Bad news on the injury front this week for the Kansas game. We knew starting center Chris Hall would be out with a knee injury but cornerback Aaron Williams and tight end Ian Harris are also out. The true freshman Williams has been big for the secondary filling in and playing well while starting corner Chykie Brown was out, fortunately Brown is not on this week’s injury report.
Listed as questionable are two key members of the defensive line in end Brian Orakpo and tackle Lamarr Houston. Both players could play and rumors are both should be on the field today in Lawrence. Safety Ben Wells is also questionable.
With the offensive line injury, off field, and performance issues the last few weeks it is very good news that left tackle Adam Ulatoski is probable.
It was immediately obvious after watching the first replay of Blaine Irby’s gruesome knee injury but it is now official that the sophomore tight end will miss the remainder of the 2008 season. According to a press release from the university Sunday evening Blaine suffered a dislocated right knee and will undergo season ending surgery. He’ll be able to seek a medical redshirt and should have a full three years of eligibility remaining when he (hopefully) returns to the field in 2009.
Read the full press release including quotes from Irby and Mack Brown below:
Longhorn sophomore starting tight end Blaine Irby sustained a dislocated right knee in Texas’ 52-10 victory over Rice on Saturday, will undergo surgery and is out for the rest of the season, UT Head Athletic Trainer for Football Kenny Boyd confirmed on Monday.
“It’s going to be a long journey, and I just have to take it one step at a time,” Irby said. “I know the tight end spot and the offense won’t lose a beat because Peter (Ullman) and Greg (Smith) are there to lead the way. I’m going to be there too, helping out Coach Chambers. I’ll be there as a coach and a teammate and ready to help anybody in any way that they need me. Coach Brown told me that I could use a medical redshirt since this happened so early in the season, which would give me three more years, but that’s down the road. Right now, I just need to focus on being patient, taking it one day at a time, getting healthy and coming back stronger than ever.”
The 6-3, 235-pound Irby started all three games and had 10 catches for 95 yards and two touchdowns on the year. He led the Horns with seven catches for 62 yards and a TD in their 52-10 season-opening victory over Florida Atlantic. Irby also posted nine knockdown blocks in that game. He had a 23-yard catch at UTEP and registered two catches for 10 yards before sustaining the knee injury against Rice. He played in 11 games and registered two catches for 29 yards as a true freshman in 2007.
“We have a great history of tight ends and Blaine was quickly developing into the type of player to follow in those footsteps,” said head coach Mack Brown. “He was getting better every week and making a big impact in our offense. Blaine was very productive for us at a key time since we lost Jermichael (Finley) early to the NFL. As much as we’ll miss him this season, thank goodness he’ll get a redshirt year and have three seasons left when he gets back.”
In addition to Finley leaving school early, Texas also lost sophomore Josh Marshall during preseason drills. He sustained a left scapula injury and remains out indefinitely. Senior Peter Ullman and sophomore Greg Smith both have played this season and will compete for the starting tight end job.
Redshirt freshman Ahmard Howard will move up the depth chart and compete for action after playing primarily on special teams this season. Fellow redshirt freshman Ian Harris, who sustained a neck sprain in August, is expected to be cleared to return to practice soon. Offensive tackle Britt Mitchell has been playing tight end in short-yardage and goal-line situations as well.
We wish Blaine good health and determination through his rehab and can’t wait to see him back catching passes again as soon as possible.
Position Rating: C-
Starter: Blaine Irby
Reserves: Peter Ullman, Ian Harris, Greg Smith
Tight end was a position of concern headed into fall practice and Josh Marshall’s injury only makes things worse. When Jermichael Finley bolted early for the NFL it left the Longhorns without any proven pass catching threat at the position.
The top returning receiver and most important tight end this season is sophomore Blaine Irby. Last season as a true freshman Irby caught only two passes for 29 yards but Texas fans should be expecting better total numbers by week one this year. With no proven third wide receiver, quarterback Colt McCoy will need Irby to step up to provide him another option or the offense will struggle against better defenses.
