As the Texas Longhorns attempt to improve a running game that disappeared in key moments last season while replacing four of the five starters, the insertion of redshirt junior Neto Umeozulu into the starting job at left guard could be key.
That’s because the 6’4, 325-pounder is known for his ability to maul opponents.
“One of the things he’s great at is when he plays with a real sense of physicality — that’s his calling card,” Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian said on Monday.
Umeozulu’s physicality
at Allen helped the Eagles average almost 300 rushing yards per game during his senior season en route to the 6A Division 1 quarterfinals in 2021 as he finished his high school career as the nation’s No. 91 prospect overall and the No. 4 interior offensive lineman, according to the 247Sports Composite rankings.
After arriving at Texas, however, Umeozulu was more raw as a prospect than some of the other six offensive linemen who inked with the Horns as members of the 2022 recruiting class with Cole Hutson starting at guard as a true freshman before DJ Campbell took over that role in 2023 and then platooned with Hutson in 2024.
At the other guard position, Hayden Conner stepped into the starting role on the left when Umeozulu was a true freshman in 2022, sticking there for all 43 games played by Texas over the last three seasons.
But while Conner developed into an exceptional pass blocker at the position — allowing zero sacks and 15 total pressures over 1,067 snaps in 2024, according to Pro Football Focus — he was inconsistent at best in the run game, hurting efforts by the Longhorns to run to the left behind 2025 first-round draft pick Kelvin Banks.
Late in the season, Conner graded out below 50 by PFF as the running game stalled in the SEC Championship loss to Georgia and the Cotton Bowl loss to Ohio State as Texas ran for a combined 89 yards on 57 carries (1.6 yards per carry).
So the hope is that Umeozulu will provide an upgrade over Conner as a run blocker, but there’s also still room for growth for Umeozulu, who has only played 166 snaps over 10 games in his first three seasons on the Forty Acres.
“We’re trying to make sure that those other aspects of a game are still played at a consistent level,” Sarkisian said.
Even if Umeozulu doesn’t reach his ceiling in his first year as a starter after showing strong signs of improvement from 2023 to 2024, his calling card provides a solid floor.
“It’s like anything, man, when you’ve got a good fastball, you’ve got to throw your good fastball, and his calling card is the physicality and the intensity with which he plays the game,” Sarkisian said. “All the while, I don’t want him to lose that with the other work that he’s doing. So he’s doing a nice job.”
