Texas Football: 5 freshmen who should be vying for early playing time

Was there going to be anyone else that we placed at the top of this list among Texas football true freshmen for the coming regular season? First-year former five-star wide receiver recruit Jordan Whittington was moved to running back in spring camp, and that looks to be a great move from the coaching staff now.

Since Jake Smith could be taking the reigns among this freshman class in the receiving corps, Whittington was able to move to running back to bolster the depth out of the backfield. At 6-foot-1 and 205 pounds, Whittington has the body type to be an explosive and versatile weapon out of the Texas backfield.

An injury to redshirt senior running back Kirk Johnson that could hold him out of a good portion of the non-conference schedule means that there could be even more reps for Whittington early on. It’s almost expected for Whittington have a breakthrough first-year on the Forty Acres by now. Tame the expectations, but know what he can do with this offense.

The Longhorns could have the most explosive and appealing ground game tandem in the Big 12 by season’s end between Whittington and sophomore running back Keaontay Ingram. Knee trouble for Ingram in fall camp could mean a slower start for him during the Louisiana Tech game. We could see a breakthrough from Whittington right away.