Texas Football: Winners and Losers from Longhorns' 2016 Spring

Led by freshman Shane Buechele and the running backs, the Texas squad outscored the Longhorns by a 21-7 margin in a rain-shortened 2016 spring game.

Distancing himself from senior Tyrone Swoopes as the afternoon wore on, Buechele led the offense to three scores to just one for the senior. In all, the early enrollee completed 22 of his 41 passes for 299 yards and two touchdowns with no interceptions in an impressive showing.

While Buechele provided hope for the quarterback position, Chris Warren and D'Onta Foreman picked up right where they left off in 2015. Texas' fearsome duo needed only 16 carries to put up 174 yards and two touchdowns, showing that they're ready to carry the mail for this team in the fall.

With a talented young group on the other side of the ball, head coach Charlie Strong should have an exciting team in his third season with the program.

Winner: QB Shane Buechele

Shane Buechele should be in high school. Instead, he's establishing himself as the front-runner for Texas' starting quarterback job in 2016.

Making his debut, Buechele showed off every trait that made him the top quarterback in Texas, per 247Sports. The 6'1" slinger can hit every throw on the field, knows how to extend plays and has uncommon poise for someone of his experience.

Putting those skills to good use, Buechele put up 299 yards and two gorgeous touchdowns of 27 and 65 yards in his first collegiate action. And in doing so, he' earned some effusive praise from head coach Charlie Strong:

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Charlie Strong on Buechele - "The day he stepped on this campus we knew nothing rattled him. He can handle himself." #Texas#HookEm

@thatsean, 16 Apr 2016

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With his accuracy and quick decision-making, Buechele is only going to get better as he picks up offensive coordinator Sterlin Gilbert's offense. It's hard to imagine he won't be the starter this fall.

Losers: The Veteran Quarterbacks

Eric Gay/Associated Press

Senior Tyrone Swoopes had a tough day at quarterback for the Longhorns.

With Jerrod Heard out nursing a shoulder injury, Tyrone Swoopes was the only returning quarterback to see action Saturday. Based on what we saw, he and the rest of the veterans could be stuck holding clipboards during the 2016 season.

It's only the spring game, but Swoopes' issues in the glorified scrimmage were familiar ones. Poor accuracy and decision-making contributed to the rising senior throwing two picks while completing only 25 percent of his passes. Along with his slow release, these are problematic issues in an offense that is predicated on quick reads and throws.

And it's not like the backups offer much hope at this stage. Heard was already giving ground to Buechele before the shoulder injury, while Kai Locksley and Matthew Merrick have been uninvolved all spring.

No matter what happens this summer, Swoopes should keep his short-yardage "18 Wheeler" role. But he has to find some consistency throwing the ball if he's going to stay in the fight for the starting job.

Winners: Chris Warren and D'Onta Foreman

The quarterbacks will always garner most of the chatter, but there should be no doubt that Chris Warren and D'Onta Foreman are the foundation of this offense.

After averaging more than 6.5 yards per carry apiece in 2015, Texas' two power backs have shown no signs of slowing down. The duo of 230-plus-pound backs tore it up all spring and then carved up their teammates for 174 yards and two touchdowns on 16 carries.

And that's what sets these two apart. Even at their size, they do a great job after separating once they reach the second level, which is going to kill defenses that get tired of going blow-for-blow between the tackles.

Sterlin Gilbert's offense is going to get these two into space, and they've shown they know what to do with it. Huge seasons are in the offing for the Longhorns' two tremendous backs.

Losers: The Wide Receivers

Cooper Neill/Getty Images

John Burt and the rest of the Texas receivers must step up in 2016.

Texas has talent at wide receiver, but consistency remains a major issue for a group that must step up in 2016.

Drops continued to plague Texas' entire offense Saturday. John Burt, DeAndre McNeal and Collin Johnson each had touchdowns slip through their hands, and several drives stalled on missed connections between the 20s.

With the quarterback situation still iffy, these guys must do a better job of finishing the plays they're put in position to make. They left at least two deep touchdowns from Tyrone Swoopes on the field that would have completely transformed his day. Instead, the beleaguered quarterback enters the summer with the fanbase pulling for a freshman to take his job.

All that said, there's plenty of potential for this group to turn it around in 2016. Before his tough day, Johnson was the breakout star of the spring thanks to catches like this. Burt also went on to salvage his day with a 65-yard score, and Armanti Foreman capped off a strong spring with 81 yards and a score.

The good has to outweigh the bad for this offense to reach its ceiling.

Winner: The 2015 Recruiting Class

Eric Gay/Associated Press/Associated Press

Chris Warren and the rest of the 2015 recruiting class have asserted their control of the Longhorn program.

Nearly every member of the 2015 recruiting class contributed as true freshmen, and it's clear these guys are the alpha dogs on both sides of the ball.

Specifically, four members of this class provide the offensive identity as a run-first, play-action attack. Connor Williams and Patrick Vahe anchor an offensive line that broke huge holes open for classmate Chris Warren. Then, when Texas took to the air, sprinter John Burt broke loose for scores like the 65-yarder he had on Saturday.

On defense, it's even more apparent. With Charles Omenihu, Anthony Wheeler and DeShon Elliott emerging, as many as seven members of this class could start in 2016. And that's with Kris Boyd, who had two pass breakups in the spring game, serving as a backup.

Not even a full calendar year in, Charlie Strong's first full recruiting class has been a home run.

Losers: The Defensive Tackles

Eric Gay/Associated Press

Texas really needs someone to emerge behind Poona Ford (pictured) and Paul Boyette.

Texas has great depth everywhere on defense except for defensive tackle. That was an obvious problem for the second team on Saturday.

Spring games are zero-sum affairs, so when you see Chris Warren and D'Onta Foreman averaging more than 10 yards per carry, there should also be an area of concern. That specific area is defensive tackle, where the Horns have almost no experience behind starters Poona Ford and Paul Boyette.

Yes, Ford and Boyette two are solid, experienced starters. But if either gets injured, Chris Nelson is the only other tackle on the roster who saw action last season. 

So, when the Longhorns begin fall camp, at least one of the five interior recruits from 2016 will immediately crack the two-deep. Relying on freshmen at such a critical position could be a critical flaw in this crucial upcoming season.

Winner: Sterlin Gilbert

Associated Press

Charlie Strong has to be happy with what he's seen from Sterlin Gilbert's offense thus far.

Four months into the installation of his offense, offensive coordinator Sterlin Gilbert is looking like a solid hire for Charlie Strong and the Longhorns.

Texas' increased pace immediately stood out in the spring game. Each offense ran over 50 plays and accrued more than 225 yards, a far cry from last year's plodding attack.

The progress was especially evident with the first-team offense. The running backs easily found room to run behind coach Matt Mattox's offensive line, and the deep routes were there all game long. Once Shane Buechele got going, this group showed off some awesome potential.

Penalties along the offensive line aside, bringing Gilbert aboard has made an obvious difference for an offense that has struggled over the past two seasons.