Photo via AP
I remember my phone ringing less two hours after Texas completed its spring game on April 16, 2016. The call was from a person closely connected to the previous regime. I was still in the press box working, but stepped away from my laptop to take the call. Before I could say hello, he said, “See, I told you [Shane] Buechele was that dude. I told you as soon as he hit campus, he would blow away the competition and be our starter for several years. I told you.”
After enduring a rough year with Tyrone Swoopes at quarterback, followed by seeing Jerrod Heard struggle the following season, that spring game gave Longhorn fans hope, including every member of the previous staff. Buechele completed 22 of 41 passes for 299 yards and two touchdowns during the 2016 Orange and White Spring game. It was a great performance in a controlled environment. However, when it really counted, Texas finished 5-7 that season, and Buechele had very quiet 2,958 passing yards, 21 touchdowns and 11 interceptions, including three picks during a loss against Kansas.
Buechele was great during last year’s spring game. Buechele completed 23 of 39 passes for 369 yards and two touchdowns. Sam Ehlinger completed 10 of 31 passes for 148 yards and one touchdown. Once again, Buechele looked great in a controlled environment. His performance was supposed to be a glimpse of how this new offense would look with a new staff. Nevertheless, the offense struggled throughout last season – for a variety of reasons – and neither quarterback was consistent.
The Orange and White game is six days away, and both quarterbacks must know being king of the regular season is more important than being king of spring.
Obviously, both quarterbacks need to play well on Saturday. The worst quarterback performance outcome for Texas coach Tom Herman and co-offensive coordinator Tim Beck would be seeing Buechele and Ehlinger struggle under the lights, especially when facing basic defensive looks. Herman recently said the spring game will carry more weight than standard practices because it will be in front of a crowd. The spring game is an important part of the evaluation process for Herman.
That being said, everybody needs to be very careful about jumping to any conclusions after the game.
Oh, that includes me.
Check out this "brilliant" piece of work from my column after last year’s spring game. Seriously, I should have known better. I was an NFL writer when the Detroit Lions were 4-0 in the preseason and proceeded to finish 0-16. However, I drank the Kool-Aid and shared observations that deserved a “Dewey Defeats Truman” headline:
“Buechele has a chance to be special this year. If he connects with Collin Johnson the way we witnessed on Saturday, there are going to be a lot of defensive coordinators in the Big 12 who are going to lose some sleep this year. Sure, Johnson’s eight receptions for 117 yards and two touchdowns were against second-teamers, but we know he has the ability play on that level against first-team defenses. Buechele found a way to get Lil’ Jordan Humphrey involved, and Devin Duvernay remains a big-play threat.
“Now, add a healthy Chris Warren and an experienced offensive coordinator (including Herman), and Buechele has the potential to be at least a top three quarterback in the Big 12 this season.”
Clearly, I was mixing Kool-Aid with Tito’s when I wrote those two paragraphs.
Buechele finished with 1,405 passing yards, seven touchdowns and four interceptions last season (126.8 passer rating). Ehlinger had 1,915 passing yards, 11 touchdowns and seven interceptions (124.1 passer rating), plus led the team in rushing with 381 yards and two touchdowns.
Texas needs a quarterback who can stand out when it counts.
Photo via AP
The last time Texas had a quarterback who passed for over 3,000 yards was Colt McCoy in 2009 (3,521 yards, 27 touchdowns and 12 interceptions). Last season, there were five quarterbacks in the Big 12 who had at least 3,000 passing yards. Oklahoma State’s Mason Rudolph had 4,904 passing yards, 37 touchdowns and nine touchdowns last season, while Oklahoma’s Baker Mayfield compiled 4,627 yards, 43 touchdowns and six interceptions. It has taken Buechele two seasons to accumulate 4,363 passing yards, 28 touchdowns and 15 interceptions.
In addition, David Ash’s passer rating was 153.3 in 2012. The highest passer rating for a Texas quarterback since that season was 136 by Buechele in 2016, which was ranked eighth in the Big 12 that season. Ash had a passer rating of 156.3 in 2013, but only appeared in three games due to a head injury.
This has to be the year Texas ends its futility at quarterback.
The 2018 team could be really good … okay, let me pour out this Kool-Aid. Instead, I will say Texas is stacked with a lot of talented upperclassmen. The Longhorns will have veterans anchoring this year’s offensive line. The receivers are good. Texas will be without four starters on defense, but defensive coordinator Todd Orlando proved he can put his guys in a position to succeed. This should not be a rebuilding season.
One of the biggest questions marks is who carry the team at running back.
The other question mark is at quarterback.
It is important for Buechele and Ehlinger to perform well in the spring game.
Nevertheless, it is more important to be king of the regular season than king of spring.
Photo via AP
Other spring game items on my radar:
- Herman intends to decide if he will call plays this season after the spring game. That means the spring game can be viewed as an important audition for Beck. I want to see how this offense performs during favorable conditions (quarterback is untouchable and basic defense).
