Patrick Hudson Changes Everything
Note: After a great year with Hat Creek Burger Company, "The Deep Dig" and other original content by Alex Dunlap needs a new sponsor for 2016-17. If you have interest in advertising your business through Alex's work on OB, please contact him at alex@rosterwatch.com.
When I look back at how I graded Patrick Hudson attribute-wise as a recruit:
Feet: Slighter better than Jean Delance, slightly worse than Chris Owens (Alabama Commit).
Quickness: Slightly less quick than Jean Delance, much quicker than Zach Shackelford.
Speed to second-level: Much slower than Jean Delance (who was tied with elite prospect Gregory Little in this category as best in the state). However, Hudson was still tied for fourth in the state in this metric out of dozens of OL graded.
Agility: Slightly less agile than Jean Delance and much less agile than Gregory Little. His agility score was exactly the same Texas A&M commit Austin Anderson.
Balance: Significantly more balanced than Jean Delance, tied for second-best balance in the state behind Gregory Little.
Motor: Only Jean Delance exhibited a better motor out of all OL graded.
Explosion/Power: Hudson is easily number one in this category. His explosive burst off the line of scrimmage was evident even as a sophomore. Art Briles said on Signing Day that Baylor had signed the fastest player in the state (Devin Duvernay) and the strongest player in the state (Patrick Hudson). He was right.
Hands/Counters: Slightly better than Jean Delance, tied with Gregory Little as the best in the state.
So, what Texas has somehow had land in its lap with Hudson is a puzzle piece that can make the offensive line picture come together in countless new ways, both in the immediate future and in the distant one.
This is not heaping praise and expectation on a player who hasn’t set foot on campus yet, but, when he’s included among a group of new OL hitting campus (most notably Denzel Okafor and Jean Delance with Tope Imade and J.P. Urquidez also in play) Patrick Hudson changes everything.
Now, we see the makings of solid competition everywhere when looking at the unit as a new whole. We’ve seen so far that OL coach Matt Mattox doesn’t do much shuffling with the offensive line personnel in the same ways as tinkering Joe Wickline, but this could also change come fall. Let’s break it down:
Tackles:
The left tackle spot is completely owned by Connor Williams (SO), a future NFL player if development continues. In the most optimistic of outcomes, he’ll be a significantly high draft pick. The right tackle could presumably be Kent Perkins (SR) once again, or a new player could allow Perkins to slide over to left guard. This would be optimal, as Perkins’ better natural position is guard and freshman center Zach Shackelford (FR) will need all the help he can get on either side of him. He’ll almost surely face players at times with the ability to easily overpower him on base-solo assignments starting out.
Reasonable Options to step up in the right tackle role, allowing Perkins to bump in:
Tristan Nickelson (JR): He was awful in the spring game but was hurt. Nickelson is now back working with the team in full-capacity but was actually sidelined for a lot longer than some people realize after spring with the ankle. The hope is that his feet and balance have improved enough to not be a liability.
Patrick Hudson (FR): He was the most balanced and most powerful offensive lineman in Texas for the 2016 class. In a group that is now developing true depth but features a lot of “projects,” Hudson is a player that comes in with a higher floor, so to speak. Balance and power and two key attributes, that when coupled together, make for a sturdy player at minimum with development.
Jean Delance (FR): I don’t think he’s going to be ready in 2016. I think the eventual upside is a little bit higher in Delance than in Hudson because of Delance’s length and quickness when coupled with a great motor, but Hudson comes in more ready — and physically more substantial at this time.
Other tackles in the pipe:
Buck Major (RS FR) - A big-time prospect, but still not ready. Major will serve as developmental depth until his development curve hits an uptick. Playing Buck Major in 2016 would be akin to or slightly worse than playing Camhron Hughes was in 2014.
Garrett Thomas (RS FR) - He’s a long and lanky player who Wickline seemed to have a gleam in his eye for as a future big, tall wingspan-guy he loves. As things stand, Thomas will figure into the picture about like Major.
JP Urquidez (FR) - A project that showed great improvement from his junior to his senior season in high school that included shedding some sloppiness in the footwork-area as well as some baby fat. He’s always looked like a big, strong dude and he plays with a mean-streak like a meat head. Urquidez should still not be considered by fans as a viable option to step in immediately, though.
Interior OL:
Zach Shackelford will be the team’s starting center as a freshman. As mentioned, a duo of veteran guards around him could be helpful, but there is no guarantee that any player will step up to provide Texas a better option at RT than Kent Perkins, allowing perking to move inside. Right guard Patrick Vahe (FR) is another future NFL player if his development continues. Based on the spring game alone, it would be easy to say that Vahe is actually the better offensive lineman than his fellow freshman all-american line-mate Connor Williams. Even in the absence of a Kent Perkins move to guard, there are other options that while not optimal, certainly represent improvement in personnel over 2015.
