As Week 1 game day approaches, the anticipation around the Longhorns “All-In” season continues to grow. Texas fully expects to get a rather comfortable win against the Bobcats this weekend, there are a few Longhorns that could use big weekends. Whether it’s about confidence building or getting their first real-time snaps, there are five players I’m watching closely this weekend.
Arch Manning
This is the obvious one. Fall camp reports haven’t been as glowing as many expected around Manning. Well, Saturday is a chance to start to silence that noise. I’m less concerned with what the overall number look like to finish the day, with one exception: completion percentage. Texas should be able to run the ball, limiting Manning’s ability to put up gaudy numbers on Saturday.
However, an efficient, accurate performance is a must heading into a game against Matt Patricia and that Ohio State defense.
Jermaine Bishop Jr.
This has been the name of fall camp. The freshman WR has carved out a role in this offense and will see the field consistently on Saturday. A quiet performance would not set off alarms for me, but I’m fully expecting the freshman to shine this weekend. On top of that, WR depth can be an important piece for this offense playing at a high level throughout the season. Bishop doesn’t need a great performance like Manning does, but I’m willing to bet he’ll be well worth watching.
Nick Townsend
I believe this offense is going to be great this season. Nick Townsend could make it downright special. The best Sarkisian offenses at Texas have had a true receiving threat at TE(Helm, Sanders). Townsend seems to be the only TE with that receiving upside and it could shine on Saturday. Texas State is going to put so much emphasis on slowing down Cam Coleman, Ryan Wingo and Emmett Mosley V. That should allow these TEs, especially Townsend, to get loose for a couple of big receptions.
Freshmen Linebackers
This is the most important piece to this weekend for me. I feel very confident in the veteran trio of Rasheem Biles, Justin Cryer and Brad Spence, but depth will be needed as soon as possible. This is the game where you can get Tyler Atkinson, Rocky Cummings and Kosi Okpala on the field consistently, letting them get their feet wet. At least one of those players will need to give the Texas defense snaps against Ohio State. I’ll be watching closely to see who among the freshman trio can make a statement this weekend.
The Offensive Line
This is the position Texas fans will be biting their nails over. It seems Trevor Goosby isn’t likely to play this weekend, so it will be Andre Cojoe in his spot. Obviously, this performance will be the baseline for this group but they should be dominant. Seeing confidence in both run and pass blocking, few missed assignments and some short-yardage success is a must for this game. Finally, and maybe most importantly, a game without pre-snap penalties would be very encouraging moving forward.
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This article originally appeared on Longhorns Wire: Manning, Bishop Jr. top Texas Longhorns to watch against Texas State
