Loaded Texas team notes with Spring ball less than a month away
Spring ball begins in less than a month. Structurally, there’s not much to cover. The team is still lifting, doing Team Runs, and working together in individual position drills. They’re probably doing Team Run as this hits the press. This schedule will continue until Spring Break. After they return from Spring Break, it’s go-time for Spring ball and offseason will kick into a much higher gear.
This time of year we’re constantly searching for information on individual players. They’re currently jockeying for playing time even if they aren’t in pads.
Here’s a scattershot on what we’re hearing about a number of players.
[Note: We didn’t seek out info based on position, we sought it based on individuals and then grouped it by position to make it a cleaner read. In other words, we didn’t forget to ask about tight end, running back, or quarterback.]
Wide Receiver
Ryan Wingo is really fast in a straight-line. This isn’t ground-breaking news, but we believe he’s already in the 22mph club. The staff really likes him as a vertical threat but the belief is he can become much more.
Speaking of being a vertical threat and much more, Isaiah Bond has the look of the No. 1 receiver this year. He’s perhaps the fastest receiver on the team, though that debate also includes Ryan Niblett and DeAndre Moore.
Speaking of Moore, the feeling is he could be really productive this year, however, we all know how Steve Sarkisian feels about rotating his receivers. Moore is one of numerous players putting in extra work per IT sources.
Matthew Golden continues to impress with his work ethic and attitude.
Johntay Cook has upped his intensity in the weight room.
When a source was asked for players who have added muscle since they arrived, Parker Livingstone was quickly mentioned. His straight-line speed was also mentioned. Per one source, he doesn’t move like Adonai Mitchell but he’s at least as fast as him.
Offensive Line
Kelvin Banks has always done things the right way and been a ‘lead by example’ sort of player. He’s never been real vocal, though he is becoming more vocal. The main shift here is he’s dominating workouts to do an even better job of leading by example, and perhaps set himself up to be a Top 10 pick in next year’s draft. “He’s charging hard.”
Freshman Brandon Baker continues to impress through his maturity. “Some guys you can tell just ‘get it’ and are going to be good. He’s one of them even before you see him on the field.” We love these consistent themes — I vividly remember weekly mentions of Byron Murphy and Xavier Worthy. It’s all positive with Baker.
A huge point of emphasis this offseason is helping DJ Campbell maximize and “getting him on the same track as Kelvin.” Campbell does have three-year player ability but as we just outlined with Banks it requires a lot more than raw talent. A source said Campbell is trending in the right direction.
Cameron Williams is in a similar boat to Campbell. The ability is there, he just has to be more consistent when it comes to the smaller, less glorious aspects of the game.
Defensive Line
Just piggybacking off recent reports on IT from our sources and from Byron Murphy earlier in the week, “Jaray Bledsoe is SUPER physical. Won’t let anyone block him. Really competitive nature on the field, will take on a 330-pound pulling guard and lay into him.”
UTSA transfer Trey Moore continues to impress in workouts. “Beast. Really explosive. Probably the most explosive Edge. His first 10-yards are incredible.”
Colin Simmons has indeed gained weight as his mother posted on Twitter. He’s explosive but not quite as much as Moore. He’s probably adjusting to the shock of carrying so much more mass.
Sydir Mitchell is working on his weight, getting extra cardio, and trying to slim down to get more explosive and be able to play in the fourth quarter. There are still no concerns over Mitchell becoming a positive player in 2023. “He’s more on the Sweat timeline than Murphy,” said a source. No surprise when you consider his body type.
Linebacker
Anthony Hill Jr. looks fantastic. We still expect him at Mike linebacker.
Liona Lefau is focused on adding strength. He has all the movement skills to play Mike. A little background on Lefau — coming from Hawaii he had a difficult time transitioning to Texas. His relationship with Jeff Choate was huge in that regard. As far as Lefau goes, there couldn’t have been a better replacement for Choate than Nansen.
David Gbenda has stepped into a heightened leadership role. The room respects him for a number of reasons, most notably, he WORKS.
Morice Blackwell is also respected for his focus and devotion. He provides energy and is a veteran, at least in the eyes of many in the room.
We’ll probably get asked about Derion Gullette. Nothing new there. He’s big and looks good athletically. We expect him to play Sam this year.
Secondary
Jaylon Guilbeau is clearly doing things right because he was one of the first players mentioned. He’s made a bunch of strides this offseason. He’s working really hard and looking faster than ever. In an attempt to connect some dots, one could glean that Jahdae Barron will get a real look at cornerback which could increase Guilbeau’s playing time at Star.
Andrew Mukuba looks really good athletically. Very fluid, everything looks easy to him. He’s a grinder who keeps his head down while he continues to assimilate into the program.
Freshman Kobe Black is learning from Manny Muhammad. That’s a good person to latch onto. It’s easy to see he wants to get better. He’ll be good in man coverage early on. Sources feel strongly he can stay at corner, at least based on the way he moves. Black’s body is in sync at the position, he’s not fighting himself. In that regard a source compared him to Ryan Watts.
Wardell Mack is a really hard worker. He’s slight at this point but people are anxious to see him in pads. He puts in extra work.
Piggybacking on recent Warren Roberson comments from IT and Ryan Watts, “He’s one of the most athletic guys on the team. His athletic upside is legit. Explosive in the weight room, he’s quick, he’s fast.” He’s probably the best athlete on the team in the secondary.
*****
There are a lot of younger guys who are constantly hanging around the facilities. That’s a good early indication of how seriously they take football.
Buy-in is at an all-time high despite the loss of so much leadership from the 2023 season.
Justin Wells contributed to this article.
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