Photo via San Antonio Express-News
Texas football coach Tom Herman knows one of the key components to compete for championships is having depth.
Most college football teams would crumble if the starting quarterback sustained a season-ending injury during training camp. If that same program lost its backup quarterback during the season, most teams would be lucky to win one game with a third-string passer. Yet, Herman lost starting quarterback Braxton Miller in 2014 when he was Ohio State’s offensive coordinator. Herman was forced to play J.T. Barrett, who was in the Heisman Trophy conversation until he broke his ankle that year. At that point, Herman had to play Cardele Jones, a former three-star quarterback who completed only 1-of-2 passes in 2013. Nevertheless, Herman won a national championship that season because Ohio State had depth at its most important position.
Herman did not inherit a Texas team with a lot of fully developed players when he took over. In order to create depth at Texas, Herman knew it was going to take patience, which is very hard to accomplish in this era of college football. Nearly every coach who is hired at a major program is compared to Alabama’s Nick Saban, which is like paralleling each quarterback drafted in the sixth-round to New England’s Tom Brady. Every coach is not going to compete for a national championship in year two, but that never stops the comparisons. However, the patience this staff exercised in 2017 and 2018 is paying off this year.
Herman is successfully using the redshirt rule to build talent and depth at Texas.
When Herman arrived in Austin, he inherited a group of players who were never allowed to develop on the sidelines. The previous regime believed if a freshman and senior were close in training camp, it was better to go with the young player. In addition, because they could successfully recruit, those former staffers thought their young players would learn on-the-job and grow.
That is why running back Chris Warren III, defensive back P.J. Locke III, cornerback Holton Hill, cornerback Davante Davis, linebacker Malik Jefferson, linebacker Breckyn Hager, left tackle Connor Williams and guard Patrick Vahe played as freshmen in 2015. It also explains why receiver Devin Duvernay, center Zach Shackelford, quarterback Shane Buechele and receiver Collin Johnson were among the notable freshmen who saw playing time in 2016.
It also explains the lack of team success.
Buechele never had the opportunity to sit on the sidelines and learn from a successful quarterback. Heck, Sam Ehlinger didn't have that chance either. Since the previous regime was so focused on playing young players, you had a group of guys who were happy to see playing time, but had no clue how to win on the college level. They were thrown into deep waters and told to sink-or-swim. Those players were rescued by Herman and his staff without knowing how to succeed at Texas.
If you look at the current approach by this staff, they are focused on building depth, and that starts by not putting freshmen on the field until they are totally ready to succeed.
They believe there are benefits in redshirting freshmen players, and refuse to put young players on the field until they are absolutely ready. The transition from high school football to college is incredibly difficult, and even if you put aside the mental transition, some players are not physically ready for this level. Ideally, the staff would love for most freshmen to sit and learn how to be a pro from veteran players, plus grow stronger through the guidance of strength and conditioning coach Yancy McKnight.
However, there are exceptions.
If a freshman hits campus and shows the staff they are physically and mentally ready to play, that person will play right away (safety Caden Sterns is a great example of a guy who forced his way onto the field). If a veteran who is ahead of the freshman plays poorly, or sustains an injury, that is another way a newcomer could obtain significant playing time.
The biggest gift for Herman’s program was the redshirt rule implemented by the NCAA in 2018.
That rule allows football players to participate in four games without losing a redshirt season. It rewards patience.
Last season, Herman’s goal was to wait until the end of 2018 to play freshmen, unless an injury forced a player on the field. Texas did not have blowout victories that allowed it to experiment with young players. However, if Texas takes the next step, this staff may have more opportunities with newcomers this season.
Over the past two years, Texas has redshirted 21 players.
