Media/$9.95-er postgame analysis articles (Week 6)

[satyanash 14281]

Collecting all the post-game analysis articles, including those behind paywalls, regarding the West Virginia game here:

(Jeff Howe) Instant Reactions: Texas takes down West Virginia, 42-31

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MORGANTOWN, W. Va. — It wasn’t the blowout some would’ve liked to have seen Texas put on West Virginia, but the 11th-ranked Longhorns did what teams eyeing a conference championship (and potentially more) should do in an unexpectedly tight game. Two turnovers and two touchdowns off of them turned a four-point game at the start of the fourth quarter into an 18-point lead in a matter of minutes, allowing Texas to leave Milan Puskar Stadium with a 42-31 win over the Mountaineers.

Sam Ehlinger wasn’t as sharp as he’d been through the first three games, the offensive line wasn’t as dominant throughout the day as it was through the first third of the season and the defense gave up some big plays to a West Virginia offense that looked incapable of making them in their four-game start. When the dust settled, however, Ehlinger threw for two touchdowns and ran for another, the running game had a 200-yard performance and the defense had four takeaways in a win that gets the Longhorns to next week’s showdown with Oklahoma in Dallas with a perfect conference record. Horns247 has the highlights, players and moments you need to know from a victory in the team’s first Big 12 road game of the season.

It was over when…

Samuel Cosmi caught a throwback pass from Ehlinger and reached the end zone from 12 yards out. The defense’s fourth interception of the game set the offense with great field position and while Ehlinger moved to his right, Cosmi slipped out as the backside tackle unbeknownst to the West Virginia defense. Cosmi’s score gave Texas an 18-point lead, 35-17, with 10:33 to go in regulation. Cosmi's touchdown was one of three the Longhorns scored following a takeaway by the defense, which was needed on a day where the offense was very much hit and miss when it came to trying to put together long drives.

Top Offensive Performer

Ehlinger didn’t have a great day and Devin Duvernay was his usual, productive self. The star on this day, however, was Roschon Johnson, who continues to look like a potential long-term answer for the program at running back.

Johnson finished the game with his first career 100-yard rushing effort, taking over the duties as the primary running back from Keaontay Ingram in the second half. While the game was viewed as one where Ingram could potentially build on his performances in wins over Rice and Oklahoma State, Johnson showed that the Longhorns have two capable runners they can count on to move the chains and keep the offense on schedule.

Top Defensive Player

Todd Orlando came into the game wanting to see his defensive backs finish more plays on the back end. D'Shawn Jamison was up to the challenge, recording two interceptions along with a critical third-down stop in the open field that forced West Virginia to settle for a field goal following an interception by Sam Ehlinger. Jamison’s first touchdown was one of two tremendous plays on the ball where a Texas defender was contesting the catch. Foster’s was huge to the outcome, but Jamison going up with one hand to rip a ball away from West Virginia’s Sam James is the kind of play that’s going to be on defensive highlight reels for the rest of Jamison’s career.

Through injuries and inconsistent play at the cornerback position through four games, the fifth game of 2019 saw a legitimate, front-line player emerge. If Jamison can build on this performance, he could form a nice cornerback tandem with Jalen Green when he returns from his shoulder injury.

Reason to Feel Optimistic

The Texas defense was exceptional on third down in the second half. That’s another area where Orlando wanted things to improve from the first four games and the Longhorns got West Virginia off of the field on their first five third-down attempts of the third quarter, one of which came courtesy of an interception (by Foster). The offensive line didn’t play their best, but any time a 100-yard rusher can emerge something has gone right. The offense also deserves credit for turning four takeaways into 21 points, winning the battle when West Virginia sent their defense onto the field in sudden-change situations.

Reason to be Pessimistic

The penalties levied against Texas and the big plays the defense allowed have to get cleaned up before the Oklahoma game. By the time the Longhorns headed into the locker room with seven penalties charged to them for a total of 60 yards, they’d already established new season-high marks in both categories. West Virginia came into the game with only three plays from scrimmage of 41 yards or more. Kendall’s first touchdown pass to Sam James went for 44 yards and a toss over the middle of the field to T.J. Simmons covered the same distance after Chris Brown was unable to get Simmons to the ground after delivering a ferocious shot shortly after the catch.

