And then there was Jerrod Heard.
You would have been hard-pressed to convince many people that Heard would be a footnote in the quarterback competition a few years after signing with the Longhorns. This was a guy with two state championships under his belt. Heard was an elite runner and passer in high school. When Heard signed with Texas, many believed it was just a matter of time before he led the Longhorns to spectacular wins every Saturday.
Few Longhorn fans will ever forget Heard’s historic performance against Cal last season. Heard set a UT single-game total offense mark with 527 yards (364 passing/163 rushing), topping the previous record of 506 (239 passing/267 rushing) by Vince Young at Oklahoma State in 2005. Heard also became the second Texas quarterback in school history to throw for 300 yards and rush for 100 yards, joining Colt McCoy (304 passing/175 rushing) at Texas A&M on Nov. 26, 2009. Hell, Heard's start was so spectacular, OB mods were eventually called out on this thread for not recognizing Heard’s talents.
However, Heard might be the answer to a trivia question one day if he does not work his butt off this summer.
Photo via San Antonio Express-News
From what I have been told, Heard is a “distant third” in the quarterback race right now. Tyrone Swoopes has the number one position – for now – and Shane Buechele is closing the gap. In case you missed our recent War Room, Buechele has been leading offseason workouts, and the freshman is doing everything it takes to win the job. It appears to be just a matter of time before Buechele is named the opening day starter.
In fairness, one reason Heard is so hard behind is because of the shoulder injury he sustained during the spring. Nobody knows if Heard may have closed the gap on Swoopes during the final two weeks of spring practice. He was fighting off Buechele before the injury. An argument can be made by Heard's supporters – assuming they are not on Buechele’s bandwagon now – that he could have performed well in the spring game, too. It is a hard argument to make, but when have facts ever ended a disagreement on Orangebloods?
If Heard wants to play this season, he must look in the mirror and become a new person. Heard needs to look at Buechele’s hunger and match the intensity of his biggest competitor, or he will be standing on the sidelines this season.
Buechele has been praised for his willingness to learn. He was labeled a “gym rat” in the spring by Texas coach Charlie Strong. Buechele quickly learned Sterlin Gilbert’s playbook because he ran a similar offense in high school. He picked Gilbert's brain whenever he had the opportunity, even if that meant popping into the offensive coordinator's office. Football appears to be one of Buechele's most important activities. When he is not playing football, Buechele is bringing teammates together off-the-field.
The picture may seem like a simple night at the ballpark to some, but Buechele is trying to create a family bond. Those ties will eliminate egos - something that created a wedge between upperclassmen and underclassmen the past two seasons - in the future. This is what Buechele does. These are also the traits of a quarterback who is destined to lead.
Honestly, we have not seen Heard’s desire to make football his top priority yet.
Many elite high school quarterbacks want to enroll early and begin competing for the starting job in January, which was Buechele’s path earlier this year. Heard hit campus in the summer as a freshman, and was content to just sit and learn. The knock on Heard as a freshman from those within the building was he appeared happier to be a student at UT than somebody who was willing to play as a freshman.
Last year, the staff wanted Heard to blow them away and earn the starting job. Heard struggled as a passer and did not work hard enough to improve in that area, according to sources in the building. Swoopes emerged as the team leader, and organized informal workouts during the summer. Swoopes was eventually named the starter, but benched after a disappointing performance in the season opener. He was not benched because Heard earned the position.
After the Cal game, Heard went four straight weeks without at least 100 yards passing in a contest. The lack of offseason preparation quickly caught up with him as teams neutralized his scrambling ability and challenged Heard to pass. Heard regressed and Swoopes was arguably the best quarterback option near the end of last season
If Heard does not close the gap on Buechele this summer, he is in trouble.
Westlake quarterback Sam Ehlinger is verbally committed to Texas and is expected to compete for playing time next season. There are some people in the building who believe Ehlinger might arrive on campus and blow away the competition. If Ehlinger lives up to those expectations, Heard faces the risk of being the third-string quarterback for two consecutive seasons.
Heard still has an outside chance to win the job, but I was told he needs a “very” strong summer to get back into the race. There is still some time left on the clock, but it is ticking faster than Heard may realize.
If Heard does not want to be the answer to a trivia question, he'd better grind like never before this summer.
Funniest Thing You Will See This Week
Sports On A Dime
1. I can confirm linebacker Dalton Santos is contemplating transferring from Texas (story was originally reported by Inside Texas). From what I was told, Santos is conflicted because he wants to stay at Texas, but does not want to be a backup as a senior. As I reported in the War Room, each player met with Charlie Strong last week, and we would begin hearing about potential transfers after those get-togethers. Longhorn fans should expect to hear more names of potential transfers in the upcoming weeks.
2. Speaking of the War Room, I have an update about grade status of two incoming freshmen. I reported everybody was expected to qualify, but was told on Sunday that linebacker Erick Fowler and defensive tackle Marcel Southall need to attend summer school to qualify. Nobody is worried about either player, and I was told this year’s crew is in much better shape than last year’s class.
3. It had to be a rough weekend for former Texas defensive tackle Hassan Ridgeway. He left school early believing an NFL team would snag him in the second round, but was not taken until the fourth round by Indianapolis. Ridgeway is viewed as a developmental project by Indianapolis, giving him the chance to learn this season.
4. On the flip side, former Ohio State Buckeye Cardele Jones was a fourth-round selection by Buffalo, and college observers will always debate the quarterback’s decision to not enter the NFL Draft after his junior season. Ridgeway and Jones are in the NFL now, and they can prove skeptics wrong by eventually becoming productive players on the next level.
5. There were plenty of opinions about Baylor men’s basketball coach Scott Drew having the same amount of players selected in this year’s draft as Strong. Of course, if a five-win Texas team can out-recruit every other program in this state, that says a long about Strong. What does that say about Texas A&M?
6. I love the selection of Ezekiel Elliott by the Cowboys. Dallas was very good with DeMarco Murray two years ago, and we know how successful this franchise was with Emmitt Smith. However, I cannot say I was thrilled with the selection of Jaylon Smith. If the goal is to win now with Tony Romo’s window starting to close, drafting a guy who will not play until 2017 made little sense.
7. That being said, the selection of Dak Prescott was a great move by Dallas. It might take time for him to develop, but playing Kellen Moore should never be an option. Never.
Of course, Prescott should delete his previous tweets about Romo before they meet:
8. Tampa Bay traded up to get a kicker in the second round? Roberto Aguayo made 4-of-7 field goals between 40 and 49 yards, and was 1-of-3 on attempts longer than 50 yards. Unless Aguayo is a Pro Bowler every year, this might be remembered as one of the dumbest draft picks in league history.
9. Andre Berto exceeded my expectations during his dominating performance against Victor Ortiz. Berto responded viciously after being knocked out by Ortiz in the second round, and the devastating uppercut he landed in the fourth round was beautiful. After the fight, Danny Garcia said he would be interested in fighting Berto, and I am all for that battle.
10. Rarely does a press conference get me excited about an upcoming fight, but the war of words between Tyson Furry and Wladimir Klitschko is a gem. If you enjoy boxing – or like to watch people insult each other – start watching around the 13-minute mark:
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