On Texas Football: Projecting the Longhorns’ depth chart for Week 1
On the latest video edition of On Texas Football’s Sunday Conversation, Inside Texas’ Bobby Burton, Gerry Hamilton and Ian Boyd discuss the pending release of the Longhorn’ first official depth chart of the season in advance of the opener against Rice on Saturday.
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“We expect Steve Sarkisian and the staff to announce the depth chart on Monday,” Burton said. “They may hold it a day to Tuesday. We’re not quite sure. Sark has done it a couple of different ways the last two years.”
Both Hamilton and Boyd said they expect redshirt freshman Maalik Murphy to be listed as the No. 2 quarterback behind starter Quinn Ewers and not prized true freshman Arch Manning.
“That makes sense to me,” Hamilton said. “I think having Maalik at No. 2 right now takes away a lot of national talk. If Arch Manning was sitting there at No. 2 behind Ewers what would be the focus of the depth chart? It’d be ‘oh, Arch Manning’s already making a move – Quinn Ewers better play really well. That’s not what Texas wants right now. So I think having Maalik is the No. 2 and Arch at No. 3 is very smart.”
Boyd concurs.
“For political reasons it just doesn’t behoove Texas to put a spotlight on Arch emerging right now,” he explained. “That just creates all kinds of drama and storylines that are distracting to the team and really pretty irrelevant right now.
“I think Texas would like to redshirt Arch and wait for that battle to really play out next year. Now if Quinn is hurt and misses some games, then I think it’s definitely an ‘or’ situation and then we really see what’s up. But until then. I don’t think so.”
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The starting running back is expected to go to Jonathon Brooks after he produced an excellent, if workmanlike, preseason camp. Keilan Robinson and true freshman CJ Baxter will also get a lot of playing time.
The Longhorns’ wide receiver group is thought to be the most talented on the team, with Xavier Worthy, Jordan Whittington and Adonai Mitchell the starters. Boyd said he was surprised that Isaiah Neyor could be listed as the backup to Worthy and not Mitchell.
“I think that’s kind of interesting because it seems like Neyor and Mitchell would have the overlapping skill sets and that’s where they would fit,” Boyd opined. “But they have Casey Cain behind Mitchell and Johntay Cook also backing up Worthy at the X.”
Ja’Tavion Sanders will be the starting tight end. The change in the offensive line – in which all five starters return last year – is expected to be the elevation of D.J. Campbell to right guard and Cole Hutson acting as a backup at that position and center.
Go check out the video for the trio’s thoughts on the offensive line and the Texas defense.
