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Texas takes injury hit, but don’t expect the Longhorns to fold vs. Ohio State

Even after a major injury setback, Texas' depth and grit keeps them firmly in the fight heading into their heavyweight bout against Ohio State.
ByMatthew Wilson|
Jan 10, 2025; Arlington, TX, USA; Texas Longhorns running back Jaydon Blue (23) in action during the game between the Texas Longhorns and the Ohio State Buckeyes at AT&T Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images
Jan 10, 2025; Arlington, TX, USA; Texas Longhorns running back Jaydon Blue (23) in action during the game between the Texas Longhorns and the Ohio State Buckeyes at AT&T Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images | Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

The Longhorns suffered an unfortunate setback at offensive tackle, as one of the team's top depth-level contributors tore his ACL on Monday.

Though Andre Cojoe's injury makes things more difficult at right tackle behind projected starter Brandon Baker, the starting unit is fully intact and ready to dominate in the trenches against the Buckeyes on August 30th.

The Texas coaching staff highly regards 6'7", 350-pound True freshman offensive tackle Nick Brooks, and it sounds like they're comfortable relying on him and possibly Jaydon Chatman as the second-team tackles in case of emergency. Brooks already has excellent length and movement skills for a true freshman, and his footwork makes it seem like he's lighter than 350 pounds in person.

He's been with the team practicing and learning since the spring, which is most likely why he appears to be pretty far ahead of where he should be in terms of being a first-year player.

The national media has openly said multiple times throughout the offseason that they're "worried" about the Longhorns' offensive line this season, mostly because they have to replace four starters from 2024. This is true but Co-OC and OL coach Kyle Flood feels good about Trevor Goosby, Neto Omeozulu, Cole Hutson, and Brandon Baker filling in around D.J. Campbell at right guard, who also happens to be on the 2025 Outland Trophy watch list. There have even been rumblings that Connor Robertson has had such a good camp that he could make a run for the starting center job.

It's not like these "new" players are being thrown into the fire either. All of the new starters have seen a decent amount of regular-season game action against legitimate competition over the past year or two.

If all goes according to plan, the Longhorns' offensive line could end up being a lot better than some think in 2025. Their first real test comes on August 30th, when they plan on getting revenge against Ohio State.

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