Longhorns want to get Brown more touches

Malcolm Brown
led the Texas Longhorns in rushing last year and opened his sophomore season with 104
yards against Wyoming. Last week against New Mexico, he touched the a ball a career-low two
times.

When asked about
Brown's lack of touches, Texas offensive coordinator and play-caller Bryan
Harsin said it was because quarterback David Ash changed several plays at the
line of scrimmage from run to pass.

"There were
seven or eight plays that [Brown] was in on that were run-pass options or
possibilities to check out of [a run], so it was one of those things in his
rotation those plays started to be called and we were trying to get the ball to
him and David made the right checks," Harsin said. "It’s kind of the
nature of what we're doing offensively with the run-pass option so it just happened
to work out that way that he was in those situations."

Running backs
coach Major Applewhite said Brown played 22 snaps against New Mexico. It was
the first time in 12 career games the Brown had less than 11 carries.

So far, Harsin
has been unable to balance carries between Brown, Joe Bergeron and former Aledo
High School star Johnathan Gray. Bergeron has gotten the bulk of the work and
leads Texas with 159 yards on 26 carries.

"It’s about being a selfless
football player, and we talk about that every week on how to get the ball in
different guy’s hands more," Applewhite said. "We talk about it
as coaches and say we need to get this guy more touches or this guy less
touches."Harsin said he
wants to get Brown more touches on Saturday against Ole Miss.

"You want
to have the ball in his hands and you want him to be able to carry the football,"
said Harsin, in his second year at Texas. "We'll have those same type of
packages but, at the same time, make sure that we're getting some runs in there
and let him get downhill and run the football."

Brown rushed for 742 yards last year as a freshman with five touchdowns. 
By Austin Laymance/Special to the Star-Telegram