Texas Football: Grading Tyrone Swoopes Through 5 Games as a Starter

Following a poor showing at home against Baylor, Tyrone Swoopes lost his luster. Texas' sophomore quarterback looked uncomfortable, unsure of himself and unready to usher the Longhorns into a new era.

What a difference a week makes.

Swoopes busted out for a career day in Texas' 31-26 loss to Oklahoma, accounting for three touchdowns and setting career highs with 334 passing yards and 50 yards on the ground. 

The 384 total yards were the most in Red River Showdown history, per Texas associate athletic director John Bianco, and Swoopes' performance has rewritten the outlook for the rest of the Horns' season. That is, as long as the 243-pounder can build upon the impressive showing.

For as good as Swoopes played against the Sooners, he is far from a finished product. But by showing improvement, grading out higher and higher as he continues to log starts, the sophomore is on the verge of a strong second half of the season.

9/6 vs. BYU: C

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Making his first career start, Swoopes was a bright spot for the Longhorns in the otherwise brutal night against BYU.

Swoopes' line of 176 passing yards, 64.5 completion percentage and one touchdown with one pick seems pretty pedestrian until you consider the circumstances.

First, starter David Ash (concussion) was declared out just five days before the game. Ash dominated first-team reps through fall camp and had enough distance on Swoopes for Strong to give him the starting gig back in July.

Add in the fact that Texas had just lost starting center Dom Espinosa, its most experienced offensive lineman, and Swoopes was fighting an uphill battle from the start.

Despite that, and the fact that he got just 75 yards from his running backs, Swoopes came out and hit his first eight passes, mostly on quick passes to the outside. He displayed great velocity on these throws and avoided any mistakes that would take his team out of the game.

Things came unglued in the second half for the entire team, when the Cougars exploded on 28-0 run. That situation seldom breeds success for a first-time starter, and the limitations of those around him prevented Swoopes from ever getting the Horns back in the game.

9/13 vs. UCLA: B-

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Swoopes was solid in Texas' narrow loss to the Bruins, displaying more confidence and making plays outside of the pocket.

Continuing his early-game success, the quarterback hit on his first 11 passes on the night. The game plan was still very conservative given the struggles up front, but Swoopes was able to improvise a little on a 33-yard pass to John Harris, rolling out to his right and whipping it down the sideline. 

For the game, Swoopes completed over 70 percent of passes, throwing for 196 yards and two touchdowns, albeit on a pedestrian 5.76 yards per attempt.

He showed some improvement, but he also showed some of his limitations. Following Swoopes' second touchdown pass of the night, the Longhorns got the ball twice with a chance to first ice it, and then push for the tying or winning score.

On those two drives, Swoopes went 1-of-4 for three yards, making it difficult to get overexcited by his otherwise good play.

9/27 at Kansas: C

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Swoopes followed up a strong second start with a more lackluster performance on the road at Kansas, a game that was never in doubt but should have raised more flags for the following week.

Off the bye, Texas allowed Swoopes to take a few more deep shots that he would need to complete against Baylor. The results were disappointing, as the sophomore had issues with placement, especially on a would-be touchdown to Marcus Johnson.

"

Deep ball everyone has been calling for was there finally for Texas and Tyrone Swoopes just overthrew an open Marcus Johnson.

— Wescott Eberts (@SBN_Wescott) September 27, 2014"

Texas' young quarterback finished with three total touchdowns, including a tough run on a keeper, but never led a scoring drive of more than 28 yards. As noted by Inside Texas' Coach Venable, he also backed his way into a couple of sacks, which would become a major issue in his next game.

10/4 vs. Baylor: F

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In a game where he would have to play his absolute best, Swoopes laid an egg against Baylor for easily his worst game of the season.

After looking poised through his first three starts, Texas' quarterback looked nothing like a 243-pound brick wall that had completed 64 percent of passes.

En route to a 28-7 loss, Swoopes threw two picks that were well off the mark, fumbled a snap at the 1-yard line and looked out of sorts in the pocket. Rather than stepping up to find a throwing lane, the sophomore drifted backward into constant pressure.

Swoopes was bad, and he knew it, as he told reporters the following Monday:

"

I was a little bit nervous. I got hit a little bit, and it made me a little bit nervous. We went back and watched it, and [Coach Watson] just basically told me that it's part of the job description. Sometimes you're going to get hit and you still have to stand there and make a throw and do what you have to do to make the team successful.

"

The most frustrating part about this performance is that the Texas defense played well enough to pull off the upset. Had the Swoopes from his next start shown up, it probably would have happened.

10/11 vs. Oklahoma: A-

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As stated in the introduction, Swoopes busted through the wall he crashed into against Baylor, turning in one of the best performances in the history of Texas' rivalry with the Sooners.

Though he threw a pick-six to Zack Sanchez, Swoopes looked like a different player at the Cotton Bowl. He set or tied a career high with 334 passing yards, two passing touchdowns, 7.59 yards per attempt, 50 rushing yards and another rushing score.

That's all with a 73-yard run called back on a hold.

Swoopes passed the eyeball test as well. His pocket presence was the best it's ever been, he found the mark on several deep throws and he attacked the middle of the OU defense with his legs.

The most impressive part of Swoopes' day was his confidence in the fourth quarter, when his team fell behind 31-13. He almost seemed to settle in at this point, leading back-to-back touchdown drives to give the Longhorns a chance with five minutes to play.

Texas' comeback attempt fell short, but Swoopes made an impression on everyone who watched him go to work.

"He has that mojo we look for in a quarterback," senior cornerback and team leader Quandre Diggs told the San Antonio Express-News' Mike Finger (subscription required). "People like to be around Tyrone."

A big performance is one thing, but for Swoopes to play like he did and earn his teammates' trust in the process is truly significant. If he can continue to grow as a player and a leader, there's enough talent around Swoopes for Texas to make a second-half run at a bowl appearance.

Unless otherwise noted, all stats and quotes courtesy of TexasSports.com.