Texas football offensive lineman Neto Umeozulo powering his way toward more playing time

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Young offensive lineman Neto Umeozulu took advantage of his extended playing time at left guard during Texas football’s shellacking of Texas Tech last November. After playing in just three previous games as a redshirt freshman, he bullied and brutalized the Red Raiders’ defensive linemen while helping Texas rack up more than 300 rushing yards in the 57-7 win.

But Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian still made time for some in-game counseling. And he didn’t pull Umeozulu aside to talk about stunt pickups or assignment calls.

“I had to try to almost calm him down,” Sarkisian said this week. “He was truly playing through the echo of the whistle. So we’re trying to keep him within the confines of the game. He’s a nasty player, and we saw that last year when he was in the Tech game.”

Texas offensive lineman Neto Umeozulu, left, battles teammate Kelvin Banks Jr. in a practice drill last season. Umeozulu has impressed coaches and teammates this spring while battling for a starting spot at left guard.

For the record, those words came as a compliment — and they came with a smile from the coach. Sarkisian and offensive line coach Kyle Flood like their “big humans,” as Sarkisian often refers to his linemen, to have an edge.

More: Texas focusing on culture this spring: ‘Culture and talent, that’s really dangerous’

Texas’ offensive line rotation is taking shape inside

Umeozulu, a 6-foot-4, 334-pound sophomore from the Class 6A high school powerhouse of Allen, certainly has sharpened things up this spring. He’s pushing two-year starter Hayden Connor for playing time at left guard while also giving Texas more options on the interior of the offensive line.

While Sarkisian emphasized that he’s not worried about depth charts or starting spots at this point of spring practice, he did say Connor also has worked some at…

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Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/texas-football-offensive-lineman-neto-161910957.html

Author : Austin American-Statesman

Publish date : 2024-04-11 16:19:10

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