good players coming in later this year.
- When asked what growth his team still needs to make, Strong said, “It’s all about us developing as a team. Team development, team chemistry. We need to find leaders who are willing to step up and lead this team and just come together when it’s time to get things done. It’s all about ownership, and the players ownership, and taking ownership within the team.” He said not making a bowl game last season has motivated this team during the offseason.
- Strong is not a fan of the Big 12 adding a championship game because each conference team plays against every squad in the league. He does not want a situation where Texas played TCU in the final game of the regular season, but had to play against each other a week later in the championship game. He is seemingly more open to a playoff game if the league expanded and added more teams.
As expected, Strong’s first question was about freshman quarterback Shane Buechele, and he did not shy away from any of the building hype after Saturday’s spring game performance. Here are the highlights from his 10-minute media session:
- Strong was asked to address the excitement from Longhorn fans who want to see Buechele play this season and said, “There’s still a competition. It’s still there at the quarterback position. They’ll get a chance to see Shane … Just no promises to be made (as to when Buechele will play). We have to continue to compete at every position at get better.”
- In addition, Strong said Tyrone Swoopes played well on Saturday, too. Strong said his receivers dropped more passes from Swoopes than Buechele. He also said Jerrod Heard is still in the mix.
- One of Strong’s biggest priorities is addressing the defensive line this offseason. He said they are thin right now and counting on a lot of incoming freshmen to contribute right away. Strong said, “We have to get better. If we can’t stop people, you have no chance.”
- Here is what Strong said when I asked him about the potential difficulty of relying on so many freshmen defensive linemen this season: “When you look at it, I’ve been around where we started true freshmen. I was at Notre Dame and started a player by the name of Anthony Weaver, who was a true freshman – ended up being a (second-round pick) with the Baltimore Ravens. At Florida, Carlos Dunlap started as a true freshman. Jermaine Cunningham started as a true freshman. It’s about them learning the system, coming out and going to work, giving them an opportunity to go and compete.”
- Strong praised the freshmen who arrived on campus in January (Collin Johnson, Zach Shackelford and Buechele). He said they have been able to become bigger, stronger and faster, plus grasp the offense. Strong also said freshman linebacker Demarco Boyd improved during the spring.
- Texas still needs to find a kicker, but Strong has not hit the panic button yet: “We have guys that are on the team right now. It’s just a matter of them being consistent and stepping up and kicking the ball and making sure they are accurate when they do kick it. A lot of times they rushed it. There’s no need to rush the ball. We didn’t even rush them the whole spring. Just step up there and hit the football and put it where it needs to be. We have enough leg strength now. It’s more mental than anything. We just need to continue to let those guys battle it out.”
- Strong is not interested in pursuing graduate transfers to add depth on either side of the line. He believes they have enough good players coming in later this year.
- When asked what growth his team still needs to make, Strong said, “It’s all about us developing as a team. Team development, team chemistry. We need to find leaders who are willing to step up and lead this team and just come together when it’s time to get things done. It’s all about ownership, and the players ownership, and taking ownership within the team.” He said not making a bowl game last season has motivated this team during the offseason.
- Strong is not a fan of the Big 12 adding a championship game because each conference team plays against every squad in the league. He does not want a situation where Texas played TCU in the final game of the regular season, but had to play against each other a week later in the championship game. He is seemingly more open to a playoff game if the league expanded and added more teams.
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