Big plays are going to happen, but West Virginia entered the game as the worst offense in the Big 12 in yards per play (4.7). The most disappointing thing about the explosive plays the Mountaineers were able to get is several of them seemed to be due to West Virginia catching the Texas defense in bad alignments when going up-tempo or poor tackling by the Longhorns. Even more of an eyesore than the defense, however, was that this was the worst game the offensive line has played through five games. Their issues were compounded by the fact that Keaontay Ingram (dealing with a stinger) was relatively ineffective on a day where Roschon Johnson once again made the question of whether or not he’s the most effective running back on the roster relevant once again.

Modest Proposal

The offense has to start coming up with a better way to scheme up the deep shots they take. It could be the way West Virginia played coverage or, perhaps, Ehlinger was just off, but the Mountaineers did a good job of covering the long throws by Ehlinger and made him pay once on a forgettable throw into coverage that was underthrown and intercepted by Keith Washington.

There were times when the Longhorns did a good job of dialing up something down the field, like a 36-yard strike from Ehlinger to Devin Duvernay coming off of the goal line in the first quarter (a post/corner combination with Brennan Eagles where Duvernay got free going into the boundary) and a second-quarter 25-yard hookup with Cade Brewer (it was a two-man route where Brewer appeared to slightly delay his release of the line of scrimmage, which along with motion to that side of the formation allowed him to get into the clear).

Drive of the Game

A 6-play, 80-yard drive in the second quarter where the Longhorns were efficient and explosive en route to grabbing their first lead of the game, 21-14, with 3:28 to go until halftime. A bizarre end to an otherwise successful West Virginia drive (a run that went nowhere out of a timeout on third down and an Evan Staley 36-yard missed field goal) had Texas on the attack.

Roschon Johnson ripped off gains of 17 and 13 yards respectively to open the drive, Ehlinger hit Brewer for 25-yards on a well-designed play and Devin Duvernay made a tremendous diving catch near the sideline before Ehlinger pulled the ball down on a drop-back on second-and-1 from the West Virginia 13-yard line. Ehlinger raced to the end zone, doing so in a similar fashion to the second of his three rushing touchdowns in last year’s Sugar Bowl win over Georgia, to cap a march where the Longhorns never faced third down.

Best Offensive Play

Very few times has Texas done with the H receiver what it did moments after B.J. Foster recorded a game-changing interception in the fourth quarter. With the Longhorns facing a third-and-5 after taking possession of the ball in the red zone following Foster’s interception, Devin Duvernay lined in the backfield to show a two-back look. Duvernay took the ball on started to toward the left side of the line before he changed course, turned up the field and hurdled past a West Virginia defender to finish off a 13-yard touchdown. The score put the Longhorns ahead, 28-17, giving Texas the kind of cushion it needed to truly regain control of the game with 12:42 to go in regulation.

Best Defensive Play

With Texas trailing in the first quarter, 7-0, the Longhorns got the kind of momentum-shifting play they needed when Ayodele Adeoye leaped and snagged an underthrown pass by Kendall for his first career interception. Within a four-play stretch, Cameron Dicker missed a 42-yard field goal after the offense moved the ball 51 yards in 16 plays, Adeoye recorded an interception and Ehlinger found Malcolm Epps in the end zone for a 22-yard touchdown. The Adeoye theft was early in the game, but it was a shot in the arm that helped the Longhorns get it in gear in the first half.

Biggest question heading into next week’s game

Whatever one wants to say about the West Virginia game, good or bad, the bottom line is the Longhorns left Morgantown with a conference road win. On a day when Oklahoma State and TCU saw their Big 12 title hopes take drastic hits with huge losses away from home, Texas got the job done and heads to the Cotton Bowl to face Oklahoma in next weekend’s Red River game with a Big 12 championship game berth and a potential trip to the College Football Playoff very much on the table.

The Longhorns have some things to clean up, so the question is whether or not they can fix the penalty issues, alignment errors and execution miscues that kept West Virginia in the game a lot longer than anyone would’ve liked to have seen.

Cody Daniel: No. 11 Texas pulls away from West Virginia, 42-31

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The first true road test of the season for the No. 11 Texas Longhorns had some of the makings of a trap game, and throughout the first three quarters, the action certainly fit that description. However, as time went on, the Texas talent began to separate itself, and the score followed suit as the Longhorns pulled away late in Morgantown for a 42-31 win against the West Virginia Mountaineers to improve to 4-1 on the season and 2-0 in Big 12 play.

