Texas Football: 3 breakout players stepping up late in bowl practice

Jaydon Blue, RB

We’ve talked a lot about the way that redshirt freshman running back Jonathon Brooks has stood out to his teammates and the coaching staff in bowl practice in the last few weeks. But there is another name to watch in this running back room that could make a big impression in the Alamo Bowl.

True freshman running back and former blue-chip recruit Jaydon Blue is someone that is waiting for his opportunity to make an impact in live-game action. Blue received limited reps throughout the regular season, getting 15 attempts for 33 rushing yards and no scores.

But the Alamo Bowl looks like the first opportunity where Blue could be a regular in the backfield rotation. And it sounds like Blue is really running with the opportunity to make a bigger impact in live-game action with the impressions he’s making on the staff of late in bowl practice. Blue is apparently thriving with the additional practice reps.

With Bijan and senior running back Roschon Johnson opting out of the Alamo Bowl, Blue will be in a backfield rotation that also includes Brooks and redshirt junior Keilan Robinson. How Brooks, Keilan, and Blue perform in the Alamo Bowl could also be telling of how the practice reps are divided up at running back in spring ball.

Blue has yet to receive more than seven carries in a game this season, which came in garbage time in the Nov. 19 win on the road over Kansas. Depending on the amount that Sark and the Longhorns are looking to run the ball on this Washington defense in the Alamo Bowl, this could be the first time that Blue comes nearly a double-digit number of touches outside of garbage time.