Longhorns football is just 90 days away and it’s another “Breakout Sunday”. Last week, the days to kickoff lined up with the breakout players number. This week is just the same with Josiah Sharma being the breakout candidate taking centerstage today. The redshirt freshman logged just one tackle last season, but he’s earned rave reviews out of spring camp. Despite bringing in Ian Geffrard, Sharma could be the one leading the way at nose tackle.
Sharma is one of the players that stood to benefit from the addition of Will Muschamp. Muschamp employing a true nose tackle is something that can get someone like Sharma, at 6-foot-4, 336-pounds, on the field more. He’s able to control the line of scrimmage in the run game and has surprising athleticism for his size. The interior DL rotation figures to be a tough one to crack but I expect Sharma to get his fair share of looks.
In terms of a true prediction for this season, I believe Sharma will see the field in every game this season barring injury. He’s capable of splitting time with Geffrard on 1st and 2nd down as a true run stopper. That being said, given the versatility and depth of the defensive front, I don’t expect eye popping numbers from Sharma. That doesn’t mean he can’t be a breakout player and make impact plays in big moments, and that’s what I expect from big number 90 this season.
The Longhorns are loaded with breakout candidates but the stars aligned for Sharma and January to kick us off. The countdown will continue tomorrow as we breakdown the running back room and possible rotation this season. It’s known Sarkisian hit the portal to upgrade the backfield but how is the group stacking up heading into summer? We’ll find out tomorrow.
This article originally appeared on Longhorns Wire: Countdown to Kickoff: Breakout Longhorns featuring DT Josiah Sharma
Reporting by Tommy Bresee, Longhorns Wire / Longhorns Wire
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By Tommy Bresee, Longhorns Wire | USA TODAY Network
