Lam Dinh

Offense (2 deep) QB - Arch Manning (KJ Lacy) RB - CJ Baxter OR Tre Wisner WR - Emmett Mosley OR Ryan Wingo WR - Parker Livingstone (Kaliq Lockett OR Jamie Ffrench) WR - DeAndre Moore Jr (Daylon McCutcheon OR Jermaine Bishop) TE - Jack Endries (Nick Townsend) LT - Trevor Goosby (Nick Brooks) LG - Conner Stroh OR Neto??? C - Conner Robertson (Daniel Cruz) RG - Nate Kibble OR ??? RT - Brandon Baker (Andre Cojoe) Biggest Holes: LG, RG, and RB. We don’t have 1 starting caliber Guard on the team going into next year and we yet have 2 open starting spots (gulp). I think we need a bruising RB from the portal who has no injury history. The rest of the offense is going to better in 2026 with an extra year of experience. Defense (2 deep) DE - Colin Simmons (Colton Vasek OR Smith Orogpo OR Richard Wesley) DT - Alex January (Maraad Watson) DT - Hero Kanu (Lavon Johnson/Justus Terry) DE - Lance Jackson (Zina Umeozulu) LB - Tyanthony Smith (Leona Lefau) LB - Brad Spence (Bo Barnes) CB - Graceson Littleton (Warren Roberson) CB - Kade Phillips (Kobe Black) Star - Wardell Mack (Smoke Matthews) S - Derek Williams (Jonah Williams) S - Xavier Filsaime (Jordan Johnson Rubbell) Biggest Holes: CB and Safety. We need at least 1 starting level CB, maybe even 2. We also need 1 starting level safety, I don’t trust Filsaime. My Top 5 Transfer Portal Christmas List (from teams who have fired their coaches) 1. Roderick Kearney OG - Florida (started several games as SO this year, has NFL potential) 2. Ashton Stamps CB - LSU (12 PBUs in 2024) 3. Caden Durham RB - LSU (our new Jaydon Blue) 4. P4/G5 starting level OG 5. P4 starting quality Safety Who do you guys want most from the portal that isn’t going to completely break the bank?

What if I told you Lane Kiffin has a 54-19 record at Ole Miss (6 seasons) while Sark has a 45-20 record at Texas (5 seasons). I would have never guessed Lane would have fewer losses than Sark, despite coaching for 1 season longer, playing in the SEC the whole time, and having the resources of Ole Miss vs. the resources at Texas. I've never been a Lane fan, and I think we got the better former USC OC, but the records are much closer and revealing than you think...

No, that was 2018 national title (Kirby’s third year) with Tua coming it at halftime for the heroics.

Kirby in his first 5 years as HC at Georgia: 52-14, 1 Conference Title, 0 National Titles Sark in his first 5 years as HC at Texas: 45-20, 1 Conference Title, 0 National Titles. While Kirby did have more success, both him and Sark only won 1 conference title and 0 National Titles during their first 5 years. The hope is that Sark can replicate what Kirby has done in the last 5 years as Georgia HC: 62-6, 5 Top 10 finishes (as of 11/16), 2 Conference Titles (still chance for 3rd), 2 National Titles (still chance for 3rd). Kirby is the best HC in CFB: 9-0 against Top 10 teams at home in Athens all time. Sark needs to shut him up on the field if he wants to shut him up off it.

Why wasn’t our real WR1 on the field on a trip formation. Mosely is the real WR1 on this team.

Agreed. I think Sark has been trying to force the issue and keep Wingo at WR1 based on his potential, but a WR1 needs to be the most consistent/reliable receiver - which Wingo is not yet.

