Steve Sarkisian declares CJ Baxter a game-time decision

Texas will have to wait until Saturday to see if the offense will be full strength against Wyoming. On Thursday, Longhorns head coach Steve Sarkisian said freshman running back CJ Baxter will be a game-time decision, according to Inside Texas’ Joe Cook.

Baxter featured in Texas’ big win over Alabama in Week 2, but left the game with an injury late in the contest. He also left the Longhorns Week 1 contest with an injury.

Earlier in the week, Sarkisian explained his expectations on the timetable for Baxter to be healthy.

“Cedric, knock on wood, not quite as serious as we may have originally thought,” Sarkisian said during his Monday press conference. “We’re gonna monitor him day to day. He was at practice today, very limited. So we’ll monitor him on that front.”

Baxter finished Saturday’s game with 11 carries for 31 yards and eight receptions for 21 yards. He earned the starting spot for the second straight week.

During Week 1 versus Rice, Baxter had five carries for 38 yards before leaving the game with an apparent shoulder injury in the second quarter. He did not return against the Owls.

Baxter played high school football at Orlando (FL) Edgewater, where he was a five-star prospect. He was the No. 30 overall recruit in the 2023 cycle, according to the On3 Industry Rankings, a weighted average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies.

Sarkisian wants to avoid any scares from a tough Wyoming team

As they prepare for this early season contest of 2-0 teams, Sarkisian detailed what makes Wyoming such a formidable team.

“This is a tough task because Wyoming is a very gritty football team. They’re extremely well-coached,” Sarkisian said. “Coach Bohl does a tremendous job. They’ve got a veteran football team, got a bunch of fourth, fifth, and six-year seniors. And their schemes; they’re disciplined. They execute, and they’re hard-nosed.

“So they’re gonna challenge us from a mental makeup standpoint to get refocused. We challenged our players on that Monday morning and again here on Tuesday. And so, they continue to dive into it the right way.”

Wyoming already has one victory over a Big 12 Texas program on the year. The Cowboys upset the Texas Tech Red Raiders in double overtime, 35-33, in Week 1.

Given the Cowboys proven ability to knock off a Big 12 squad, Sarkisian has his team on high alert to avoid a hangover performance.