The Official RRS Prediction Thread
- Thread starter Belldozer1
- Start date
It is but I could imagine TH tweeting that. With that said did you guys see this?
https://247sports.com/college/texas...ife-Michelle-Herman-fires-back-FOX--108652545
Michelle doesn't back down, that is great. Obviously there are times when that type of emotion will probably come back to bite you but I love it! The never back down attitude clearly has run into the family side of things for Herman too!
The couple of times she's responded to something about her husband it's been after the fact and it's usually only two or three words. She's pretty smart about it.
First, that guys a deushe. Pure butthurt hater.
Second, when she brings the kitty claws out, she goes for blood.
Third, try and not make a habit of this- lest you want the "kitchen and sammich" crowd to chime in from the peanut gallery.
Fourth, pimp slapping some clown talk show host is funny and he did have it coming, but remember, you are the wife of the head football coach at the flagship university in Texas. Pimp slapping ass clowns is beneath you.
That is all.
Stats don't tell much of the tale. Maryland may have been just as much of a fluke as the OU win at the shoe.
Just how much has Texas run D improved? 'Horns allowed 263 yards vs Maryland. Allowed 263 yards in the four games since then.
Yeah, never heard of this guy. She shouldn't respond to idiots like this on twitter, all it does is validate them because they got a response from someone who actually matters. He would look just as stupid if he hadn't gotten a response. I do get her wanting to call out idiots who talk sh!t about her husband though, and she gets props for that.
Why do you say the OU win was a fluke? Do you think OSU should have won? Keep in mind, nobody gave OU a chance in that game. We went into that game with zero proven skill players. Zero. We lost our 2 running backs and our good receiver. We had a true freshman wr as our best wr and a 3rd string rb from last year now starting with another true freshman rb backing him up. i still have a hard time understanding how OU was ranked No. 3 after losing all of that? Really makes no sense to me.
EDIT: I take that back we did have our TE Mark Andrews, I'll count him as a skill player but you get the point.
Because tOSU has been a fraud on offense dating back to last year and BU and ISU exposed the OU defense. The win wasn't the fluke.
I'm talking about the hype OU received for the win, it was unwarranted. The offense OU trots on the field is legit.
How is Lamb? Is he healthy?
No but that's all I have to go by since I don't watch OUSUX football. That's all I'm basing my prediction off of while some may do it from just pure love for UT.
Ha gosh damn I hope he's good to go. He sat out the 2nd half of ISU and our passing game was nowhere to be found. A true freshman is literally our best and most reliable wr. It's almost laughable how a school like OU is lacking like that.
I remember John Lopez from the days when he was the San Antonio Light. He was appallingly inaccurate with facts and obviously he has not changed. I lost count of all the lies he wrote about UT. I heard about Lopez, Wright, and Michelle when they were at UH. I like knowing that Michele is still around tip put them in their place.
I have no reason to believe that we can't slow down OK. I can't believe that people have doubts. Has everyone forgotten how well our defense did against SC? And no USC was not overrated. They got their wake-up call when they lost to WSU and the real SC showed up last week. They won't play WA in the regular season and if they get past ND next week they should be in the run for the playoffs.
Everyone was complaining about how we played against ISU. Well what do you think of ISU now?
I think the quality of our passing game is going to take a big step this Saturday I really believe that. We have so many receivers that there's no way OK will shut all of them down. There just isn't. And this boy Ehlinger is getting better every game.
And then there's our secondary. From this vantage point the secondary has become the strength of our team. We intercepted Sam Darnold three times, a future number one draft pick. You really think we think we can't do the same thing against Baker Mayfield? Seriously? If Deshaun Elliot continues to play like he's playing now he will be the best defensive player in the country. And you can take that to the bank. And Holton Hill has three pics two of them for tds.
Malik Jefferson is finally starting to play at the level we've expected of him since he got here and he's getting better every game actually the whole team has.
That's really the story of the 2017 Longhorns. Getting better every game.
And OK has no chance.
Everyone was complaining about how we played against ISU. Well what do you think of ISU now?
I think the quality of our passing game is going to take a big step this Saturday I really believe that. We have so many receivers that there's no way OK will shut all of them down. There just isn't. And this boy Ehlinger is getting better every game.
And then there's our secondary. From this vantage point the secondary has become the strength of our team. We intercepted Sam Darnold three times, a future number one draft pick. You really think we think we can't do the same thing against Baker Mayfield? Seriously? If Deshaun Elliot continues to play like he's playing now he will be the best defensive player in the country. And you can take that to the bank. And Holton Hill has three pics two of them for tds.
Malik Jefferson is finally starting to play at the level we've expected of him since he got here and he's getting better every game actually the whole team has.
That's really the story of the 2017 Longhorns. Getting better every game.
And OK has no chance.
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Baker Mayfield throws shade at Sam Ehlinger over losses to Lake Travis
https://www.burntorangenation.com/2...ger-westlake-texas-longhorns-oklahoma-sooners
https://www.burntorangenation.com/2...ger-westlake-texas-longhorns-oklahoma-sooners
And some other things I want to add. This is the defensive coaching staff that held OK to only 23 points. And OK scored 7 of them on their first possession. Has everyone forgotten this? This is also the same defensive coaching staff that shut down Heisman winner Lamar Jackson. And do you really think that Houston has more defensive talent than Texas? And now that i think about it a 5'10" qb had a lot of success against OK's defense.
This isn't about player matchups to me. It's about a new coaching staff against a team with a new coach of their own. And unlike Tom Herman he hasn't had time to significantly prepare for his first season. OK has never had a defense with this many question marks since the pre Stoops era. That's a long time.
