2024 Spring Football Preview | Offense

Officially eight days away from the beginning of spring football here in Austin. Our Gerry Hamilton has repeatedly echoed the sentiment that this spring season will be the most anticipated in Texas history and there is very little reason for me to not agree at the moment.

Today, we will start with the offensive side of the ball when it comes to previewing spring football.

One sentence summary of the offense: There are plenty of new toys around Quinn Ewers who returns for year three behind loaded, veteran offensive line.

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Quarterback

Quinn Ewers is headed back up the weight roller coaster after a strong winter in the weight room. He returns to Texas for year three in the system and will enter the upcoming season as one of the favorites for the Heisman trophy. For Quinn this fall, the key for me is to hear about his total control of the offense. Take true leadership of the new faces at the WR spot and continue the path of development.

As for Arch Manning, this will be the most we will get to see from the former five-star prospect in a Texas uniform. Manning will no longer have to wait for third team reps as we saw his freshman season. I am fully of the belief Manning would be able to succeed in the Texas offense should he be asked to this season. Should be another opportunity for development this offseason.

Last Note: I have been told several times this offseason Ewers' command/leadership of the team has improved significantly since the conclusion of the season.

Running Back

There is no hiding the talent in this Texas RB room – something we have said for several years now. CJ Baxter and Jaydon Blue are expected to be the 1–2 punch though it is going to be very interesting to see how the rest of the room falls in place. What role does Savion Red carve out at 240 pounds? Can Tre Wisner increase some of his share in the room as well?  Plus, what happen with the two freshmen and do they create some noise this spring. Regardless, a very fun room to look at and plenty of big time talent.

Last Note: The path for any of the backup RBs to carve out a role for themselves heading into the spring is to become a plus in pass protection. That is the biggest weakness in this room.

Wide Receiver

The talk of the offseason has been surrounding the portal additions of Matthew Golden, Isaiah Bond and Silas Bolden. While only Bond and Golden will be on campus for the spring season, this room is going to have plenty of competition in what was expected to be a wide open target share. Johntay Cook is the leading incumbent from the 2023 team and is one guy I have penciled into the starting 11 at the moment. 

Of the early enrollees, there has been plenty of praise in direction of Ryan Wingo and should he get up to speed with the playbook and situational football in the spring, you can expect to see the new No. 5 on the field in the fall. One other Texas wide receiver I am keeping a close eye on is DeAndre Moore who will be entering his second year in the program.

Matthew Golden was still receiving treatment on his foot as recently as the end of last week.

Last Note: The speed in this room is going to be noticeable from the get-go. Question is now, which of these receivers will play unselfishly without the ball, something Texas has asked their WRs to do a lot under Sarkisian.

Tight End

You can expect to see Gunnar Helm as the first tight end used this spring. That goes for a number of reasons, but mostly the familiarity with the system. Helm has had a strong offseason and is up to 250 pounds currently. What is going to be very fun is the combination of Helm and Amari Niblack on the field together. There is an ideal balance of talent and skillsets between the two which will pose as a challenge for seemingly every defensive coordinator Texas faces this upcoming fall – first it will be Pete Kwiatkowski during the spring.

Juan Davis is the slimmest of the bunch which gives me pause for a possible increase in his snaps this spring. Whereas, this will be a big spring in the development of Spencer Shannon.

Niblack too was in a boot earlier this winter, though the belief is he will be good to go for the beginning of spring. 

Last Note: Nice complementary aspect with this unit here. Question turns to if there will be too much a tipped hand with personnel usage.

Offensive Line

The makeup of this offensive line is ideal for not only Quinn Ewers, but for Steve Sarkisian as his program enters the SEC. With four of five returning, there is plenty of familiarity and talent with this bunch. It should not be out of the range of possibility to see this unit in the Joe Moore Award finalist group next fall. Though for the spring, the question turns to which of the guys in the 2nd group challenge for a starting spot.

Texas has plenty of depth here at the moment. With guys like Cole Hutson and Neto Umeozulu eager to get into the starting five, what movement do we see on the interior? Will there be true movement from Hayden Conner to right tackle to push Cam Williams? What about Brandon Baker or Trevor Goosby? So many options and possibilities here.

Kelvin Banks is up to 325 pounds and DJ Campbell is coming down a bit in his own right. 

Last Note: On paper, this is the best Texas offensive line in the past 15 years. Should be a very strong spring season.