Gilbert Era begins for Longhorns

By John Hillman  |   Sunday, February 08, 2009  |  Comments( 2 )

Texas Longhorns
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Vince Young arrived at the University of Texas in 2002, and Colt McCoy followed in 2005. Last Wednesday, Garrett Gilbert earned the right to succeed these stellar quarterbacks when he signed with Texas.

Gilbert, the Parade Magazine and Gatorade national player of the year, brings an outstanding resume to the 40 Acres. He led Lake Travis, located in the Austin suburbs, to successive Class 4A state championships and threw for a Texas high school-record 12,534 career passing yards.

His quarterbacking bloodlines run deep. Gilbert's father, Gale, spent eight seasons in the NFL with Seattle, Buffalo and San Diego, and he holds the distinction as the only player to participate in five straight Super Bowls (XXV to XXIX).

Like Young and McCoy, Gilbert should redshirt during his first season. However, the Horns employ untested backups in John Chiles and Sherrod Harris. If an injury sidelines McCoy, a potential Heisman Trophy winner in his final season, Gilbert would probably be pressed into action.

Because of Gilbert’s early commitment, many speculated he would enroll at Texas for the spring 2009 semester. But the 6-foot-4, 205-pounder elected to remain at Lake Travis. He will forgo baseball this spring and concentrate instead on weight training and learning the Longhorn playbook.

Gilbert’s decision to sign with UT definitely influenced Longhorn recruiting. Texas inked 20 players, nine of them listed on the ESPNU 150. The rest of the Big XII combined attracted only 10 off the same list.

In addition to Gilbert, the Horns filled some vital needs both for the immediate and long-range future. Texas garnered the signature of Chris Whaley, a 6-3, 235-pound running back from Madisonville. Because the Longhorns struggled at times with their running game last season, and all-purpose back Chris Ogbonnaya completed his eligibility, Whaley could step into the starting lineup immediately.

UT also corralled three highly touted linemen in Pflugerville’s Alex Okafor, Wolfforth Frenship’s Mason Walters and Gilbert’s Lake Travis teammate Paden Kelley. Okafor could replace All-American Brian Orakpo on the defensive front four. Walters projects as UT’s next center, while Kelley will eventually settle in at offensive tackle.

The Horns certainly put their 2009 recruits to work early with eight of the 20 enrolled at UT for the spring semester. Tariq Allen, Thomas Ashcraft, Marcus Davis, Dominique Jones, Kyle Kriegel, Kenny Vaccaro, Mason Walters and Okafor will get a jump on their fellow freshmen by participating in spring drills.

Early in Mack Brown’s tenure in Austin, detractors nicknamed him “Coach February” because of UT’s highly touted recruiting classes and disappointments on the playing field. But with five consecutive bowl triumphs and eight straight 10-win seasons, the moniker takes on new meaning. Last week’s signees -- especially Gilbert, the country’s best quarterback prospect -- proved once again the Longhorns will remain a force in the national championship chase.
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About John Hillman

John Hillman graduated from Baylor University in 1974 with a BBA in accounting and earned an MBA from Baylor in 1987. He worked for accounting firms until 1982 when he became the chief financial officer for an independent insurance claims adjusting service, a position he still holds today. ...
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