Five Questions Texas Must Answer Going into Fall Practice
Nov 28, 2013; Austin, TX, USA; Texas Longhorns quarterback David Ash (r) talks with offensive coordinator Major Applewhite (l) prior to the game against the Texas Tech Red Raiders at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brendan Maloney-USA TODAY Sports
1. How stable is the quarterback position?
It would be unfair to say a successful year rests solely on the shoulders of Ash. However, he will play an integral part. Unfortunately, a series of concussions have left fans wondering what to expect from the senior signal caller.
When he is on the field, Ash is a good, but not great quarterback. He has the arm to stretch the field. He does a good job of scrambling when he sees the opening. Fans could see him progressing each season.Those are the positives.
His downfall, other than the injuries, is that he is a quiet leader. He plays a position that often requires the player to be charismatic. Ash leads by example. You won’t see him pacing the sideline getting players fired up. He doesn’t have the ‘it’ factor Vince Young and Colt McCoy had. How many key drives did these two quarterbacks engineer during their careers at Texas? Ash isn’t that kind of player. It’s not a knock on the guy; he is just wired differently.
The reality is Texas fans should be more worried if Ash can take a hit rather than can he rally the troops. His concussion symptoms last season were troubling. The scary consequences of concussions is the uncertainty. Every time he is sacked or hits the ground, fans will wait with baited breath to see if he pops back up.
What if Ash does go down? Perhaps the only thing more unsettling than Ash’s health is the back up position. Tyrone Swoopes didn’t exactly set the world on fire in the spring game. Can he sway the doubters with a strong fall practice? Swoopes is a gifted athlete, but quarterback may not be the best position for him.
What then? Freshman Jerrod Heard has earned accolades for his ability to learn a new offense quickly. He has the fall practice to impress the coaches and leap-frog Swoopes for the number two job. Schools have started true freshmen before. Strong did it at Louisville, bringing in Teddy Bridgewater after the starter went down with an injury in the second week of the season. Bridgewater started every game after that. Even if Heard can come in and run the offense, it says a lot about the state of the program if a true freshman has to lead the team.
It has been a long wait for fans who want to get the taste of last season out of their mouth. In less than 30 days we will see what type of team Strong has assembled, and if it can answer these five questions.