Blue & Gold Illustrated: 2012 Notre Dame Football Preview
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118 ✦ BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED 2016 FOOTBALL PREVIEW BY BRYAN DRISKELL Since going 101-16 (.863 winning percent- age) under former head coach Mack Brown from 2001-09, the Texas Longhorns have fallen on hard times. They have compiled a 41- 35 record (.539) over the past six seasons and are just 11-14 (.440) in two years under head coach Charlie Strong, who replaced Brown after the 2013 season. Strong needs a bounce-back season if he wants to keep his job. Questions abound, but Strong and his staff have reloaded the Texas roster the last two seasons. "The biggest positive stemming from these past two years is Strong has assembled back- to-back great recruiting classes," said Anwar Richardson, a columnist for OrangeBloods. com. "That's the good news for Texas. The bad news is most of his program's best players are freshmen and sophomores, which means this could be another growing year." Poor quarterback play and sloppy execution have doomed the Longhorns. Texas ranked 83rd in scoring offense (26.4 points per game) and 92nd in total offense (370.8 yards per game) last season. Strong overhauled the of- fensive staff after the 2015 season, with his primary move being the hiring of former Tulsa offensive coordinator Sterlin Gilbert. The struggles at quarterback could result in the Longhorns trotting out true freshman Shane Buechele, who enrolled early, against the Irish. "Buechele will play this season," Richard- son stated. "The big question is will he start against Notre Dame? Gilbert's new offense is supposed to be easy for players to understand. Buechele ran the same offense in high school. … He emerged into a leader in the offseason. His work ethic is unmatched. That being said, he is a true freshman." With questions at quarterback, expect Texas to ride its potent run game early in the season. Texas averaged 263 rushing yards per game in the final seven contests of last season. "Texas intends to rely on running backs D'Onta Foreman and Chris Warren III this season," Richardson noted. "Those guys are expected to carry the team's offense. Both are physical runners with speed." Texas also needs to play better defense in 2016, especially when it comes to slow- ing down the opposition's ground game. The Horns ranked 111th nationally in rushing defense, giving up 219.2 yards per game. A young and developing defensive line will be essential to improvements. "The defensive line did not play well last year, especially Texas' run defense," Rich- ardson said. "[Senior] Paul Boyette Jr. and [junior] Poona Ford were the team's top two defensive tackles during the spring. However, Texas signed five defensive tackles in last year's class, and all those guys are expected to be in the rotation." ✦ 2016 SCHEDULE Date Opponent 2015 Result Sept. 4 Notre Dame L, 38-3 Sept. 10 UTEP — Sept. 17 at California L, 45-44 Oct. 1 at Oklahoma State L, 30-27 Oct. 8 vs. Oklahoma* W, 24-17 Oct. 15 Iowa State L, 24-0 Oct. 22 at Kansas State W, 23-9 Oct. 29 Baylor W, 23-17 Nov. 5 at Texas Tech L, 48-45 Nov. 12 West Virginia L, 38-20 Nov. 19 at Kansas W, 59-20 Nov. 25 TCU L, 50-7 * at Dallas QUICK FACTS All-Time Series: Notre Dame leads 9-2 Last Meeting: Notre Dame 38, Texas 3 (Sept. 5, 2015; South Bend) Head Coach: Charlie Strong, 11-14 (3rd year) and 48- 29 overall (7th year) 2015 Results: 5-7 overall, 4-5 Big 12 (T-5th) Returning Starters: 12 (6 offense, 6 defense) 2016 Preseason Rankings: No. 24 by Sporting News, Phil Steele's and ESPN's Football Power Index, No. 34 by CollegeFootballNews.com, No. 40 by Lindy's and No. 43 by Athlon Did You Know?: Seven different active Notre Dame players hail from Texas, including wide receiver Torii Hunter Jr., tight end Durham Smythe and cornerback Nick Watkins … Strong served as an assistant coach at Notre Dame from 1995-98 … The Irish are 4-0 all time at Austin, Texas, with the last win coming by a 27-24 score in 1996. Prediction: Notre Dame 30, Texas 23 STRENGTH: Linebackers The Longhorns will be without the graduated Peter Jinkens, the team's leader in tackles (75), tackles for loss (9.5) and sacks (6.5) last season. Despite his absence, the linebacker position is loaded. Sophomore Malik Jefferson will remind many of for- mer Notre Dame All-American Jaylon Smith. Jefferson finished second on the team with 61 tackles and had a team-leading six quarterback hurries despite making just nine starts. Jefferson was a five-star recruit with star potential, and odds are strong for a breakout season. Fellow sophomore Anthony Wheeler made two starts last season and saw his role get expanded down the stretch. He made 14 stops in the final two games of the season and is poised to start alongside Jefferson. The combination of Jefferson and Wheeler gives the Texas coaches a pair of athletic and rangy young linebackers that can be major weapons as blitzers. Senior Timothy Cole made three starts last season, and the former four-star recruit contributed 27 tackles. Sophomore Edwin Freeman is another former four-star prospect that returns to the lineup and will be poised to add production as a backup. Four-star freshman DeMarco Boyd went through spring practice already, and he will be joined in the fall by five-star freshman Erick Fowler and four-star stand - out Jeffery McCulloch. WEAKNESS: Quarterback Quarterback has been an issue for the Longhorns for several years now. Last fall, Texas ranked 92nd nationally in passing efficiency (120.55 rating), which was actu- ally an improvement over the two previous seasons in which they ranked 96th and 95th. Both Tyrone Swoopes and Jerod Heard received starts last season, and both struggled to beat teams with their arm. The pair combined for 1,007 yards and 15 touchdowns on the ground, but their passing produc- tion was abysmal. Heard threw as many picks as he did touchdowns (five), and Swoopes barely completed half of his pass attempts (50.5 percent). On the season, Texas passed for just 145.9 yards per game, completed 55.2 percent of its attempts and threw just nine touchdowns with six interceptions. New offensive coordinator Sterlin Gilbert must get dramatically improved quarterback play. He came from Tulsa, where the Golden Hurricane finished 13th nation- ally with 4,332 yards through the air and 10th in yards per completion (14.2). The inability of the returners to move the chains with their arms — coupled with Heard missing time in the spring due to the injury — has opened the door for true freshman Shane Buechele, a spring standout. Buechele is a better fit for Gilbert's offense, but starting a true freshman is rarely, if ever, an ideal situation, especially during a rebuilding process. TEXAS LONGHORNS SEPT. 4 • ROYAL-TEXAS MEMORIAL STADIUM • AUSTIN, TEXAS RETURNING LEADERS Rushing: RB D'Onta Foreman (681 yards, 5 TD) Passing: QB Jerrod Heard (1,214 yards, 5 TD) Receiving: WR John Burt (457 yards, 2 TD) Tackles: LB Malik Jefferson (61) Sacks: DE Naashon Hughes (5.5) Interceptions: S Jason Hall and S DeShon Elliott (2) X-FACTOR: Sophomore wide receiver John Burt was the lone bright spot in the struggling 0Texas pass offense last season, notching a team-best 457 re- ceiving yards. PHOTO COURTESY TEXAS