Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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GAME PREVIEW: TEXAS back wilderness for the Longhorns. They didn't offer in-state star Andrew Luck and then projected future Heis- man Trophy winners Robert Griffin III and Johnny Manziel as defensive backs, thus prompting them to enroll at Baylor and Texas A&M, respec- tively. Texas did land five-star signal caller Garrett Gilbert in 2009, but that didn't work out and he eventually trans- ferred to SMU. In Strong's debut campaign last sea- son, he lost quarterback David Ash early to injury and the Texas passing game suffered greatly. The Longhorns finished 96th in the NCAA for passing efficiency with a meager 6.27 yards per attempt during a 6-7 finish. Strong is seeking more from his quarterbacks than helping win games. "At that position, you have to win the team," Strong told Rick Gosselin of The Dallas Morning News. "… When you win the team, their confidence in you grows knowing that you can go make the plays that will win a game. You have to have that type of guy at that position. "He's got to have a special attitude about himself. … I was just having this conversation with Tyrone the other day. I told him, 'You have to carry yourself in a different way. You don't always have to agree with what your teammates say, but they have to look at you differently, knowing that this is a guy we can always count on.' "He needs to play with more con- fidence. Make sure he pulls the team with him, that he draws the team and they feel comfortable with him. I told him the only way that's going to hap- pen, because of what happened last season, is when you go win a big game for them. When you win a big game for them, you'll win them over. But you have to go win that big game." Classified as a dual-threat QB, Heard won back-to-back state titles at Denton High and has a Zaire-like energy — although the jury is still out on Zaire and how he holds together in a full season. "Heard carries himself differently than Swoopes," Strong told Gosse- lin. "He has that bounce to him. He's a very confident young man and is always filled with enthusiasm. He's a winner. He's won state champion- ships. "When he takes the field, he's a guy that says, 'We'll go score.' But he's still learning the game. When he does, he'll have a chance to be pretty special." WHAT'S MY LINE? Generating a pass rush from the de- fensive line is considered one of Notre Dame's problem areas entering 2015, and it became exacerbated when start- ing nose guard Jarron Jones was lost for the season Aug. 14 with a medial collateral ligament (MCL) tear. However, Texas has had deeper is- sues along its offensive line. This sum- mer, Camrhon Hughes — who started some at tackle last season — became the fifth four-star lineman (or higher) to leave the program over the past two years, joining Rami Hammad, Desmond Harrison, Curtis Riser and Darius James. Consequently, Texas' combination