UT trio could be 1st-round NFL picks
Ewers, Banks, Burke headline 2025 group of Horns’ pro prospects
While I got ya, here are nine things and one crazy prediction:
1. Heckuva 2025 crop: My early guess for the 2025 NFL draft is Texas could have 14 players drafted next year. The Longhorns are that deep with that many talented upperclassmen. Two mock drafts already list quarterback Quinn Ewers, offensive tackle Kelvin Banks Jr. and edge rusher Ethan Burke as first-round selections, but wide receiver Isaiah Bond and safety Andrew Mukuba would also have a shot at going in the first round. … This year’s NFL draft starting April 25 is less than a month away, and an ESPN story forecasts Longhorns rank No. 1 among running backs (Jonathon Brooks), No. 1 and 3 at defensive tackle (Byron Murphy II and T’Vondre Sweat), No. 2 at tight end (Ja’Tavion Sanders), No. 4 at linebacker (Jaylan Ford) and No. 5 wide receiver (Adonai Mitchell). Analyst Jordan Reid has the Vikings taking Murphy, and ESPN now lists Jonathon Brooks, Adonai Mitchell and Xavier Worthy at picks Nos. 13, 18 and 27. … Longhorns wide receivers continue to impress with their hands, speed and athleticism. I think Ewers will have a slew of capable, if not outstanding, targets this fall. Steve Sarkisian’s dilemma is separating through all of them and finding the best three, maybe four. We all know Sarkisian is the anti-Tom Herman in this regard and doesn’t consider football a democracy. The fourth-year head coach is going to play his best players and only his best players, an astute philosophy. … When I asked one longtime college football observer last week at Texas practice who will the Longhorns’ two starting defensive tackles be, he said, “They’re not here yet.” He obviously meant the staff will scour the transfer portal for those highly sought interior defensive linemen this spring to try to strike gold as Texas did with wideout Adonai Mitchell, cornerback Ryan Watts, punter Ryan Sanborn and Ewers. I’ll be stunned, however, if Sark finds two defensive line starters, however. Those are prize jewels.
2. Basketball galore: My bracket didn’t survive the first weekend, may it RIP. Yes, I had Kentucky reaching the
championship game before losing to my national champion North Carolina. Basketball fans are torn between dismissing the Cats’ early exit at the hands of Oakland because John Calipari’s team is just too young and mocking Cal for relying on a team so young. Hey, it’s Cal’s team. He built it this way. The blame is all his. … I think Purdue is serious this time. And ticked off. And legit. Did you see Zach Edey’s 30-20 game. Heck, I want to see him go up against Victor Wembanyama now. … Speaking of ticked off, I love how focused Houston was. Kelvin Sampson’s thinning roster came out strong and looked like the Big 12 regular-season champs we saw the last four months. And their escape from Texas A&M was pure magic after the Aggies’ spectacular comeback from 12 down in the last two minutes and the desperation three at the end of regulation. All the alarm over the fading Cougars should be gone now. … Kansas, Texas Tech, TCU and BYU all fell in their first-round games, and Texas lost an un-classic to Tennessee and Clemson bopped Baylor to justifiably draw Big 12 criticism, but the SEC hasn’t exactly wowed either. Clemson coach Brad Brownell must be an idiot for claiming the Big 12 “manipulated” the analytics by adjusting their schedules to play weaker nonconference games and win in routs to pad their offensive and defensive efficiency numbers. Has he seen a Big 12 game? Does he have any idea of the wars each night? Would he like to go up against Houston’s defense or Iowa State’s twice a year? I didn’t think so. “There’s different ways to do it, you can schedule really hard games and hopefully try and win those games,” he continued. “Or it seems you can schedule some teams that aren’t maybe as good and beat them by a lot and pad your offensive and defensive efficiency numbers. And I wasn’t saying anything that hadn’t already been put out there, not only by other coaches in our league, but some media people had figured it out. And I do think that’s a problem, it’s a problem with the system and we really need to look at it.” Stop it.
3. The SEC is at it again: The league decided to retain its eight-game conference schedule in place for the 2024 season for the 2025 season as well. It used to mean more, but lately not so much. In the league’s greed to decide to do whatever is in the best interest of sending as many teams to the new 12team playoff — which could grow to 14 teams by 2026 — Greg Sankey and the boys voted to stand pat with eight SEC games. That, of course, means four nonconference games, at least three of which will be patsies. That in turn will mean less-interested fans in those games, bored out of their mind students, worse television ratings, lessmotivated players and ultimately a disservice to college football in general. Come on, SEC. You’re better than that. You have already positioned yourself and the Big Ten as the Big Two since the Pac-12 has dissolved and the ACC is imploding before our very eyes. So act like it. Oh, and did you notice the league put out this news just before the bracket-crazed country immersed itself in the basketball tournament like a late Friday news dump.