- If Toneil Carter and Daniel Young want to lock down the top two positions in the running back room, they need to have a strong performance during the spring game. If not, Keontay Ingram will hit campus with a chance to play on day one.
- Charles Omenihu has earned the respect from everyone on the staff this offseason. Orlando recently discussed Omenihu’s NFL potential. Omenihu cannot physically sack the quarterback on Saturday, but I want to see how he performs as a pass rusher and run stopper.
- Speaking of preseason darlings, it seems like there is always a moment before the season when receiver John Burt is receiving high praise. Unfortunately, for Burt, a really bad at practice negates his achievements. Two years ago, Chad Johnson gave Burt props for his performance against Notre Dame. It is time to see if Burt has improved his consistency.
- Devin Duvernay is apparently a new man. Maybe if Duvernay scores on an 80-yard touchdown reception, there will be another play called for him in the future (Texas fans know this predates Herman). Time to see the reclamation project under the lights.
- I have heard plenty of great things about freshmen defensive backs Caden Sterns and B.J. Foster. I want to see what these guys bring to the table.
- Ta’Quon Graham and Ayodele Adeoye are always trending whenever I speak to people associated with the program. You will have a chance to see what the hype is all about.
- I know Calvin Anderson will probably start this season, but Denzel Okafor will contribute this year. I want to see if Okafor can have a performance that makes coaches believe he should start.
- This will be tight end Reese Leitao’s first big moment as a college football player. I want to see how he handles this moment because he appears to be the next guy after Andrew Beck.
- If Herman never called Michael Dickson, an award winner by name, no need to memorize Ryan Bujcevski. However, he is Dickson’s replacement, and I want to see if punting runs in the family.
- Throw in the kicker situation, too.
Funniest Things You Will See This Week
I saw this a few hours after last week’s column and was disappointed I had to wait seven days. However, get ready to laugh
Best fight ever
Wait for it, wait for it, wait for it …
Sports On A Dime
1. Longhorn fans, you are on the clock.
2. Texas linebacker Breckyn Hager reminded reporters of his pledge that he is not cutting his hair until his team wins the Big 12 title. If Texas wins its first Big 12 championship since 2009, Hager should channel his inner baseball superstition and cut it after the season.
3. This is a really good sign for Texas football fans. Calvin Anderson will hit the ground running when he hits campus this summer.
4. Great story by Sports Illustrated’s Andy Staples about Texas athletic director Chris Del Conte. Here is something that really stood out:
"To understand why this would matter so much to coaches at Texas—and specifically to the football coach at Texas—consider the case of the unintended mud pit. On a small hill above the Texas practice fields is a covered area. This is where the players seek shade during breaks. It’s also where they drink copious amounts of water. When a hundred large men open water taps for a few minutes from an elevated position, that tends to lead to significant runoff. That runoff would pool at the bottom of the hill and turn part of one of the practice field sidelines into a mud pit. The solution Texas staffers devised was simple and cheap. They realized that if they covered the hill with artificial turf and created a small turf landing, the water would evaporate before it could mix with soil and create mud. For the nation’s wealthiest athletic department, this low-tech fix should have taken a few days.
"It took months.
"This is only one small example, but multiply that by several hundred and you’ll understand the aggravation of Texas football coaches relative to some of their peers who have dealt with less bureaucracy on a daily basis We keep wondering why Texas hasn’t won big since the Longhorns won the Big 12 and reached the national title game in 2009, but perhaps we’re putting too much blame on the coaches and not enough blame on the place. We’re about to find out how much that matters—if at all—because Del Conte likely will streamline some of the issues that Mack Brown, Charlie Strong and Herman have faced."
5. Garrett Wilson is just waiting for Texas to impress him next weekend. From what I was told by multiple people who have spoken to Wilson, he is looking for an excuse to attend Texas, but needs a reason to believe the offense will be better. Ohio State has spent time discrediting Texas co-offensive coordinator Tim Beck. However, Texas will have the final say before Wilson makes a decision, and the Longhorns cannot lose an elite recruit in their backyard.
6. Props to former LHN reporter Jane Slater for getting an exclusive interview with Dez Bryant. Slater has been a standout at the NFL Network. That being said, Dallas had to part ways with Bryant. He has not been an elite receiver in years, and Bryant was overpaid for his lack of production. There is no telling where Bryant will end up, but he only has a few NFL seasons remaining.
7. Old-school basketball fans will love this trip down memory lane.
8. This is a fantastic story by Shawn Clynch. Definitely worth watching.
9. Conor McGregor is going to learn how much money he is going to lose through defense attorneys and out-of-court settlements. His attempt to act like a sympathetic figure is pretty pathetic.
10. After watching Golden State pick apart San Antonio on Saturday, it is hard for me to envision the Spurs winning a game without Kawhi Leonard. It is harder for me to understand why Leonard did not show up to support his teammates. Just a weird situation.
