Strong decides on a QB but keeps it to himself
AUSTIN — In Charlie Strong’s mind, the competition is over.
The announcement, though, will have to wait.
For the first time since throwing the race wide open last spring, Strong said Saturday he has decided who will start for Texas at quarterback in the Longhorns’ season opener against Notre Dame on Sept. 4.
But he said he has no intention of naming the winner in public.
“I wanted to know myself,” Strong said. “And I kind of know.” Time will tell
For the time being, senior Tyrone Swoopes and freshman Shane Buechele continue to share first-team repetitions in practice, and Strong said both played well in an intrasquad scrimmage Saturday morning.
But over the next couple of weeks, Strong said, it will become apparent to UT’s players who has won the job.
“I don’t even have to make a big announcement ,” Strong said. “They’ll know.”
To be clear, Strong said Swoopes and Buechele will play against the Fighting Irish. He said he’s not sure if he’ll split the playing time “50-50, 60-40 or 30-70,” but the backup will see the field.
And Strong said he and offensive coordinator Sterlin Gilbert agree on who the backup will be.
“We all have the same idea,” Strong said. “We’re on the same page.”
Swoopes was thrust into the starting quarterback job in the second game of his sophomore season, when he took over for the injured David Ash and compiled a 5-7 record over the Longhorns’ final 12 games.
As a junior last year, Swoopes beat out Jerrod Heard during preseason camp and started the opener at Notre Dame, only to post another miserable outing in UT’s 38-3 loss. Heard took over as starter the following week, and Swoopes for most of the remainder of the season specialized in the “18-wheeler” wildcat package, which proved to be successful in brief doses.
WhenBuechele enrolled last spring after graduating early from Arlington Lamar, he immediately asserted himself as a realistic option to start. And many felt his dazzling performance in the spring-concluding intrasquad scrimmage made him the odds-on favorite to take the field first against the Fighting Irish this year.
With Heard having moved to wide receiver — a position where Strong said he’s already excelling — Swoopes and Buechele have spent most of the past two weeks splitting first-team repetitions in practice. Swoopes, as he has throughout his career, is impressing coaches with his work in the film room and his calm grasp of the offense. Ditto Notre Dame
But the fear among UT fans is that those attributes will once again evaporate or prove meaningless when Swoopes has to face opposing defenses. Buechele, who ran a spread offense similar to UT’s throughout his high school career, at least provides the promise of something new.
And while Strong continues to makehis opponent prepare for two passers, his counterpart is doing the same thing. Notre Dame coach Brian Kelly told reporters in South Bend, Ind., that DeShone Kizer and Malik Zaire will line up at quarterback in Austin on Sept. 4.
“I can’t put one of those guys on the sideline against Texas,” Kelly said.
With two weeks until kickoff, Strong isn’t ready to publicly banish Swoopes or Buechele there, either.