I was rearranging my sock drawer this afternoon and caught a few glimpses of the Texas spring game on ESPN.
I always hesitate to draw any hard-and-fast conclusions based on these kinds of fan fests, which are generally as vanilla as you can get. Today’s action in Austin didn’t deviate from expectations.
The best you can hope for is to possibly identify some impressive flashes or performances from individuals, especially among the youngsters. (See: Kenny Stills at the 2010 Red-White Game.)
With that in mind, a few observations:
*The “Longhorn Network.” Who are the ad wizards who came up with this one?
Watch the Wooderson-narrated promos and explain how anyone ESPN can cover Texas athletics objectively.
*Looks like some are picking up on the play of Case McCoy as the big story of the game. Colt Lite certainly had the best numbers of all the quarterback aspirants, completing 9 of 11 throws for 124 yards and a touchdown.
If he ends up as UT’s starter in the fall, though, that team is in serious trouble. His sub-par arm strength might have worked in Greg Davis’ dink-and-dunk system, but forget about it if Bryan Harsin has any intention of trying to stretch the field. His tendency to throw off his back foot doesn’t help anything.
*Garrett Gilbert is clearly struggling with the demons of 2010. He just looks shook. Reminds of me of Chris Simms, actually.
*Alex Okafor and Reggie Wilson really stood out on the defensive side of the ball. Between those two and Jackson Jeffcoat, defensive coordinator Manny Diaz has some serious studs on the edge. Wow.
*I realize Texas’ defensive line is stacked, but the offensive line still looks b-a-d. The comments during the broadcast about new o-line coach Stacy Searles bringing some “nastiness” to the ‘Horns up front drew some skepticism from SEC-ites on Twitter. That’s definitely one position group where UT can’t afford injuries.
*After watching the running backs, I have no doubt Malcolm Brown will play right away. Cody Johnson ran hard, but he just doesn’t seem to fit Harsin’s scheme as anything more than a short-yardage specialist.
*The ‘Horns absolutely need a healthy Mike Davis at receiver this season. He and Darius White are the offensive equivalent of what UT has at defensive end.
*Oh, and, Coach Brown, Chris Hansen would like a word with you.