It wasn't a huge secret around the Texas Longhorns locker room heading into the 2022 season: the offensive line needed to improve if the team wanted to avoid a similar 5-7 debacle like the one that took place last year.
Set to be at the head of this resurrection was senior offensive guard Junior Angilau. The fourth-year lineman has started all 34 games he's played in since his redshirt freshman season in 2019.
But following the team's scrimmage on Aug. 13, any hopes of a bounce-back season for the o-line with Angilau at the helm were quickly dashed. Texas coach Steve Sarkisian announced the following day that his starting left guard has suffered a torn ACL.
There might not be a player on the team that shares a stronger bond than that of the projected starter at right tackle, Christian Jones. The two have been longtime roommates since their arrival on the Forty Acres.
Jones shared similarly high expectations for their senior year but admitted when speaking to the media Friday that the sudden change of events has hurt him.
"We've been talking about this season a whole lot and the whole offseason of what we're gonna do, and everything that we've sacrificed," Jones said. "For me, (it's about) doing my job. Doing everything right, not just for me, but for my roommate who I know sacrificed a lot. Eating right, going to bed on time, doing everything, all the little things right. And for him to have an injury like that just out of no where, it broke both of us."
Jones and Angilau were both a part of Texas' elite 2019 recruiting class, which also included current Longhorns like D'Shawn Jamison, Keondre Coburn, Anthony Cook, DeMarvion Overshown, and Moro Ojomo along with former players like Casey Thompson, Cameron Dicker, Caden Sterns, Joseph Ossai, BJ Foster, and Brennan Eagles.
At first, buried on a list full of talented defensive players, Jones and Angilau now entered this offseason as the experienced faces of the offense while sharing a common mind and goal. And Jones admitted that, despite the two being in the same recruiting class, he looked up to Angilau as an inspiration for what he was striving to become.
"Me and him came in at the same time," Jones said. "I remember that was some guy I always looked up to, I need to be just like him. Whatever he does, hard work, staying extra, more reps. Me and him have been roommates for a long time. That type of person to have around in your corner."
Jones says the rest of the team views Angilau in high regard as one of the strongest and most vocal leaders in the locker room. Even after the injury, this hasn't changed, as he's continued to look at the positives of what he can bring from the sideline while remaining in the ear of each player.
"I honestly expected nothing else from Junior, being in that situation always looking at the positives of things and always seeing how he can help," Jones said. "If you ask anyone on the team who's the most bought in, who's the most driven person on the team, I think all that answer would be towards Junior. That's a testament to him and that just permeates throughout the whole room."
The Longhorns suffered a major loss with Angilau's injury, but still an abundance of talent from an offensive line room that continues to receive hype entering this season.
Freshmen like. Kelvin Banks Jr, Cole Hutson, Cam Williams, and DJ Campbell sit behind a sophomore-dominant starting unit of Jake Majors, Andrej Karic, and Hayden Conner.
The season is already taking a turn that few on the team expected. But with Angilau's continued leadership and Jones taking the torch, the Longhorns are set up for success in a year where the offensive line will be a major focal point in a potential bounce-back campaign for Sarkisian and company.
You can follow Zach Dimmitt on Twitter at @ZachDimmitt7
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