And OK has no chance.
To say there has been a rejuvenation of excitement since freshman quarterback Sam Ehlinger led Texas to a win against Kansas State would be like saying a Powerball winner felt “pretty cool” to learn about becoming an instant millionaire.
I spoke to multiple people associated with the program this week, and each person is far more excited about his Longhorns this week than he was a few weeks ago. Do not get me wrong, everyone was excited about Ehlinger prior to Kansas State. They saw enough in the loss against USC to believe he had the potential to play well against Kansas State. In fact, when I told one person I heard Ehlinger would start instead of Shane Buechele last week, and pondered how the freshman would perform, that individual was extremely confident.
Obviously, there’s been some pretty optimistic times over the past few years. After Tyrone Swoopes nearly led Texas to a win against UCLA in 2014, some in the building were optimistic about the quarterback position. After Jerrod Heard’s record-breaking performance against Cal in 2015, there was more optimism that year than in 2014, but that hope quickly faded. When Shane Buechele led Texas to a victory against Notre Dame last season, there was a lot of hope about his ability to lead this team. Now, Ehlinger has infused more confidence in the quarterback position than Longhorn observers have previously witnessed, and everybody I spoke to believes this year is different.
Before I bury the lede, it is important to know Ehlinger will likely start against Oklahoma on Saturday, barring something out of the ordinary. From what I was told, Ehlinger was taking all the first-team reps in practice this week, which is similar to the same amount of work we reported in the War Room last week. Based on Ehlinger’s performance against Kansas State, that is probably not a surprise to any Longhorn observer. It would probably be more shocking if Ehlinger did not start as opposed to him taking the first snap this weekend.
When asked about the quarterbacks after Thursday’s practice, Herman did not say much. Herman said Buechele went through practice, and as expected, did not indicate who will start against Oklahoma.
Honestly, it appears Ehlinger has won over everyone associated with the program.
The one word I heard repeatedly heard this week when people described Ehlinger was “juice.” Ironically, that is Heard’s nickname, but the people I spoke to have a specific reason why they used that word.
“Sam brings juice to the team,” I was told. “He makes everybody play better. He’s scrappy. He’s a leader. The players love him.”
In addition, I was told, “One quarterback has made plays and has the team excited about this season. The other guy hasn’t.”
Overall, nobody is using this as a moment to kick Buechele while he was down. Instead, it was just hard for them to contain their excitement about a new leader.
When you think about it, some of these players have been behind Ehlinger since he was at Westlake. Texas linebacker Breckyn Hager, a Westlake alum, brought teammates Malik Jefferson, Holton Hill, Jean Delance, Malcolm Roach and Demarco Boyd with him to watch Westlake against Katy last year. Members of the previous staff told me their players gravitated toward Ehlinger at Westlake because he was a natural leader, and they used that game as proof of his potential greatness.
When I spoke with players after Tuesday’s practice, each person told me Ehlinger commanded the huddle, and they never doubted his abilities. Even after Ehlinger started the game with an interception, they said he shook it off and kept going. His demeanor, and confidence, never wavered against Kansas State.
Oh, and they loved seeing Ehlinger run over a Kansas State defender. More than one player told me that play fired up the entire team. Once again, the word “juice” was used to describe Ehlinger’s impact.
Nobody was willing to make any bold predictions prior to Saturday’s game. One person associated with the program said he believes it will hard for Buechele to win back his position this season if Ehlinger replicates last week’s performance. Obviously, there is a lot of time between Oklahoma on Saturday and the season finale against Texas Tech. However, everyone in the program is confident Ehlinger has what it takes to carry Texas for the rest of this season.
For now, Ehlinger has everyone associated with the program excited about this team’s future with him as the starter. (Richardson)
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Let’s start the recruiting notes off with an update on Rivals100 quarterback Tanner McKee, who took an official visit to Texas last weekend. It was McKee’s second time to see the campus after taking an unofficial visit to Texas back in early May.
The Longhorns really impressed McKee on his first visit and the Texas staff was once again on top of its game, making a strong impression on McKee and his family on last weekend’s official visit.
“The highlights were the game and going to coach Herman’s house,” McKee said of the visit. “The game was awesome. Great atmosphere. Being at coach Herman’s house allowed me to see him as a person and not just a coach. He’s a good guy.”
McKee, who will actually be part of the 2020 class after taking a two-year Mormon mission once he graduates from high school, has had Texas high on his list for a while. The Longhorns are part of a top grouping that includes Stanford, BYU, Alabama, Washington and UCLA.
“Texas has always been high on my list. There is a good vibe there,” McKee said. “Everyone cares about each other.”
The 6-6, 220-pound McKee recently took an unofficial visit to UCLA. He’ll take official visits to the remaining four schools on his list.
But this may come down to a three-team race. One person who spent time with McKee last weekend offered up the following: “He said that it was down to Texas, BYU and Stanford. Out of those three, I’m not sure.”
Texas has made McKee a top priority and in my conversations with McKee, he does seem to really like the UT staff and what the University of Texas has to offer, both academically and culturally. Those points were stressed again over the weekend.
“They said I would fit their system great, that I was the kind of leader they want running their team,” McKee said. “They said Austin is a great place and academically UT is ranked very high.”
The Corona (CA) Centennial product has never tipped his hand on which school might be out in front, but there’s some thought behind the scenes from people who have covered McKee for a while that Stanford and BYU could be tough to beat. I feel very comfortable saying Texas has put itself in striking distance and will genuinely be part of the decision. Now the Longhorns will have to wait out McKee’s remaining visits.