Reasonable options to step up into the left guard role should Perkins stay at tackle:
Brandon Hodges (JR): A JUCO transfer, we’re only having this discussion because nobody seems too comfortable with the idea of Hodges being the starter. Hodges had trouble picking up the playbook during his first year at Texas and hasn’t looked like a promising future player in the small bits of action we’ve been able to witness out of him. With all this said, Hodges did come out of spring practices as the presumed “starter,” at least until fall camp starts. He’s a legitimate 300-plus-pounder with some natural athleticism and guard/tackle versatility.
Denzel Okafor (FR): A beast of a freshman who has surpassed all expectations since coming to Texas with his physical appearance along with his strength and conditioning in workouts. If nothing else, he at least looks like a plug-and-play option.
Patrick Hudson (FR): He could certainly come in and compete for the job based on his two best attributes of explosive power and balance. Hudson is a better run-blocker than he is a pass-blocker at this point in his development, anyway, and with the intuitive nature of Texas’ new gap-blocking and power-based run concepts, it’s not hard to picture Hudson being able to pick things up quickly.
Other interior OL in the pipe:
Elijah Rodriguez (SO): Another “gleam-in-the-eye”-type player for former coach Joe Wickline, Rodriguez has been toyed with at literally every position on the line during his time at Texas but will likely settle into one at backup center.
Jake McMillon (SO): He’s gotten moved from one side of the ball to the other in every single year he’s played at Texas, but played the backup left guard in the spring game over healthy options such as Terrell Cuney and Alex Anderson.
Terrell Cuney (SO): A likely future transfer-candidate, Cuney has had trouble getting up to speed at Texas and was also probably in a bit of a doghouse through his 2015 season for a theft arrest. Cuney certainly serves as good
Alex Anderson (SO): A stud recruit who hasn’t panned out and has had massive trouble with his conditioning at seemingly every turn. Anderson has the natural stuff to put it all together and be an impactful player, so having him as developmental depth comes with at least some legitimate upside.
Tope Imade (FR): Maybe he’s the forgotten man in all of this who’ll come in and take over the left guard spot while no one was looking. We’ve actually heard he’s one of the bigger-looking linemen who arrived at Texas this summer and that includes the DL.
The point is that the amount of possible personnel permutations just ticked way up. The addition of Patrick Hudson is not only a huge addition in itself. It’s not just landing one of the state’s top prospects. It’s giving a green-and-growing offensive line unit new options, both in starting capital and developmental depth.
It changes everything.
Note: After a great year with Hat Creek Burger Company, "The Deep Dig" and other original content by Alex Dunlap needs a new sponsor for 2016-17. If you have interest in advertising your business through Alex's work on OB, please contact him at alex@rosterwatch.com.
. . .
When I look back at how I graded Patrick Hudson attribute-wise as a recruit:
Feet: Slighter better than Jean Delance, slightly worse than Chris Owens (Alabama Commit).
Quickness: Slightly less quick than Jean Delance, much quicker than Zach Shackelford.
Speed to second-level: Much slower than Jean Delance (who was tied with elite prospect Gregory Little in this category as best in the state). However, Hudson was still tied for fourth in the state in this metric out of dozens of OL graded.
Agility: Slightly less agile than Jean Delance and much less agile than Gregory Little. His agility score was exactly the same Texas A&M commit Austin Anderson.
Balance: Significantly more balanced than Jean Delance, tied for second-best balance in the state behind Gregory Little.
Motor: Only Jean Delance exhibited a better motor out of all OL graded.
Explosion/Power: Hudson is easily number one in this category. His explosive burst off the line of scrimmage was evident even as a sophomore. Art Briles said on Signing Day that Baylor had signed the fastest player in the state (Devin Duvernay) and the strongest player in the state (Patrick Hudson). He was right.
Hands/Counters: Slightly better than Jean Delance, tied with Gregory Little as the best in the state.
So, what Texas has somehow had land in its lap with Hudson is a puzzle piece that can make the offensive line picture come together in countless new ways, both in the immediate future and in the distant one.
This is not heaping praise and expectation on a player who hasn’t set foot on campus yet, but, when he’s included among a group of new OL hitting campus (most notably Denzel Okafor and Jean Delance with Tope Imade and J.P. Urquidez also in play) Patrick Hudson changes everything.
Now, we see the makings of solid competition everywhere when looking at the unit as a new whole. We’ve seen so far that OL coach Matt Mattox doesn’t do much shuffling with the offensive line personnel in the same ways as tinkering Joe Wickline, but this could also change come fall. Let’s break it down:
Tackles:
The left tackle spot is completely owned by Connor Williams (SO), a future NFL player if development continues. In the most optimistic of outcomes, he’ll be a significantly high draft pick. The right tackle could presumably be Kent Perkins (SR) once again, or a new player could allow Perkins to slide over to left guard. This would be optimal, as Perkins’ better natural position is guard and freshman center Zach Shackelford (FR) will need all the help he can get on either side of him. He’ll almost surely face players at times with the ability to easily overpower him on base-solo assignments starting out.
