Texas Football: 3 struggling players who must be benched

Denzel Okafor, OG

Two of the most experienced offensive linemen, in terms of total reps and number of years of experience, are also two of the least effective blockers through four games. One of those is senior offensive tackle Christian Jones, and the other is senior offensive guard Denzel Okafor. But Okafor was the least effective among the duo of him and Jones at the outset of this season.

Jones and Okafor have both proven this fall that size and experience don’t necessarily lead to effective production along the offensive line. They are not only two of the lowest graded starting offensive linemen for Texas, but two of the lowest in the Big 12 so far.

The difference between Okafor making this list instead of Jones is the fact that it is more critical for Texas to plug this hole in the middle of the line. With sophomore center Jake Majors continuing to develop and improve, there is hope about how he can anchor the middle of this line. But Okafor won’t be around for much longer and Texas needs to find an answer to help develop the middle of the line.

There are two good options that Texas can roll with at left guard instead of Okafor. Freshman offensive guard Hayden Conner has played well in limited snaps in the last two seasons. He would be the long-term solution here.

But Texas could also go with senior offensive guard Tope Imade in place of Okafor at left guard. Imade and Okafor both got reps at guard in the last two seasons. Each of these two seasons, Imade graded out higher than Okafor playing in the same spot on the line.

Imade would be the more experienced option to go with over Conner. If Texas were to seek out a change at the left guard position, at least offensive line coach/offensive coordinator Kyle Flood would have some options to choose from.