I re-watched the Mississippi State game last night with a focus on the wide receivers — and a few things became very clear. 1. Emmett Mosley V should be our WR1. He deserves the most targets moving forward. Mosley is our best route runner, has the strongest hands, and shows the best body control and catch radius of the group. Yes, we all saw that incredible toe-tap catch in overtime — but what impressed me just as much was how he drew two defensive pass interference calls on a key 4th-quarter drive. That came against the same Mississippi State corner that Ryan Wingo struggled to separate from all night on anything that wasn’t a screen or scramble drill. Those DPIs came from winning with his excellent route running, not just sheer power or speed. True WR1s win with precision route running and consistency — just look at Xavier Worthy or Matthew Golden. We've had too many stalled drives happen on dropped balls and poor routes - Arch needs his receivers to be in the right place at the right time. 2. Parker Livingstone should be WR2. Other than the tipped interception he let go through his hands, Parker's been reliable all season — strong body control, dependable hands, and excellent timing with Arch. He routinely converts key first downs and brings a steady presence to the offense (and is a red zone threat with his 6'4 frame). That chemistry with Arch needs to be leveraged more — reliability matters as much as explosiveness. Kudos to @CJ Vogel for being high on Parker from early on! 3. Ryan Wingo is a big-play machine, but not a WR1 (yet). His 184 receiving yards were impressive on paper, but felt like empty calories because they mostly came from three plays: two WR screens and one scramble-drill bomb. Those were explosive plays, but not sustainable. Consistent separation, crisp routes, and chain-moving catches are. Wingo's big plays don't require precision route running and separation in the 10-15 yard route area, which are what a WR1 has to be able to do. We should use Wingo as the third option — a spark plug for explosive plays — not as the primary target. Let him thrive in that role, just like he did last year. What Should be the Texas WR Pecking Order 1. Emmett Mosley V 2. Parker Livingstone 3. Deandre Moore / Ryan Wingo Hook 'em!

We’re halfway through the college football season, and the biggest surprise in the SEC might just be the quarterbacks. Takeaways 1) Preseason All-SEC QBs have underwhelmed. The preseason All-SEC QBs were Garrett Nussmeier (1st Team), LaNorris Sellers (2nd Team), and DJ Lagway (3rd Team). None of them have hit double-digit passing touchdowns through the first half of the year. Their collective QB rating hovers around 135, which is below the SEC average for starting quarterbacks. 2) Jackson Arnold is still Jackson Arnold at Auburn (and OU still sucks). Jackson Arnold has been sacked 21 times—twice as many as Arch Manning (10 sacks), and that’s saying something given our own O-line’s struggles. The issue isn’t just protection; his slow processing has been obvious since his first snaps at OU. I never understood the hype. 3) Biggest Surprises: Ty Simpson and Joey Aguilar. Alabama’s Ty Simpson (16 TDs, 1 INT) and Tennessee’s Joey Aguilar (14 TDs, 5 INT) have been revelations. I didn’t have either name on my preseason Bingo card, but both deserve credit for steadying their programs after losing last year’s starters. Honorable Mention: Trinidad Chambliss (Ole Miss). Hook 'em!

@Gerry Hamilton - What's the football equivalent for what Shohei is doing? I might liken it to a QB throwing for 500 yards and also playing DE and getting 3 sacks/6 TFLs in a game? No offense to Travis Hunter, but WR/DB is no way near as hard as Starting Line pitcher and Top line hitter in baseball.

I completely agree on Jake Majors. He was a much bigger loss as a leader/communicator/blocker/player than most people gave him credit for.

If John Mills was our starting LG and Michael Fasusi was starting at RT, I think our line would then at least match the 3 NFL drafted linemen of 2024 (Banks, Williams, Conner). I'm not sure we have an NFL draft pick on the O-Line outside of Trevor Goosby (unless Nick Brooks develops much quicker).

