Final position battle check-in ahead of last out of conference game

With Texas hosting Sam Houston State this weekend, the Longhorns will be finishing up their final out-of-conference game before heading into a bye, with the beginning of the SEC gauntlet ahead of them.

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The Longhorns began the year in one of the hardest possible environments at Ohio State, and the staff had to make some early decisions on personnel and positional battles. We saw that culminate in the final week of the offseason, with Connor Stroh surmounting Neto Umeozulu as the starting left guard on the roster.

But with two G6 opponents behind them, and the last true gimme game of the season just two days away, the Longhorns will have their last chance to observe ongoing position battles on an actual football field. These games, plus the work these players put in over the bye, will likely determine how these roles play out heading into the end of the season.

QB

It seems like Matthew Caldwell has done everything he’s needed to be the No. 1 option off the bench for the Longhorns. He’s the only quarterback outside of Arch Manning to make an appearance this year, and Steve Sarkisian noted that Caldwell would’ve been the choice had Manning gone down against OSU. We doubt this will change.

RB

We already published an article about the RB3 competition today. Christian Clark, Jerrick Gibson and James Simon are all going to get their chances to play on Saturday. There’s a good chance Sarkisian wants at least one of them to be game-ready against Florida at the start of October. Clark is probably the furthest ahead, but he hasn’t shown it on the field. Simon really impressed against UTEP.

WR

Not much of note here. There is little competition for starting spots, and though Sarkisian has hope Emmett Mosley will play against Florida, he’s not taking a spot any time soon. The second line still remains him, Kaliq Lockett and a mix of Daylan McCutcheon and Ryan Niblett.

TE

This is a big one. The TE2 battle has been a big topic, with Spencer Shannon and Jordan Washington taking the majority of snaps behind Jack Endries this year. Shannon entered the season as the TE2 and has played more than Washington, though Washington has contributed more to the air.

Neither is at the point we’d want them to be at this stage, so there’s still competition here. Sarkisian will likely choose whichever one he feels most confident can contribute as a run blocker, which would probably be Shannon. Who knows, maybe this ends up being Nick Townsend.

OL

Sarkisian mentioned three names in today’s presser: Nate Kibble, Nick Brooks and Daniel Cruz. Even though none of these three projects to start a game this season, it’s funny that Sarkisian mentioned limited-use offensive linemen as players he wanted to see get more run.

If anything, it shows that he’s still heavily monitoring the offensive line situation. It’s likely about the LG spot, where Stroh has struggled throughout the year. Maybe Umeozulu gets more run on Saturday, or Cole Hutson receives some guard snaps. Maybe even Kibble or Brooks get some run there, while Cruz gets a few reps at center. Texas has a solid seven guys they feel ok about, but we doubt Stroh has completely locked up that LG spot.

DL and EDGE

Defensive line is simple. PK has his rotation that he likes, which becomes even deeper if Alex January can play. He’s given snaps to Melvin Hills III and wants to get Lavon Johnson involved, but that will have little impact on the core starters.

At edge, Texas is still looking for one or two more pass rushers. It was a thin group against Ohio State, mostly in an effort to keep Colin Simmons and Ethan Burke on the field as much as possible, but the Longhorns are going to need more bodies for SEC play. If any of Zina Umeozulu, Brad Spence, Colton Vasek or Brad Spence really flash, they may book their ticket to more playing time in the future.

LB

Liona Lefau has all but secured that starting Will linebacker spot. Ty’Anthony Smith is a fantastic player who will continue to gain snaps, but Anthony Hill alongside Lefau is the best unit most of the time. Texas is so talented here.

DB

Jaylon Guilbeau has likely won that CB2 job (if there ever really was a doubt), at least for the next month or two, but some plot lines are emerging. We expect Graceson Littleton to get a lot of run on the outside this weekend with Kobe Black potentially missing the game. That opens up an avenue for Wardell Mack to play a lot of STAR. Texas may be looking to add another STAR to their rotation in Mack while giving Littleton even more chances to flash. Black or Littleton could have that outside corner job won by the end of the season.

Safety is pretty standard, though both Jordon Johnson-Rubell and Xavier Filsaime have had good games to start the year. Derek Williams is increasing his workload, and Jonah Williams should make his Texas (football) debut on Saturday.

Special Teams

Niblett has taken every punt return, while Ryan Wingo and Quintrevion Wisner have each had their own returns in the kickoff game. CJ Baxter has also been out there. After a strong game last week, Niblett is probably the best option at punt return.

Kick return may be a different story. Every player mentioned has a shot. DeAndre Moore was also back deep last year, though more as a lead blocker for Matthew Golden. Texas will probably choose a main returner with a secondary blocker ahead of them who can field a kick in a pinch.

Mason Shipley did the kickoffs last week, but Sarkisian said that was due to an injury to Will Stone. Stone seems to still be the No. 1 place kicker going forward if healthy.