ALREADY A HIT
Freshman QB Sam Ehlinger makes his mark early at Texas..
AUSTIN — True freshman quarterback Sam Ehlinger is crazy like a fox and his Texas teammates love it.
“Oh yeah,” junior defensive back P.J. Locke said, “he’s insane...He’s not scared to drop his shoulder at all even though he plays quarterback.”
With sophomore Shane Buechele sidelined by a bruised throwing shoulder, Ehlinger commanded the first-team offense during Tuesday’s practice. He will continue to do so until Buechele recovers.
Saturday’s game against San Jose State (1-1) is a must-win for Texas (0-1), currently a 27-point favorite.
Realistically the Spartans shouldn’t pose much of a threat, though they did jump out to a 16-0 lead over Charlie Strong’s ranked USF squad in their season opener before falling 42-22. They defeated FCS foe Cal Poly 34-13 last weekend.
Given UT’s overwhelming talent advantage, the first win of the Tom Herman era seems as sure a thing as Mayweather over McGregor. But does Buechele’s injury give the Longhorns any pause?
“I definitely think Sam is capable of running the show,” Locke said. “He’s a gritty guy. He’s a very confident guy.
“If it so happens that he gets the starting job I got his back, we got his back. So we’re not worried about anything right now.”
The 6-foot-2, 230-pound Ehlinger did not appear in UT’s opener, but he’s a good bet to see some action at Royal-Memorial Stadium this weekend even if Buechele gets the green light.
Left tackle Connor Williams said it doesn’t matter which quarterback lines up under center.
“We’re going to trust in anybody we put back there at quarterback,” Williams said. “It was probably halfway through practice and I realized Sam was throwing it and Shane wasn’t even throwing it. We’re going to believe in whoever is back there. We just have to do our job and we’ll perform.”
Williams praised Ehlinger’s maturity and composure. He didn’t see any semblance of fear in the Austin Westlake graduate.
“He wasn’t nervous,” Williams said. “It was good to see a true freshman step in under these circumstances and be so composed in the huddle and leading us.”