AUSTIN (KXAN) — Colorado State may have finished with a losing record last season at 5-7, but they lost a lot of those games by a touchdown or less, and with the way they can throw the ball, they’re never out of a game.
Texas Longhorns head coach Steve Sarkisian is hyper-aware of that and expects his defense to respond accordingly.
The Longhorns and Rams clash at 2:30 p.m. Saturday at DKR-Texas Memorial Stadium in the season opener for both teams, and Sarkisian is familiar with at least two of Colorado State’s top pass catchers. One is a returning first-team all-conference player who racked up more than 1,100 receiving yards a season ago and he recruited the other.
Tory Horton and Armani Winfield lead a Rams receiving corps that has to play well for the Rams to stay with Texas on its home field. Horton has proven to be elite on the field with his tremendous season a year ago while Winfield has been on Sarkisian’s mind since the recruiting trail.
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“We know Armani well. We recruited him and he was committed here a couple of years ago,” Sarkisian said. “The addition of him is helpful for them.”
Rams head coach Jay Norvell’s version of the Air Raid offense is all about getting a favorable matchup against Horton. He’s the straw that stirs the drink, so if Colorado State can free him up by spreading it around and using the run game, Horton could go for a big game.
The run game could be the key to unlock Horton, Sarkisian said. Even though the Air Raid offense is pass-heavy, there’s a certain balance it has to achieve. Colorado State has two backs listed on their depth chart, redshirt freshman Justin Marshall and graduate transfer Kobe Johnson. While Marshall is listed as the starter, Johnson won two FCS national championships with North Dakota State and was the Rams’ top back before getting hurt early last season.
“We think their running game could cause some issues, to create matchups on the perimeter,” he said. “They know their system really well, too. They know the answers to the test when you try to give them a different look. We have to be tight in coverage and try to affect the quarterback.”
Putting pressure on the quarterback is something Texas defensive back Malik Muhammad said the Longhorns are getting better at. He said he could feel it during training camp because he wasn’t spending as much time in coverage. Barryn Sorrell, Ethan Burke along with newcomers Colin Simmons and Trey Moore could heavily impact the game from the edge.
Sarkisian loves where the team is right now from a preparation standpoint. He said practices Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday were great and he commended the team on their attention to detail and speed.
“The physicality we practiced with on Tuesday and Wednesday was really encouraging going into a first game,” he said. “Sometimes you’re still going through growing pains of how you prepare and things of that nature, but it all goes back to the veteran leadership we have and the commitment of the new people to jump right in.”