The game got off to less than ideal start for the Longhorns. On the third play from scrimmage with West Virginia facing a 3rd and 5, Austin Kendall connection with T.J. Simmons for a six-yard gain, but after his helmet was ripped off as part of the play, another 15 yards were added as sophomore safety B.J. Foster, who has been sidelined since the LSU game with a hamstring injury, was flagged for unnecessary roughness for hitting the helmet-less Simmons.

On the ensuing play, sophomore cornerback D’Shawn Jamison gifted West Virginia with another 15 yards after being flagged for pass interference, and James made Texas pay for those penalties after beating Foster downfield for a 44-yard touchdown strike. The first offensive series of the afternoon for Texas didn’t produce such favorable results. Despite converting one third down, and then another, and then another, and then another as junior quarterback Sam Ehlinger utilized his legs and looked to senior wide receiver Devin Duvernay time and time again, Texas found itself faced with a 3rd and 8 just as the Horns were on the edge of the red zone. This time, though, Ehlinger’s pocket collapsed and Quondarius Qualls came up with a sack to force a 42-yard field goal attempt.

Seconds later, West Virginia’s homecoming crowd was sent into a frenzy as Cameron Dicker’s attempt sailed wide left. However, on the first play on the ensuing series, redshirt freshman linebacker Ayodele Adoeye recorded his first career interception on a Kendall pass intended for Mike O’Laughlin, with Adeoye returning the ball nearly to where the previous drive ended inside West Virginia’s 30-yard line.

Two plays later, redshirt freshman Malcolm Epps snagged his first career touchdown, skying to pluck a 22-yard pass from Ehlinger to even the action at 7-7. It wasn’t long before the Longhorns offense was back on the field, as Texas forced a quick three and out, thanks in large part to a jarring hit from Foster on running back Kennedy McKoy for a one-yard loss to force a third and long — a play that was reviewed for targeting before the call was reversed.

When the Texas offense did take the field, though, it did so in the shadow of its own goal line, as senior safety Brandon Jones didn’t field the punt before it was ultimately downed inside the Texas 1-yard line. However, Texas needed just one play to provide itself with plenty of breathing room, as Ehlinger connected with Duvernay for a quick 37-yard gain. That was as much success as the Horns enjoyed that series, though, with as VanDarius Cowan exploded into the backfield to sack Ehlinger on the very next play, sending sophomore running back Keaontay Ingram to the sideline favoring the left side of his neck in the process, which ultimately led to the Longhorns punting the ball back to WVU.

After the teams exchanged three and outs, West Virginia’s offense looked much like it did on the opening series. After Leddie Brown turned his first carry into an 11-yard gain to move the chains on 1st and 10, Kendall connected with Simmons for a 44-yard catch-and-run — West Virginia’s second 44-yard gain through the air — to put the Mountaineers at the Texas 5-yard line. Three plays later, a perfectly executed fake on 3rd and goal from the 1-yard line allowed Kendall to waltz into the end zone completely untouched to give West Virginia a 14-7 edge early in the second quarter.

Once again, the Texas offense responded to even the action. As part of an 11-play, 69-yard drive that chewed up more than five minutes from the clock, senior running back Kirk Johnson notched his first official carry since November of 2015, picking up six yards on a 2nd and 10 that allowed Ehlinger to connect with freshman wide receiver Marcus Washington for a 14-yard gain on the following play. Johnson then picked up another six yards on the ground before freshman running back Roschon Johnson replaced him and did the same. And then, for the first time since the Texas Bowl in 2017, senior wide receiver John Burt found the end zone on the receiving end of a 13-yard pass from Ehlinger.

The Mountaineers offense continued to hum on its following drive. Once again relying upon his legs, Kendall took off for a six-yard scramble on the first play, but sophomore linebacker Joseph Ossai gifted the Mountaineers with another 15 yards for unnecessary roughness as Kendall slid to the turf. Martell Pettaway added another 11 yards on the following play before Simmons torched the Texas secondary for another 21 yards to inch towards the red zone. Only three yards in three plays later, though, and it was Evan Staley whose field goal attempt was no good, with his 36-yard look missing wide right.

The next time out, the Texas offense needed half a dozen plays to cross pay dirt, as two rush attempts from Roschon Johnson and a 25-yard pitch-and-catch to junior tight end Cade Brewer down the sidelines chewed up more than half of the field. Then, after yet another remarkable diving grab from Duvernay, Ehlinger turned garbage into gold, scrambling out of a collapsing pocket and bulldozing his way into the end zone from 13-yards out to capture Texas’ first lead of the game, 21-14.

