BearOnGlade said:
What I hope we get out of the Spring besides the obvious "get better" and "stay healthy" goals:
- OL depth. I think if you gave the coaches truth serum they would have said that last fall we had 3 guys they were comfortable with on the line and one of them was playing on one leg most of the season. We need to find at least 2 guys beyond the starters that can come in and contribute if needed. For what it's worth, the pics I've seen show the guys much bigger than they were in the fall (thinking Xavier Newman specifically). Bigger doesn't necessarily mean better but it can't hurt. I think we'll be better but the realistic goal for this group will be to be league average in 2018.
- Find safeties we can count on. Safety play probably cost us 2-3 games by themselves last season. By nature, the Big 12 is incredibly hard on safeties because you can't just be a run stopper or a coverage guy exclusively. Have to be both. Lynch has the athleticism for sure and maybe the 2 early enrollees can push for time. I'd be happy giving up a couple more first downs during a game if we don't get beat deep and have sure tackling from this group.
- QB Development. I know Brewer's shoulder is an issue but the clips the athletic department has shown on social media shows him throwing. Guessing they're just limiting the throws until they're sure he's fully healed. He's still getting reps and that's great. Look forward to what he can do. Also, whether Bohannon redshirts or not he's getting tons of reps right now and that's nothing but good for him. He'll probably develop more in the Spring compared to Charlie last year since he doesn't have 2 guys ahead of him right now.
- Tight Ends. If you remember last year's spring game, this position group was featured by having 2 in the formation for most plays and being thrown to. The offense we saw that day didn't look very much like what we saw in the fall. I think after position changes/injuries/sickness the staff did a poor job of adjusting the offense from what they visioned and installed in the spring. Excited to see what Henderson and Henle can do.
This isn't an exhaustive list but just things I want to see (hear).
Really looking forward to TEs. I remember Ish being sick basically all year, I know he stayed in Waco for a few away games he was so sick. With Teck being moved to OL and Ferurbacher hurt the position got warped and completely messed up. Glad they grab several young TEs and hopefully see that implemented. Even though he didn't use them nearly as much, always liked sneaking the TE out of line for an easy 1st down like Briles would do.
Our RB group looks stout from the pictures that have been going around. Really glad CB and Lovett added on some good weight.
