The Horns have been missing the juice that Wisner provides at the position.
The Texas Longhorns have been without junior running back Quintrevion Wisner since the season opener against the Ohio State Buckeyes.
The medical staff has taken a cautious approach with Wisner and a number of injured Longhorns during the home portion of the non-conference schedule, setting up Wisner’s anticipated return for the SEC opener against the Gators in Gainesville.
On Thursday, Wisner teased his return, a significant development for a position room that has clearly missed Wisner’s juice.
“Tre’s the ultimate energizer for the offense. He brings good juice every day and he’s a game,” Texas redshirt sophomore quarterback Arch Manning said before the season opener.
Longhorns head coach Steve Sarkisian had pointed to Wisner as the player who defines the Texas offense’s personality.
“Tre Weisner is a great guy to look to — I think that guy squeezes every ounce of juice that he’s got into the way he plays the game of football, and that’s the way we want to play. We want to play with maximum effort, maximum toughness, a sense of real physicality, but yet the speed,” Sarkisian said.
Even though Wisner hasn’t dressed or received a carry in the last three games, he’s still had a positive impact on the team.
“He’s such an engaged guy. Some guys get injured and they have a tendency to kind of fade to the back. Those guys you get a little concerned about because they almost feel disconnected, that you have to get them reconnected. The thing about Tre, he he’s in it, he’s connected, and on the sidelines, that guy is very engaged,” Sarkisian said on Monday.
“He’s talking to the young running backs. He’s understanding the game plan. He’s in every install meeting. He’s at practice. As much as he’s rehabbing, when he’s not in, he’s working, and so I’m not as concerned about a guy like him, just because of the engagement that he has all the way through.”
Sarkisian is hopeful that Wisner will be ready for the game speed of a Florida defense that is allowing 3.4 yards per carry and didn’t give up a rushing touchdown until the fourth game of the season.
“When you get into a game, is there potential rust? Sure, there always is, but I’m hopeful that because of the way we practice and the intensity with which we practice that he’s going to feel game-like practice reps, even when we go good-on-good, and there’ll be a fair amount of good-on-good this week as well as next week, game week, to where the speed of the game won’t feel overwhelming to him because of the speed of the way we practice,” Sarkisian said.
Wisner’s speed is something the Horns have been missing over the last three games — the juice that he provides isn’t just figurative. When the Waco native reached 20.4 miles per hour on a run against Oklahoma last year, he was one of the five fastest players in college football that week, explosiveness that Texas hasn’t been able to get from other players in Chad Scott’s position room.
Against Florida, though? The Texas offense should receive a much-needed juice injection with Wisner’s anticipated — and teased — return.
Category: General Sports
