Would it be CRAZY if Texas Won the SEC? | Sports Detective Podcast

welcome to this episode of the sports detective podcast show my name is James Williams and today we are talking Texas Longhorns football and I am joined by Gerald Goodridge who is the host of the longhorn Republic podcast covering all things Texas Longhorn Athletics and Gerald we uh we talked last year and we were a little bit cautiously optimistic about Texas we're thinking that they're going to have a good season but you know it was one of those things where we can't believe it won't believe it until we see it Texas goes 1211 uh in the regular season in the conference Championship makes the college football playoff a good step in the right direction for Sark and this team uh are you guys how are you feeling about entering the SEC year one how do you think Texas is going to Faire and you think maybe Texas even has the potential to run the SEC at least this year if you guys can uh you know maybe your biggest Contender is Georgia so so H how are you feeling this year about entering SEC year one yeah I I feel good I don't think running the SEC is probably not the right the way I would put it uh you know I do think Texas has done a lot of the requisite work to get ready for the SEC I think back to uh the last time Texas played uh I guess before this past year before the Alabama game in Tuscaloosa uh when they went to fville and just got absolutely run off the field because they were uh light on both sides of the ball and they just weren't ready to play Big Boy SEC football the offensive line was bad the defensive line was bad and got pushed around and that was like the top priority for for Sark and Kyle flood uh and then Bo Davis who moved on to LSU but that was their top priority coming in was getting the trenches SEC ready they call me old school call me old whatever I do have some gray in my beard now but like football especially in the SEC is still won and lost in the trenches and so that's the thing that really gives me um a good feeling about the year Texas returns for a five offensive lineman from a group last year that was really really good the one offensive lineman they are replacing was a kid who uh started in some spots last year when they had to shift some things around and a guy who honestly pushed for some some significant playing time last year on the defensive line like it's hard to ignore the fact that uh you've got two guys that were drafted in the first couple of rounds of the NFL draft that are no longer there uh and it seems like Texas is going for like a Moneyball approach to replacing them where last year you had Devon Dre sweat and Byron Murphy your two big guys now they've got like seven or so like older defensive lineman that they're just going to kind of rotate in there and try to keep a fresh body in constantly uh so those are like that's the thing that really uh makes me feel good but again uh run the SEC is probably not the right way but I do think Texas uh has a playoff caliber team I think Texas uh if they can put things together in the right way a Quinn ERS can continue to develop on his uh fundamentals and his ability to uh lead that offense and I think Texas has a pretty solid year ahe this is a year if you guys miss the playoff it's definitely going to be a big disappointment uh a little different than the four team playoff now that we have the 12 team playoff but still if I think if anything short of double digit wins is going to be a disappointment for you guys but we were talking about this last year and the reason that you were optimistic about this Texas Longhorns team we were comparing it to like the Tom Herman teams and the biggest point that you made to me is that like hey Texas up front on both lines of scrimmage is solid they have some of the best units in the country and they are going to be able to push around a lot of these big 12 teams last year and I think that's what you guys did for the most part in the regular season but then we even saw uh early on in the last two seasons when you guys went to Tuscaloosa last year and when uh the Crim tide cames to you guys in Austin you guys were able to like hold your own in those games too so you mentioned that there's four starters returning on the offensive line uh one thing that is not returning for the Texas Longhorns this year on the offensive side of the ball is all the weapons that helped you guys win the Big 12 last year uh Adon Mitchell's gone Xavier Worley's gone Jonathan Brooks is gone cavian Sanders the ti end is gone Jordan winningham's even gone and then you guys also have already lost CJ baxar and Christian Clark to season injuries uh so it's not necessarily like the the best luck right now with the running back position heading into this year but what has SAR and this staff done to rebuild and retool and kind of reload for these offensive weapons with h Quin Ur heading into probably his last year with you guys yeah so uh there're like two different answers right for the wide receiver room um it's a mix of they went in the portal and grabbed some really coveted guys Isaiah bond from Alabama uh they got Matthew golden from Houston they got Salas Balden from Oregon state three of kind of the the more