Behind Irby the Longhorns have veteran blocker Peter Ullman. Ullman is expected to be the team’s second tight end in two tight end sets. He may accidentally find himself open and catch an important touchdown pass but mainly will be relied on as a sixth blocker on the line.
There’s not much behind the top two with Marshall out. Greg Smith was moved back to tight end last week but as a current/former tackle you know what to expect out of him. Redshirt freshman Ian Harris will be the first guy off the bench if the team needs a TE who can stretch the field a little. He’s 6-foot-4 and 250 pounds so he’s got prototypical size to play the position and block as well as catch the football. I don’t think you can expect much out of him this year but he’s a player to look out for in 2009.
Not much production from the starting slot and little depth make tight end one of the biggest holes going into the 2008 season. If Irby doesn’t show flashes of being the next David Thomas you’ll likely see a lot of four wide receiver and two back formations than in recent years.
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Posted February 18th, 2007 by Brian
Filed under: Football, Recruiting
Name: Ian Harris
Position: Tight end
Ranking: 
Hometown: San Antonio, TX
School: Churchill
Height: 6-foot-3
Weight: 217 lbs
Background
One of the last additions to the 2007 Longhorns recruiting class, Ian Harris is a tight end with a lot of upside. Harris was committed to the Missouri Tigers until January when the Horns went after him hard to replace the decommitted Zack Pianalto (those Springdale guys are really good with that whole commitment thing). Harris is one of three tight ends in this class.
Harris was a U.S. Army All-American and was even named a team captain by his coaches for the game. He was All-District as a sophomore, junior, and a senior and had 19 receptions for 283 yards and four TD’s as one of quarterback Nick Fanuzzi’s favorite targets. Has good upside but will need time to develop and hit the weight room to get bigger.
Immediate Impact
Almost certainly headed for a redshirt season, it is unlikely Harris will contribute on the field for the Longhorns in 2007. He’ll have a year to get acclimated to college life and academics, while gaining the strength and size he’ll need to be a Big 12 tight end.
Future
With the talent the Longhorns have at tight end Harris will not be counted on for big contributions right away. He’ll have a chance to redshirt, then contribute as a second or third tight end behind budding superstar Jermichael Finley. Has great hands and could become great pass catching threat and safety valve for Texas QB’s after Finley is gone. Also a chance he could end up at defensive end if he keeps growing or if the tight end position becomes overcrowded.
Posted January 22nd, 2007 by Brian
Filed under: Football, Recruiting
It looked like the Longhorns had their recruiting class wrapped up back in June, but there have been some unfortunate changes the last thirty days that have made things a little more interesting. This weekend the Longhorns hosted several recruits and apparently made a big impression on them. And there’s two more athletes coming in next weekend as well.
Defensive tackle Tyrell Higgins and safety Christian Scott were in town over the weekend on official visits. Higgins made it official as soon as he could and gave Mack Brown his verbal commitment before he left town. Scott left Austin uncommitted but the Longhorns are thought to be the leader for the services of the talented defensive back from Dallas. LSU and Oklahoma are the other teams in the mix.
Two players who were committed to Big 12 rivals until recently will be in town this coming weekend. Tight end Ian Harris (pictured) was a Missouri commitment going into the weekend but today he’s a Texas Longhorn. Zach Pianalto’s decommit to North Carolina opened up a spot for another tight end in this class and Harris jumped on Texas’ offer as quick as he could. Wide receiver/cornerback James Kirkendoll was an Oklahoma Sooner yesterday but now he’s set to visit the good guys. It would be a big surprise if he’s not a Longhorn soon.
Higgins and Harris are solid prospects who help round out Texas’ top three recruiting class. Scott and Kirkendoll would be huge additions who as an added bonus could be stolen from their rivals. We’ll have more news on those two when it happens and plenty more recruiting opinions as National Signing Day approaches on February 7th.
Update
Orangebloods is reporting that Kirkendoll is “nearly ready” and will officially commit to Texas this weekend. He is now listed in his profile as a “soft verbal.” Great news for Texas fans and bad news for the Okies. (1/24/2007)
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