Texas' offensive transformation close to complete

by Sailor Ripley on Mar 28, 2026 6:58 PM CDT

Bryan Fischer of CBSSports.com wrote a nice piece on Harsin and #tehmajor with the title referenced above and you can read it here.

He added this:

Really impressed with both Major Applewhite and Bryan Harsin after spending some time with them, both future HC's sooner rather than later.
— Bryan Fischer (@BryanDFischer) March 28, 2026

Then there was a lot of back and forth on his Twitter feed in response to the article that might be of interest to you.

Check and follow @BryanDFischer if you are so inclined.

I like these guys and suspect they along with Manny will be courted soon.

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Awesome.

Last year we had six late coming back for break. We even had a coach late. We couldn’t run the players without running the coaches. So we ran the coaches."

WVU slept dey couch.
@pleaseplaykindl

by pleaseplaykindle on Mar 28, 2026 9:18 PM CDT reply actions

No.

We won’t allow it. They are Longhorns now - Longhorns for life.

Isn’t it nice to be loved?

Hook ’em!

by j_java on Mar 28, 2026 9:21 PM CDT reply actions

Major quote

“It’s like night and day,” Applewhite said of the running game. “We’re spending more practice time on it, in terms of inside running drills with no receivers. It sounds kind of elementary that everybody does that but there was a time we threw the ball so much that we didn’t run that.”

Yeah…pretty much what we suspected. We installed the most rep-intensive running concepts in the modern game and then treated them as a constraint for our passing game both in playcalling and in preparation.

Sounds like Mack was tired of having a pro-style scheme that was so dependent on chemistry and experience at every offensive position. That’s not a great fit for the college game, where you lose probably half your starters every year.

by Nickel Rover on Mar 28, 2026 10:07 PM CDT reply actions

True, Nickel Rover

But it also sounds to me like Mack had ideas he wanted to employ, told Greg Davis of them, and then let GD create the offense he wanted — and Mack didn’t overcall his OC.

The Applewhite comment about not having anything in the playbook for a two-back scheme is devastating. Mack said all those years, “We’re going to make the running game more of a focus,” or words to that effect. That may have been Mack’s plan, but it was never put into action. GD may have taken the fall, but Mack had the ultimate responsibility for what we did/didn’t do.

Not that it mattered. We recruited so few capable RBs after Jamaal Charles (2005) and so few offensive linemen after Justin Blaylock (2002) that the scheme wouldn’t have helped cover the talent holes.

by edsp on Mar 29, 2026 1:01 AM CDT reply actions

I agree about GD

I think the way in which he generally received all the credit or all the blame was wildly disproportionate to what he was accomplishing year to year.
However, the super rep-intensive GD passing game was what was draining reps from the run game stuff. And the way he called running plays obviously demonstrated that he thought of them as constraints and not building blocks. We had entire run game concepts that we would break out for individual games, never to be seen or heard from again, because he would think “Against that fat BU DL we’re going to dust off pin’n’pull and beat them to the edge 6x”.

It all puts into perspective Colt’s phenomenal 2008 season though huh? His legendary 80% completion rate and total chemistry with Quan and Shipley had some big costs. Namely, the run game, and our chances at running effective offense without those players.

by Nickel Rover on Mar 29, 2026 6:18 AM CDT up reply actions

A nice, healthy chuckle coming......

….. from someone claiming Mack Brown didn’t overcall his OC. A classic example being the shovel pass call at the end of the first half of the ‘09 Nat’l Championship game. Saban smiled.

--- All roads to the Big-XII Championship lead through OU/RRS. It's not just another game! We're all about championships here. ---

by HornChamps on Mar 29, 2026 8:12 AM CDT up reply actions

liked this

“Texas spent two seasons ranked worse than 60th in the country in rushing offense before Harsin was brought on board. Last year, the Longhorns finished 21st and topped 200 yards per game for the first time in four years. "

More experienced, talented line—-check
better backs with depth——check
more experienced qb—check
tight end—???

