Texas Football: 3 biggest surprises of first two games of 2020 season

1) Biggest surprises for Texas football: Running back by committee efficiency

There are two parts to this part of the list of big surprises for the Longhorns so far this season. The first is the relative efficiency of using the running back by committee approach since there is so much depth at the positions. Junior Keaontay Ingram, sophomore Roschon Johnson, and true freshman Bijan Robinson have all been productive and/or efficient in their own right for the Longhorns this fall. And given the talent and versatility of all three, this trend should only continue from here on out.

But the problem with the successful and efficient running back by committee approach thus far is that recently hired offensive coordinator Mike Yurcich hasn’t relied on it all that much. Even when Texas owned a commanding lead over UTEP in the second half, Yurcich still relied fairly heavily on the passing game with Ehlinger and redshirt sophomore quarterback Casey Thompson.

Ingram has more than 130 rushing yards on less than 25 carries on the season so far. He’s averaging just shy of 6.5 yards per carry, but is without a single rushing or receiving touchdown. While Johnson is averaging roughly half the amount of yards per carry as Ingram, he’s efficient when Texas needs it most. He has 82 rushing yards on 24 carries, with two rushing touchdowns.

And then Robinson is the most interesting of the bunch. The nation’s top rated 2020 high school running back prospect is certainly the future of this Texas backfield. He has 70 total yards from scrimmage on 12 touches, with no touchdowns in the rushing or receiving game. Bijan also made headlines when he injured his back trying to hurdle a player in the win over Texas Tech.