In no particular hurry, the West Virginia offense chewed up the remaining three-and-a-half minutes of the half, and did so to its own detriment. After methodically moving down the field, Kendall connected with James for a 14-yard gain to move the chains and put WVU at the Texas 30-yard line, but by that point, only four ticks remained on the clock, forcing a field goal attempts on 1st and 10.

And for the second time, Staley missed right, this time from 47 yards out, allowing the Longhorns to hold onto their 21-14 lead heading into the locker room. Coming out of the break, neither offense seemed to want to remain on the field for long. After deferring in the first half, the Texas offense quickly punted after picking up just one first down. West Virginia’s offense then enjoyed only one snap before heading back to the sidelines, as Jamison recorded his first career interception, winning a 50-50 ball against James and making a remarkable one-handed grab.

The Texas offense did nothing with the new opportunity, though, punting the ball back to the Mountaineers after a quick three-and-out before West Virginia returned the favor after digging itself into a 2nd and 21 situation courtesy of an Ossai tackle for loss and a false start.

Each team’s ensuing series produced similar results, with the Longhorns and Mountaineers exchanging punts. But then, in mimicking Kendall’s two previous picks, Ehlinger forced a deep pass into a heavy coverage on Burt on Texas’ first play, and Keith Washington came away with an interception, returning it 39 yards before an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty on Duvernay tacked on another 15 yards to allow WVU to set up shop from the Texas 14-yard line.

Only able to advance the ball two yards in three plays, though, thanks in large part to Jamison smothering James on a crossing route on 3rd and 10 for a short gain, West Virginia settled for a field goal to cut the Longhorns lead to 21-17 in the final minutes of the third quarter.

Texas took that 21-27 lead into the fourth quarter, but after sophomore wide receiver Brennan Eagles dropped a would be first down on 3rd and 8 on the first play of the quarter, the Horns, once again, punted the ball away. Just three short plays later, though, Foster notched an acrobatic interception — Kendall’s third of the day — on 3rd and 1, bring Ehlinger and the offense back out in inside the West Virginia red zone.

The Longhorns looked to capitalize immediately, as Ehlinger tossed the ball up to Duvernay at the goal line, but the senior was unable to haul the pass in, marking the first dropped pass of his career. Duvernay made up for his mistake, however, taking a handoff on 3rd and 6 up the middle and sprinting in for a 13-yard touchdown run, making a would-be tackler miss along the way.

Then, in familiar fashion, with West Virginia trialing by two scores, Kendall tossed his fourth interception of the afternoon, though unlike his previous picks on the first play of the drive (twice) and third play, Jamison jumped the out route and notched his second interception f the game on West Virginia’s second play of the drive. The latest pick marked the first time that Texas has recorded four interceptions in a single game since 2014, as noted by Longhorn Network’s Alex Loeb.

Roschon Johnson then got the Texas drive underway with an 11-yard run, but it wasn’t him, or Ingram, or Ehlinger, or Duvernay who ultimately ran the ball into the end zone to push Texas’ lead to a comfortable 35-17 — that was sophomore left tackle Samuel Cosmi, who lined up at tight end before hauling in a backwards pass from Ehlinger and put his footwork on display en route to a 12-yard touchdown run.

West Virginia’s next drive looked promising, at least initially, as Simmons turned a reception on 2nd and 9 into a 25-yard pickup, but two incomplete passes from Kendall led to the Mountaineers punting the ball back to Texas, trailing 35-17 with under 10 minutes remaining. Though the Texas offense spent its next series in clock-chewing mode, punting the ball away after spending nearly four minutes on just six plays, the Mountaineers continued to attack.

After the first play of the drive, a quick pass to Brown, netted just one yard, Kendall connected with Sean Ryan for a 39-yard strike, despite excellent coverage from Anthony Cook. Kendall then went back to Brown, this time picking up 13 yards in the process, and after Haskins hauled in a quick pass to pick up two yards, Simmons picked up the rest, making Jamison miss on a would-be tackle while running the rest of the way for a 19-yard score.

Trailing 35-24 with 3:56 remaining, West Virginia unsurprisingly attempted an onside kick, but Jordan Pouncey secured the kick to all but secure the Longhorns win. But even then, Texas wasn’t done. For the second time in as many games, Ehlinger officially sealed the deal with a big run on third down, this time turning a 3rd and 3 into a 23-yard touchdown run to push the lead back to a comfortable 42-24. This rushing score was not only Ehlinger’s second of the game, but the 21st of his career, which surpasses Colt McCoy for the fourth-most all-time by a Texas quarterback.

