Texas Longhorns emerging defensive star starting to answer Steve Sarkisian’s biggest question after another impressive performance
After losing a ton of talent to the NFL Draft, the Texas secondary has a potential breakout star.
The Texas Longhorns pitched a shutout Saturday versus Sam Houston. Afterwards, head coach Steve Sarkisian was thoroughly impressed with defensive back Jelani McDonald. The junior from Waco, Tex., finished with two tackles, a tackle for loss, and an interception. But, more importantly, he is showing why the Longhorns’ staff recruited him in the first place.
“Jelani is a heck of a player, first of all. And you know, when we recruited him out of high school, we didn’t really know what we were going to play him at,” Sarkisian said. “He was playing high school quarterback, and initially it was like we thought he was going to be a linebacker, and then when he got here we moved to corner, and then he finally found his way back at safety. And so his development has been different.
“He’s always been very physically gifted, but learning to play the game from that perspective is a little bit different when you’ve been an offensive type of a player. But to his credit, he’s worked at his craft.”
There’s one upperclassman who has made a huge impact on Jelani McDonald’s development.
“You know, I think having Michael Taaffe there with him has really helped him, not only last year, but I think this entire offseason through spring, through summer, through fall camp,” Sarkisian said. “Because here’s a guy that squeezes every ounce out of his lemon every day of his preparation, his approach, his mental approach to the game.
“And Jelani has all this physical ability, but now he’s really tapping into the mental side of the game. He’s communicating at a high level, but his play making ability is obviously elite.”
McDonald looks to be finally breaking out and giving the Texas secondary another layer of playmaking ability. He is 6-foot-2, 200 pounds and has all the tools to play on Sundays. Now, he has the approval of not only the staff but his teammates.
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Jelani McDonald’s recent emergence has been boiling for quite some time according to Steve Sarkisian.
“He’s a great tackler, probably one of our best tacklers on our team. His ball skills are really good. And just think his confidence and who he’s become as a leader, I think has probably been the most impressive thing,” Sarkisian said. “This guy’s a real leader on our team. He was a captain tonight, so just really proud of all that he’s done to get to this point in his career.”
Having an experienced secondary is something which can set apart this Texas team. The offense is starting to gain its footing, the run game is still finding its way but Tre Wisner is still on the shelf, and the wide receivers are clicking.
The defense has always been a constant and there was never much of a doubt about the front seven. But, the secondary was a different story. The Longhorns lost a lot to the NFL Draft and were in search of playmakers. If McDonald can provide it down the stretch, this could be a fun close to the season.
