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Less than four months separate Texas football from a season-opening clash with Ohio State.
While other top-flight programs around the country will begin their campaigns with cuddly matchups against Group of Five or FCS foes, the Longhorns are set to take on the defending national champions on the road. It doesn't get much tougher. The matchup also serves as a rematch of a College Football Playoff semifinal in January (though the teams should look different, with new starting quarterbacks and a host of players from each program gone to the NFL).
With spring practice now concluded, here are three standout questions for the Longhorns to answer before they meet the Buckeyes on Aug. 30.
Most college football coaches aim to have at least four scholarship quarterbacks on their roster at any given time.
The Longhorns were set to enter the 2025 campaign with just three. Then head coach Steve Sarkisian swooped for Troy transfer Matthew Caldwell.
Listed at 6-foot-4, 203 pounds, Caldwell appeared in 10 games for the Trojans last season, starting six. He completed 63.2% of his passes for 1,608 yards and 13 touchdowns while throwing eight interceptions. Troy averaged nearly 36 points per game in the final five games of the season once he took over the starting job for good.
DRAFT: NFL rookies: How Kelvin Banks, Jahdae Barron and Matthew Golden fit with new teams
Texas will be Caldwell's fourth collegiate stop. Before Troy, he appeared in 13 games over three seasons at Jacksonville State and Gardner-Webb.
Instantly, Caldwell becomes the most experienced member of the Longhorns' quarterbacks room. But will that prove enough to supplant Trey Owens and KJ Lacey Jr. for the right to serve as Manning's primary understudy?
Owens, now a redshirt freshman, joined the Longhorns as a four-star prospect in the 2024 signing class. He attempted four passes in garbage time last season, completing two of them for 19 yards. Lacey, a freshman, was ranked as the No. 155 overall prospect and the No. 14 quarterback in the 2025 class by the 247Sports Composite.
Sarkisian, who has not talked to local media since adding Caldwell, spoke positively about Owens, Lacey and Manning during spring practice.
"When we're in walk-throughs, they're good players, they're fine," Sarkisian said. "When we're (throwing) routes on air, I'm all over their (expletive) because I want more accuracy. We get into seven-on-seven, it gets competitive, and they start throwing a little bit better ball. We get into team (periods), you can start to see the fire. But all three of those guys have played their best when we've scrimmaged. That's a really good sign for us."
EWERS: Inside Texas football QB Quinn Ewers' shocking NFL draft drop to the 7th round
The Longhorns sent a pair of key contributors to their running backs room to the NFL this offseason. Jaydon Blue, who totaled 730 rushing yards and 368 receiving yards in 2024, was drafted by the Dallas Cowboys. And running backs coach Tashard Choice joined the Detroit Lions after spending three years on Sarkisian's staff. West Virginia's Chad Scott was hired to replace him.
Quintrevion Wisner emerged as the Longhorns' lead back toward the end of the 2024 campaign, picking up 1,064 yards on the ground and another 311 yards through the air while finding the end zone six times. Under normal circumstances, he'd be an easy pick to carry the lead role into 2025.
But a pair of injury situations complicate the running back depth chart. Redshirt freshman Christian Clark added himself back into the mix for spring practice, bouncing back from the torn Achilles that cost him the 2024 season in time to turn some heads. CJ Baxter, who also missed the 2024 campaign after tearing the LCL and PCL in his right knee, did not participate fully in spring drills.
Baxter gave the Longhorns an electric freshman performance in 2023, accumulating 815 scrimmage yards and finding the end zone five times.
Will he be back healthy in time to start the 2025 campaign? If he is, will he get the starting nod over Wisner? Where does Clark fit into the rotation? What does the suddenly crowded backfield mean for Jerrick Gibson, who carried the ball 78 times as a true freshman last year? Will freshmen Rickey Stewart Jr. and James Simon play their way onto the field as rookies? And how will the snaps be distributed under Scott's new leadership?
There are several variables to account for and a lot of ground to cover before the 2025 campaign kicks off.
According to ESPN's FPI metrics, only LSU and Missouri fielded worse special teams units than Texas last season among the Longhorns' SEC peers. Bert Auburn's late-season struggles in the kicking game dominated the headlines, but Texas also ranked in the bottom third of the nation in punting and kickoff returns.
From a specialist standpoint, the offseason has been transformative. Auburn transferred out during the spring portal period, clearing the way for Texas to add Texas State transfer Mason Shipley, who has converted on 31 of his 35 career field goal attempts. He joins Will Stone to give the Longhorns a duo of scholarship kickers.
At punter, Texas added Utah transfer Jack Bouwmeester, who twice earned all-conference recognition during his three seasons with the Utes. Michael Kern, who started for the Longhorns at punter in 2024, entered the transfer portal this spring.
The kick return roles look like a subject of intrigue as the Longhorns break for the summer, too.
Matthew Golden handled the kickoff return duties for Texas in 2024, while Silas Bolden returned punts. Both moved on, leaving the Longhorns with a pair of voids to fill on special teams.
Reach Texas Insider David Eckert via email at [email protected]. Follow the American-Statesman on Facebook and X for more. Your subscription makes work like this possible. Access all of our best content with this tremendous offer.
This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Texas Longhorns depth chart: 3 questions we have after spring
Continue reading...
