Texas 2007 Preview

Texas caught Ohio State in Week 2 last year while trying to break in a new quarterback. This season, UT appears to have time — and the schedule — on its side to reclaim a Big 12 South title it fumbled away to Oklahoma after beating the Sooners.

The Longhorns are trying to find a running game to complement what should be a lethal passing attack. With serious holes to fill on the offensive line, that will be a challenge. There are also questions in the secondary. Texas will try to figure it all out against Arkansas State, TCU, UCF and Rice before diving into Big 12 play.

Mack Brown promoted long-time co-defensive coordinator Duane Akina to call plays on defense after Gene Chizik was named head coach at Iowa State. Akina figures to be more aggressive and take more chances with blitzes than Chizik, something that might have helped in last year’s 45–42 loss at Kansas State — a loss that helped crush UT’s BCS hopes after a 9–1 start.

Quarterbacks
All Colt McCoy did in trying to replace Vince Young was throw for an NCAA freshman record-tying 29 TDs last season. He even generated Heisman Trophy buzz before a stinger sidelined him in the  devastating loss at Kansas State. McCoy is 100 percent healthy this season, has put on close to 15 pounds of muscle and appears to be just as accurate. He completed 68.2 percent of his passes with only seven interceptions, three of them in a season-ending loss to Texas A&M with his shoulder still ailing. The biggest question is who will back up McCoy. The race is on between redshirt freshman Sherrod Harris, early enrollee John Chiles and freshman G.J. Kinne. Chiles, a gifted runner, could help the ground game by executing the team’s zone-read, shotgun offense in certain situations (think Tim Tebow at Florida last season).

Running Backs
Jamaal Charles, who averaged 7.4 yards per carry as a freshman and 5.3 as a sophomore, appears ready for a breakout season. He will need one, because Texas failed to average 4.0 yards per carry as a team in seven of its last nine games in 2006. Charles, who finished fifth in the 100 meters at the NCAA outdoor track nationals last year, didn’t run track during spring practice so he could focus on football. He put on about 12 pounds of muscle. Coaches want Charles to be more of a leader and to run tougher, rather than always relying on his blazing speed. The search is on to find someone to back up Charles. The leading candidates are Chris Ogbonnaya (18 carries for 82 yards and one TD in 2006) and redshirt freshman Vondrell McGee. Texas has had depth at running back the past two seasons, but with Emmanuel Moody switching his commitment from Texas to USC before last season, UT could be in trouble if something happens to Charles.

Receivers
This is the deepest position on the offense. Senior Limas Sweed tied Roy Williams’ 2002 single-season school record for touchdown receptions (12) last season. Senior Billy Pittman caught one more pass in 2006 (35) than he did in ’05 (34), but his receiving yards dropped from 750 to 456. Pittman became more of a possession receiver last fall due to the emergence of Quan Cosby (45 catches for 525 yards, 2 TDs). Cosby became McCoy’s go-to guy in pressure situations and figures to be an even bigger part of the offense this season. There is depth thanks to junior Jordan Shipley, who had four TD catches last season, and senior Nate Jones. Sophomore tight end Jermichael Finley, a college-caliber basketball player, is an incredibly athletic, big-play threat because of all the attention the receivers will attract. Finley’s size (6'5") and speed should allow him to get loose deep down the middle of defenses the way former record-setting tight end David Thomas did a couple years ago.

2007 Schedule
S. 1	Arkansas State	W
S. 8	TCU	W
S. 15	at UCF	W
S. 22	Rice	W
S. 29	Kansas State	W
O. 6	#Oklahoma	*
O. 13	at Iowa State	W
O. 20	at Baylor	W
O. 27	Nebraska	W
N. 3	at Oklahoma State	W
N. 10	Texas Tech	W
N. 23	at Texas A&M	W
	#Dallas, TX
Games in bold represent swing games. W or L indicates a projected win or loss.

Offensive Linemen
The offensive line is the biggest concern coming into the season. There is talent but not much experience to replace All-America right guard Justin Blalock, center Lyle Sendlein and left guard Kasey Studdard. Those three were among the best interior linemen in school history and a big reason Texas was able to shed its soft label over the past four years. The good news for Brown is that O-line coach Mac McWhorter always seems to get the best out of his players. Texas has experienced bookend talent in senior left tackle Tony Hills and sophomore right tackle Adam Ulatoski. To replace the interior of his line, McWhorter will probably turn to sophomore Charlie Tanner at left guard, senior Dallas Griffin at center and junior Cedric Dockery at right guard. Dockery is coming off knee surgery. Sophomore J’Marcus Webb will rotate in at tackle. Sophomore Chris Hall will push for playing time at guard, while redshirt freshman Buck Burnette will do the same at center.

Defensive Linemen
Texas was third nationally against the run last season — giving up 61.2 yards per game — and could be even better this season thanks to the return of monster tackles Frank Okam, Derek Lokey and Roy Miller. Lokey’s leadership is critical, and the defense suffered after he broke his leg (and still walked off the field) in a win at Nebraska last October. The defense will miss ends Tim Crowder and Brian Robison, who combined for 16 sacks last season. But coaches have high hopes for Aaron Lewis, a playmaker who started three games in 2006 and chased down Oklahoma’s Adrian Peterson from behind. Junior Brian Orakpo (4.5 sacks in 2006) has established himself as a strong pass rusher who could break out this season. Ends Lamarr Houston, Henry Melton and Eddie Jones give Texas plenty of depth.

Linebackers
The linebacking corps was a colossal disappointment in 2006. A lack of production forced a veteran secondary to over-commit to run support, leading to numerous big plays — even trick plays — given up through the air. Increased competition should help. Last year’s starters — Rashad Bobino, Robert Killebrew and Scott Derry — are getting big-time heat from Jared Norton, Sergio Kindle and Rod Muckelroy. Akina might be willing to live through some mistakes from the younger players in exchange for their ability to make big plays.

Defensive Backs
There is plenty of speed to replace Thorpe Award-winning cornerback Aaron Ross, All-Big 12 safety Michael Griffin (the team’s leading tackler the last two years) and cornerback Tarell Brown. But after giving up a school-record 3,071 passing yards last season, the question is whether that speed will be headed in the right direction. The most important players on the team may be senior safeties Drew Kelson and Marcus Griffin. Kelson returns to safety after a three-year odyssey at running back and linebacker. Kelson and Griffin will be in charge of making the calls and getting everyone lined up properly in the back seven, something Texas struggled with last season. Coaches are toying with the idea of substituting the entire defensive backfield every six plays. One group would include senior cornerback Brandon Foster, junior cornerback Ryan Palmer, Griffin at free safety and hard-hitting senior Erick Jackson at strong safety. The second group would include Kelson at free safety, sophomore Robert Joseph at strong safety, sophomore Deon Beasley at corner and redshirt freshman Chykie Brown at the other corner. Early enrollees Ben Wells (safety) and Curtis Brown (cornerback) also figure to play with so many seniors departing after 2007.

Specialists
Texas discovered walk-on kicker Ryan Bailey at the oddest of times last season — on a game-winning, 22-yard field goal at Nebraska with only seconds left because of an injury to then-senior starter Greg Johnson. Punting chores handled by Johnson last season should fall to Bailey or sophomore Trevor Gerland. Texas will also break in new short and long snappers. Texas will miss special teams aces Michael Griffin (eight blocked punts) and Robison (six blocked kicks).

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