Texas Football Insider: A Look Back at the Defensive Line

The Longhorns were thought to have one of the better defenses in college football heading into the 2010 season but like the offense, the defense managed to let the team down this year.  They were victims of the problems on offense, as well as problems of their own.  

Now they have to adapt to the system that new defensive coordinator Manny Diaz is going to install.  There is a lot to learn and they will have a lot of time to learn it in between now and the time that the season starts.

But let’s not focus on what the future will bring just yet.  We aren’t too sure what’s going to happen there.  Let’s take a look at how the defensive line performed this season and how they affected the play.

DE-Eddie Jones- This was the last season for Jones in the Texas Longhorn’s defensive front and he will be missed.  During the 2010 season, Jones collected a total of 52 tackles with 32 solo and 20 unassisted.  He had ten tackles for a loss, one forced fumble and six total sacks.  He’s been productive and a will be missed.

DT-Kheeston Randall- The Longhorns will have Randall back for one more season and they should like that.  He’s been a mainstay in the middle of their line for the past two years and he’s very productive.  In 2010, Randall had a total of 23 solo tackles and 16 assisted tackles for a total of 39 tackles.  He collected 13 tackles for a loss with one sack with eight quarterback hits.  Randall also knocked down three passes and blocked two kicks.

He should have a pretty season next year and give the Longhorns defense a boost in 2011.

DT-Alex Okafor- The Longhorns will have Okafor back again for at least another season (unless he decides to turn pro at the end of next season), so there will still be some stability on the interior of the defensive line in 2011.  In 2010, Okafor tallied a total of 30 tackles with 14 solo and 16 assisted, four tackles for a loss, two and a half sacks, one fumble recovery and 12 quarterback hits.

Expect Okafor to have a good season again next year and help the Longhorns line become one of the best in the Big 12.

DE-Sam Acho- Acho, a senior this year, won’t be around to terrorize opposing defenses any longer, at least on the college level.  During the 2010 season, Acho was responsible for 59 solo tackles with 30 solo and 20 assisted tackles.  He had 17 tackles for a loss and nine sacks to go along with five forced fumbles, five fumbles recovered with 17 quarterback hurries and one pass broken up.

The Longhorns will definitely miss Acho, but they have some other guys waiting in the wings that should be able to help them in 2011 and help keep this defensive line strong and perhaps even better than it was this season.

DE-Jackson Jeffcoat- The Longhorns will have this freshman around for a while and he should be able to develop into a fine player.  Jeffcoat collected at total of 15 tackles with eight solo and seven assisted.  He also had six tackles for a loss, two and a half sacks, one fumble recovery, seven quarterback hits and one pass breakup.

Jeffcoat still has some room to grow and should improve by next season where he may be able to contend for a starting job and help the Longhorn’s defense improve.

DT-Calvin Howell-The Longhorns had another freshman backing up on the line this past season and he has a bright future with the team.  In 2010, Howell had two tackles with one solo and one assisted.  Granted, he didn’t have a lot of production in his backup role this past season, but he should see a bigger role in 2011.

DT-Ashton Dorsey-Dorsey was another freshman backup that played a small role on the defensive line in 2010.  He recorded two tackles with one solo and one assisted along with one fumble recovered.  Dorsey should see much more time in the lineup next season but may end up being a backup next season.

DE-Reggie Wilson-The Longhorns had Wilson, another freshman, backing up at the defensive end position last season.  He ended the season with five total tackles with two solo and three assisted.  Look for Wilson, like the other freshman on the team this year to contribute much more next season than he did this year.

The Longhorns have several other players as part of their defensive line. They include sophomore Dravannti Johnson, junior Cody Hill, junior Luciano Martinez, freshman De’Aires Cotton, freshman Kyle Kriegel, junior Tyrell Higgins, freshman Taylor Bible, sophomore Tevin Mims and freshman Greg Daniels.

On any defense, it all starts up front with the defensive line and the Longhorns have quietly assembled a pretty nice group of defensive linemen and they should be pretty effective next season.  With a new defensive coordinator in house there may be come changes but he’s got a good base to start with and should have this defense on track in 2011.