I wrote this as a diehard Longhorn fan just trying to understand what’s really behind our offensive line struggles — not to pile on with lazy “we suck” takes. This isn’t about blame; it’s about figuring out why the line looks so different this year and what can actually be done to fix it. I’m not an expert — just a fan who wants to start an honest discussion so we can all better understand the root causes (and maybe sleep a little easier before the OU game). And if Big Tony Hills or @Jeff Howe are out there — the true Offensive Line experts over at OTF — I’d love to hear your takes. You guys know this stuff infinitely better than I do (hint hint: keep the great content coming 🙂). 1. Offensive Line Execution Last year, Texas’ offensive line was a strength — ranking roughly 28th nationally in pressure rate allowed (~25.5% of dropbacks). That group even earned Joe Moore Award semifinalist honors. This year? A complete collapse. Texas now ranks 128th in pressure rate allowed, giving up pressure on over 40% of dropbacks (CBS Sports / ESPN). That’s a 100-spot swing. We replaced four of five starters, and it shows: five false starts vs. Florida, blown pickups, and almost no consistent run push. Possible Fix: Left Guard (Stroh) and Center (Hutson) are the weakest links right now. I’d try either Hutson at LG (where he was serviceable in 2024) and Conner Robertson at C, or continue letting Nick Brooks develop at LG (with 2026 in mind) while giving Robertson a shot at Center (since he gets more push IMO). 2. Quarterback Time-to-Throw (and Scheme Design) In the Florida game, Arch averaged 3.5 seconds before releasing the ball — roughly a full second longer than Quinn Ewers’ 2.58s average last year (PFF / CBS). That extra second is everything. It’s the difference between a tackle maintaining leverage and giving up a sack. But it’s not purely on Arch. Sark has clearly emphasized more vertical routes and deeper progressions this year, which naturally extend the play clock. So it’s likely a mix: a scheme built for deep shots plus a quarterback hunting them too often. Possible Fix: Speed up the reads. Call more quick-game and one-read concepts. Mix in rollouts, including Arch's favorite roll right waggle play. Let Arch build rhythm before chasing chunk plays, just like Quinn did last year. 3. Recruiting & Depth Misses This problem started years ago. Texas has missed on nearly all the Top offensive lineman recruits after the 2022 class. Some examples: John Mills (now Washington’s starting left guard) and Michael Fasusi (now OU's starting LT). The result: thin depth, raw backups, and too much hope in youth. But it’s not just about who we missed — it’s about how we evaluate. As Gerry Hamilton pointed out on the defensive side of the ball, Byron Murphy was a 3-star, undersized recruit who became a first-round NFL pick. The current staff probably wouldn’t have recruited him based on measurables alone. That’s the lesson. Texas doesn’t need more so-called “Big Humans” — we need "TOUGH humans". Guys with a mean streak, an edge, a dog in them. Linemen who finish blocks, not just measure well in spring. Until Texas recruits to that identity relentlessly — we’ll keep ending up with size without bite. Possible Fix: There’s no real in-season fix for this one. Texas needs to hit the portal hard this winter for veteran linemen who can anchor the group right away, and rethink its high school recruiting philosophy — prioritizing tough humans, not just big humans. Hook 'em!

Biggest Disappointments on Offense and What to Change Now 1. The Offensive Line: We talked about the O-Line in pre-season as if we wouldn't miss a beat from having to replace 4 out of 5 starters from a Top 5 O-Line in the country. That was extremely naive in retrospect. This O-line could end up being very good in 2026 or 2027, but this 2025 iteration is simply not good enough. Change Needed: 1) Start Nick Brooks at LG going forward so we can at least prepare him for 2026. Stroh and Neto are already in year 4 and have had multiple chances, and they clearly do not meet the bar. 2) Start Conner Robertson or Daniel Cruz at Center. Cole Hutson is already in year 4 and he is who he is - a liability at Center and a serviceable backup at Guard. 2. The Offensive Skill Positions: We need more playmakers on the field, and should roll the dice with more talented young players rather than older more "reliable" players. Change Needed: 1) Stop playing Ryan Niblett (at WR, RB, or punt returner). He goes down too easily on first contact, has no wiggle/bounce, and has track speed but not football speed...enough already with his high snap counts. Replace him with Jonah Williams on PR, and give Daylon McCutcheon his snaps at WR. 2) James Simon and Jerrick Gibson need to play ahead of Christian Clark (and even take some load off of Tre Wisner). We need RBs who run violently, make one cut, and go upfield and lean on people for 3-4 yards. This is even more important because our OL doesn't maul people - so we need RBs who can do more of the mauling and give us an identity on the ground. Let's let the young bucks get more run.

I’ve been thinking the same thing. I think Robertson gets more push than Cole in short yardage, and I still think Stroh gets beat off the snap way too easily for guys who do not have elite BGO (i.e. Sam Houston, UTEP). I’m also wondering if maybe Conner Robertson and Neto at LG is an even better combo. I get that Hutson has been a vocal leader on the team, but he has usually graded out very poorly in PFF, even going back to when he started some games as a true freshman.

We’re gonna be fine but we also don’t have the red zone receivers with the same wiggle/separation as Bond and Golden last year. We got bigger bodies but they don’t get separation in close quarters.