Here is a breakdown of each player:
2017 (6)
CB Kobe Boyce – Currently in the mix for playing time behind Jalen Green and D’Shawn Jamison
LT Samuel Cosmi – Future NFL draft pick
DL Rob Cummins – Has battled knee injuries throughout his tenure
DB Montrell Estell – Played 10 games on special teams last season
TE Reese Leitao – Expected to backup Cade Brewer and play a lot this year
WR Jordan Pouncey – Played on special teams last season
2018 (15)
LB Ayodele Adeoye – Appeared in four games last year, expected to contribute this season
G Junior Angilau – Projected to start this season
WR John Burt – Appeared in four games last year, will be in the backup rotation
DL Daniel Carson - Still learning and developing
DL Jamari Chisholm – Appeared in four games as a freshman, will come off the bench
DT Keondre Coburn – Appeared in three games as freshman, surged into a starting position
WR Malcolm Epps – Appeared in two games a freshman, could be the fourth receiver this year
C Rafiti Ghirmai – He will backup Shackelford this season
OL Christian Jones – Good enough to received playing time this year
OL Reese Moore – Still growing and developing
DT Moro Ojomo – Appeared in three games last season, currently is Coburn’s backup
OL Denzel Okafor – Currently in the mix to start this year
QB Casey Thompson – Looks much better than last season, currently Ehlinger’s backup
LB Byron Vaughns – A backup who is still growing and developing
WR Al’Vonte Woodard – Was turning heads until a foot injury
Photo via HookEm.com
When I think about the success Texas has enjoyed with redshirt players, two quotes stand out to me.
First, it was Texas offensive line coach Herb Hand’s response when I asked him about Cosmi this summer.
“Anytime you have a guy who can be a multi-year player for you and feel like is going to be in that spot for a while, it gives you great comfort,” Hand told me. “It also allows them to develop in that regard. Sammy had a good year last year. He’s still got a lot of improvement on his part. The nice thing about him is I think he played last year at 275 or 280. All spring he was 297. He came to my house the other day. We had a little cookout at my house, and he walked in the door and said for the first time in his life, he was over 300 pounds. That’s exciting. I said you’re going to be 310 by the time we get done with this cookout. Just the fact that his body is growing into what you kind of envision when you recruit and sign a young man like that. You kind of project him out. Now he’s growing into that, and still athletic, fast and can run. He’s got a chance to be a really, really good player. We’ll see how he responds at left tackle.”
In addition, I remember what Herman said about the redshirt rule on signing day.
“Then the redshirt rule I thought was great. I really did,” Herman said. “I still wish we would have just five to play five, but this was a step in the right direction. I feel like we managed it well. We're going to get another year from John Burt, one of the fastest guys in the Big 12. We've got a lot of young guys that got some experience but were able to redshirt. We had some true freshmen that you look at them, their development, where they're at, we had to make some decisions and say, you know, is Jalen Green going to be here for five years. No, he's not going to be here for five years. Let's play him on every special teams, let's get him some reps, some experience.
“I think there were all those different categories of older guys that we wanted to save a year, Denzel Okafor falls into that category. We're going to get another year out of him. That is awesome. If you remember when I first got here, I was actually complaining about everybody wanted to call him a true sophomore last year. He played whatever he played, 27 snaps as a true freshman. I think it went well.”
If we use 2018 as the barometer, there will be a number of freshmen who may not see the field until later this season, especially considering the talent on this year’s team.
Freshman running back Jordan Whittington will back up Keaontay Ingram. My sources tell me receiver Jake Smith will see playing time right away. Defensive back Kenyatta Watson II is in the mix for playing time. Defensive lineman T’Vondre Sweat is another player who could see action right away. We will see if more first-year players will command playing time.
There is so much talent of this roster, freshmen do not have to play.
Think about what the quarterback room will look like in two years.
Once Ehlinger is gone, Thompson could emerge as the starter after learning from a future Heisman candidate for three seasons. Roschon Johnson will have two years of learning. Incoming freshman Hudson Card and Ja’Quinden Jackson will walk into an established room and learn under Ehlinger for a year. By the time Jalen Milroe hits camps, Texas might be a quarterback factory.
Texas is currently stacked at safety. These backup receivers are good enough to be starters at many programs. Hand’s offensive linemen are competing for starting positions after a year of development.
