Behind Enemy Lines | UTSA - BleedTechBlue: Louisiana Tech Bulldogs Football & Basketball Recruiting

1. Jeff Traylor is 14-5 in 1+ seasons as the HC at UTSA after taking over for Frank Wilson. Where has Traylor had the biggest impact on the program?

It’s going to seem like a cop-out answer, but it is the culture he has instilled at UTSA over his almost two years in charge of the Roadrunners. When he gave that initial press conference inside the Alamodome in front of high school coaches, administrators and players he talked about all the things he wanted to do at UTSA (like all new coaches do). You always take those comment with a grain of salt. Jeff Traylor has followed up on all those promises he made during that press conference to this point.

He has recruited San Antonio and has built his roster on the back on kids from the 210 (the San Antonio area code). His team is physically and mentally tough. They play an extremely physical brand of football that starts with the running game. They have won multiple one possession games over the last two year, guess you have to be mentally tough to do that I would guess.

Traylor is a high school coach at heart and he coaches like one, in a good way. His mannerisms are perfect for San Antonio. Although this is the 7th largest city in the United States it has a very small town feel. Traylor thrives on that and has found away to get not only his team to buy in, but the city of San Antonio.

2. Frank Harris has had a very interesting career. The Schertz, TX native dealt with numerous injuries early on after signing in 2017, but he has really established himself as the starter at QB over the last 12 months. Where has Harris grown the most?

Frank Harris has gone through a lot to get to this point for UTSA. Like you mentioned he has sustained numerous injuries since high school that has really prevented him from reaching his full potential during his first few years at UTSA. Now that he is healthy you really have been able to see what he is capable off. We always knew that Harris could extend plays with his feet, even with the knee injuries that have slowed him down some. His arm however has always been his biggest question mark.

Teams were always going to force Harris to beat him with his arm. If you want to slow down Sincere McCormick you are going to need to load the box and force the quarterback to beat you. Harris has done just that in 2021. He has been able to hit the deep consistently this season forcing teams to respect UTSA’s passing game. It has just been a perfect combination for this offense. They can lean on McCormick or Harris when they need to and have confidence they can get it done.

3. Sincere McCormick is the household name on the Roadrunners offense, but Josh Cephus and Zakhari Franklin are having nice years at WR. Discuss the impact that Cephus and Franklin have had on an improved passing game.

This improved passing attack from UTSA is not just because of Frank Harris. The wide receivers for the Roadrunners have been excellent. Joshua Cephus and Zakhari Franklin were the household names, but you were always going to need a third receiver to step up this year, and man did he. Enters junior wide receiver De’Corian Clark. Between the three top them they have amassed 1,393 receiving yards and 14 touchdowns in 2021. At anytime any of the three can go out and make a play for Frank Harris. He has full confidence they will go up and get a jump ball. UTSA has never been known for their skill players that is more of LA. Tech thing, but for at least for one year UTSA appears to have the edge at wide receiver.

4. The UTSA defense is allowing only 19 points per game. What has been the strengths of the defense? What are some weaknesses that opponents have been able to expose at times?

It all starts up front for the Roadrunners. Their defensive line is three deep at all three spots and rotate those three positions heavily. You will see hockey type line changes at times. The reason they are able to rotate so many guys here is the lack of drop-off when they start moving personnel around. All the linemen they bring on have a different skillset, but at the end of the day they all perform extremely well. They might not have the top end talent like UTEP, but the depth in undeniable.

They are able to limit the run game for most teams and force quarterbacks to beat them. Once they force teams to start throwing the ball their pass rushers begin to do their thing. I will say that the secondary does struggle at times. Traylor likes to put his corners on an island which tends to lead to some big pass plays. UTSA has been missing one of their better defensive back last few weeks, his return would mitigate some of this.

5. What are your keys to victory for the Roadrunners on Saturday?

Can they limit big plays on defense? If the defense can keep everything in front of them they have chance to limit this Bulldog offense. If Austin Kendall starts hitting deep passes consistently it might get scary there for the Roadrunners. They have proven to can score at a high clip, but this LA. Tech defense is much better than WKU or Rice.

Can they establish the run? We all know how big a weapon Sincere McCormick is for UTSA. Can he have a big game once again. Like I mentioned above Frank Harris has been capable of winning games for the Roadrunners, but I guarantee Traylor would love to hand it off to his running backs and allow Frank Harris to pick his spots and not have to be forced to hit receivers deep.

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