West Virginia did respond with Kendall connecting with Bryce Wheaton for a 12-yard touchdown with 48 seconds remaining, but the late score didn’t impact the already-decided outcome.

(Bobby Burton) Snap Judgements: Secondary comes up big

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Four interceptions by West Virginia QB Austin Kendall, three in the second half, helped Texas go into Morgantown and emerge victorious despite a middling performance by the Longhorns offense in the third quarter failed to separate the two teams on the scoreboard. D'Shawn Jamison made two of those INTs, including a one-handed snare that I'm unsure if anyone else on the team is athletic enough to make.

Jamison also undercut and out route in West Virginia territory that effectively helped Texas put the game away. BJ Foster picked off another WVU pass off of a ricochet while falling to the ground on his back. Combined with linebacker Adele Adeoye's first quarter INT, the four turnovers helped Texas put points on the board all but one time.

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The Horns offense seemingly stalled for much of the third quarter. Throwing into a heavy wind, Ehlinger simply couldn't find another receiver other than Devin Duvernay to go up and make the grab. Ehlinger also threw a pick in third quarter, a wounded duck on a deep ball into that same heavy wind. The throw was ill-advised and one of the few mistakes Ehlinger made on the day. But the receivers weren't helping Ehlinger enough.

Malcolm Epps caught a touchdown in the first half but failed to be a reliable third-down outlet in the second half, failing to come back hard for the ball on a third-down pass that fell incomplete. Brennan Eagles dropped another third-down pass that would have kept a drive alive early in the fourth quarter. Jake Smith was perhaps the lone bright spot outside of Duvernay at receiver. Smith helped move the chains a few times in the second half. The Horns have missed Collin Johnson more than some might think.

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The play of the game was the third-down call in the fourth quarter by Tom Herman where Devin Duvernay took a handoff, started left, only to cut back behind a wave of offensive lineman and pirohoutted past the obly other defender for a score that finally gave Texas a two-score lead. Herman dialed up another new play later in the quarter with a throwback pass to offensive tackle Sam Cosmi for another touchdown. Cosmi caught the ball cleanly and trucked into the end zone, and had obe of the day's bigger collisions with West Virginia's best defensive players. Those two offensive plays, along with finally establishing the run game in the fourth quarter, helped Texas feeling little anxiety despite WVU scoring 14 fourth-quarter points.

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BJ Foster put himself out of the game in the first half with a bell-ringing tackle of the WVU running back on a pass to the flat. Foster not only hurt himself, he was also flagged on the play and could have been lost for the first half of the OU game had the replay officials been more "officious". Keaontay Ingram also had a stinger on a blitz pick up. Both injuries occurred in the first quarter, and they kind of set the mood for what could have been an upset. It's important to note that both players returned to the contest, though Ingram seemed to run more tenatively than he normally does.

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But Texas pulled it out, in large part thinks to the play of the secondary. Foster was beat for a TD early in the game. But after that, so long as the game was still in doubt, the Horns' secondary actually played extremely well. Todd Orlando opted to start three linebackers - Joe Ossai, Juwan Mitchell and Adeoye - against the Mountaineers. Orlando clearly wanted to clog the passing lanes and make Austin Kendall beat him with longer passes. Kendall connectedd on a few, but overall, Texas won the day with the alignment.

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Perhaps the bigger defensive concern came in the second quarter when WVU started running the ball effectively. Adeoye missed his gap assignment a couple of times and the Texas DBs weren't exactly filling the run lanes aggressively either. Texas made an adjustment in the second half and the WVU run game basically stalled the rest of the afternoon.

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With Ingram injured, Roschon Johnson carried the bulk of the load. He carried a season-high 21 times for 121 yards. Kirk Johnson also got some carries, his first of the year. In all, the Horns totaled 216 yards rushing (and that includes 12 from Cosmi on the throwback lateral).

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The right side of the Texas offensive front had some problems against WVU. Both Derek Kerstetter and Junior Angilau had multiple issues at different times in the contest. Zach Shacklelford also had his hands full against a good defensive tackle.

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I don't think we've seen the last of Mitchell starting at linebacker. He was a consistent presence all game long, including making a brilliant stop on a tunnel screen early in the game, and being solid in run defense. Additionally, I think T'Vondre Sweat earned more snaps in future contests. The freshman defensive lineman manhandled opposing linemen more than once. Joe Ossai also made a big difference in stopping the run in the second half.

