SNAP DECISIONS
Thompson gets shot to start at QB over Card
AUSTIN — Texas is making a change at quarterback.
Coach Steve Sarkisian on Monday announced junior Casey Thompson will start Saturday’s game against Rice at Royal-memorial Stadium. It will mark the fourth-year quarterback’s first career start.
Redshirt freshman Hudson Card, who started Texas’ first two games, will revert to Thompson’s backup but is expected to play against the Owls.
“Casey will start this week at quarterback,” Sarkisian said during his weekly press conference. “Hudson will play, very similar to the same format we had when Hudson started and Casey would play. I feel good about that. Both guys have been battling. Both guys have been competing. I think it’ll be a good for Hudson to take a little bit of a deep breath coming off of last week’s game.
“And it’ll be a great opportunity for Casey to step in and battle and compete with the ones early in the ballgame.”
Card struggled in the Longhorns’ 40-21 loss to Arkansas at Razorback Stadium last Saturday. He completed 8 of 15 passes for 61 yards with one fumble lost, went three-and-out on five of 10 drives and produced just seven points.
The offensive line broke down against the Hogs’ overwhelming defensive front, affording Card little time to establish a rhythm. But he also misfired on several deep shots to open receivers and wasn’t able to punish Arkansas with his legs.
Thompson provided a steadier presence amid a hostile sellout crowd in Fayetteville, Ark. He completed 5 of 8 passes for 57 yards, rushed for 44 yards and capped both of his drives with a rushing touchdown.
Over his past three appearances, Thompson has completed 17 of 23 passes for 268 yards with five touchdowns and no turnovers. He has also picked up 61 rushing yards and two touchdowns.
After noting the team “believes of both of ’em,” Sarkisian acknowledged Thompson had been more productive and efficient within the offense. And that earned him the start this week.
“I think Casey’s performed well,” Sarkisian said. “The bottom line, it’s not always about how you execute every play. It’s about, are you maneuvering the offense down the field to score points? And I think Casey’s put himself in a good position to do that.”
In truth, Sarkisian has no idea how long he’ll continue to run this two-quarterback operation. At some point, in order for Texas (1-1) to make a run at a spot in the Big 12 championship game, Thompson or Card will have to prove themselves an every-drive quarterback.
And Thompson will have an excellent chance to continue building his case as the guy this week against a Rice (0-2) team that has been outscored 75-13 over its past six quarters.
“I thought Hudson was a little antsy in the pocket,” Sarkisian said of the quarterback’s shaky outing against Arkansas. “We weren’t great protecting him early on in the game. And we missed some opportunities. And I thought Casey really showed a lot of poise and calm in the pocket and delivered the ball down the field. So all those things add up to, hey, this guy deserves his chance.”
Texas will open Big 12 play on Sept. 25 by welcoming Texas Tech (2-0) to Royal-memorial Stadium. And if Sarkisian is serious about making a conference title run in Year 1, the Longhorns can’t afford to slip against
a team like the Red Raiders.
But will the team’s quarterback situation be sorted out by then? Not likely.
“I don’t know how long it’s gonna go,” Sarkisian said. “And part of it is unfortunate because you’d like to know exactly who
they are. And part of it is I kind of like it because they’re making it hard.”
Sarkisian still believes in Dicker
Senior Cameron Dicker has his hands full as Texas’ punter and kicker. And pulling double duty might be wearing on him.
Dicker has misfired on 2 of 3 field-goal attempts this season, missing from 45 yards against Louisiana-lafayette and 52 yards against Arkansas. He did connect on a 49-yard field goal against the Ragin’ Cajuns and has boomed eight touchbacks on 10 kickoffs.
Dicker is also averaging 48.4 yards per punt, tops in the Big 12, but against Arkansas he bobbled one punt snap and got blocked inside the red zone.
Still, Sarkisian doesn’t plan on reducing Dicker’s load.
“I think there’s lofty expectations for Cameron this year,” Sarkisian said. “He’s performed at a high level. He’s been punting like crazy. Kickoffs have been tremendous. He missed a couple field goals, you know. I think he’d be the first guy to tell you, ‘I can’t believe I dropped the snap.’ I don’t think that had anything to do with fatigue or his approach. It was human error. It happens.”