We’ve reached the point in Fall Camp where the scrimmages are over, along with the platitudes that carried early August. The team that looked like a “new team” only a few weeks ago is now being scoured for holes and flaws—because something has to be wrong with it, right? To an extent, yes. [Sign up […]
We’ve reached the point in Fall Camp where the scrimmages are over, along with the platitudes that carried early August. The team that looked like a “new team” only a few weeks ago is now being scoured for holes and flaws—because something has to be wrong with it, right?
To an extent, yes.
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No team is infallible and whether real or imagined, opponents will always search for something to exploit. Every enemy has to try and find the flaw in the Death Star, even if it isn’t really there.
Defenses will attempt to confuse a young Arch Manning, overload pressure on two new tackles and lean on old clichés to justify picking on Michael Taaffe.
What’s more, college football no longer has the impenetrable superteams of the 2010s. That era is gone, undone by the portal, NIL and an expanded playoff. The result: teams are more vulnerable than ever.
Earlier today, our own Eric Nahlin broke down the biggest preseason concerns. I’ll admit, I gulped thinking about Kirby Smart going after a thin offensive line or Caleb Downs pulling off some Ed Reed–style witchcraft against Manning.
But then I think back to camps of preseasons past and compare them to where the Longhorns stand now.
Back then, while wandering in the desert, you had to master “if/then” statements and flawed logic with little evidence to find a positive conclusion about Texas. Now, you have to squint just to locate the flaws.
Even in an era without Nick Saban’s immortal squads, Texas sits in a more enviable position than anyone. Would Steve Sarkisian trade his roster—or even one side of the ball—with another coach in America? Not a chance. Meanwhile, how many coaches would give up portions of their salary, a few members of their family and 10 or more players to land Colin Simmons and Anthony Hill? Most of them.
And in a season likely to be defined by which young quarterbacks boom or bust, the Longhorns hold the most desirable passer of all: a Manning who’s been marinating in the offense for two years. I’d take that over a low-ceiling Drew Allar any day. Meanwhile, the linebacker, edge and safety groups look like the Alabama and Georgia units Longhorn fans once only dreamed about. Even areas like receiver and offensive line, which remain inexperienced, are still built on undeniable upside.
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One more thing: Sark has said over and over he’s “obsessed with making it a long season.” Great teams will now be measured by grit and endurance over perfection. And if that’s the rubric, I like where Texas stands better than anyone.
Category: General Sports