“I don’t know that there is anything else they have to do,” McKee said. “I’m going to wait and see how I feel at the other schools I visit. I’m going to commit to the school that is the bests feel and fit for me.”
During the weekend (and specifically the game), McKee said he spent a lot of time hanging out with fellow official visitor Joseph Ossai and Texas running back commitment Keaontay Ingram. Ingram told us earlier in the week he tried to sell McKee on what Texas has to offer and he feels the Longhorns made a very good impression overall.
Of note, parents of another UT commitment sat with McKee’s parents during the game, and I was told McKee’s parents also really enjoyed the visit.
We’ll have to wait to see where this one goes over the next couple months, but Texas definitely helped itself with a very good official visit. (Suchomel)
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There was a time during the summer when linebacker DaShaun White looked like he might be part of the Longhorns’ recruiting class. White camped at UT in June but never picked up an offer. He eventually wound up committing to Texas A&M in early August.
Since that time, things had been pretty quiet for the North Richland Hills linebacker as it relates to Texas, but that started changing a couple weeks ago. On September 29, Texas defensive coordinator Todd Orlando took in the North Richland Hills-Fort Worth Eastern Hills game (UT commitment Byron Hobbs plays for Eastern Hills, although he was out of that game with an injury), and Texas began to pick up its contact.
White, who is still committed to Texas A&M but will take an official visit to Oklahoma later this month, will be at the Texas-OU game this weekend and he picked up a scholarship offer from the Longhorns on Wednesday night.
“I want to see a lot of both sides. It gives me a chance to get a good look at OU, which is a pretty talented team,” White said. “It will be my first look actually watching a Texas game. I’ve heard a lot of good things about their defense. I’ve watched some game highlights, but this will be my first time to actually see the defense and see how they play.”
White on the recent contact with Texas …
“I didn’t think quite honestly that I’d end up speaking with them again. Coach Orlando came out to the game we had against Byron Hobbs’ team. Byron wasn’t playing. I had a few pretty good plays that game,” White said. “The next morning, coach Orlando texted me, told me some things he liked that I did. He said he wanted to get back in touch, from there, it’s been kind of been slow, just getting back to talking to those guys.”
White had been hopeful that an offer would come from Texas. Now that UT has offered, look for him to set up an official visit.
“I’ve heard that I was supposed to be offered, but I also heard that when I went to their camp. I don’t really know,” White said just prior to picking up his Texas offer. “I sure hope so. I don’t want to feel like I’m wasting my time. I think they will offer. If they do … 9 out of 10 I’ll take an official.”
The 6-0, 220-pound White has been at the last two Texas A&M home games and he’ll take an official visit to A&M at some point. His thoughts on the Aggies …
“My heart is at A&M. Everything in me wants to go to A&M. My heart is with those coaches. I’ve really adapted to those coaches, those guys are my guys,” White said. “Unfortunately if someone is taken out of that system, there’s no telling where that whole coaching staff could go. It could be a really tough situation for me. You never know which coach or what scheme could come in.”
Needless to say, White is watching closely with what happens with Kevin Sumlin. If a coaching change does happen in College Station, I look for him to wind up elsewhere. He’s saying the right things about the Aggies right now, but from what I’ve heard behind the scenes, now that Texas has offered, he’s a candidate for a flip even if Sumlin is retained by A&M. Oklahoma is obviously another school to watch, and White has also been in contact with Alabama of late about a possible visit. (Suchomel)
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When linebacker Ayodele Adeoye first committed to Texas back in June, a reporter in the St. Louis-area who had covered Adeoye for a while told me he thought Texas would have to recruit Adeoye all the way until Adeoye signs, and other visits would always be a strong possibility.
Adeoye doesn’t say a ton so it’s sometimes hard to know what he’s thinking, but he did take an unofficial visit to Florida last weekend and told another Rivals.com reporter that he would be returning to Florida for an official visit and may also take visits to Oklahoma, Georgia and/or LSU.
Not the best of news for Texas, but again, not totally unexpected. Adeoye has been very pro-Texas on social media, including recruiting other St. Louis-area prospects on the Longhorns’ behalf, so I wouldn’t panic too much. But this will obviously be a situation worth monitoring over the next couple months. (Suchomel)
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Not a lot new to report on Houston Lamar DB D'Shawn Jamison, who will announce his decision on Saturday. Jamison will pick between Texas and TCU.
The Rivals250 member plans to release a commitment video and is also hosting a party at his house. Rivals.com’s Nick Krueger will be in attendance to cover the party.
Jamison has had Texas as his leader for a long while and I’m not changing my pick at this point, but I do think TCU has been more of a player in this one that some have realized. In fact, there was a time this summer when Jamison said the Horned Frogs had caught up to Texas and were co-leaders, but UT once again jumped into the top spot after a couple campus visits.
One thing worth noting … might mean something, might not mean anything … I’ll let you all decide. When I first checked on the timing of Jamison’s announcement earlier this week, I was told it was looking like it would go down at 4 p.m. I noted that a 4 p.m. commit would be at about halftime of the UT game, and then got a response that the commitment would go down around 6 p.m.
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Seminole OL and UT commitment Reese Moore was in attendance at the Longhorns’ win over K-State, and as you’d expect he said he was impressed with the win and the play of the offensive line.
“It was a really cool game to go to with it being double overtime. Great energy. I loved how the fans were involved throughout and never down,” Moore said. “The line definitely stepped up and did a good job. Coach Warehime is a great coach. He tells us he’ll put us where we need to be, then it’s just up to us to perform it.”
Moore will be at the Texas-OU game this weekend. While at the K-State game, he spent a lot of time with the other commitments and did some recruiting on Tanner McKee and Joseph Ossai.
