"Don't forget about Maalik."
Those were the out-of-the-blue words that were sent to me this weekend by a Texas football player.
I'm not sure what motivated this player to send them to me. It could have been
last week's column about the pending arrival of Arch Manning. When I asked the player about it, I didn't get a response (at least not yet, anyway).
For now, the four words were left to kind of speak for themselves.
"Don't forget about Maalik."
For the record, I haven't forgotten about Murphy.
Far from it.
In fact, I would contend that Murphy is suddenly one of the more interesting players in the program, even if Arch Manning is scheduled to be on campus in a month.
With the departure of Hudson Card to the Portal, Murphy is suddenly the guy that is one snap away from quarterbacking the Longhorns in the bowl game against Washington. Suddenly, Murphy is the guy that will be taking all of the reps with the second-team offense in the bowl workouts. Should Quinn Ewers struggle in the bowl game and Steve Sarkisian need to make a move to jump-start his offense, Murphy will be the guy he calls on.
Perhaps the window of opportunity won't always be as open as it is now, which is why it's up to Murphy to grab this opportunity by the horns.
Along with the upcoming bowl workouts, Murphy will have every opportunity this spring to prove that he should be the player that should be given the keys to the 2023 offense, even if Quinn Ewers is the betting favorite to retain the job and surely isn't going to let Murphy take his cornbread without a doozy of a fight.
Yet, a fight is where we are. Sarkisian has said as much to the media when asked about the position and sources have told us that it's what is being said behind the scenes as well. The passing offense just wasn't good enough.
What it means for Murphy is that he has to strike while the iron is hot. He doesn't have time to develop slowly, as he'll need to take that big arm of his and do all of the things Sarkisian wants from the position ... make big throws down the field, while being consistently accurate and not turning the ball over.
Now. Not in two years. Hell, maybe not even in 12 months. Now.
Talent isn't the question. The ability is there. Players gravitate to him as a leader of men. It's a matter of readiness.
If iron sharpens iron, the Texas quarterback room should be able to cut through pretty much anything once the dust clears from the Quinn vs. Maalik vs. Arch battle that will take place in the coming months. At the end of it, there might be room for only one winner, but all three players will be given their chance.
Starting with his performance this week in practice, Murphy can't let up. Now is the moment.
It's also the moment for Ewers. Soon, it will be the moment for Manning as well.
"Don't forget about Maalik."
Moving forward, it'll be less a matter of us not forgetting him and more about him giving us reasons to constantly remember him.
No. 2 - The latest on Xavier
It's kind of a good news, bad news report on Texas wide receiver Xavier Worthy, although most of the emphasis is on the good side.
The vibe we've got going into the weekend is that Steve Sarkisian continues to do a lot of heavy lifting in getting Worthy back for his junior season and seems to be having some success in those efforts. Although nothing should be written in ink, there's definitely a feeling that Sarkisian has Worthy's confidence and that Worthy will remain on campus for the spring semester.
Still, a source with knowledge of the situation warned me on Friday that this situation, for a variety of reasons, could still be one that needs monitoring going into the spring.
For now, what matters most is that it appears that Worthy will remain in a Texas uniform for now, but the January Portal window closing might not mean we've heard the last about him possibly entering the Portal.
No. 3 - Three things Portal Related ...
1. I continue to hear that the Longhorns are deliberately approaching the Portal with restraint for two primary reasons:
a. They don't want to disrupt recruiting on the high school scene with signing day getting so close.
b. There are players that will eventually enter the Portal that they would be more interested in than the players currently in the Portal.
2. Business will pick up in January after the bowl season.
3. There continue to be whispers that there will be options available at the wide receiver position that will prove to be quite exciting if the whispers become more than whispers.
I guess all there is to say for now is ... stay tuned.
No. 4 - Cedric Baxter vs. Rueben Owens ...
When El Campo running back Rueben Owens committed to Texas A&M this week, it set the stage for something that's been pretty rare in the modern era of recruiting, as both the Longhorns and Aggies are set to sign a national top-5 running back in the same class for only the second time in the 21st century.