4. Muny saved?: I wish I could say, “Yes, sir,” but I can’t yet. The Imagine Muny fundraiser brought in more than $1 million Sunday with a star-studded group of A-listers on hand like Verne Lundquist, who will be stationed at Augusta’s 16th hole for CBS’s telecast in his 40th and final Masters; Friday Night Lights star Kyle Chandler; twotime Masters champion Ben Crenshaw and one-time champ Sergio Garcia and even Mr. Firecracker Open himself, Billy Clagett, the six-time champion of that event and one of the city’s best amateur golfers ever who told me he played Augusta once and scored a 79. Billy, you should be an at-large Masters participant. Such a great event and worthy cause as the city tries to let the 141-acre treasure survive that is a civil rights landmark, a historic site, home to high school tournaments and young, aspiring Ben Crenshaws. UT, which owns the property, is still on the clock to do the right thing.
5. Onward and upward: Texas’ women’s basketball team seems to be getting better and better, but head coach Vic Schaefer spoke last weekend about his team “needing to get its edge back.” And this after a 40-point win over 16-seed Drexel, who incidentally had NBA All-Star Chris Mullin’s niece Brooke on its team as well as lightningquick Amaris Baker. If I were Dragons head coach Amy Mallon, I’d be scared to death some team might poach Baker through the portal. Schaefer pushes every button to motivate his team. He’s a master of that. Remember, Texas never trailed in the two home playoff games.
6. Play ball: Major league baseball hits the ground running after a bizarre Dodgers-Padres quickie series in Korea that caught more attention for Shohei Ohtani’s involvement in the gambling addiction of his interpreter and friend. This could really wreck the Dodgers’ World Series chances because no one knows where the current investigation leads.
That and Yoshinobu Yamamoto’s disastrous one-inning outing, and the team’s shortstop issues could portend problems. My pick for the World Series is the Braves over the Orioles. I think the Astros will reach the American League Championship and the Rangers will get a wild card because of the best offense in the bigs and one of the most suspect pitching staffs. Will be interesting to follow rookie Wyatt Langford’s journey although was a bit disappointed Round Rock fans won’t get to see him in person with the Express. Langford is a lock to win AL Rookie of the Year, right? My National League choice is Milwaukee outfielder Jackson Chourio, who’s only 20 and celebrated the news he’d made the big club with a soda pop since he’s not of age to drink legally, not even with the Brewers. My MVPs are Atlanta’s Matt Olson and Seattle’s Julio Rodriguez unless Mookie Betts continues to crush it with the Dodgers.
7. Fran plan: I endorse analyst Fran Fraschilla’s suggestion to put 72 teams in the NCAA field, meaning we add four more teams and two more play-in games. All 32 automatic qualifiers would be seeded into the field as would the top 24 at-large teams. Then, the remaining 16 at-large teams play in the First Eight in Dayton. Four games each day instead of two. I think the biggest consternation involves regular-season conference champions having to go through a play-in game when all those games should involve at-large possibilities. Even heard one plea to let those 16 teams play in Vegas. Not wild about that. I love Dayton’s tradition, but I’m waiting for a Final Four in the Sphere. There are few things sacred about sports any more. We know that. Sports Illustrated may be on its deathbed. Could we actually go on if there’s no annual swimsuit issue. Athletes can play for four different schools. I even hear wild-butt recommendations that the transfer portal window should be open year-long so players could actually move inside a semester. Seriously? No way. I just don’t want the NCAA to seriously tamper with one of the best things about sports. Please, no participation ribbons. Make teams earn it, but don’t penalize teams that do earn it.
8. Scattershooting: While wondering whatever happened to Met for Life Bobby Bonilla.
9. On the couch: My wife and I are almost finished watching “Anne with an E” on Netflix. This touching, sweet series about a precocious orphaned girl with a voracious longing to read, learn and be loved is family-friendly with a lot of important powerful messages to young people — and old — about tolerance, elitism, diversity, ambition, the power of friendship and doing the right thing.
Oh and even an episode about the freedom of speech, something Kim Mulkey might want to watch. Gave it eight ducks.
Crazy prediction: J.J. McCarthy will be a bust.