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The Texas special teams followed up the Oklahoma State game with yet another poor performance in the first half. First, Cameron Dicker missed his only field goal attempt. Then Texas gave up a long return on a kickoff where Dicker initially was called for targeting. WVU also downed a punt inside the Texas 1-yard line after the ball wasn't fair caught. The second half, the Horns' special team unit was fine with the exception of a holding call on Cade Brewer. At least both onside kicks were well covered. And Ryan Bujcevski was able to keep the Mountaineers inside their own 15 twice.

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Speaking of Brewer, he made a nice catch down the sideline. It was a great throw by Ehlinger, possibly his best of the game. We saw more of Jared Wiley as the game wore on. Despite being only a true freshman, Wiley is an upgrade as a blocker over both Reese Leitao and Brewer.

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If I could nitpick anything on Ehlinger today, it'd be his lack of dropping the ball down to the running backs more frequently instead of pushing the ball down the field so much. There were a few times that either Johnson or Ingram were open for good gains yet Ehlinger opted to go for bigger yardage and came up unsuccessful. On his lone INT, Ehlinger completely missed a wide open Johnson in the flat. It's something small, but it could be significant. Because the Sooners await.

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The Horns are 4-1 headed to the State Fair. Next week should be a blockbuster. Can the Horns stop the OU passing game and the legs of Jalen Hurts? Has the OU defense really improved? We're about to find out.

 

[satyanash 14281]

(Ian Boyd) 5 quick thoughts: Texas administers payback to West Virginia

Texas kept scoring in this game, finishing with 42 points and preventing West Virginia's attempts to exploit the Longhorns' special teams late from holding much relevance for the final outcome. You had to wonder if Tom Herman determined during or after the 2018 season that it might be better to pour on a few extra points when feasible in Big 12 contests this season. No one in this league will accept a beating like a gentleman, they will keep throwing haymakers and welcome the possibility of a 55-24 final score if it means they have a better shot at winning 56-55.

Despite a nice final score, it wasn't a particularly strong performance from the Longhorn offense. Sam Ehlinger threw an interception trying to force a ball down the middle of the field and the offense frequently stalled due to a strong performance by Darius and Dante Stills and Texas' own inability to find a reliable receiver to field at the X position. If Collin Johnson weren't due to come back next week I imagine they'd have explored moving Devin Duvernay over there in order to start Jake Smith at the H.

The Longhorns settled in though and put together a 200/200 rushing and passing day with Sam Ehlinger going 18-33 with 211 yards at 6.4 ypa with two passing touchdowns, an interception, and two rushing touchdowns. None of those stats reflect Ehlinger's throwback to left tackle Sam Cosmi, which along with Ehlinger's final rushing touchdown felt like a little bit of a message for the West Virginia program and their tens of thousands of exuberant fans. "You though you wanted a rival, but really you don't want any part of this."

Quick thought no. 1: Texas survived the script!

Way back in the day Texas used to be coached by a man named Mack Brown, whom you may know today as the head coach of North Carolina. Mack had a saying about the need to "survive the surge" in playing in games like this against West Virginia. The thinking was that opponents often had a knack for throwing some hard punches Texas' way even if the Longhorns built an early lead. The dreaded "surge" could flip momentum in a game and threaten to steal victories from incautious Texas teams.

These days the more fitting admonition for Texas seems to be to "survive the script!" Opposing offenses usually start games on a script, a series of play-calls that were dialed up to maximize an offense's ability to hit scouted weak points and to do so with tempo. The announcers in this game were confused by West Virginia's lack of tempo over the course of the game to match the tempo they utilized early in the game. The problem is that it's hard to play fast with predetermined calls when you don't have a script ready to help guarantee leverage on all your plays and an easy time for your players lining up and getting ready to go.

West Virginia had a nice opening script, as @Scipio Tex noted that they would, and after their initial drives their tempo slowed and their precision on offense slowly went over a cliff. By the end of the game West Virginia was curiously lining up in TE sets that invited Texas' linebackers into the box where they could erase what had once been a solid Mountaineer rushing attack. Obviously they had run out of spread sets, or otherwise lost confidence in their ability to maintain success against Texas as the Longhorns grew wise to the call sheet that Neal Brown had brought into the game.

