The immediate focus for Shawn Watson is getting Tyrone Swoopes and Jerrod Heard ready to play against Notre Dame, but Texas' quarterbacks coach is also keeping an eye on the future.

Even before Arlington Lamar's Shane Buechele or Austin Westlake's Sam Ehlinger – two quarterback takes in consecutive classes the Longhorn coaches are excited about – get to campus, Watson is focusing his attention on his 2015 take, Baltimore (Md.) Gilman Top247 athlete Kai Locksley.

The 6-foot-4, 188-pound newcomer is currently working as the No. 3 quarterback behind Swoopes and Heard. Despite a lot being thrown at him, Watson has spoken positively of the way Locksley responded during fall camp.

“He's a coaches kid, and he came here with that going for him and he's understands football,” Watson said recently of the son of current Maryland offensive coordinator Mike Locksley. “He understands defensive football. He's done a really nice job.”

In the first week of fall camp Watson installed the entire base offense Texas will use in 2015, meaning Locksley had a ton of information thrown his way. What's helped Locksley make the transition to the college game, Watson said, is his experience being around meeting rooms, locker rooms and having the kind of understanding of football few incoming freshmen quarterbacks possess.

“The analogy I used for the players, and I did with him, was you're going to be drinking out of a fire hose,” Watson said. “I've really been impressed with how he's handled the volume of information and the plays that we've given him offensively, and then you couple that with the multiplicity and all that our defense does.”

Whether or not Locksley redshirts this season is a question that coaches have publicly yet to answer. Watson has talked about wanting Locksley to continue working behind Swoopes and Heard this fall to keep him up to speed with everything the Longhorns are doing, but it could also be to keep him warm should an emergency situation arise.

Locksley's skill set has been everything Watson thought it would be, and his natural talent combined with his background at the position suggest he could be an answer down the road. Until that time comes, Watson wants Locksley to just keep plugging away.

“He'll matter at some point and at some time,” Watson said. “When is how fast he can pick it up.”