Following a dominant win against a well-respected rival in the UAB Blazers, UTSA head coach Jeff Traylor held his weekly Monday roundtable. Traylor addressed the growing momentum of the team, the health of key players and much more.
After struggling in the first four games of the 2023 season, the Roadrunner offense has now scored 40 or more points in two straight games.
Traylor believes his defense forcing takeaways has set up the offense nicely in these last two weeks.
“I think five turnovers has a lot to do with that,” Traylor said.
Prior to play in the American Athletic Conference, the UTSA defense forced zero turnovers. The Roadrunners have since forced a handful of takeaways in the last two games. Turnovers grant more opportunities and a boost in momentum, those two combined typically lead to more points, which has been the case for the offense.
A key cog in the UTSA offense is wide receiver Joshua Cephus, who became the record holder for career receptions at UTSA with 269 during the win against UAB. Cephus finished the game with seven catches for 55 yards and two touchdowns.
“He’s as good as anyone I have ever seen do it,” Traylor said. “It is easy to celebrate him because he is such about his teammates.”
Cephus is also only 403 yards away from becoming the reception yards record holder at UTSA, something that could very well be achieved this season.
Traylor also spoke on the play of running back Robert Henry, who has provided the lightning to Kevorian Barnes’ thunder, giving UTSA a dynamicone-two punch in the backfield.
“The kid is talented,” Traylor said.
Henry has shown incredible speed and playmaking ability but it is his improving usefulness in pass protection that Traylor praises most about him.
On the injury front, not much changed from the previous week. The team is working on getting Vanderbilt transfer Rocko Griffin back into the lineup. Linebacker Trey Moore’s health is improving as the weeks go by, as displayed by his 3.5 sack performance against UAB.
De’Corian Clark has been sidelined since his ACL injury he suffered last season. Clark looked as if he would make his 2023 debut sooner than later, however, the senior receiver is experiencing a minor setback after last weeks practice.
“His knee was not feeling good so he could not play,” Traylor said. “We are going to get it looked at more and we hope to have answers on that by the end of the week.”
The Roadrunners have started 2-0 in conference play three years in a row and are now on a 12 game conference winning streak. UTSA will look to extend its streak as they travel to Boca Raton to take on the Florida Atlantic Owls at 5 p.m. Saturday, at FAU Stadium.
