Five things to watch in the Texas Orange-White Game

The Texas Longhorns are set to be at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium on Saturday at 1 p.m. (Longhorn Network) for the annual Orange-White Game. Steve Sarkisian‘s team will be in front of fans one final time before the 2024 season starts on August 31 as Texas embarks on its first season in the Southeastern Conference.

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Here are five things to watch for in the last practice of the spring.

The quarterback room

It’s expected that Quinn Ewers will be at the helm of the offense for one to two series tops before he is able to enjoy the sights and sounds of the Orange-White Game from the sidelines. Sarkisian and company know and are confident in what Ewers can do entering his third year in the Longhorn program, and will do everything possible to ensure they’ll have his services come August when Texas takes the field against Colorado State.

Those snaps have to go somewhere, and they’ll go to Arch Manning, Trey Owens, and even Cole Lourd on Saturday.

Manning was the backup at the end of the season last year and had good plays against Texas Tech before mostly handing the ball off against Oklahoma State in the Big 12 Championship. During last year’s spring game, Manning saw action (and drove the crowd into a frenzy) but was behind a third-string offensive line that did him no favors. Sarkisian has praised Manning for having great practices this spring. Saturday will be a chance for him to perform in public behind a better offensive line.

Owens and Lourd have drawn their fair share of praise from Sarkisian this spring. Owens earned accolades from Sarkisian early in camp while Lourd was complimented for a 5-for-5 outing in a recent scrimmage. Texas would prefer not to need the third-stringer of walk-on fourth-stringer in a game this year, but it’s better to see what they can do in these situations than to not give them any reps at all.

Once Ewers hits the sidelines, play from Nos. 16, 15, and 19 are going to shape how fans might view the Orange-White Game.

Another note: Track how Sarkisian and the QBs handle the in-helmet radio. QBs might cup their hands over their ears at some juncture. That’s them making sure they can hear the play call.

Running back top to bottom

CJ Baxter and Jaydon Blue have put together notable camps, with Blue often drawing the most attention. The speedster has shown a versatile streak that may not have been evident while in high school, while maintaining his blazing speed. Baxter has made positive plays but there have also been some ball security mishaps. Those two are RB1 and RB2, maybe even RB1a and RB1b.

The rest of the room should have ample opportunity to show they’ve made strides in the spring.

Has Savion Red slimmed down? Will be worth watching.

What about Tre Wisner? He’s been the recipient of a lot of positive attention from Sarkisian and teammates. No. 26 should get some run with the starters this year, but how much remains to be seen.

And the true freshman? Both Christian Clark and Jerrick Gibson have immense physical talent. Have they adjusted to the college game quite yet?

Defensive tackles against the run

T’Vondre Sweat and Byron Murphy are awaiting phone calls from NFL teams ahead of next week’s draft. That means the Longhorns are without two menacing defensive tackles from the nation’s No. 3 run defense in 2023.

Alfred Collins and Vernon Broughton are the heirs apparent at defensive tackle, but what about other players further down the depth chart like Aaron Bryant, Tiaoalii Savea, Sydir Mitchell, and even Alex January? How are they against the run?

Texas had one of the best third down defenses last year because early down runs by opponents rarely were successful, and teams struggled to pick up 3rd and 8s. Texas might not have a first-rounder and an Outland Trophy winner this year, but they do have quality options that will need to prove themselves against the run.

Related to this section: Texas is scheduled to host several defensive tackles from the transfer portal this weekend. What you see might not be what you get when the first defense hits the field this fall should those portalers decide to become Longhorns.

Anthony Hill in a new role

Jaylan Ford is off to the NFL and Anthony Hill has moved into the Mike linebacker spot as a result.

Mike has different responsibilities than the Will spot Hill played for most of last season, responsibilities that include a lot more pass coverage. That’s been a bit of a learning curve that Hill has had to handle considering his best attributes are made apparent when he’s a violent, downhill player.

Hill will need to maintain that violent athleticism but also show that the quality pass coverage Ford provided the Longhorns for the past couple of seasons will still be there with No. 0 patrolling the middle.

Another thing to note: Does Hill have the in-helmet communication device? Or does another Longhorn defender?

Freshmen!

Texas has 18 early-enrollee freshmen on the roster right now, something that’s given Sarkisian and his staff the ability to “two-spot.” That means the same drill is happening on both sides of the field with enough bodies at each station for 1s through 4s to get reps and coaching.

A lot of those 3s and 4s are true freshmen, but there are some that have already made impacts this spring and could do the same in the fall.

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Inside Texas readers are most excited to see Colin Simmons and Ryan Wingo on Campbell-Williams Field this Saturday, but a number of freshmen like Clark, Gibson, Wardell Mack, and Brandon Baker could make nice introductions to Texas fans today.