There is a reason why this team is currently loaded with talent.
It is the same reason why the Longhorns should be stacked for years.
Herman is successfully using the redshirt rule to build talent and depth at Texas.
Photo via AP
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1. Texas offensive coordinator Tim Beck’s name is mentioned a lot by recruits. Beck is one of the best recruiters on staff, and he is one of the coaches who convinced Bijan Robinson to flip his commitment from Ohio State to Texas. Here is Beck’s response when I asked what he is telling recruits, and if the sell is easier after a successful offensive season: “I'm not selling the offense as much. Just selling Texas and just showing them what it's about, just being honest, up front, and showing them what this place can do for them. To be honest, that's the number-one selling point. But they got to see it in here, and they got to be able to see and hear through the glitter, right? There's a lot more flash and pizzazz and Kapow at some other places, but this place is a great university, and there's a great coaching staff here. We're developing our players. We're competing for championships. Our kids are going to graduate with great degrees and become great fathers and husbands. There's a lot to sell to University of Texas, and that's what we're doing. That's what I'm trying to do as much as anything else. Now, if it's an offensive skill guy, obviously, how we use these guys are great examples. LJ [Lil’Jordan Humphrey], there's a big wide receiver. Yet, over 1,000 yards receiving and a ton of catches last year, where a lot of programs might have looked at him and said, hey, we're moving him to tight end. We find a way to take each individual guy, how does he help our offense, and we tweak the offense to fit our players.”
2. Speaking on Beck, he definitely deserves credit for his ability to develop quarterbacks. Thompson struggled during offseason practices last year. However, he has looked great this year. Obviously, Ehlinger has developed into a special quarterback. It will be interesting to see what Roschon Johnson looks like a year from now under Beck’s guidance.
3. I give Texas senior running back Kirk Johnson credit for not giving up on his dream. We may never know what his college career may have looked like without the constant injuries, but you have to respect him for never quitting.
4. Guess I need to ask Tom Herman for an injury update about these broken ankles.
5. Malcolm Epps currently has my vote for the fourth receiver. Let us see if Joshua Moore or Jake Smith receives more playing time this season.
6. These are the plays an undrafted free agent must make in the preseason. As long as he is making those same plays in practice, Humphrey may have a shot to make the 53-man roster. Good luck to him.
7. Oklahoma defensive back Tre Norwood season-ending injury is a huge loss for the Sooners. Norwood was the team’s best defensive back, and it will be hard to replace him.
Here is what The Athletic’s Jason Kersey wrote:
“First, it means the Sooners have lost one of their most experienced defensive backs. Just one OU DB — Parnell Motley — has more career starts than Norwood. Second, it means sophomore Bookie Radley-Hiles is a near-certainty to be the Sooners’ starting nickelback when the 2019 season opens Sept. 1 against Houston.
“Radley-Hiles started 11 games last season but struggled. He raised eyebrows with a tweet a few days after defensive coordinator Mike Stoops’ firing. He hurt himself laying a big hit on a Kansas State receiver, an injury that kept him out for a game. Then, in the Sooners’ 59-56 win at West Virginia in the regular-season finale, his struggle were such that coaches pulled him in the third quarter. He then didn’t start the Big 12 title game or the Orange Bowl.
“Radley-Hiles was one of the most ballyhooed Oklahoma defensive signees in years. A national top-40 prospect in the 2018 signing class, he drew preseason 2018 comparisons to Roy Williams. Those pie-in-the-sky expectations were, in hindsight, absurd and unfair to Radley-Hiles.”
8. Enjoy this trip down memory lane. Neon Deion was arguably the most exciting player to watch during his era.
9. Virgil Ortiz was very impressive against Antonio Orozco. For such a young fighter, he has all the essential tools. When he criticized his performance during an interview after his TKO victory, I saw a 21-year-old determined to improve. The Grand Prairie resident is definitely someone to keep an eye on.
10. Regardless of the location, it is hard to think Anthony Joshua will survive a rematch against Andy Ruiz unless his defensive dramatically improves.
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