3-2-1: Bouncing back and wanting more

Last week’s version of 3-2-1 had some takes that aged very well.

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We mentioned that the defense looked elite, but there was still more to come from the group. In Week 2, Texas unleashed players like Brad Spence, Lance Jackson, and Ty’Anthony Smith, all of whom had fantastic games despite not being traditional starters on this roster.

The run blocking continued to be poor, possibly even worse against SJSU, and we still have a ton of questions about the wide receiver room.

Thankfully, Arch Manning did bounce back, and he responded well. It wasn’t some well-scripted first drive, but his mechanics were noticeably better, and he did make a few jaw-dropping plays. He’s a lot less of a question, or something I want to know.

UTEP is tomorrow, and it’s another opportunity to learn about this relatively young team and an offense that needs to step up more.

1st Thing I Know: The injuries aren’t a concern

I’ve seen some very dramatic reactions to Texas’ injury report this week. A starting RB, two of the top four receivers, and a core piece of the DL are out. You don’t ever want injuries, but if it had to happen, now is easily the best time.

And these injuries aren’t all that serious. Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian has hinted at the idea that resting these players is more precautionary than anything. If this week were the Florida game, Texas would likely have 3–4 of these players suiting up. Injuries begin to occur as soon as Week 1. Look at some of the SEC injury reports this week.

All this does is give opportunities to younger players. Texas could use another wide receiver to emerge. They need a third running back to prove they can play in SEC games. These injuries serve multiple functions.

2nd Thing I Know: We need a big Wingo and Manning game

Manning has brought back confidence to the Texas fans. He’s not a bust in people’s eyes; he’s just not a Heisman favorite.

But scripts flip quickly in college football. We will be having very different conversations in a month’s time about, well, pretty much everything. I’m not saying Arch will re-emerge as a Heisman favorite, but it’s not out of the question.

It is out of the question, however, if he and Ryan Wingo can’t be on the same page. In fact, I’d venture to say that this Texas team’s ceiling is completely capped without Ryan Wingo turning into the WR1 we all think he can be.

Texas is in desperate need of a stat line that reads something like this:

Manning: 18/23, 265 yards, and 4 TDs
Wingo: 8 catches, 130 yards, and 2 TDs

3rd Thing I Know: Discipline is key for Week 3

This is something Sarkisian has talked a lot about since the final whistle against San Jose State. Players aren’t letting plays come to them, and they’re paying for it with unforced errors and penalties. Wingo is a top culprit, as is Colin Simmons.

Sark joked about the players facing consequences for penalties in practice on Monday. Maybe it wasn’t a joke; he didn’t seem happy to have to do it, but Parker Livingstone chuckled about it. The emphasis this week has been heavy on limiting these problems in the future.

Whether that actually translates on the field on Saturday is one thing, but keep an eye on that. Sark wants these penalties gone.

1st Thing I Don’t Know: What the RB split looks like

Sarkisian surprised us yesterday by mentioning a new name in the RB room: James Simon. Simon didn’t play last week, but he was the top-rated of the two freshman backs Sark brought in—a top-10 RB in the class.

That raises a question. What does the running back share look like? The idea of Simon joining is intriguing, but that has to take carries away from one of CJ Baxter, Christian Clark, or Jerrick Gibson.

If I had to guess, Texas likes what they have from Baxter so far, whether that’s the correct move or not. They know that they need to find a third guy in the room, so Clark and Gibson will see quite a few touches tomorrow. Simon will likely play in garbage time, but he has a chance to shine.

2nd Thing I Don’t Know: What more do they want from the defensive personnel

Texas currently has a pretty solid group of starters or quasi-starters.

EDGEs: Simmons, Burke, .5 of Trey Moore
DTs: Kanu, January, Watson, Brevard, Shaw
LBs: Hill, Lefau, Smith, the other .5 of Trey Moore
CBs: Muhammad, Guilbeau, Black, Littleton
S’s: Taaffe, McDonald

Seventeen players. If health is in their favor, that’s all they need to use against Florida and Oklahoma, barring 5–10 snaps worth of rest or specific packages.

But do they want to add to this group, and if so, at what spots? There are two obvious ones for me: EDGE3 and Safety. We saw them give a lot of run to a lot of edge rushers last week, and I think that continues. If I could bet on this, I would expect Spence and Jackson to combine for 20 snaps between the Florida and Oklahoma games.

Derek Williams is the obvious next safety, but is he healthy enough? He’s been on a strict snap count. Maybe they believe Xavier Filsaime is good enough to break into the group, but the current safeties are so good and so durable, I’m not sure there’s ever going to be a reason to take them off the field. Players like Filsaime, Warren Roberson, and Zina Umeouzulu may just be a year away from making big contributions.

One Thing I Want to Know: What’s the long-term goal with this offensive line?

How confident are we that the current five is the one we’ll be trotting out by the time Texas plays at Georgia in November? What about just three weeks from now, when they head to the Swamp to play Florida?

This game, and the ensuing one against Sam Houston, should give us a better idea of what we have to work with on the offensive line. It’s currently nothing special, bordering on flat-out bad.

Sark needs to figure out two things: how can we use our unit to maximize the run game, and what is our best unit? You could reasonably argue three players for that fifth spot on the line: current starting LG Connor Stroh, rotational guard Neto Umeozulu, and backup center Connor Robertson, who would then slide Cole Hutson back out to guard.

While the other four spots are set, there are still concerns with the play strength and production from a guy like DJ Campbell, who’s been in the system far too long to have any more struggles. This feels like a game where we, or at least the Texas staff, learn a lot about what they have with this line.