When left tackle Trevor Goosby went down with a torn patella tendon in the first quarter of last Saturday's win over the Ole Miss Rebels, the Texas Longhorns moved into a future without their All-American protecting the blind side of quarterback Arch Manning.
Taking over for Goosby? Another senior in 6'6, 339-pound Andre Cojoe, who was competing for the starting right tackle job in preseason camp last year before suffering a season-ending knee injury.
Entering the game, Cojoe had only played 56 career snaps for the Longhorns after arriving as an early enrollee in the 2022 recruiting class just before he turned 17. Ranked outside the top 100 prospects in Texas, Cojoe didn't face high expectations when he got to the Forty Acres, but the athleticism he possessed at his size made him an intriguing long-term developmental prospect.
Now Cojoe has had the time to develop and the left tackle position will be his for the remainder of the season unless head coach Steve Sarkisian and offensive line coach Kyle Flood make the unexpected decision to flip Cojoe to the right side and move senior Melvin Siani back to the left tackle position he occupied last season at Wake Forest.
But that move sacrifices the offensive line's continuity the staff was able to maintain when Goosby missed multiple weeks of practice while recovering from a bone bruise in his knee sustained during preseason camp.
Cojoe's size and movement ability in the running game made him an asset against Ole Miss, but he was also directly responsible for the single most catastrophic moment that contributed to the Rebels tying the game after scoring 21 unanswered points in giving up the sack-fumble recovered for a touchdown.
Looking for a play-action pass on first down on the opening drive of the third quarter, surely part of Sarkisian's opening script out of halftime , Cojoe took his preferred angle B set that helps deny inside moves, but with the tight end lined up outside forcing a wider alignment, Cojoe pass set didn't gain enough depth to take away the speed rush and forced him out over his toes trying to slow down the defender, who had an easy arc to run to force the fumble.
During both media availabilities this week, Sarkisian described the challenge as more mental than physical for Cojoe.
"You can't have those plays where you think, 'Hey, let me relax right here,' because really, that's kind of what happens on the sack fumble," Sarkisian said Monday. "I think he felt like he was in a little bit of a comfort zone, a little bit of a groove, and boom, next thing you know, he gets beat, sack, fumble, balls out, bang, touchdown, and the game changes that quickly. So I think there's a mental intensity component."
It's a legitimate potential explanation, but at 340 pounds, there may also be some physical limitations for Cojoe — if he wants to consistently B set at a 45-degree angle as a compromise to exposing himself to inside moves on a vertical set, there's a real risk he's going to give up speed rushes on a regular basis.
If he tries to C set, he could give up even faster pressure on inside moves.
Given the limited sample size of 37 pass-blocking reps this season, not all of which are pure pass sets, it's too early to make any strong overall judgements about Cojoe's ability and whether he needs to B set less, but a post-game comment by Sarkisian provided some insight into how his thinking changed when Goosby went out.
"I was really kind of leery of exposing ourselves from a protection standpoint and so we were kind of selective with some of the shots that we did take. We were trying to get the ball out, and then we just tried to lean into the run game, and it was effective enough for us," Sarkisian said.
One of the effective shot plays after Goosby went out, the 50-yard touchdown pass to Ryan Wingo, showcased how Sarkisian can still hunt big plays without exposing Cojoe to the type of speed rushes that led to the sack-fumble.
The Texas play caller likes to major in outside zone because it pairs well with slide protections that look like outside zone, allowing play-action fakes to have more impact on safeties and ensure that the tackles don't have to take pass sets because the fake and the slide protection look like a run, slowing down edge rushers.
Beyond using slide protections, having Cojoe at left tackle may force Sarkisian to turn to the quick passing game more frequently, a common call in recent weeks as frustration mounted about Manning's hesitation in the pocket, which could ultimately prove a net positive for the Longhorns down the stretch.
Chips from tight ends and check releases from the running back could also help, but more max protection looks with fewer wide receivers out on routes could represent a turn by Sarkisian back towards his more conservative and less productive impulses.
What does seem clear is that Cojoe can have a real impact in the running game, especially on outside zone where his mass helps to wash out defenders who give him a shoulder to help.
Cojoe was particularly effective in that regard on Raleek Brown's 47-yard run early in the fourth quarter when he was uncovered and able to block a linebacker trying to fill.
Cojoe doesn't discriminate, either — he can do the same thing against much bigger players, like he did on Brown's sensational cutback in the first quarter.
Cojoe has the trust of his teammates like center Connor Robertson, too.
"The good thing for us is Andre's a guy that we all trust and know he's going to step up, so I feel good about him," Robertson said Monday.
For the first time in Cojoe's career, he's also spending game week taking first-team reps in practice and preparing as the starter instead of trying to prepare like the starter.
"Having a week of preparation allows him to prepare for that physical and mental grind, the nuances of the plan, the communication with the guards, so I feel good about it. I think he should have a real sense of confidence," Sarkisian said.
And although Cojoe is a fourth-year player, there's no substitute for actual game experience, so the hope is that serving as Goosby's emergency replacement last week serves as the baseline for his play.
"Was he perfect last week? No, but I think there was plenty from last week's game that he can build off of," Sarkisian said.
