AUSTIN – Collin Johnson, Texas’ senior wide receiver, was asked about fellow senior Devan Duvernay’s transition to playing inside receiver. Duvernay had a career-high nine receptions in the opener.
“Not surprised at all how he’s adjusted,” Johnson said Tuesday. “He’s a natural slot receiver. He could play running back if we needed him.”
Uh, Collin … that’s a nice compliment for a teammate, but given the fact the UT running back room should hold its meetings in an ICU, suggesting carrying the rock is casting a curse.
A few minutes later, Duvernay said he would do “whatever it takes” to help the team win and said the last time he played running back was as a freshman in high school. So, Devan, are you an emergency running back?
“No, not that I know of,” he said with a smile.
The Longhorns are well beyond “in case of emergency, break glass” in their backfield.
Before the season opener, inexperience and a lack of depth at running back was a high level of concern for Texas coach Tom Herman. With No. 6 ranked LSU and ESPN’s College GameDay coming to town for a prime-time mega game, the ninth-ranked Longhorns are as exposed at a key position as minister of culture Matthew McConaughey playing the bongos.
This week’s medical update involved freshman Jordan Whittington, who in Saturday’s opener reinjured a sports hernia issue that required surgery after his high school season. He’ll undergo the knife again and could return in mid-October. That leaves sophomore Keaontay Ingram, a 6-foot, 220-pound sophomore with 153 career carries, as UT’s only scholarship true running back.
Kirk Bohls, the veteran columnist of the Austin American-Statesman, said that in his 50 years of experience following Texas, he’s never known the team to be down to one true running back. Herman isn’t surprised at the historical calamity.
“This is mind-boggling,” he said Monday.
He then said that he had written down the projected running back roster. Our running back room was supposed to look like this: Ingram, Whittington, (Kirk) Johnson, (Daniel) Young, and (Derrian) Brown.
Johnson (shoulder) and Young (ankle) were injured in August. Brown, a freshman, underwent surgery after a stroke and blood clot in his brain; he’ll likely redshirt. Plus, recruited walk-on Jarrett Smith has been out with an injury.
Freshman Roschon Johnson, recruited as a quarterback but switching to running back two weeks ago, is now Ingram’s backup. Freshman David Gbenda was moved from linebacker to running back. Freshman Jake Smith, Duvernay’s backup at slot receiver, could play running back, but Herman said that because Smith is also returning kicks, adding to his playbook responsibilities is not ideal.
“I can’t even imagine making a position switch like that,” Ingram said of Johnson and Gbenda. “They’re handling it well, but I think their heads are spinning some. But they’re handling it like young men. It’s not easy. I’ve been here a year and it’s still not easy for me.”
Quarterback Sam Ehlinger says he doesn’t always note who’s lined up with him in the backfield.
“Saturday, I looked over and saw Roschon and it was like, ‘What’s up, bro?’” Ehlinger said. “It’s weird, we were just sitting in the same (position) room a couple of weeks ago. I think Roschon has transitioned well. Some guys would say, ‘This isn’t what I came here to play,’ but he’s been completely selfless.”
Ehlinger had just seven carries and one called running play in the opener. In last season’s most significant victories, Ehlinger had 19 carries against Oklahoma and 21 against Georgia in the Sugar Bowl. He said he’d love to throw it 50 times against LSU and that if so the Longhorns would have to “win in the secondary.”
“We come to Texas to play the best. You always look forward to these kinds of games,” Johnson said. “The passing game needs to be on point.”
The challenges facing Texas are many. LSU, after years of wandering in the wilderness searching for a quarterback, has a capable one. Joe Burrow, who transferred to LSU from Ohio State before last season, opened his second season in Baton Rouge by equaling the single-game passing touchdown record (five) and setting the two-game school record (nine); he had four TDs in the Tigers’ Fiesta Bowl victory.
First-year passing game coordinator Joe Brady has updated LSU’s playbook. The Tigers are huddling less and playing at a faster pace. Burrow, who was recruited to Ohio State by Herman when he was offensive coordinator for the Buckeyes, is making quicker reads and throws.
“We’ve definitely come out of the Stone Age,” he said. (Observers of LSU’s recent offensive doldrums might say that’s one of the truer statements ever made.)
In some ways, LSU’s revamped offense might resemble a Big 12 offense. The Longhorns’ defense bottled up Louisiana Tech’s running game and the Bulldogs resorted to throwing 54 times after facing an early deficit. They finished with 340 yards passing against a UT defense breaking in eight new starters.
LSU’s defense didn’t face much of a challenge in the opener but still allowed Georgia Southern just 98 yards. Just know that the Tigers are a typical SEC defense – talented, speedy and large. The defensive front three average over 300 pounds. Phil Steele’s preview magazine picked LSU’s secondary as the nation’s best. It features two potential NFL first-round picks in Grant Delpit and Kristian Fulton. LSU’s DBs love man-to-man coverage with a “dare you to beat us” swagger.
“This will be as talented a defense as we have seen in our time here,” Herman said. “They’ve got NFL players at pretty much every position.”
That’s a stark contrast to the Longhorns’ running back situation.