coveted guys in that early uh transfer window I guess golden and and bond or golden and um Balden were in that first window and then uh Isaiah Bond came later they went from to Alabama and got Amari nblack at the tight end spot who's kind of one of those uh flexy tight ends they also have gunar Helm who saw a lot of time last year uh combine that with the talent that was already in the room jonay cook was an elite receiver DeAndre Moore was an elite receiver uh you've got all sorts of young guys that I think they wanted to supplement the young Talent uh with some experienced guys and guys who knew where it was Texas fans still have nightmares about Matthew golden because he's part of the reason why Houston almost P off that upset last year uh so having those guys combined with you know back-to-back years of pulling top two three wide receivers in the country uh they've got a lot of talent but they needed some folks that I think had been tested and blooded especially in the SEC uh the running back situation going into fall Camp I was really confident that has had a top five running back room in the country right they had CJ Baxter who was the number one uh running back in the State of Florida uh they had uh they had Jaden blue who was at one point the number one running back in the country at his class he sat out his senior year some recruiting writers got salty about it and tanked his ratings that's another conversation for another day uh so he was again a great running back uh and then they had Jared Gibson and Christian Clark backer and Clark obviously going down with injury jarro Gibson was a top one of the top players in the State of Florida couple years ago uh Jaden blue is still an Elite Talent he's one of those guys that um he was the fastest running back in the country turned in this fastest single play from a running back 22.3 miles per hour on a on a runaway touchdown last year so like guy would have gotten pulled over to his school zone running that fast so uh they've still got a lot of talent there but the margins are really really thin uh they went out and got a graduate transfer from uh SMU that had was not going to play this year he was kind of still on the market uh so they added him to the running back room uh they've got some other players that have some positional versatility some defensive guys that played both ways in high school so they may see some of them sub in uh Jared Gibson is still there he was again a festar guy last year thick he'll probably be your Go your Red Zone kind of goal line uh running back so there's still Talent there I can't I cannot Texas fans will be mad Trey uh Trey Weisner is still in the house he was a he was a darling last year made a bunch of plays on special teams came in late in the spring game and and people got excited about him three star kid uh so he's also in the mix but uh again I think the get really thin thankfully for Texas uh they're really used to running a lot of rpos and kind of quick passes to extend that box and and loosen the Box a bit and also supplement the run so there's a couple of different ways that they'll go about it but uh ultimately I'm I'm holding my breath because it's a long season the SEC is going to be a grind and one more injury or one more guy get nicked up in that running back room and things get dicey real fast guys have 15 of 24 returning starters coming back this year uh I think the offensive weapons you got to trust Sark you got to trust the infrastructure you guys have been building there I really like the addition of Isaiah Bond I think he was uh one guy on Alabama every time ID watch them he would always stick out and he made that incredible play in the iron balll too that is still haunting Auburn fans and uh haunting everyone that did not want Alabama in the playoff last year which is uh everyone outside of the Tuscaloosa and Alabama areas so uh we're looking at this Texas team you guys went from five wins to eight wins to a college football playoff birth I am looking at this team and it's like hey what does Texas have to do to take that next step to you know you know be actually like win the national championship and I'm looking on the offensive side of the ball and I'm looking at quarterback Quinn yers because he we saw him 2022 2023 he made a lot of improvements the things that he struggled with in 2022 he became a lot more consistent with that last season and now I think if you're Texas you have to look at Quin ERS to make another jump uh my biggest concern with him is what happens when you guys are playing the Alabam the texases as you guys are playing in week two this year Georgia as you guys have a matchup in the middle of the Season potentially again in the SEC Championship game and then who knows who you guys are going to play in the playoff what happens when you guys are playing guys that can uh you know match up with you guys at the line of scrimmage and the play action doesn't work as much with viewers and obviously we have a lot of running back concerns already as we just covered uh what what do you think is the thing that could potentially hold this team back and do you think or or you know maybe not hold you back but is the thing that could put you guys over the