Texas freshman tailback and former Aledo High School star Johnathan Gray is expected to be more involved in the offense on Saturday when the No. 17 Longhorns host New Mexico.
Gray was limited to five carries for nine yards in UT's season opening win over Wyoming, 37-17, last Saturday.
"We have got packages, as always, that he will play in," running backs coach Major Applewhite said on Wednesday. "He did a good job of what was given to him [against Wyoming]. So he will just continue to work to be more part of the offense. He has done a good job thus far in practice this week and will continue to progress and move on."
Offensive coordinator Bryan Harsin said Gray's role was limited in the opener because Texas did not know what to expect from Wyoming's new defensive coordinator.
"The reason he didn't have as many touches is the unexpected," Harsin said. "Put him out there and he makes some adjustments [to what] he hasn't seen. We don't want to put our young guys in bad situations. We want them, especially true freshmen, to have success."
Head coach Mack Brown said this week he would like to see carries split evenly between Gray and sophomores Malcolm Brown and Joe Bergeron. Brown envisions the Longhorns rushing 45 times, with each back getting 15 carries.
Bergeron ran for 110 yards and two touchdowns on 15 carries against Wyoming. Brown ran for 105 yards and one touchdown on 14 carries.
Still, Gray knew he would not get the bulk of the carries as a freshman.
"He was cognizant of his role but to be honest, I don’t think those guys are counting carries," Applewhite said. "They would all love to carry it 30 to 35 times a game because that is just their personality. But they are students of the game and they understand from watching college football and NFL football and hearing the analysis on it that those days of Bo Jackson, Ricky Williams and carrying it 35 times a game doesn’t last. They understand for the team to be successful and for them to ultimately be successful, they have to share some roles."
Gray was limited to five carries for nine yards in UT's season opening win over Wyoming, 37-17, last Saturday.
"We have got packages, as always, that he will play in," running backs coach Major Applewhite said on Wednesday. "He did a good job of what was given to him [against Wyoming]. So he will just continue to work to be more part of the offense. He has done a good job thus far in practice this week and will continue to progress and move on."
Offensive coordinator Bryan Harsin said Gray's role was limited in the opener because Texas did not know what to expect from Wyoming's new defensive coordinator.
"The reason he didn't have as many touches is the unexpected," Harsin said. "Put him out there and he makes some adjustments [to what] he hasn't seen. We don't want to put our young guys in bad situations. We want them, especially true freshmen, to have success."
Head coach Mack Brown said this week he would like to see carries split evenly between Gray and sophomores Malcolm Brown and Joe Bergeron. Brown envisions the Longhorns rushing 45 times, with each back getting 15 carries.
Bergeron ran for 110 yards and two touchdowns on 15 carries against Wyoming. Brown ran for 105 yards and one touchdown on 14 carries.
Still, Gray knew he would not get the bulk of the carries as a freshman.
"He was cognizant of his role but to be honest, I don’t think those guys are counting carries," Applewhite said. "They would all love to carry it 30 to 35 times a game because that is just their personality. But they are students of the game and they understand from watching college football and NFL football and hearing the analysis on it that those days of Bo Jackson, Ricky Williams and carrying it 35 times a game doesn’t last. They understand for the team to be successful and for them to ultimately be successful, they have to share some roles."
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