Texas Football: 5 Longhorns Primed for Breakout Seasons

With several spots up for grabs, Texas should enjoy more than its fair share of breakout years in 2015.

As noted by 247Sports' Jeff Howe, the youth movement is going to play a big role in what we see this fall. Texas coach Charlie Strong wants to play the best players, and the fact is that a lot of them are going to be freshmen.

But Strong's also going to need some of his incumbents to step up and have big years. Some of them gave us a taste of what they're capable of last season; others have seen an opening and gone for it with all they've got. 

When these five guys get that role they've been working for, there will be no looking back.

WR Armanti Foreman

Beyond Johnathan Gray, there's really no certainty on the Texas offense. There's competition at seemingly every position, especially in the passing game.

Regardless, Armanti Foreman should be a major piece of the puzzle. 

Despite being undersized at 5'11", Foreman might be the most complete receiver on the Texas roster. He tracks the ball well, has reliable hands and possesses the speed-quickness combo to turn any catch into a home run. Wherever he lines up, he's a threat.

Because of his pure skill, Foreman's a lock for either the slot job or Jaxon Shipley's old role. Either way, he's proven that he's a weapon whom Texas needs to feed. He's good for 50 catches this season.

DE Naashon Hughes

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A size-speed freak, Hughes is on the cusp of unleashing a pretty terrifying skill set.

When Texas recruited Naashon Hughes, he was an oversized safety with no obvious college position. Now, with some added pass-rushing chops, he's developing into one of Strong's most dangerous weapons.

Hughes surprised everyone when he busted into the starting lineup as a redshirt freshman. The supposed project slid nicely into Strong's Fox end position, solidifying the defense's every-down 3-3-5 look thanks to his size and range.

Production didn't follow, and Hughes was often on the business end of his head coach's wrath, but the staff stuck with him. That seems to have paid off this offseason, as Hughes made a living in the backfield in the spring game, showing that he's starting to figure out how to get around college linemen.

If Hughes can continue to build on that, he's going to be downright scary. Already blessed with 4.4 speed (per 247Sports' Kevin Flaherty) and legit coverage skills, developing some reliable pass-rush moves would make him one of the most complete ends in the conference.

DE Bryce Cottrell

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Cottrell looked like a legitimate late-bloomer at defensive end this spring.

Between Hughes and developing stud Bryce Cottrell, the Longhorns have something pretty exciting working at defensive end.

Strong called Cottrell the "surprise of the spring," and that's probably an understatement. For his career, the fourth-year junior has just 12 tackles and one sack, with the latter coming in 2013. So when Cottrell abused his teammates throughout April's spring game, everyone had good reason to ask where he's been the last three years.

But Cottrell's always been a good athlete, and SB Nation's Wescott Eberts had high praise for his pass-rushing abilities back when he committed to the Longhorns:

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The 27th commitment in the 2012 class and the third over the last three days, Cottrell is a bouncy prospect and the best pure edge rusher in the class for the Longhorns, with an excellent firs [sic] step that falls just short of being elite. When unblocked on the backside of zone running plays in high school, Cottrell shows the pure speed to be able to track down plays and wreak havoc in the backfield.

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In other words, Texas could have a genuine late-bloomer on its hands at the strongside position—and it wouldn't be the first time. Cedric Reed had 2.5 sacks in two years before throwing up 15.5 across his junior and senior seasons.

Granted, Reed was a regular contributor prior to his breakout, but he got an opportunity, and he left no doubt. Cottrell is doing the same thing this offseason, and his pass-rushing will be a big help to this team. 

CB John Bonney

Speaking of guys taking advantage of an opportunity, John Bonney hasn't just taken command of the nickel corner spot—he's looked like one of Texas' best players in doing so.

With both Quandre Diggs and Mykkele Thompson onto the NFL, the Longhorns are pretty desperate for someone to emerge at one of the defense's most crucial positions. They need someone who can cover, come down against the run and just look comfortable playing in space.

Our sample size is small, but Bonney checks off all of those boxes. He lit up all of spring practice, then backed it up with stellar play in the spring game, highlighted by a couple of big hits.

This is all pretty surprising from a guy who's not even 190 pounds, but Bonney plays with the same type of fire that made Diggs so good at this spot. He'll have to play a very cerebral game, but he joins some pretty elite company (per 247Sports' Jeff Howe) in seizing this job.

DT Poona Ford

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Ford's not your classic defensive tackle, but he's figuring out how to get it done this offseason.

Unlike the other members of this list, Poona Ford doesn't project to be a starter in 2015. That won't keep him from playing like a star when he gets on the field.

Ford's an absolute technician at tackle, using quick hands and feet to compensate for his lack of pure size—the 5'11" man weighing in at 280 pounds. He's figuring out how to get it done, and it caught Strong's attention this spring:

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[The thing with Poona Ford] is just his quickness. He's not very big but guys never get into his body. You always talk about just pressing off blocks, running off blocks, and the thing he can do, he can fit up and not get knocked off but he can separate off and go make plays, and a really good pass rusher.

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But Ford's also got some power, which he showed off in this play against Arkansas.

If that doesn't sell you on Ford's blossoming abilities, then maybe the fact that his defensive coordinator Vance Bedford compared him to Malcom Brown before the spring game. That sort of praise doesn't just get tossed around by this staff, which has begun to believe in their unconventional young tackle.

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