top to where you are that National Champion caliber team yeah I think there are a couple things one it continues to be a link between like head arm and feet for Quin yers like if that link continues to grow he talked about it uh in in press availability last year and in the off season like he got lazy with his footwork and that was some of the reason why a lot of those deep balls would float on him or they wouldn't be in the right spot so continuing to like link the the arm The Head and the feet is going to be a big growth Edge for him I mean you're I think you're right like it's not going to be and and this is no shot at the Big 12 because Texas was terrible in the Big 12 for a better part of a decade right 10 plus years um but like last year the Big 12 was wide open and Texas really took advantage of that so I think again in the SEC I think we're past the time of undefeated national champions I just think that's like the the long and short of it we'll probably see Georgia maybe do it again this year but out or Ohio State probably one of those teams but I think outside of uh we have to like shift our expectations on what a successful season looks like but that being said I think the big question marks for me one can Quin continue to develop and can he stay healthy you know he's part of the reason why he came back was to prove that like I can go a year without getting injured so that'll be something to watch and again I mentioned it before but that that interior defensive line is something to watch a big reason why Texas's defense was so good last year was because teams had to account for 700 pounds of man in the middle that are absolutely again byon Murphy was top player off the board tandre SWAT was a third round pick like teams have to have to account for those guys in the numbers game and when two players when one player can occupy two blockers the numbers are in your favor right so uh that's the big thing for me is like can Texas get a guy like Alfred Collins who was a festar guy coming in big verton Bron who was another high four star guy when he came in are they gonna have the same leap that those that that sweat and Murphy did a year ago if they do look out look out you know SEC but that's the one thing and then the second as well the safety position uh there was a lot of attrition there they they lost a couple of folks the transfer reporter brought in Andrew makuba uh from Clemson to kind of shore up the back end a lot of talent there a lot of positional versatility but again have has this group been able to live up to the ceiling yet on the back end those are the things that really concern yeah you're talking about the undefeated National Championship uh this is also going to be two or if you're a 10 and two team especially in the SEC you're probably you know solidified there in that playoff so even if you do trip up to Oklahoma again or Georgia again in the middle of the Season or you know maybe Texas A&M late in the year you guys still probably have a good chance if you you know handle your business for the most part uh before we started recording you were talking about uh your week two matchup against Michigan where you guys do go to the big house in an arbor uh Michigan a lot of people are still high on them because even though Harbaugh left and then a bunch of a a lot of really good NFL Talent also left with Harbaugh after this past season uh what what made what is making you so nervous about this game because I I was a little raised my eyebrows a little bit when you said that uh I mean one going going to Michigan is always tough it's going to be a crazy environment those fans are going to be on 11 and that's you know it's week two so you're still trying to figure out a lot of things that are ironed out uh Michigan has one of those pairs like Texas had in the middle of their defense last year sweat Murphy uh Michigan has a pair of those dudes this year in the interior of that that defensive line um Michigan's going to play good defense they're going to play really defense they're going to try to paper cut you to death on offense um and that's a recipe for a win I think um you know there it is a strength on strength matchup there for Texas on the offensive line versus Michigan's defensive line it's also a a unknown versus unknown with the Michigan offensive line and the Texas defensive line and again I I'm again I'm old school I you know I'm pushing 40 at this point so like that's really where the matchup lives and dies for me so that's why I'm nervous because the defensive line for is still untested uh the linebackers are going to be good this year I think but again um I don't know how this defense is going to hold up now can Alex orgy for throw the ball that's a question that we'll have to answer in a couple weeks right uh because if Texas can load up the box and force orgy to try to throw it and he can't then the pendulum swings the other way but the game could go a lot of ways uh I again probably part of my nervousness is I you know sat and watched the Maryland games and I lived through both Charlie Strong and Tom Herman so maybe that's just part of why I'm nervous about it it's just PTSD kind of thing and and I I just wanted to point that out too it's