Texas Football: 3 players who must step up after Whittington injury

3) Texas football WR’s to step up in Whittington’s absence: Brenden Schooler

The former Oregon Ducks and Arizona Wildcats grad transfer and senior wide receiver Brenden Schooler had a very solid debut for the Longhorns in the 56-point dismantling of the Miners over the weekend. He registered a career-best 65 receiving yards on two catches, one of which he took for a touchdown.

Not only was Schooler was one of the leading three or four receivers for the Longhorns in their season opening win, he also was one of the better blockers of any in the receiving corps. Schooler did grade out as one of the best skill position run blockers in this game on the Texas side. That bodes well for the overall versatility and value that he’ll bring to the table in his one year on the Forty Acres.

To add more to the positive notes that Schooler came away with in Week 1, he registered more than 50 yards after the catch and made two defenders miss tackles in the open field. There was a drop that you can add in for Schooler, but that was about the only blemish he had on his resume in his Longhorns debut.

The 6-foot-2 and 200 pound fifth-year senior Schooler is likely to fill in at either the Z or the X-wide receiver slot, depending on how many wideouts offensive coordinator Mike Yurcich has on the field in one play. The overall utility and multiplicity that Schooler brings this fall is going to be his biggest value to Texas.