It's been an encouraging sign for this defense that they've been solid in Big 12 play (through two games) at clamping down on opposing offenses after taking the best punch early. The Mountaineers had 367 passing yards on the day and finished with 30 points thanks to a pair of late, largely meaningless TD drives. Overall Texas played a solid game on defense, holding the Mountaineers to a 4-14 rate on third downs and of course picking off lifetime Sooner Austin Kendall four times and giving Texas some useful short fields that put this game out away.

Quick thought no. 2: The Stills brothers and West Virginia gameplan really mucked up the works for a while

West Virginia parked the Stills brothers in either A-gap for much of the game and their quickness and power caused a lot of problems for the Texas rushing attack. Roschon Johnson will get a lot of the credit for solving the Mountaineer run defense, and he deserves credit for demonstrating some really smart and patient running while turning 21 carries into 121 yards at 5.8 ypc.

The schematic solution involved Texas largely simplifying the plan to running the base tight zone play and moving into a few different formations to work matchups while surely coaching up Ro on the sideline on how to patiently find the creases as they opened up. Herb Hand seemed to determine that West Virginia's run blitzes and quality at DT was best handled with careful execution of the base scheme.

If you didn't notice, Jared Wiley got a lot of snaps down the stretch and he blocked well. You may also have noticed that Texas picked up a few key third downs by running the tight zone play for Ehlinger, but with the RB pretending to take the ball before turning into a blocker on the backside of the play while Ehlinger ran into the cutback lane behind the TE block and then Sam Cosmi/Parker Braun tandem. You can find the replay for that one by watching his late touchdown run.

Texas needs Collin Johnson back next week. They experimented in this game with Brennan Eagles and Marcus Washington at the X position rather than Malcolm Epps, but they lacked a feel for the spacing and timing with Ehlinger on some of the routes that can become unstoppable there. There should have been a killing to be made outside against the Mountaineer coverages had Johnson been out there feasting in space underneath the cornerbacks' drops.

This also has had ramifications for the empty passing game and Devin Duvernay in particular, who's getting a lot of attention these days from teams that understand how the Longhorns are trying to get him open on those key downs. Texas still finished 10-18 on third down because of Ehlinger's quality but it's going to get a lot easier when they can field a second receiver that opponents have to double. The upside to this offense from adding Johnson to the mix is pretty substantial, which is promising for Texas' prospects of facing the Sooners in Dallas.

Quick thought no. 3: Joe Ossai was a star on defense in this game

Texas had an interesting gameplan for this game, coming out in a 3-3-5 nickel package but playing the inverted Tampa 2 from that look rather than their normal set in which the B-backer is in the box on the edge.

Joe Ossai was the strong side or "sam" linebacker in this game and so he traveled with the passing strength of the offensive formation. In layman's terms he lined up like a nickel in this game, regularly flexed out in space over slot receivers while Texas kept three safeties deep and over the top. That's a tough assignment for a big guy like him but he led the team with eight tackles, including seven solo stops and a TFL that he incurred when the Mountaineers foolishly started playing with a TE that invited him into the box.

We're talking about a player who's a natural DE/OLB that's played weakside linebacker and space-ranging nickel linebacker this season for Texas and never looked out of place once the ball was snapped and his lanky frame was put to work chewing up grass.

The defensive line played well, Brandon Jones was his usual erasing self, and we'll get to some of the playmaking from the secondary in a moment but this was a unique gameplan that put Ossai in some interesting spots and he handled it well. Texas' reasoning was likely related to an expectation that West Virginia was going to mix in endless sweeps, screens, and quick throws to manufacture gains on the perimeter in lieu of a run game and set up some deep shots for their passing game. So the answer was to have Ossai patrolling the perimeter and putting his power and tackling ability to work blowing up perimeter blocking. It seemed to work out pretty well watching live and eventually West Virginia opted to have him play in the box more by using a TE, which is as good as a hat tip to the sophomore linebacker.

Quick thought no. 4: Big day for D'Shawn Jamison and the young DBs

This wasn't a flawless day for the Texas secondary, obviously. They struggled with some of the dropback schemes, they got beat some when cornerbacks were isolated 1-on-1 outside, and the tackling in the flats was very good at times and spotty at others. However, the four picks were instrumental to the winning margin and the confidence built up by D'Shawn Jamison and Anthony Cook was likely invaluable.

Jamison's early interception was an astounding play and he made a lot of good tackles over the course of the game before adding another interception later on when Austin Kendall lost his mind. Anthony Cook held up pretty well and definitely showed some comfort with the run support aspects of cornerback play in this inverted Tampa 2 scheme.