The other time it happened was in 2012 when the nation's No. 1 running back Johnathan Gray signed with Texas and the No. 3 running back Trey Williams signed with the Aggies. As fate would have it, neither Gray nor Williams ended up being 1,000-yard running backs in their careers, although they combined for nearly 4,000 rushing yards and 35 touchdowns.
Here's how each Baxter and Owens are ranked by the four major services:
Rivals: Baxter (No. 2 RB, No. 32 overall) and Owens (No. 1 APB, No. 27 overall)
247: Baxter (No. 2 RB, No. 29 overall) and Owens (No. 1 RB, No. 20 overall)
On3: Baxter (No. 1 RB, No. 2 overall) and Owens (No. 3 RB, No. 50 overall)
ESPN: Baxter (No. 3 RB and No. 40 overall) and Owens (No. 4 RB, No. 42 overall)
No. 5 - Underrated Piece of the Season ...
Take a look at the snaps of the offensive line and tell me if anything sticks out to you.
View attachment 3581
All five of the starters along the offensive line played more than 700 snaps this season, as true freshmen Kelvin Banks and Cole Hutson combined for 1,495 snaps.
No one dares to mention a lack of injuries during the season in fear of jinxing the run of good fate, but after losing Junior Angilau in the preseason, the Longhorns were able to stay extremely lucky on the health front for the rest of the season.
The fact that no other lineman other than DJ Campbell (101) played more than 38 snaps along the offensive line this season is kind of crazy when you think about it. Yes, Kyle Flood had to play more youth than you'd probably like to in any given year, but at least he didn't have to juggle the line-up once the season started.
No. 6 - The joke that is the Heisman ...
Honestly, I don't have any issues with Caleb Williams winning the Heisman Trophy this weekend. The dude passed for more than 4,000 yards, posted a 37/4 touchdown to interception ratio and rushed for another 10 touchdowns.
If you account for that much offensive success, your name should definitely be under serious consideration.
My issue is that 188 people watched Max Duggan this season and felt like he was a better football player than anyone in the country. Specifically, 188 people feel like he was a better football player than Bijan Robinson.
No disrespect meant to Duggan, who has had a sensational season for the Horned Frogs, but there were times this season when I felt like running back Kendre Miller was the best player on the TCU team. I know if we were picking teams from scratch, wide receiver Quentin Johnston would be the first pick. If you don't believe me, just ask NFL teams in a few months.
The Heisman has become such a quarterback-driven award that common sense just doesn't exist. I know none of this is news, but it just stands out again this weekend when you consider that eight of the top 10 players in the voting were quarterbacks.
Hell, UNC quarterback Drake Maye nearly had as many first-place votes as Robinson. Did you guys SEE the ACC Championship game? How can Will Anderson be a two-time Nagurski Award winner as the best defensive player in college football and not get in the top 10?
Are we really saying Maye is better at football than Will Anderson?
Sorry for the rant. I'm not even sure what I'm going on about. It's not like I watched the show on Saturday night.
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No. 7 - National Title or Bust ...
And then there were four ... a Final Four.
The No. 1-ranked Texas Longhorns handled their business this weekend against an Ohio State team that it had already handled earlier in the season and now the team stands two wins away from a national title.
Joining the Longhorns in Omaha this week are fellow No. 1 seed Louisville and a pair of No. 2 seeds in Pittsburgh and San Diego.
San Diego is the team the Longhorns will face on Thursday in the national semi-final after it came back from trailing 2-1 to the Cardinal on Saturday night. The Toreros have won 28 straight games coming onto the match.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the bracket, Louisville and Pittsburgh will do battle for the third time this season after splitting the home-and-home battle in the ACC.
No. 8 – BUY or SELL …
(Buy) If by Malikmas, you mean AntHillmas, yes.
