Steve Sarkisian on Preparing Texas’ thin offensive line room for Columbus and the emergence of Jaydon Chatman

Heading into Week One, Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian labels four major concerns for his football team—things that can, at times, feel out of control for a head coach in his own scrimmages and camps.

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The first is ball security, usually most important for young ball carriers in the running back and return rooms.

The second is tackling, as you can never truly go 100% in practice with your own players on the line. That’s part of why it’s hard to truly test ball security. These players aren’t taking full hits like they will when that first whistle blows.

Third is pre-snap penalties, while the fourth is special teams—two things that are tough to simulate without a crowd on your back or the pressure of real-game situations.

Sarkisian put a lot of onus on his players this past week on one of those four concerns: pre-snap penalties.

“You get what you emphasize as a coach. And so, I was kicking myself last Saturday because I probably wasn’t hard enough on some of the pre-snap things in practice,” Sarkisian said. “And then it reared its ugly head in the scrimmage. So I made it a real point this week, and they were probably like, ‘Coach Sark is being a jerk.’ Well, I’m being a jerk in the best interest of them, so that they can perform.”

It seems like Sark’s jerk persona was to the benefit of the team. The coach said the procedural parts of today’s scrimmage were fantastic. Pre-snap penalties went from double digits last week to just two today.

When you think of pre-snap penalties, your first thought immediately shoots to the offensive line. If it wasn’t hard enough to get real reps in practice, these linemen have to prepare for something much harder than hosting Colorado State last season. The Shoe in Columbus is likely to be the loudest place in the country on August 30, with over 100,000 Buckeye fans screaming at the beginning of every play call and during pre-snap developments.

Sarkisian didn’t sugarcoat how he felt about the current line, calling it the thinnest position on the roster.

“I don’t know if you ever have 10 o-linemen that you feel great about,” Sarkisian said. “Find me a team that’s felt great about 10 offensive linemen. Naturally, you know, if we’re at eight with two more, and you feel really good about, in real games, can they go in and function and function at a level that is winning football? That’s probably my biggest concern.”

Six of the spots are fairly set: Trevor Goosby at left tackle, Neto Umeozulu, Cole Hutson, and DJ Campbell on the inside, and sophomore Brandon Baker on the right, with Connor Robertson working at backup center. Outside of that six, though, there are many question marks surrounding the unit.

Texas lost expected OT3 Andre Cojoe to a torn ACL earlier in camp, meaning the Longhorns weren’t even searching for their No. 8. They needed two guys to step up. Thankfully for Texas, it seems like that help will be coming from tackle Jaydon Chatman.

In today’s scrimmage, Goosby was “nicked up” and rested for the remainder of practice, allowing Chatman to play with the 1’s alongside Umeozulu. Sarkisian said he played well, and IT has reported the same thing. At the moment, Sark may have seven guys he likes, with the hopes of a Nate Kibble or Connor Stroh stepping up on the interior as they approach the end of August.

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Texas’ line may be the thinnest group on the team, but reports continue to be cautiously optimistic about the unit heading into the season. Texas ran the ball well in practice and overall moved down the field—a sign that they were doing their job, at the bare minimum. If the Longhorns can keep pre-snap penalties to a minimum and get a B+ offensive line performance against Ohio State, Texas will be in position to knock off the defending champs.