“We talked a lot with all the commits and everything. That was a really cool experience,” Moore said. “We talked a lot to Joseph Ossai and Tanner McKee. We were really trying to pull them over.” (Suchomel)
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Texas offensive line commitment Rafiti Ghirmai was at last weekend’s game and will be at the Texas-OU game on Saturday. Like everyone else, Ghirmai said he loved the experience of taking in the K-State game last weekend.
“I love it. It was a very good game. The atmosphere really nice. I loved the atmosphere,” Ghirmai said. “It was really crazy, everyone was hyped. I got to go in the locker room, talk to the coaches and players. That was really cool.”
Ghirmai said he talked to Warehime, Sam Ehlinger, Denzel Okafor and Tom Herman, among others. Watching the young offensive linemen play left an impression on the Frisco Wakeland product and he’s hopeful he can come in and have similar success early in his career.
“That’s one of the main reasons I committed was because they don’t have that much depth at o-line. One of the main concerns for me with playing football was playing time,” Ghirmai said. “I really chose Texas because it was Texas, I love Texas, but I also want to get some playing time.”
Ghirmai said when he committed that he was still planning to take an official visit to UCLA. When I asked him that visit this week, he said he hadn’t talked to UCLA in a while so was unsure if he’d wind up taking that visit. Good news for Texas there.
He also said he spent some time talking to Joseph Ossai, and from Ghirmai saw, Ossai seemed to be enjoying the game.
“I could tell he loved it. When Texas won in overtime, I saw him cheering as if he was committed,” Ghirmai said. “I feel like Texas might win him over. I saw him kind of being low key, but he’d be cheering for Texas and when we won, he was screaming.” (Suchomel)
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Names of some of the top prospects who have confirmed they’ll be at Saturday’s Texas-OU game (I’ll add more as others respond):
QB Casey Thompson - Newcastle
QB Grant Tisdale – Allen (2019)
RB Keaontay Ingram - Carthage
RB Noah Cain – IMG Academy (2019)
RB Trey Sanders – IMG Academy (2019)
WR Theo Wease – Allen (2019)
WR Dylan Wright – Ennis (2019)
TE Malcolm Epps – Spring Dekaney
OL Reese Moore – Seminole
OL Rafiti Ghirmai – Frisco Wakeland
OL EJ Ndoma-Ogar – Allen (2019)
OL Evan Neal – IMG Academy (2019)
DE Braedon Mowry – Katy Taylor (2019)
DE Peter Mpagi – Richmond George Ranch (2019)
LB Byron Hobbs – Fort Worth Eastern Hills
LB DaShaun White - Richland
LB Maureese Wren – Mesquite Horn
LB Marcel Brooks – Flower Mound Marcus (2019)
DB Jalen Green – Houston Heights
DB Jalen Catalon – Mansfield Legacy (2019)
DB Brian Williams – Bishop Dunne
DB R.J. Mickens – Southlake Carroll (2020)
ATH Marquez Beason – Dallas Bishop Dunne (2019)
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What’s the vibe around the Texas program right now? I asked someone that’s around the Longhorn players, and one word was mentioned first:
“Confidence.”
“The offense knows the defense has their back. Like, they don’t have to score 50,” a source said, referencing last season. “And with Ehlinger playing, I think they think they can score that much if it’s needed.”
It seems each person you talk with that comes in contact with a member of the Texas football team states something similar. Confidence. It keeps growing. (McComas)
A look at the OU match-ups: Pretty close on paper, and some definite areas UT can attack
OKLAHOMA PASS OFFENSE VS TEXAS PASS DEFENSE – Baker Mayfield has been really good in passing game through five games. Overall, the Sooners haven’t been as explosive as they were season ago, but when you lose a player the caliber of Dede Westbrook, that’s to be expected. Tight end Mark Andrews has taken on a bigger role and fullback Dimitri Flowers has been critical with pop passes over the middle. With the other guys, it’s still a big question mark and the Sooners are still waiting for others to step up. Receiver Jeff Badet hasn’t been the player that everyone expected and wasn’t even on the field of last possession against Iowa State. The coaches are still looking for go-to guys and right now, it’s pretty much been Andrews and Flowers or bust – the tight end and fullback have been the leading receivers the last two games. Freshman CeeDee lamb hasn’t practiced the first few days of this week, but Oklahoma hasn’t ruled him out. There’s some thought that he may be a game-time decision. Even without a lot of help from his receivers, Mayfield is by far the most efficient passer in the Big 12 and he’s averaging 327 passing yards per game.
Edge – Oklahoma **
OKLAHOMA RUN OFFENSE VS TEXAS RUN DEFENSE – The Sooners’ ground game has been pretty good behind very good offensive line play. OU ranks fourth in the Big 12 in rushing yards per game and averages a very healthy 5.6 yards per carry. One key injury to watch out for is running back Abdul Adams. He’s emerged as the number one guy in OU’s ground game, but he went down in the first quarter against Iowa State and eventually came back out to the field with a walking boot. If Adams is limited or can’t go, OU will turn to Trey Sermon and Marcelias Sutton. Sutton is kind of a change of pace guy at just 5-8 and Sermon has stepped into a role kind of similar to what Samaje Perine brought as a tough runner. Sermon actually leads the team in rushing, largely due to his efforts against Baylor, where he rushed for 148 yards, all in the fourth quarter.
