On Texas Football: Linebacker position evaluation and preview
On the latest video episode of On Texas Football, Bobby Burton and Joe Cook of Inside Texas talk about the Longhorns’ linebackers in the most recent in a series of position previews for Texas.
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Linebacker might be the most interesting position for the Longhorns heading into the spring, Burton said. Gone from the linebacker room are DeMarvion Overshown (to the NFL draft), Diamonte Tucker-Dorsey, Devin Richardson, and Luke Brockermeyer, and Texas will have to find replacements for that quartet.
But the unit will he headed by Jaylan Ford, who garnered third-team All-American honors in 2022 by the Associated Press and was a first-team All-Big 12 selection. He played in 13 games with 12 starts last year and racked up a career-best 119 tackles (61 of them solo), 10 tackles for loss, two sacks, three forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries, four interceptions, two quarterback hurries and two pass breakups in a breakthrough campaign.
“Having Jaylan Ford still there helps because that’s going to be a player that no matter who ends up replacing Overshown, No. 41 is going to be there and be able to direct traffic,” Cook said. “I don’t know if whoever replaces to Overshown will be able to do a lot of the same things he did, because he didn’t ever really come off the field for the Longhorns.”
David Gbenda and Morice Blackwell are thought to have the inside track to Will the other linebacker spot, with former walk-on Jett Bush expected to get some reps in the middle.
“I don’t know if Texas has the same like-for-like replacement who can do all of that now,” Cook continued. “I think this is going to be a position they may just have to make up for in the aggregate. They may have to substitute a little bit more but I don’t know if they’re gonna find someone, at least not quite yet, who was so versatile as Overshown.”
Cook said Blackwell might not have the size to be an every-down linebacker but he’s a player who is not afraid of the contact.
The Longhorns also have a six-pack of new players coming into the position, with Anthony Hill, Liona Lefau and Derion Gullette already on campus as early enrollees. Burton said Texas may not have a game 1 starter among the newcomers, but likely a player who can be a starter by game 7.
Hill will wear No. 0 and will try to fill the Overshown rol ebut may have the same challenges Agent Zero had with the position in his first two years on campus.
Cook also outlined the coverage plans for Inside Texas from Spring practice, which begins on Monday in Austin.
This year’s coverage will be similar to what Inside Texas offered in 2022 during spring football and last year during fall camp.
“We’ll be able to show some clips and practice players going through drills things like that,” Cook explained. “It’s kind of what you see on local news stations if you live in Austin. We’ll have reports up very early, pretty much as soon as I can type them up, on Inside Texas about what the depth chart looks like, some of the drills they are running, some of the things that we see, and what it could mean.
“Of course we’ll have coverage of any availabilities, whether it be Steve Sarkisian, the rare assistant coach opportunity, and the times we get to talk with players.”
There’s plenty of additional insight on the video from both of our guys, so go check it out in its entirety.