Reasonable Options to step up in the right tackle role, allowing Perkins to bump in:
Tristan Nickelson (JR): He was awful in the spring game but was hurt. Nickelson is now back working with the team in full-capacity but was actually sidelined for a lot longer than some people realize after spring with the ankle. The hope is that his feet and balance have improved enough to not be a liability.
Patrick Hudson (FR): He was the most balanced and most powerful offensive lineman in Texas for the 2016 class. In a group that is now developing true depth but features a lot of “projects,” Hudson is a player that comes in with a higher floor, so to speak. Balance and power and two key attributes, that when coupled together, make for a sturdy player at minimum with development.
Jean Delance (FR): I don’t think he’s going to be ready in 2016. I think the eventual upside is a little bit higher in Delance than in Hudson because of Delance’s length and quickness when coupled with a great motor, but Hudson comes in more ready — and physically more substantial at this time.
Other tackles in the pipe:
Buck Major (RS FR) - A big-time prospect, but still not ready. Major will serve as developmental depth until his development curve hits an uptick. Playing Buck Major in 2016 would be akin to or slightly worse than playing Camhron Hughes was in 2014.
Garrett Thomas (RS FR) - He’s a long and lanky player who Wickline seemed to have a gleam in his eye for as a future big, tall wingspan-guy he loves. As things stand, Thomas will figure into the picture about like Major.
JP Urquidez (FR) - A project that showed great improvement from his junior to his senior season in high school that included shedding some sloppiness in the footwork-area as well as some baby fat. He’s always looked like a big, strong dude and he plays with a mean-streak like a meat head. Urquidez should still not be considered by fans as a viable option to step in immediately, though.
Interior OL:
Zach Shackelford will be the team’s starting center as a freshman. As mentioned, a duo of veteran guards around him could be helpful, but there is no guarantee that any player will step up to provide Texas a better option at RT than Kent Perkins, allowing perking to move inside. Right guard Patrick Vahe (FR) is another future NFL player if his development continues. Based on the spring game alone, it would be easy to say that Vahe is actually the better offensive lineman than his fellow freshman all-american line-mate Connor Williams. Even in the absence of a Kent Perkins move to guard, there are other options that while not optimal, certainly represent improvement in personnel over 2015.
Reasonable options to step up into the left guard role should Perkins stay at tackle:
Brandon Hodges (JR): A JUCO transfer, we’re only having this discussion because nobody seems too comfortable with the idea of Hodges being the starter. Hodges had trouble picking up the playbook during his first year at Texas and hasn’t looked like a promising future player in the small bits of action we’ve been able to witness out of him. With all this said, Hodges did come out of spring practices as the presumed “starter,” at least until fall camp starts. He’s a legitimate 300-plus-pounder with some natural athleticism and guard/tackle versatility.
Denzel Okafor (FR): A beast of a freshman who has surpassed all expectations since coming to Texas with his physical appearance along with his strength and conditioning in workouts. If nothing else, he at least looks like a plug-and-play option.
Patrick Hudson (FR): He could certainly come in and compete for the job based on his two best attributes of explosive power and balance. Hudson is a better run-blocker than he is a pass-blocker at this point in his development, anyway, and with the intuitive nature of Texas’ new gap-blocking and power-based run concepts, it’s not hard to picture Hudson being able to pick things up quickly.
Other interior OL in the pipe:
Elijah Rodriguez (SO): Another “gleam-in-the-eye”-type player for former coach Joe Wickline, Rodriguez has been toyed with at literally every position on the line during his time at Texas but will likely settle into one at backup center.
Jake McMillon (SO): He’s gotten moved from one side of the ball to the other in every single year he’s played at Texas, but played the backup left guard in the spring game over healthy options such as Terrell Cuney and Alex Anderson.
Terrell Cuney (SO): A likely future transfer-candidate, Cuney has had trouble getting up to speed at Texas and was also probably in a bit of a doghouse through his 2015 season for a theft arrest. Cuney certainly serves as good
Alex Anderson (SO): A stud recruit who hasn’t panned out and has had massive trouble with his conditioning at seemingly every turn. Anderson has the natural stuff to put it all together and be an impactful player, so having him as developmental depth comes with at least some legitimate upside.
Tope Imade (FR): Maybe he’s the forgotten man in all of this who’ll come in and take over the left guard spot while no one was looking. We’ve actually heard he’s one of the bigger-looking linemen who arrived at Texas this summer and that includes the DL.
The point is that the amount of possible personnel permutations just ticked way up. The addition of Patrick Hudson is not only a huge addition in itself. It’s not just landing one of the state’s top prospects. It’s giving a green-and-growing offensive line unit new options, both in starting capital and developmental depth.
It changes everything.