Edge – Texas **
OKLAHOMA OFFENSIVE LINE VS TEXAS DEFENSIVE LINE – Oklahoma’s offensive line has been very good overall this year. In fact, when you look at the OU offense’s success, most would tell you it starts with the linemen up front. This group was touted as one of the better units in the country going into the season and while it’s been very good, it has had some lapses the past couple weeks. Left tackle Orlando Brown gets all the accolades, but right tackle Bobby Evans is actually playing better through the first five games. On the inside, Cody Ford came back last week after missing the Baylor game. Ben Powers can play left guard or right guard depending on what Ford is doing. Guard Dru Samia didn’t play against last week but he’s supposed to be progressing towards working his way back. If he’s healthy, that gives OU three good guard options
Edge – Oklahoma **
OKLAHOMA PASS DEFENSE VS TEXAS PASS OFFENSE – In a word, this group has been porous. The secondary just hasn’t been good and has been giving up chunk plays all over the field. Texas should try to target OU deep several times, especially with some of UT’s larger receivers if they’re matched up with Jordan Thomas. An all-Big 12 guy, Thomas has really struggled this year. He’s been in position to make plays at times but has only one pass break up on the season. He’s been a weak link and has given up big play after big play. That’ll be a big matchup to watch to see if Texas tries to exploit his struggles. Safety Steven Parker was nicked up against Iowa State but has gone through practice this week and should be ready. OU has kind of been having to piece things together with its DBs. Robert Barnes is playing some as a freshman and safeties Chanse Sylvie and Kahlil Haughton are inexperienced players being forced to play. One bright spot on defense has been corner Parnell Motley. He has four PBUs and has been a pleasant surprise for OU’s defense, but has been overshadowed by other guys.
Edge – Texas **
OKLAHOMA RUN DEFENSE VS TEXAS RUN OFFENSE – The Sooners have been good against the run and rank third in the Big 12 behind only TCU and Texas in rush defense. Outside of what David Montgomery did last week, OU has held its own in this category. The Sooners really haven’t been gashed by the run as much … most of their struggles have come through the defending the pass.
Edge – Oklahoma **
OKLAHOMA DEFENSIVE LINE VS TEXAS OFFENSIVE LINE – Up until last week and the poor tackling OU displayed, the defensive line had been one of the team’s better units. The Sooners were able to get one of their more promising guys, Amani Bledsoe, back on the field. Neville Gallimore is the team leader in quarterback pressures and DE/LB Ogbonnia Okoronkwo leads the team with 5 sacks. Du’Vonta Lampkin is coming off what is probably the best games of his career against ISU. The Sooners might be without Matt Romar at the nose tackle position.
Edge – OU **
SPECIAL TEAMS – OU is kind of in the same boat as Texas with its special teams in that it has a bit bit of a kicking problem. The punting has been solid, but placekicking has been an issue. Austin Seibert had a big miss last week in the fourth quarter and he hasn’t been very reliable overall, hitting on just 2-of-4 attempts with a long of 35 yards. The Sooners have been okay in the return game and the coverage teams have been solid.
Edge – Texas *
I spoke to multiple people associated with the program this week, and each person is far more excited about his Longhorns this week than he was a few weeks ago. Do not get me wrong, everyone was excited about Ehlinger prior to Kansas State. They saw enough in the loss against USC to believe he had the potential to play well against Kansas State. In fact, when I told one person I heard Ehlinger would start instead of Shane Buechele last week, and pondered how the freshman would perform, that individual was extremely confident.
Obviously, there’s been some pretty optimistic times over the past few years. After Tyrone Swoopes nearly led Texas to a win against UCLA in 2014, some in the building were optimistic about the quarterback position. After Jerrod Heard’s record-breaking performance against Cal in 2015, there was more optimism that year than in 2014, but that hope quickly faded. When Shane Buechele led Texas to a victory against Notre Dame last season, there was a lot of hope about his ability to lead this team. Now, Ehlinger has infused more confidence in the quarterback position than Longhorn observers have previously witnessed, and everybody I spoke to believes this year is different.
Before I bury the lede, it is important to know Ehlinger will likely start against Oklahoma on Saturday, barring something out of the ordinary. From what I was told, Ehlinger was taking all the first-team reps in practice this week, which is similar to the same amount of work we reported in the War Room last week. Based on Ehlinger’s performance against Kansas State, that is probably not a surprise to any Longhorn observer. It would probably be more shocking if Ehlinger did not start as opposed to him taking the first snap this weekend.
When asked about the quarterbacks after Thursday’s practice, Herman did not say much. Herman said Buechele went through practice, and as expected, did not indicate who will start against Oklahoma.
Honestly, it appears Ehlinger has won over everyone associated with the program.
The one word I heard repeatedly heard this week when people described Ehlinger was “juice.” Ironically, that is Heard’s nickname, but the people I spoke to have a specific reason why they used that word.
“Sam brings juice to the team,” I was told. “He makes everybody play better. He’s scrappy. He’s a leader. The players love him.”
In addition, I was told, “One quarterback has made plays and has the team excited about this season. The other guy hasn’t.”
Overall, nobody is using this as a moment to kick Buechele while he was down. Instead, it was just hard for them to contain their excitement about a new leader.
When you think about it, some of these players have been behind Ehlinger since he was at Westlake. Texas linebacker Breckyn Hager, a Westlake alum, brought teammates Malik Jefferson, Holton Hill, Jean Delance, Malcolm Roach and Demarco Boyd with him to watch Westlake against Katy last year. Members of the previous staff told me their players gravitated toward Ehlinger at Westlake because he was a natural leader, and they used that game as proof of his potential greatness.
When I spoke with players after Tuesday’s practice, each person told me Ehlinger commanded the huddle, and they never doubted his abilities. Even after Ehlinger started the game with an interception, they said he shook it off and kept going. His demeanor, and confidence, never wavered against Kansas State.
