Texas staged a four-way QB contest in spring and fall practice, and after six quarters it doesn’t appear that the position is settled. The Longhorns trail BYU 13-3 at halftime after seeing Garrett Gilbert start the game 2-8 with 2 INT. Gilbert struggled with his reads and didn’t receive much support from a running game that saw its backs average less than three yards per carry.
Texas’ first first down came once true freshman David Ash entered the game and hit D.J. Munroe for 26 yards on his one pass. Gilbert returned after that play, threw his second interception into double-coverage, and was benched.
Case McCoy, technically second on the depth chart, and Ash led the offense after Gilbert’s exit and were unable to punch in a turnover at BYU’s 25. Jake Heaps (14-24, 153, 1 TD, 1 INT) and a trio of big receivers – Ross Apo and tight ends Austin Holt and Marcus Matthews have given Texas’ secondary trouble while the front struggled for much of the half creating pressure. The Cougar running game was largely nonexistent, however, with J.J. Di Luigi and Joshua Quezada combinging to carry the ball 12 times for 25 yards.
Brown and co-offensive coordinators Bryan Harsin and Major Applewhite have halftime to sort out their offensive mess and decide how to approach their quarterbacks for the second half. Ash hasn’t been asked to throw the ball beyond the line of scrimmage, while McCoy has attempted (and completed) two short throws for a total of eight yards.
This should be an interesting second half to watch.