UT offense coordinator Sterlin Gilbert knows it takes time to get his spread scheme right.
New coordinator cooking up plan for Longhorns’ turnaround
AUSTIN — Sterlin Gilbert is a rich man. He speaks in a thick west Texas drawl about humble beginnings, but don’t let him fool you.
Last December, the president of one of the largest universities in the world boarded a private plane just to fly to Oklahoma and offer Gilbert a Cessna-load of money to call plays for Texas’ offense. Of course, Gilbert accepted. And one would think that since he’s making $850,000 per year, he’d buy himself a new barbecue pit.
But the decade-old apparatus in Gilbert’s backyard isn’t going anywhere. He bought it back in 2006, maybe 2007, when he was an offensive coordinator at Abilene Cooper. It’s a barrel offset smoker, a serious device for a serious Texan, and on a high-school assistant’s salary, it was about the best he could afford.
Now, with those big paychecks rolling in, isn’t he tempted to upgrade?
“Naw,” Gilbert said, grinning. “Once you’ve got that flavor built in it, money can’t buy that, you know what I mean?”
Saturday, the Longhorns begin the process of finding out whether the money they’re paying Gilbert can buy a real offense. For the first time in seven years, they appear to have all of the proper equipment and ingredients.
But Gilbert’s challenge will be to, in his terms, get that flavor built in it.
There’s a temptation, when making cooking metaphors, to equate Gilbert’s system with deepfrying. The goal is to play fast, and Charlie Strong wanted a quick fix to one of the most underperforming units in the country, so one might think this offseason was about dipping the whole scheme in hot oil and no-huddle batter and digging in.
But in reality, the same low-and-slow principles that Gilbert and his best friend — offensive line coach Matt Mattox — use at the pit also apply to UT’s offensive makeover. Among the details:
• Steady heat: Gilbert says he’s been known to let a brisket sit in his smoker for as many as 18 hours to ensure maximum tenderness. Placing the meat directly over the flame in spurts doesn’t work. The key is consistent exposure.
That’s been the goal this offseason with UT’s three quarterbacks, most notably freshman Shane Buechele, who has emerged as the favorite to beat out Tyrone Swoopes and Jerrod Heard for the starting job. As Gilbert installs the offense he used at Bowling Green and Tulsa, he gives his quarterbacks a few pieces each day, never overloading him. And as long as the quarterbacks keep showing up to the film room, little by little, it sinks in. It happens so slowly, you almost don’t notice.
But don’t rush it, Gilbert said. Friday, when asked for the umpteenth time to name his starting quarterback, he sounded like a seasoned pitmaster telling his hungry diners to be patient.
“It’s gonna work itself out,” Gilbert said.
• A distinct style: Considering Austin is home to some of the most revered brisket joints on the planet, there’s wisdom in trying to do something different.
Mattox uses a Green Egg smoker at his house, and he specializes in cuts outside the Central Texas mainstream. Last week, he smoked 30 pounds of pork butt, 70 chicken legs and 40 links of sausage for a dinner for his linemen.
“I’ve got those down pretty legit,” Mattox said.
Likewise, UT isn’t necessarily trying to match the vaunted spread offenses at TCU and Oklahoma when it comes to passing the ball all over the field. Instead, the goal is to utilize UT’s strength, which Strong said is the running game.
Leave the 400-yard passing games to Texas Tech. UT can feature tailbacks D’Onta Foreman and Chris Warren.
“Those guys are the key,” Gilbert said.
• Mixing old and new: Mattox’s Green Egg is about as simple as smokers come, but it’s not without its frills. The fan is connected to a computer system that allows Mattox to control the temperature without ever stepping foot outside.
In the same way, the Longhorns are building their offense on principles Strong has espoused forever (controlling the line of scrimmage, establishing the running game) while infusing newer ideas (multiple spread formations, quicker tempo).
“Those guys are bigtime,” tight ends coach Jeff Traylor said of Gilbert and Mattox. “They know what they’re doing.”
Meanwhile, UT fans wait to taste — and see — for themselves.