Oh, and they loved seeing Ehlinger run over a Kansas State defender. More than one player told me that play fired up the entire team. Once again, the word “juice” was used to describe Ehlinger’s impact.
Nobody was willing to make any bold predictions prior to Saturday’s game. One person associated with the program said he believes it will hard for Buechele to win back his position this season if Ehlinger replicates last week’s performance. Obviously, there is a lot of time between Oklahoma on Saturday and the season finale against Texas Tech. However, everyone in the program is confident Ehlinger has what it takes to carry Texas for the rest of this season.
For now, Ehlinger has everyone associated with the program excited about this team’s future with him as the starter. (Richardson)
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Let’s start the recruiting notes off with an update on Rivals100 quarterback Tanner McKee, who took an official visit to Texas last weekend. It was McKee’s second time to see the campus after taking an unofficial visit to Texas back in early May.
The Longhorns really impressed McKee on his first visit and the Texas staff was once again on top of its game, making a strong impression on McKee and his family on last weekend’s official visit.
“The highlights were the game and going to coach Herman’s house,” McKee said of the visit. “The game was awesome. Great atmosphere. Being at coach Herman’s house allowed me to see him as a person and not just a coach. He’s a good guy.”
McKee, who will actually be part of the 2020 class after taking a two-year Mormon mission once he graduates from high school, has had Texas high on his list for a while. The Longhorns are part of a top grouping that includes Stanford, BYU, Alabama, Washington and UCLA.
“Texas has always been high on my list. There is a good vibe there,” McKee said. “Everyone cares about each other.”
The 6-6, 220-pound McKee recently took an unofficial visit to UCLA. He’ll take official visits to the remaining four schools on his list.
But this may come down to a three-team race. One person who spent time with McKee last weekend offered up the following: “He said that it was down to Texas, BYU and Stanford. Out of those three, I’m not sure.”
Texas has made McKee a top priority and in my conversations with McKee, he does seem to really like the UT staff and what the University of Texas has to offer, both academically and culturally. Those points were stressed again over the weekend.
“They said I would fit their system great, that I was the kind of leader they want running their team,” McKee said. “They said Austin is a great place and academically UT is ranked very high.”
The Corona (CA) Centennial product has never tipped his hand on which school might be out in front, but there’s some thought behind the scenes from people who have covered McKee for a while that Stanford and BYU could be tough to beat. I feel very comfortable saying Texas has put itself in striking distance and will genuinely be part of the decision. Now the Longhorns will have to wait out McKee’s remaining visits.
“I don’t know that there is anything else they have to do,” McKee said. “I’m going to wait and see how I feel at the other schools I visit. I’m going to commit to the school that is the bests feel and fit for me.”
During the weekend (and specifically the game), McKee said he spent a lot of time hanging out with fellow official visitor Joseph Ossai and Texas running back commitment Keaontay Ingram. Ingram told us earlier in the week he tried to sell McKee on what Texas has to offer and he feels the Longhorns made a very good impression overall.
Of note, parents of another UT commitment sat with McKee’s parents during the game, and I was told McKee’s parents also really enjoyed the visit.
We’ll have to wait to see where this one goes over the next couple months, but Texas definitely helped itself with a very good official visit. (Suchomel)
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There was a time during the summer when linebacker DaShaun White looked like he might be part of the Longhorns’ recruiting class. White camped at UT in June but never picked up an offer. He eventually wound up committing to Texas A&M in early August.
Since that time, things had been pretty quiet for the North Richland Hills linebacker as it relates to Texas, but that started changing a couple weeks ago. On September 29, Texas defensive coordinator Todd Orlando took in the North Richland Hills-Fort Worth Eastern Hills game (UT commitment Byron Hobbs plays for Eastern Hills, although he was out of that game with an injury), and Texas began to pick up its contact.
White, who is still committed to Texas A&M but will take an official visit to Oklahoma later this month, will be at the Texas-OU game this weekend and he picked up a scholarship offer from the Longhorns on Wednesday night.
“I want to see a lot of both sides. It gives me a chance to get a good look at OU, which is a pretty talented team,” White said. “It will be my first look actually watching a Texas game. I’ve heard a lot of good things about their defense. I’ve watched some game highlights, but this will be my first time to actually see the defense and see how they play.”
White on the recent contact with Texas …
“I didn’t think quite honestly that I’d end up speaking with them again. Coach Orlando came out to the game we had against Byron Hobbs’ team. Byron wasn’t playing. I had a few pretty good plays that game,” White said. “The next morning, coach Orlando texted me, told me some things he liked that I did. He said he wanted to get back in touch, from there, it’s been kind of been slow, just getting back to talking to those guys.”
White had been hopeful that an offer would come from Texas. Now that UT has offered, look for him to set up an official visit.
“I’ve heard that I was supposed to be offered, but I also heard that when I went to their camp. I don’t really know,” White said just prior to picking up his Texas offer. “I sure hope so. I don’t want to feel like I’m wasting my time. I think they will offer. If they do … 9 out of 10 I’ll take an official.”
The 6-0, 220-pound White has been at the last two Texas A&M home games and he’ll take an official visit to A&M at some point. His thoughts on the Aggies …
“My heart is at A&M. Everything in me wants to go to A&M. My heart is with those coaches. I’ve really adapted to those coaches, those guys are my guys,” White said. “Unfortunately if someone is taken out of that system, there’s no telling where that whole coaching staff could go. It could be a really tough situation for me. You never know which coach or what scheme could come in.”