not like that's the only game you're nervous about you're probably nervous about like Georgia coming to town middle of the year uh obviously the Red River rivalry game that's always kind of a crazy game and uh you know gets decided in like weird ways seems like every single other year but I want to talk about uh the last game that you guys are going to be playing in this regular season you guys are going to be going to college stas and going to Kyle Field and this is going to be the the reignition of the Rivalry between Texas and Texas A&M uh what are you expecting in that game it's got to be like a very intense dog fight even if Mike Elco year one maybe is still kind of having a little bit of Growing Pains of that team because that team still does have a lot of talent even though Jimbo didn't necessarily win a lot of games that Texas A&M team with that n group and even some of the transfers that Mike Elko brought in that team is still pretty dang talented so what what do you expect in that game because that feels like that is just going to be an absolute uh chaotic dog fight to end the year yeah I wish we got A&M like week six rather than the last game of the season because Mike Elco teams especially like if you look at that Duke team last year they kind of built as the year went on um and so I'm Cur again I'm wondering what that team looks like in week you know week 12 or Game 12 I guess it's week 13 um but like how they grow how they develop uh the other part of that the flip side of that is Will Connor wigman still be able to stand up right because he's had injury problems uh A&M really hasn't fully addressed their offensive line issues um they're going to have again one of the best defensive lines in the country that's a talented group they brought back a lot of talent to that Mike ELO's a defensive guy so I expect that defense to be really really good um it it could be a dog fight it really could be like a rock fight because I think both defenses at that point are going to have their feet underneath them uh but again it's it's a Mike Elco team they're going to be tough they're going to be disciplined they're going to be fundamentally sound and that again that of all of the rivalries I've been a part of you know I was lucky enough to go to some of those games and be there for some of those games um and of all of the rivalry games you it's hard to predict any rivalry game but that one specifically it's dudes that like have hated each other since middle school it's like dudes that played against each other in high school and now they still hate each other it is nasty it's mean it's unpredictable and and as much as I love to talk crap about A&M like Kyle Field is one of the hardest places to play in the country um as far as crowd noise Ian people have gone in there and won quite a bit but the crowd's going to be feral uh it's going to be wild it's going to be that the day after Thanksgiving so it's just going to be a weird odd sense um so there's there's a thousand and one things I can tell you that give me the heat chees about it uh but ultimately it's a rivalry game it's your heated rival um and no matter even if if Texas goes 11 if they beat Georgia and lose to A&M there's still going to be that asterisk on the regular season absolutely I'm glad you brought up that point too about teams that just build towards the season and that's kind of a weird thing with rivalry games I always think that with like my rivalry with Iowa State and Iowa where if we just flip the Iowa Nebraska game the in the shawk game like Matt Campbell would probably be like 500 against Kirk Fen because I feel like towards the end of the season Iowa is always like you know they they're ready to end the season in Iowa State it might stumble against like a G5 school like last year the L Ohio but towards the end of the season that is when they are at their best so i' I'm glad you made that point in the Rivalry game because I think sometimes we uh only people that are members of the Rivalry game think that about like that current situation so Texas Longhorns first year headed into the SEC high expectations year one Gerald I think we're out of time here D you want to tell us where we can find all of your work and uh we'll head out of here yeah you can catch uh all of our Texas Longhorn coverage at Longhorn pod on Twitter or X whatever you want to call I still call it Twitter uh you can catch us on there my personal Twitter GH Goodridge uh and then anywhere you find podcast at Long Horn Republic awesome man thanks for coming on thanks for having me thank you for watching if you liked what you saw here today make sure you hit that like button if you haven't done so already please hit that subscribe button that is the best thing that you could do to help support the show and it costs absolutely Z I'd like to thank Gerald Goodridge again for joining us and make sure you go and follow all of his work as he mentioned at the end of this uh interview I did with him and uh again maybe check out the sports Tech to podcast Channel page you might find some other videos that you like including the one on your screen right now thank you very much for watching 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