If they made it to 21 in offense last year, where do they land this year? Top 15 or even, gasp—10?

by mdhorn on Mar 29, 2026 10:25 AM CDT reply actions

We flirted with a top 10 rushing attack at the end of last year before our injuries caught us

If we pick up where we left off, that’s not unreasonable.

Let the RB’s rack up 200+ ypg, and have Ash toss it downfield 3 to 6 times a game.

Couple that with a top 15 defense, and we’re going to be playing for the Big 12 Championship.

by notsofst on Mar 29, 2026 11:40 AM CDT up reply actions

How do these guys get jobs as professional writers?

Texas has had an on-again, off-again relationship with that often cited saying about quarterback play but, for one reason or another, the Longhorns have never been able to break things off and call it a day though.

That little gem would give an English teacher a heart attack.

To err is human...but humans have such low standards.

by adt2 on Mar 29, 2026 11:41 AM CDT reply actions

His lead sentence to boot

Amazing.

by Scipio Tex on Mar 29, 2026 2:27 PM CDT up reply actions

I see nothing wrong with it.

It’s dreamwagony.

by Parlin on Mar 29, 2026 2:42 PM CDT up reply actions

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAUUUUUUUUUGGGGGGHHHHH!!!!!!!!!

inside running drills with no receivers. It sounds kind of elementary that everybody does that but there was a time we threw the ball so much that we didn’t run that."

by SP!DER on Mar 29, 2026 11:42 AM CDT reply actions

This quote

has me puzzled:

“I’ll always like to play the backup quarterback the third series of the game. And then if he’s doing well then keep him in every third series,” said Brown. “And the last couple of years we haven’t done that as well, and I think it’s gotten us in some binds when we got some people hurt.”

Really, Mack? The last couple of years? Other than last year, exactly when was this even remotely part of your history at Texas?

by boorad on Mar 29, 2026 12:16 PM CDT reply actions

John Chiles

did that some, Simms/Applewhite did that some. We certainly didn’t see that from Nordgren or Gilbert, amazingly enough. Didn’t see that from Case when Gilbert was the man either.

by Nickel Rover on Mar 29, 2026 1:02 PM CDT up reply actions

Also did it some with McCoy/Snead

by Horncasting on Mar 29, 2026 2:35 PM CDT up reply actions

Did you like how Snead played

against agy? When a sick, injured McCoy did fuck all (not unexpectedly)? Hell, McCoy looked like he was in worse shape there than he was against Bama.

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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 29, 2026 4:48 PM CDT up reply actions

None of those examples

come even close to the systematic method of substitution that Mack is describing except for Major/Chris for part of one season and they were all a helluva lot farther away than “the last couple of years”. Chiles was brought in once in a while to run the Godawful Q formation, not systematically every third offensive series.

so I guess that makes it sort of remotely similar what he described, but the overall point is still the same. Mack is talking out of his ass here; he has been known to do that. If there’s one thing we have been known for offensively for a substantial portion of Mack’s tyime here, it’s our failure to give meaningful game snaps to our backup QB’s.

by boorad on Mar 29, 2026 5:57 PM CDT up reply actions

Mack makes shit up frequently on these topics

It’s just misdirection or boredom. Or “I wish we could” theorizing. Like his “We’d like to play the 2nd team OL 3-4 series a game in a tight game” talk. It has no meaning. Whenever we had secure #1 QB, that guy has taken all of the meaningful snaps. When we’ve had doubt as to the #1 QB, we’ve done all sorts of different stuff.

by Scipio Tex on Mar 29, 2026 6:06 PM CDT up reply actions

I remember

the Q package being kinda effective, am I way off? I definitely remember that the decision to start using Colt in the Zone Read saved the season and spurred the comebacks against Nebraska and OSU.

by Nickel Rover on Mar 29, 2026 6:37 PM CDT up reply actions

Yeah, off.