Needless to say, White is watching closely with what happens with Kevin Sumlin. If a coaching change does happen in College Station, I look for him to wind up elsewhere. He’s saying the right things about the Aggies right now, but from what I’ve heard behind the scenes, now that Texas has offered, he’s a candidate for a flip even if Sumlin is retained by A&M. Oklahoma is obviously another school to watch, and White has also been in contact with Alabama of late about a possible visit. (Suchomel)
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When linebacker Ayodele Adeoye first committed to Texas back in June, a reporter in the St. Louis-area who had covered Adeoye for a while told me he thought Texas would have to recruit Adeoye all the way until Adeoye signs, and other visits would always be a strong possibility.
Adeoye doesn’t say a ton so it’s sometimes hard to know what he’s thinking, but he did take an unofficial visit to Florida last weekend and told another Rivals.com reporter that he would be returning to Florida for an official visit and may also take visits to Oklahoma, Georgia and/or LSU.
Not the best of news for Texas, but again, not totally unexpected. Adeoye has been very pro-Texas on social media, including recruiting other St. Louis-area prospects on the Longhorns’ behalf, so I wouldn’t panic too much. But this will obviously be a situation worth monitoring over the next couple months. (Suchomel)
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Not a lot new to report on Houston Lamar DB D'Shawn Jamison, who will announce his decision on Saturday. Jamison will pick between Texas and TCU.
The Rivals250 member plans to release a commitment video and is also hosting a party at his house. Rivals.com’s Nick Krueger will be in attendance to cover the party.
Jamison has had Texas as his leader for a long while and I’m not changing my pick at this point, but I do think TCU has been more of a player in this one that some have realized. In fact, there was a time this summer when Jamison said the Horned Frogs had caught up to Texas and were co-leaders, but UT once again jumped into the top spot after a couple campus visits.
One thing worth noting … might mean something, might not mean anything … I’ll let you all decide. When I first checked on the timing of Jamison’s announcement earlier this week, I was told it was looking like it would go down at 4 p.m. I noted that a 4 p.m. commit would be at about halftime of the UT game, and then got a response that the commitment would go down around 6 p.m.
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Seminole OL and UT commitment Reese Moore was in attendance at the Longhorns’ win over K-State, and as you’d expect he said he was impressed with the win and the play of the offensive line.
“It was a really cool game to go to with it being double overtime. Great energy. I loved how the fans were involved throughout and never down,” Moore said. “The line definitely stepped up and did a good job. Coach Warehime is a great coach. He tells us he’ll put us where we need to be, then it’s just up to us to perform it.”
Moore will be at the Texas-OU game this weekend. While at the K-State game, he spent a lot of time with the other commitments and did some recruiting on Tanner McKee and Joseph Ossai.
“We talked a lot with all the commits and everything. That was a really cool experience,” Moore said. “We talked a lot to Joseph Ossai and Tanner McKee. We were really trying to pull them over.” (Suchomel)
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Texas offensive line commitment Rafiti Ghirmai was at last weekend’s game and will be at the Texas-OU game on Saturday. Like everyone else, Ghirmai said he loved the experience of taking in the K-State game last weekend.
“I love it. It was a very good game. The atmosphere really nice. I loved the atmosphere,” Ghirmai said. “It was really crazy, everyone was hyped. I got to go in the locker room, talk to the coaches and players. That was really cool.”
Ghirmai said he talked to Warehime, Sam Ehlinger, Denzel Okafor and Tom Herman, among others. Watching the young offensive linemen play left an impression on the Frisco Wakeland product and he’s hopeful he can come in and have similar success early in his career.
“That’s one of the main reasons I committed was because they don’t have that much depth at o-line. One of the main concerns for me with playing football was playing time,” Ghirmai said. “I really chose Texas because it was Texas, I love Texas, but I also want to get some playing time.”
Ghirmai said when he committed that he was still planning to take an official visit to UCLA. When I asked him that visit this week, he said he hadn’t talked to UCLA in a while so was unsure if he’d wind up taking that visit. Good news for Texas there.
He also said he spent some time talking to Joseph Ossai, and from Ghirmai saw, Ossai seemed to be enjoying the game.
“I could tell he loved it. When Texas won in overtime, I saw him cheering as if he was committed,” Ghirmai said. “I feel like Texas might win him over. I saw him kind of being low key, but he’d be cheering for Texas and when we won, he was screaming.” (Suchomel)
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Names of some of the top prospects who have confirmed they’ll be at Saturday’s Texas-OU game (I’ll add more as others respond):
QB Casey Thompson - Newcastle
QB Grant Tisdale – Allen (2019)
RB Keaontay Ingram - Carthage
RB Noah Cain – IMG Academy (2019)
RB Trey Sanders – IMG Academy (2019)
WR Theo Wease – Allen (2019)
WR Dylan Wright – Ennis (2019)
TE Malcolm Epps – Spring Dekaney
OL Reese Moore – Seminole
OL Rafiti Ghirmai – Frisco Wakeland
OL EJ Ndoma-Ogar – Allen (2019)
OL Evan Neal – IMG Academy (2019)
DE Braedon Mowry – Katy Taylor (2019)
DE Peter Mpagi – Richmond George Ranch (2019)
LB Byron Hobbs – Fort Worth Eastern Hills
LB DaShaun White - Richland
LB Maureese Wren – Mesquite Horn
LB Marcel Brooks – Flower Mound Marcus (2019)
DB Jalen Green – Houston Heights
DB Jalen Catalon – Mansfield Legacy (2019)
DB Brian Williams – Bishop Dunne
DB R.J. Mickens – Southlake Carroll (2020)
ATH Marquez Beason – Dallas Bishop Dunne (2019)
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What’s the vibe around the Texas program right now? I asked someone that’s around the Longhorn players, and one word was mentioned first:
“Confidence.”