(Sell) I'm not sure I would expect that much action before January based on what I'm hearing at the moment. Generally speaking, I'm waiting to pass judgment on what's happening in the Portal until we see what the final results look like. I suppose I'm giving some benefit of the doubt for now.
This isn't a buy or sell question, but I'll answer it, anyways. I think you'll start to see members of the 2022 recruiting class start to take some ownership, but guys like Ja'Tavion Sanders, T'Vondre Sweat, Jaylan Ford, Byron Murphy and Jonathon Brooks take over some of that leadership responsibility.
(Buy) Yes, if the Quinn from the OU and Alabama games shows up.
(Buy) Easy. Keep in mind that he can play in four games and still preserve his redshirt status if it's something everybody wants.
(Sell) I don't believe Tommy Brockermeyer would be better than the current guard options in 2023 if he transferred in. He'd be a player for 2024 and 2025 in my mind.
(Buy) It would surely help his positioning, but he's going to have to compete for his job.
(Sell) Define huge? Texas is losing one of the top three or four running backs in the history of the program and the heart and soul of its squad. Let's not be naive as to suggest that the loss of Bijan and Roschon won't be substantial. Hodges Mitchell was a damn good player for the Longhorns in 1999 and 2000, but he wasn't Ricky Williams. I think we all need to be realistic.
(Sell) I can't go that far until we see some personnel upgrades. This defense is losing a lot.
(Buy) Easily.
(Buy) Yes, even if only slightly.
No. 9 - Scattershooting on anything and everything ...
... I'll be honest, I don't have a lot to say about Texas beating Arkansas Pine-Bluff. It was one of those games that you almost forget as soon as it is over. The defense was great and the overall performance was pretty dominant, but if you missed the game because you were Christmas shopping ... you'll live. One thing to note ... conference play begins in Norman in 20 days.
... I really wanted the Cowboys to mudhole Houston for sport on Sunday. Whatever. A win is a win is a win. Just like the Texas hoops game from the weekend, it's already forgotten. Onward we march.
... The Eagles are going to win the East and the Cowboys will be playing in Tampa in the playoffs unless you can find me a loss at Chicago, at home against the Saints or home to the Giants in three of the last four weeks. It would be just like the Cowboys to go 14-3 or 13-4 in the regular season and it not matter.
... Not sure I would have believed a year ago that Brock Purdy would play as well as he did as a starting quarterback in the NFL. You just never know ...
... No one is going to want to play Joe Burrow in the playoffs.
... I can't help but find myself rooting for Dan Campbell's Lions.
... Rest in peace, Grant Wahl. The world was better off for having you in it. You'll be missed as a journalist, but most important as a human being.
... England looked like the better team in its match-up with France on Saturday, but when you don't take advantage of your chances, you can leave the door open for the opponent and that's exactly what happened. The more clinical team won the game. We'll see what happens the rest of the way, but that might have been the unofficial Final.
... Harry Kane is going to dream about that penalty he missed for the rest of his life. It's completely unfair that such a moment would define a historically great player, but that miss will be talked about for decades.
... Go Morocco. I'm officially pulling for the underdog, even if Argentina/France would provide the most theater in a final.
... If Morocco can make it to a World Cup semifinal, there's no reason that the United States shouldn't be able to do so. Team USA literally battered Morocco 3-0 five months ago.
... The National League East is going to be a bloodbath. Might we see three 95-win teams?
No. 10 - The List: Top 10 Christmas movies...
I've done this list before, but it's been a few years and I feel like my list has changed slightly.
Therefore, let's do it again.
As I've said before, I know we're going to argue. I know you're going to hate my list. I also know Die Hard doesn't make the list, not because I don't love Die Hard as much as I refuse to call a movie without a true Christmas message an actual Christmas movie.
Don't care. It's my list.
10. A Christmas Story
9. Bad Santa
8. The Ref
7. Home Alone
6. Love Actually
5. Scrooged
4.Miracle on 34th Street (1947)
3. Christmas Vacation
2. Elf
1. It's a Wonderful Life
