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Just a Bit Outside: What could AD Mitchell bring to Texas? (via SaltySouth Fishing Charters)

Travis Galey

@travisgaley
Moderator
Aug 12, 2012
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saltysouthfishingcharters@gmail.com



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With rumors swirling that Georgia WR Adonai Mitchell will be entering the transfer portal and moving to Austin, it’s time to take a look at what AD Mitchell would bring to the Longhorns.

The first thing that stands out about Mitchell is that he’s big. The soon-to-be junior wide receiver stands 6-4 and is nearly 200 pounds. Compare that to what’s already on the roster:

Xavier Worthy: 6-1, 164 lbs.
Jordan Whittington: 6-1, 205 lbs.
Brenen Thompson: 5-10, 163 lbs.
Jaden Alexis, 6-0, 186 lbs.
Savion Red, 5-10, 209 lbs.
Johntay Cook, 6-0, 170 lbs.
Isaiah Neyor, 6-3, 213 lbs.
Casey Cain, 6-3, 195 lbs.

As you can see, only Neyor and Cain can match that kind of size. Cain has shown flashes of ability but he has been unable to lock down that third receiver spot. Neyor came on strong in fall camp and appeared to be on the verge of logging starter minutes. Unfortunately, he got injured and missed the entire season.

As a result, Texas struggled to find a solution to the third wide receiver spot and the passing game never fully clicked (although there was obviously much more to the passing game woes than just the lack of a third receiver).

Mitchell is able to use his size to win matchups against physical cornerbacks. Watch how he fends off TCU’s Josh Newton in the national championship game and still makes the one-handed grab for a touchdown.



AD Mitchell isn’t just a big body receiver. He has the speed to be able to get over the top of defenses. Check out the first play in this montage video (if you keep watching after the play – you’ll see that a certain QB whose name rhymes with Smarch Smanning really liked what he saw there).



Perhaps even more impressive was the second touchdown in that clip :)39 seconds into the video). In this play, Mitchell runs a whip route and does an incredible job of planting his foot, sinking his hips and cutting back to create all kinds of separation for an easy touchdown catch.



That play is already in Sark’s playbook. Who could possible forget the whiplash Xavier Worthy gave to an OU cornerback while running the same route?



The biggest key for Mitchell’s development will be how fast he can pick up the playbook. Mitchell himself describes the difference in his own play when he fully grasps the playbook. (Go to the 7:54 mark if the video doesn’t already start there.)



For a more in-depth look at who else will be catching passes next season, I suggest you check out @Alex Dunlap ’s excellent article on the wide receiver room prior to Mitchell’s arrival. I assure you, you’ll come away even more excited about Johntay Cook’s potential then you already were. I know I’m excited to see what the young man can do this spring.

QUINN EWERS WILL BE BETTER …

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Watching the video of AD Mitchell explaining why he was playing so much better his sophomore season than he did his freshman season made me instantly think of Quinn Ewers.

If a wide receiver is talking about how freshmen can struggle with the playbook but then make big strides their sophomore season because they are able to play freer and faster – don’t you think the same would be true for a quarterback? Wide receivers have much less responsibility for what happens on every snap than a quarterback does.

And I have mentioned on here before, but I really don’t count Ewers’ time at Ohio State for development purposes. Yes, he was there and in the QB room and learning. However, it should not be forgotten that he arrived in Columbus about two weeks before the season started. That’s a time when teams are transitioning out of fall camp workouts and beginning to get into game planning mode. That means he probably didn’t get a lot of practice reps when he got on campus. Last year truly was his first full season of learning and unfortunately for him, it was a lot of in-game learning.

Orangebloods took a lot of arrows when it reported just before the season started that Ewers was still struggling with the playbook. Yet, I think we saw Ewers was playing a beat slower than what we’ll see next season because he was still thinking things through. He should have a much better season under center next year if for no other reason than his grasp of the offense will be just that much stronger.

Speaking of Quinn Ewers’ development, you can get pretty good odds right now if you want to get an early jump on the Ewers/Heisman bandwagon.



UNC Quarterback Drake Maye is the early favorite at 5-1 odds. While Ewers is tied for 10th best odds at 25-1 … right alongside another quarterback you guys know a thing or two about, Cade Klubnik.

And if you are still not sold on Ewers being the guy at UT, never fear, you’ll get even better odds on Arch Manning who has 75-1 odds. That’s better than a couple of even more established quarterbacks such as Cameron Rising and Devin Leary who are at 80-1.

IT’S BASEBALL SEASON!

Texas opens up its 2023 season in just 30 days … but it will do so as an unranked team. D1 Baseball released it’s top-25 on Tuesday with the Horns nowhere to be found.



The apparent snub by the D1 crew shouldn’t really come as a shock to baseball fans. Texas is having to replace a lot of talent (both players and coaches) from last year’s team which made it to Omaha. That’s the bad news. The good news? While there will be a lot of new faces – there is also a lot of talent.

I don’t think we will see the same home run fest that propelled last year’s squad to the College World Series. Texas has to replace guys who accounted for 105 home runs last season (Ivan Melendez alone accounted for 32 of those). But in truth, I think playing more small-ball could make the Texas offense even better.

Texas averaged 1.86 home runs per game last season. As a result, it stole only .80 bases per game. Seeing guys focus more on hitting for average and advancing runners could help the Horns develop more of a team focused approach on offense and rely less on individual outcomes to save the day.

Home runs tend to run hot and cold (and the colder the weather, the harder they are to hit). A drop in power production led to a miserable March for the Longhorns last season during a trip through the Carolinas. Hitting for contact is much more drought resistant.

I realize I’m old-school in that approach. I know there are plenty of people who will pull up the metrics and say home runs make it easier to win (certainly that’s carrying the day in the MLB). But I still believe just making contact with a good level swing will find more holes in a defense than cutting up on the ball hoping to launch homers.

Of course, playing small ball requires good pitching to keep games close. Lucas Gordon and Zane Morehouse return and should be weekend rotation kind of guys, along with newcomer Charlie Hurley, who transferred in from USC.

@ZachattheDisch and @AaronLittleOB are already working on season previews so I’m not going to go too in depth today. Still, Texas fans can expect an exciting season of baseball. And don’t worry, if Texas plays up to its talent level, then you’ll see them climb the rankings in short order.

WOO-PIG SOOEY AND THE SEC …

Now is the time on Sprockets where we laugh at Arkansas.



Apparently the Hogs think just making it to Omaha is worthy of buying a bunch of rings.

Texas opens the season against Arkansas at Globe Life Field in Arlington. The piggies are a talented team checking in at number eight in the preseason ranking. In fact, they are just one of nine SEC schools in the top 25 (including seven of the top 10).



As exciting as the move to the SEC will be for football fans, the competition in baseball will be just as fierce.

TEXAS CAN’T LEAVE THE BIG 12 FAST ENOUGH …

I’m not a basketball guy and I won’t pretend to be one. Still, even I know that this is a foul every single day. Yet the Big 12 refs calling last night’s game against Iowa State just couldn’t seem to find their whistle.



I’m not generally one to believe in conspiracy theories, and I don’t think there is an intentional movement to keep Texas and OU down, but I do think unconscious biases play out quite frequently and I have to believe the Horns aren’t going to get many favorable calls during conference play.

How someone can hip check a guy in the air and not even get a foul called (and it seemed flagrant to me) is beyond me.

That ended up being a five point swing which brought the Cyclones back into the game in a big way.

Meanwhile, we’re STILL waiting for the Big 12 to release its 2023 football schedule.
 
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