“The offense knows the defense has their back. Like, they don’t have to score 50,” a source said, referencing last season. “And with Ehlinger playing, I think they think they can score that much if it’s needed.”
It seems each person you talk with that comes in contact with a member of the Texas football team states something similar. Confidence. It keeps growing. (McComas)
A look at the OU match-ups: Pretty close on paper, and some definite areas UT can attack
OKLAHOMA PASS OFFENSE VS TEXAS PASS DEFENSE – Baker Mayfield has been really good in passing game through five games. Overall, the Sooners haven’t been as explosive as they were season ago, but when you lose a player the caliber of Dede Westbrook, that’s to be expected. Tight end Mark Andrews has taken on a bigger role and fullback Dimitri Flowers has been critical with pop passes over the middle. With the other guys, it’s still a big question mark and the Sooners are still waiting for others to step up. Receiver Jeff Badet hasn’t been the player that everyone expected and wasn’t even on the field of last possession against Iowa State. The coaches are still looking for go-to guys and right now, it’s pretty much been Andrews and Flowers or bust – the tight end and fullback have been the leading receivers the last two games. Freshman CeeDee lamb hasn’t practiced the first few days of this week, but Oklahoma hasn’t ruled him out. There’s some thought that he may be a game-time decision. Even without a lot of help from his receivers, Mayfield is by far the most efficient passer in the Big 12 and he’s averaging 327 passing yards per game.
Edge – Oklahoma **
OKLAHOMA RUN OFFENSE VS TEXAS RUN DEFENSE – The Sooners’ ground game has been pretty good behind very good offensive line play. OU ranks fourth in the Big 12 in rushing yards per game and averages a very healthy 5.6 yards per carry. One key injury to watch out for is running back Abdul Adams. He’s emerged as the number one guy in OU’s ground game, but he went down in the first quarter against Iowa State and eventually came back out to the field with a walking boot. If Adams is limited or can’t go, OU will turn to Trey Sermon and Marcelias Sutton. Sutton is kind of a change of pace guy at just 5-8 and Sermon has stepped into a role kind of similar to what Samaje Perine brought as a tough runner. Sermon actually leads the team in rushing, largely due to his efforts against Baylor, where he rushed for 148 yards, all in the fourth quarter.
Edge – Texas **
OKLAHOMA OFFENSIVE LINE VS TEXAS DEFENSIVE LINE – Oklahoma’s offensive line has been very good overall this year. In fact, when you look at the OU offense’s success, most would tell you it starts with the linemen up front. This group was touted as one of the better units in the country going into the season and while it’s been very good, it has had some lapses the past couple weeks. Left tackle Orlando Brown gets all the accolades, but right tackle Bobby Evans is actually playing better through the first five games. On the inside, Cody Ford came back last week after missing the Baylor game. Ben Powers can play left guard or right guard depending on what Ford is doing. Guard Dru Samia didn’t play against last week but he’s supposed to be progressing towards working his way back. If he’s healthy, that gives OU three good guard options
Edge – Oklahoma **
OKLAHOMA PASS DEFENSE VS TEXAS PASS OFFENSE – In a word, this group has been porous. The secondary just hasn’t been good and has been giving up chunk plays all over the field. Texas should try to target OU deep several times, especially with some of UT’s larger receivers if they’re matched up with Jordan Thomas. An all-Big 12 guy, Thomas has really struggled this year. He’s been in position to make plays at times but has only one pass break up on the season. He’s been a weak link and has given up big play after big play. That’ll be a big matchup to watch to see if Texas tries to exploit his struggles. Safety Steven Parker was nicked up against Iowa State but has gone through practice this week and should be ready. OU has kind of been having to piece things together with its DBs. Robert Barnes is playing some as a freshman and safeties Chanse Sylvie and Kahlil Haughton are inexperienced players being forced to play. One bright spot on defense has been corner Parnell Motley. He has four PBUs and has been a pleasant surprise for OU’s defense, but has been overshadowed by other guys.
Edge – Texas **
OKLAHOMA RUN DEFENSE VS TEXAS RUN OFFENSE – The Sooners have been good against the run and rank third in the Big 12 behind only TCU and Texas in rush defense. Outside of what David Montgomery did last week, OU has held its own in this category. The Sooners really haven’t been gashed by the run as much … most of their struggles have come through the defending the pass.
Edge – Oklahoma **
OKLAHOMA DEFENSIVE LINE VS TEXAS OFFENSIVE LINE – Up until last week and the poor tackling OU displayed, the defensive line had been one of the team’s better units. The Sooners were able to get one of their more promising guys, Amani Bledsoe, back on the field. Neville Gallimore is the team leader in quarterback pressures and DE/LB Ogbonnia Okoronkwo leads the team with 5 sacks. Du’Vonta Lampkin is coming off what is probably the best games of his career against ISU. The Sooners might be without Matt Romar at the nose tackle position.
Edge – OU **
SPECIAL TEAMS – OU is kind of in the same boat as Texas with its special teams in that it has a bit bit of a kicking problem. The punting has been solid, but placekicking has been an issue. Austin Seibert had a big miss last week in the fourth quarter and he hasn’t been very reliable overall, hitting on just 2-of-4 attempts with a long of 35 yards. The Sooners have been okay in the return game and the coverage teams have been solid.
Edge – Texas *
What? No video of the Bomar incident? LMAO now THAT was a GREAT RRR moment
OU gets a garbage TD to make it 9000007 to -13.
For real though this could be a break out, the giant has awoken kind of game.
