Inside Texas Today: Jaden Hullaby's switch to RB, early returns on Ryan Watts
Welcome to Inside Texas Today! Every weekday, Inside Texas Today will provide the latest from around the Forty Acres. This morning, Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian’s explanation behind moving Jaden Hullaby to running back, plus some early returns from Longhorn players on Ohio State transfer Ryan Watts.
Here’s the Wednesday, April 6, 2022 edition.
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From linebacker to running back for Jaden Hullaby
In two seasons with the Texas Longhorns, sophomore Jaden Hullaby has appeared in two games, both during the 2020 season. He found himself down the depth chart at linebacker, so Longhorns head coach Steve Sarkisian decided to make a switch.
Hullaby practiced with Tashard Choice’s position group on Tuesday, working with Bijan Robinson, Roschon Johnson, and Keilan Robinson. He was the last back in the group’s pecking order, one spot behind Jonathon Brooks (Jaydon Blue was not an active participant during Tuesday’s media viewing session).
Hullaby played quarterback during his senior year for Mansfield (Texas) Timberview in 2019. He had 99 rushes for 695 yards and 11 touchdowns for the Wolves. Sarkisian said it’s a move made “for the interim,” but he and his staff are curious as to what the 6-foot-2, 237-pounder can offer with the ball in his hands.
“I want to see what that looks like,” Sarkisian said Tuesday. “He’s a big, physical athlete. In our system, the running back position is critical. If we can find another guy who’s built a little like Roschon that way, that can maybe develop into that role. We’ll see.”
Ryan Watts brings something different to the defensive backfield
One of the notable additions to the Texas roster via the transfer portal during the offseason was former Ohio State defensive back Ryan Watts.
Watts, who hails from Little Elm, Texas, played in all 12 regular season games with one start for Ohio State in 2021. Despite losing his starting job, he still was tied for the Buckeyes team lead in interceptions with two.
He entered the portal after the season and Texas earned his commitment just before Christmas. Now at Texas, his impressive 6-foot-3, 214-pound frame has already drawn the praise of teammates.
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“Ryan is a long, rangy, physical corner,” Xavier Worthy said on April 2. “All of our corners are different. We’ve got speed, we’ve got physical, we’ve got finesse corners. Ryan’s that long, physical, finesse corner, so he’s going to give you challenges every day. I feel like he’s just making the room even better.”
Said Jordan Whittington on March 31: “He’s different than what I’m used to seeing. He’s a big, long corner out there.”
Watts has worked during spring as a second string corner behind D’Shawn Jamison and Jahdae Barron, but when Barron slides inside to Star, Watts takes his spot at cornerback.
On Tuesday, Sarkisian was asked if Watts is his best cover corner. He hesitated to give him that title, but did say he offered a different skill set compared to other corners on the roster.
“He’s different because of the length,” Sarkisian said. “When he can press you and get his hands on you, it’s very different than (D’Shawn Jamison), who can play top down because of the speed and the change of direction. It’s all what style of player are you, then playing to your strengths as a player. I think that’s something we’ve tried to emphasize to those guys in the back end.”
Watts and former Buckeye commit Terrance Brooks have typically been the second string corners during the spring. While both are situated on the depth chart behind players who have a couple of seasons of experience in Austin, they’ve already worked their way up to rotational snaps thanks their own work using their physical gifts.
Texas viewing for 4/6
No. 19 softball – UT-Arlington – McCombs Field – Austin, Texas – 6 p.m. – Longhorn Network