It was an abortion. What worked against Nebraska was just finally running zone read.
The rest of our experimentation with it earned it a pretty good nickname thread on BC.

by Scipio Tex on Mar 29, 2026 6:55 PM CDT up reply actions

Cluster Flux, FTW

Name that package

by Vasherized on Mar 29, 2026 8:59 PM CDT up reply actions

Well

It was a good Doperbo post:

https://www.barkingcarnival.com/2008/08/18/official-name-the-package-contest-update/

Follow @BarkingCarnival

by Sailor Ripley on Mar 30, 2026 12:06 AM CDT up reply actions

I think it was also the reason

that Chiles was getting some talk as potentially having higher upside as a starter than McCoy heading into the 2008 season. Anyone remember this:
https://www.barkingcarnival.com/2008/02/05/lets-build-an-offense-part-1/

I remember buying into the possibilities of Chiles and a return to the Zone-Read offense, than watching fall practice and seeing the drastic difference between Colt McCoy and Chiles and having some hesitation. The rest is history.

by Nickel Rover on Mar 30, 2026 8:18 AM CDT up reply actions

I'm thinking of

The “thunder package” or whatever we called it when we would put in Chiles-McGee and the 2nd team OL that had Huey and some other dudes that were bigger and stronger than our 1st team OL.
I remember the Q package now…good for a drive killing negative play 2-3 times per game.

by Nickel Rover on Mar 30, 2026 8:07 AM CDT up reply actions

the thunder series

was just us running zone-read and a few other VY staples with Chiles. It had a devastating effect on teams who were already down 20-30 points, or who hadn’t worked out how to stop the zone-read yet.

by Nickel Rover on Mar 30, 2026 8:12 AM CDT up reply actions

Mind boggling, really

Why would Mack even offer that “always like to play . . .” crap? A Senior moment? Is he stuck in 2003? Excluding last year, McCoy-Chiles is the last time I can recall any “meaningful snaps” being given to the backup, and even that’s a stretch.

Games played by Texas quarterbacks from 2000 to 2010:
2000 — Simms 10, Applewhite 9. Where are you now, Beau Trahan?
2001 — Simms 12, Applewhite 10
2002 — Simms 13, Mock 6
2003 — Mock 13, Young 12
2004 — Young 12, Mock 6
2005 — Young 13, Nordgren 13 (sparingly)
2006 — Real McCoy 13, Snead 8
2007 — Real McCoy 13, Chiles 7
2008 — Real McCoy 13, Chiles 11
2009 — Real McCoy 14, Gilbert 10
2010 — Gilbert 12, Case McCoy 2

To even offer something like that is delusional and troubling, because it could justify Mack giving Case more play than he should next year. The old “I’m just doing what I’ve always done . . .” Or maybe I’m just being neurotic about Old Mack same as the New Mack.

Nothing is more real than nothing.
-- Beckett

by AKHorn on Mar 29, 2026 7:17 PM CDT up reply actions

You're reading way too much into it

See above.

by Scipio Tex on Mar 29, 2026 7:33 PM CDT up reply actions

Failure to give backup QBs meaningful snaps is universal for good teams

It just doesn’t happen unless there are QB questions, a team is rebuilding, or the other QB is running a different

by Horncasting on Mar 30, 2026 12:23 AM CDT via mobile up reply actions

Different package like Tebow in his freshman year

Or Tebow in his first year in NY (snicker)

by Horncasting on Mar 30, 2026 12:26 AM CDT via mobile up reply actions

some of that

is teams stat-padding for their QB’s New York hopes. Or running up scores for BCS votes.
The subjective nature by which most of college football’s honors are awarded means that if you have an awesome upperclassmen QB it’s in your best interests to use him up and give the future the middle finger.

by Nickel Rover on Mar 30, 2026 8:10 AM CDT up reply actions

I'm having . . .

a 2010 Kansas State flashback

Nothing is more real than nothing.
-- Beckett

by AKHorn on Mar 30, 2026 11:59 AM CDT up reply actions

Horncasting

my original take it wasn’t intended to opine about whether our approach on that is different than others. It was about Mack’s comment flat out saying we have systematically and routinely done something that is far removed from what we’ve actually done during his tenure.

And AK, I personally don’t see it as a “danger” signal that Ash isn’t a solid #1 right now. Again, just more of the sort of WTF? stuff Mack spews forth from time to time (as per Scipio) that a writer puts down without any knowledge or regard for the facts.

by boorad on Mar 30, 2026 1:07 PM CDT up reply actions