A Quick Look at the Longhorns' 2010 Defense

The Texas Longhorns have always prided themselves on defense, and this year they should be able to put a strong defense on the field in 2010.  Although the Longhorns have lost some significant talent on defense from 2009 this year, they should be able to make up for those losses with the talent that they currently have on the roster.

The defensive line had a big loss with LaMarr Houston leaving the team, but the Longhorns will feature new stars, such as Emmanuel Acho and Curtis Brown. Their secondary looks like it will be one of the best in the Big 12, if not all of college football.

Not only did the Longhorns lose Houston on defense, they also lost outside linebacker/defensive end Sergio Kindle, linebacker Roddrick Muckelroy, defensive tackle Ben Alexander, safety Earl Thomas, and cornerback Deon Beasley. They will all be difficult to replace, but the Longhorns are good at replacing players, especially on defense.  

Let’s take a quick look at the possible starters on defense this coming season, who might replace whom and where the Longhorns stand on defense heading into the new season.

Right now, it appears as if the starting defensive ends will be sophomore Alex Okafor and senior Sam Acho. Acho has a lot of talent and could easily be selected as an All-American if he has a standout senior season. Alex Okafor is a solid but young talent that is slotted in as the starter at one defensive end position.

The other defensive end position will be manned by Sam Acho, a star in the making. Acho has shown some solid instinct and great play at times, and should be able to build on what he has done before in that defense. Backing up both Okafor and Acho will be Eddie Jones.

At the defensive tackle position, the Longhorns will use junior Kheeston Randall, while redshirt freshman Calvin Howell may end up manning the other spot. Backing those guys up will be Taylor Bible and Tyrell Higgins. Keep an eye on Howell. He will either make or break this position for the Longhorns.

The strong side linebacker position will manned by potential superstar Emmanuel Acho. Acho played in the position last season and was overshadowed by Sergio Kindle on the other side but this year he’ll get his chance to shine. Backing him up will be Tariq Allen and Ryan Roberson.

The middle linebacker spot should go to Dustin Earnest this season. Earnest, a senior, has played well the past and should play well in the spot for this year. Backing him up will be the aforementioned Allen and Jared Norton.

On the weak side, the Longhorns will start Keenan Robinson, and Robinson is poised to have a big season for the Longhorns this coming season. Not only should he be a star for the Longhorns but scouts are thinking that Robinson could be one of the most sought after linebackers in the 2011 (if he comes out as a junior). Look for a big season out of him.

Backing Robinson up will be Jordan Hicks. Emmanuel Acho could also back up here in a pinch.

At the right cornerback spot, senior Curtis Brown returns for what should be another solid season in the secondary for the Longhorns. Brown was a big part of that unit last season and should help make it even better this year. Backing him up will be Chykie Brown, a player who has the ability to start right now, and A.J. White.

At the left cornerback position, there is a little bit of controversy. Chykie Brown has played so well there has been some talk of giving him this position. However, junior Aaron Williams appears to be the guy that will start there but this might end up to be a spot that is one of the featured position battles in practice leading up to the season. If Brown loses out to Williams, then Williams will backup Brown as will Eryon Barnett.

The Longhorns will be strong at both safety positions this season despite the fact that they lost Earl Thomas to the NFL. Starting at the free safety position in 2010 will be junior Blake Gideon. Gideon is a hard hitter, very knowledgeable, and poised to have a strong season. Look for him to make some big plays this year. Junior Nolan Brewster should back him up.  

The Longhorns have a bit of a decision to make at the strong safety position. Heading into practice, it was thought that junior Christian Scott would take the reigns as the starter there but now it appears that he may have some competition. The Longhorns have really liked the way that Brown (Chykie) has played and feel that he might be able to make a move from cornerback to the safety position.

If this happens, then Scott would be relegated to backup along with sophomore Kenny Vaccaro whom some think could be a starter at the position as well. It will be interesting to see who comes out as a starter for their first game of the season in just a few weeks.

Not to be forgotten, we should take a quick look at the specialists. The Longhorns have tabbed punter John Gold to start as their punter. They will use Justin Tucker as their kicker to replace the departed Hunter Lawrence.

The job of returning punts should go to Williams with DeSean Hales and Brown (Curtis). There will be some competition prior to the season for this spot but Williams should prevail.

When it comes to returning kickoffs, the Longhorns are going to count on Marquise Goodwin and D.J. Monroe to return kicks. Malcolm Williams and Monroe will back them up as will Aaron Williams.  

The Longhorns have always prided themselves on defense and this year should be a good one all across the board. As long as those players who are expected to step up step up right and play well and don’t get injured then things should be fine with the defense.

Keep an eye on this group as there could be several (depending on if any juniors declare) that could get drafted in the 2011 NFL Draft.