One of the big developments of the 2025 offseason was the move of Trey Moore from Buck to off-ball linebacker. Moore, who had a standout first season in Austin after several strong years with UTSA, made a number of plays over the course of the season splitting time with Colin Simmons at Buck.
And though Moore may not be full time off the opposing offensive tackle, Steve Sarkisian isn’t going to let that move take one of the Longhorns’ best pass-rushers away from defensive coordinator Pete Kwiatkowski.
“Everyone’s under this idea that Trey Moore is not going to rush the passer anymore,” Sarkisian said on 3rd and Longhorn. “I’m not that dumb, okay? The dude had six sacks last year and probably missed another 12.
He’s going to rush the passer, I’m just trying to expand his toolbox for the next level knowing his ability to play off-the-ball backer, he’s going to need to do that. If he can start to do both those things, now I’m starting to get position flexibility.”
Sarkisian and Kwiatkowski have a defensive system that hybridizes multiple positions, allowing for Kwiatkowski to muddy the picture for opposing quarterbacks and offenses. The hybrid positions help to break some of the rules opponents follow, or make them harder to follow. If more and more players can do more and more things for the burnt orange, then who is taking on what role is almost impossible for the offense to decipher pre-snap.
There are some positions that can’t be hybridized. Nose tackles have to be nose tackles. Corners have to be solid in coverage. But athletic linebackers that can succeed in space and also against offensive linemen is something Texas has in quality numbers. And Sarkisian is going to utilize them.
“No different than, at some point, Colin is going to need to do some of those things in his career,” Sarkisian said. “Brad Spence is another guy in that role. These guys can do multiple things. I’m just adding up. You take Anthony Hill at ‘backer and let him rush the passer. If I add up those four guys, just last year alone you’re looking at 30 sacks, 20-something sacks with those four guys alone.”
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Of course, these mysteries are made even more difficult to sort through on third down, when Texas can pick and choose who needs to take on certain roles.
“If I’m an opponent, where’s Colin Simmons? Where’s Anthony Hill? Where’s Trey Moore? Where’s Brad Spence?” Sarkisian said. “All the while, we can interchange them and we can make the same call defensively, two guys are just changing positions, and the whole picture is looking different for the opponent.”
It’s not something Texas can just do at the snap of a finger. Learning multiple hybrid positions is not an easy task. But should they get there before the season, it’ll be because the Longhorns have their system down to a tee.
“We can change the picture a lot, as long as we understand the rules in the parameters of the defense,” Sarkisian said.
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