While other top-flight programs around the country will begin their campaigns with cuddly matchups against Group of Five or FCS foes, the Longhorns are set to take on the defending national champions on the road. It doesn't get much tougher. The matchup also serves as a rematch of a College Football Playoff semifinal in January (though the teams should look different, with new starting quarterbacks and a host of players from each program gone to the NFL).
With spring practice now concluded, here are three standout questions for the Longhorns to answer before they meet the Buckeyes on Aug. 30.
Who will be Texas football's backup quarterback behind Arch Manning?
Most college football coaches aim to have at least four scholarship quarterbacks on their roster at any given time.
The Longhorns were set to enter the 2025 campaign with just three. Then head coach Steve Sarkisian swooped for Troy transfer Matthew Caldwell.
Listed at 6-foot-4, 203 pounds, Caldwell appeared in 10 games for the Trojans last season, starting six. He completed 63.2% of his passes for 1,608 yards and 13 touchdowns while throwing eight interceptions. Troy averaged nearly 36 points per game in the final five games of the season once he took over the starting job for good.
DRAFT: NFL rookies: How Kelvin Banks, Jahdae Barron and Matthew Golden fit with new teams
Texas will be Caldwell's fourth collegiate stop. Before Troy, he appeared in 13 games over three seasons at Jacksonville State and Gardner-Webb.
Instantly, Caldwell becomes the most experienced member of the Longhorns' quarterbacks room. But will that prove enough to supplant Trey Owens and KJ Lacey Jr. for the right to serve as Manning's primary understudy?
Owens, now a redshirt freshman, joined the Longhorns as a four-star prospect in the 2024 signing class. He attempted four passes in garbage time last season, completing two of them for 19 yards. Lacey, a freshman, was ranked as the No. 155 overall prospect and the No. 14 quarterback in the 2025 class by the 247Sports Composite.
Sarkisian, who has not talked to local media since adding Caldwell, spoke positively about Owens, Lacey and Manning during spring practice.
"When we're in walk-throughs, they're good players, they're fine," Sarkisian said. "When we're (throwing) routes on air, I'm all over their (expletive) because I want more accuracy. We get into seven-on-seven, it gets competitive, and they start throwing a little bit better ball. We get into team (periods), you can start to see the fire. But all three of those guys have played their best when we've scrimmaged. That's a really good sign for us."
EWERS: Inside Texas football QB Quinn Ewers' shocking NFL draft drop to the 7th round
Where does Texas football stand at running back?
The Longhorns sent a pair of key contributors to their running backs room to the NFL this offseason. Jaydon Blue, who totaled 730 rushing yards and 368 receiving yards in 2024, was drafted by the Dallas Cowboys. And running backs coach Tashard Choice joined the Detroit Lions after spending three years on Sarkisian's staff. West Virginia's Chad Scott was hired to replace him.
Quintrevion Wisner emerged as the Longhorns' lead back toward the end of the 2024 campaign, picking up 1,064 yards on the ground and another 311 yards through the air while finding the end zone six times. Under normal circumstances, he'd be an easy pick to carry the lead role into 2025.
But a pair of injury situations complicate the running back depth chart. Redshirt freshman Christian Clark added himself back into the mix for spring practice, bouncing back from the torn Achilles that cost him the 2024 season in time to turn some heads. CJ Baxter, who also missed the 2024 campaign after tearing the LCL and PCL in his right knee, did not participate fully in spring drills.
Baxter gave the Longhorns an electric freshman performance in 2023, accumulating 815 scrimmage yards and finding the end zone five times.
Will he be back healthy in time to start the 2025 campaign? If he is, will he get the starting nod over Wisner? Where does Clark fit into the rotation? What does the suddenly crowded backfield mean for Jerrick Gibson, who carried the ball 78 times as a true freshman last year? Will freshmen Rickey Stewart Jr. and James Simon play their way onto the field as rookies? And how will the snaps be distributed under Scott's new leadership?
There are several variables to account for and a lot of ground to cover before the 2025 campaign kicks off.
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Can new personnel reinvigorate the Texas football special teams?
According to ESPN's FPI metrics, only LSU and Missouri fielded worse special teams units than Texas last season among the Longhorns' SEC peers. Bert Auburn's late-season struggles in the kicking game dominated the headlines, but Texas also ranked in the bottom third of the nation in punting and kickoff returns.
From a specialist standpoint, the offseason has been transformative. Auburn transferred out during the spring portal period, clearing the way for Texas to add Texas State transfer Mason Shipley, who has converted on 31 of his 35 career field goal attempts. He joins Will Stone to give the Longhorns a duo of scholarship kickers.
At punter, Texas added Utah transfer Jack Bouwmeester, who twice earned all-conference recognition during his three seasons with the Utes. Michael Kern, who started for the Longhorns at punter in 2024, entered the transfer portal this spring.
The kick return roles look like a subject of intrigue as the Longhorns break for the summer, too.
Matthew Golden handled the kickoff return duties for Texas in 2024, while Silas Bolden returned punts. Both moved on, leaving the Longhorns with a pair of voids to fill on special teams.
Reach Texas Insider David Eckert via email at [email protected]. Follow the American-Statesman on Facebook and X for more. Your subscription makes work like this possible. Access all of our best content with this tremendous offer.
You must be registered for see images attach
This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Texas Longhorns depth chart: 3 questions we have after spring
Continue reading...
