Realized the OL was a problem in 2007

by Big(g) Ern on Mar 20, 2026 3:35 PM CDT

Mack just said this in his press conference this afternoon. Not that it is anything we all didn't know, but I am a little troubled to hear him admit this, and admit that they saw all of the flaws that early on. If they recognized the problem at that point, you would have thought there would have been greater emphasis on changing the way we recruited, changing our strength program to address flaws, or I don't know, sending little Mac on his way sooner. That is all.

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Cognitive dissonance.

by Scipio Tex on Mar 20, 2026 3:45 PM CDT reply actions

On a positive note

Chet Moss will be back in June. Manna from heaven, imo.

by Big(g) Ern on Mar 20, 2026 4:36 PM CDT reply actions

Everybody, but especially Colt McCoy,

knew we had O-line problems in 2007. Dockery was coming off major knee surgery, Dallas Griffin was extremely limited physically as the starting center (but a brilliant student and terrific teammate), Ulatoski missed a month early with an injury and had to start when he returned because we had nobody else. Chris Hall started at every position on the line — because we had nobody else. Tony Hills was a good left tackle (before getting injured in the 10th or 11th game).

By ’07, our staff knew we had little help coming from the ’06 class (Watts was a project, Moore was a barely warm body, Burnett might have helped but got kicked out in November of ’08). The one player we had in the class, JaMarcus Webb, left after the season (academics?)

Then, we totally botched the projections on the ’07 class (Huey, Allen, Hix, McGaskey). The lowest-rated of the four, Kyle Hix, actually started for three seasons and was a decent right tackle in 2008-09. Our ’08 O-line haul (Snow, Buchanan, Poehlmann) were, respectively, a pretty good starter, a bust, and a project whose career was interrupted by a major knee injury).

Where Mack dropped the ball — in a big way — was to not make changes in our evaluation process and in who got scholarship offers. We’ve all blamed McWhorter, Greg Davis, Chambers . . . maybe they were part of the problem. Mack was the one with the power to create some solutions.

by edsp on Mar 20, 2026 4:55 PM CDT reply actions

Troubling for Sure

I have to admit - Huey looked like a darn fine guard prospect as a frosh - just didn’t develop. Tray Allen’s development even worse. Throw in a bunch of stiffs like Moore, Buchanan, McG, Watts and you get what you got.

Change isn't good or bad it just "is". Don Draper of Madmen

by realmccoy on Mar 20, 2026 5:22 PM CDT up reply actions

Huey would have been drafted

had he been developed. Pretty sure of it.

by Scipio Tex on Mar 20, 2026 5:27 PM CDT up reply actions

Maybe Chryst was right...

Mack was the one with the power to create some solutions.

… when Chryst (apparently) said, apropos of not accepting Mack’s offer to be the new Longhorn OC, that in most cases where a head coach replaced his entire staff, the team’s real problems turned out to be at the top and two years later everybody - including the HC - wound up looking for a new job.

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You Ain't Never Whipped... Until YOU Quit -- Tex Long, Seven Words of Wisdom
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by longtex on Mar 21, 2026 9:15 AM CDT reply actions