Seniors forming dangerous receiving duo
AUSTIN — One is a 6-6, 220pound statuesque figure who some might mistake for one of Shaka Smart’s hoops recruits. The other is a 5-11, 210-pound tank of a man with thighs like redwood trunks and track star speed.
And they could be the most talented pair of wideouts Texas has had on the field together.
Seniors Collin Johnson —the tall one — and Devin Duvernay — the compact slot maven — have been the root of sleepless nights for many a defensive coordinator. They’re a waking nightmare for the opposition and a godsend for the 19th-ranked Longhorns (6-3, 4-2 Big 12).
Since Johnson returned from a nagging hamstring injury Oct. 12 for the Red River Showdown, the pair have averaged a combined 15.3 receptions, 209 yards and one touchdown in four games. Both have recorded at least 96 receiving yards in three straight outings.
“It’s just hard for defenses to take away both of them,” junior quarterback Sam Ehlinger said. “You can’t double Collin and double Devin and double whoever we have out there and stop the run. So having all our guys, that limits what the defense can do. If you take one away we’re going to hurt you with the other.”
Johnson is an important voice on the team’s leadership committee and was one of five named a preseason captain. Duvernay, who moved into the slot to replace Lil’Jordan Humphrey, has been so impressive that coach Tom Herman made the unusual move of naming him captain No. 6 five games into the season.
They have been in burnt orange a long time, remnants of Charlie Strong’s tenure in Austin. They were in the room when the new coach from the University of Houston arrived and asked the entire roster how many had been on a winning Texas team — three players raised a hand. They stage “trash basketball” games on Fridays, and each treats the supposedly stress-relieving activity like the Final Four.
They were, and remain, a focal part of a restoration project still in its early stages.
“We’ve been in the fire together,” Johnson said. “We came in together with coach Strong, same recruiting class. If I go to war with anyone, I’d want someone like Devin by my side. That’s my man, plain and simple.
“He still doesn’t say much, but when he talks, people listen. Because they know him, by nature, he doesn’t say much. So you see him becoming a captain, ‘C’ on his chest now, that shows what the teams feels about him.”
Johnson and Duvernay both present unique problems for defenses.
The former is the eternal owner of a height advantage over cornerbacks; the latter needs just a sliver of space to get his legs churning and break away toward the end zone. They both have grown into something of a safety valve for Ehlinger in critical situations, like last week’s pivotal third-and-14 against Kansas State.
Two yards shy of midfield with the score knotted at 24 and less than four minutes to go, Ehlinger locked his eyes on Duvernay and fired a dart. The wideout gained a step on his defender with a sharp out route, cradled the pass and dropped down inches from the sideline.
Duvernay’s 18-yard reception and a 14-yard grab by Johnson on that final drive helped prevent Kansas State from getting the ball back in a game Texas won via walkoff field goal.
“Those two seniors, what do they provide?” Herman said. “I mean, just their talent and ability level, coupled with our ability to run the ball and Brennan Eagle’s ability to defeat man-toman coverage, makes defensive coordinators hopefully ponder long and hard on how they’re going to choose to defend us on a week-to-week basis.”
The only real issue with the Johnson & Duvernay show is its erratic programming schedule.
Johnson missed three games earlier this season and is in danger of sitting out this week’s coldweather clash against Iowa State (5-4, 3-3) at Jack Trice Stadium. He tweaked his hamstring during the final drive last Saturday, leaving his status uncertain.
Offensive coordinator Tim Beck said Johnson was “doing good” and responding well to what Herman called an “aggressive” treatment strategy.
With no margin for error on the road back to the Big 12 championship game, Texas can’t afford to lose a player of Johnson’s caliber. Oh, Duvernay can handle himself without the big fella sidelined — 24 receptions, 254 yards, two total touchdowns and a 3-0 record sans Johnson — but the Longhorns aren’t quite as threatening with just one roaming the field.
“It’s my dream to help turn this place into Wide Receiver U one year,” Johnson said.
This duo’s numbers won’t touch Quan Cosby and Jordan Shipley’s magical 2008 season, when the pair combined for 181 receptions, 2,183 yards and 21 touchdowns. Still, in Johnson’s quest to turn Texas into a wide receiver factory he couldn’t have asked for a much better partner.