Another major benefit to Orlando's decision to run the 3-3-5 in this game was how it allowed the secondary to rep the inverted Tampa 2 playbook and continue to get a good feel for how to defend space and concepts from those defensive calls despite Texas playing a nickel package rather than the dime. The confidence and reps that Jamison and Cook in particular were able to get in this game were enormous and could potentially be the difference next weekend.

Quick thought no. 5: It's time for Oklahoma

Now seems as good a place as any to note that this coming contest with the Sooners in the Cotton Bowl is like a playoff game. This game probably won't determine the Big 12 championship, unless something goes terribly wrong (or right) the Longhorns and Sooners will finish atop the Big 12 standings and have a rematch in Jerry World in December. Obviously that game will determine the Big 12 championship, which is the main goal for Texas this season. Above all else, Texas needs to win that game.

However, as of now this game stands as the obvious difference between an 11-2 season and a 12-1 finish. The former would be momentous and certainly a successful year, but the latter could mean a trip to the playoffs. If Texas loses the Red River Shootout the main goal for the season remains intact, which is to win a Big 12 championship. If they can beat the Sooners in Dallas and then win out then they could pursue the goal of making the National playoffs.

So while the addition of a league championship game has regrettably dulled the impact of the RRS game, this one is still going to very passionate and meaningful for the season. We'll break it down over the coming week, but the Longhorns who managed to protect a cover on the road in West Virginia today appear as well prepared for this game as any other I've seen this decade.

[satyanash 14281]

(Chip Brown) My Take: What went right and wrong in Texas' win at WVU

Quote

The Texas defense went from early misfortune to creating fortune — lots of it — for the Longhorns’ offense as four interceptions of WVU quarterback Austin Kendall resulted in three, short-field touchdown drives for Sam Ehlinger and Co. Texas’ 42-31 victory Saturday in Morgantown, avenging WVU’s 42-41 win in Austin last year, improved the 11th-ranked Longhorns’ record to 4-1 heading into next week’s Red River Shootout against No. 6 Oklahoma (5-0), which steamrolled Kansas 45-20 in Lawrence earlier in the day.

There was a lot to like about the Longhorns’ gutsy display of complementary football, including Roschon Johnson’s 121 yards rushing on 12 carries, D’Shawn Jamison’s two interceptions (one that has to be in the SportsCenter Top 10) and 6-foot-7, 300-pound left tackle Samuel Cosmi’s first career touchdown! There’s also a lot to clean up heading into next week’s colossal clash in the Cotton Bowl with OU.

The Sooners will lick their chops at the Longhorns giving up 367 yards through the air, including seven passes of 21 yards or longer, two of those for touchdowns (44 and 19 yards). Texas gave up 180 yards passing in the fourth quarter when WVU was in desperation mode. Two fourth-down completions by the Mountaineers — one for 31 yards on fourth-and-6 and a 12-yard TD pass on fourth-and-10 — both came against true freshman cornerback Kenyatta Watson in the final minutes of the game.

But Texas played complementary football Saturday. When the defense was struggling early in the game, Sam Ehlinger and the offense sustained long drives, allowing the D to regroup and adjust. In the third quarter, the defense came up big when the Texas offense was shut out and Ehlinger suffered his second interception of the season on a poor decision to throw deep instead of taking a wide-open check down.

Ehlinger finished 18 of 33 passing for 211 yards and TD passes of 22 yards to Malcolm Epps and 13 yards to John Burt in addition to nine carries for 45 yards (5.0 ypc), including TD runs of 13 and 23 yards. Ehlinger’s interception (and a subsequent personal foul) gave WVU the ball at the Texas 14, but Todd Orlando’s D deserves credit for holding the Mountaineers to a field goal.

Outside of a reversed targeting call on B.J. Foster (right after a reversed targeting call on, of all people, kicker Cameron Dicker), not much went right for Texas defensively early. B.J. Foster had good coverage but failed to locate the ball on a 44-yard touchdown pass on WVU’s first drive of the game. Texas gave up 5.4 yards per carry in the first half (13 for 70 yards) and suffered costly penalties (personal fouls on Foster and Joseph Ossai; a pass interference call on D’Shawn Jamison; and offsides against Juwan Mitchell). Texas finished with 10 flags for 89 yards.

All the momentum was going in WVU’s favor after Dicker missed a 42-yard field goal until Ayodele Adeoye’s interception and 13-yard return to the WVU 27 helped set up an Ehlinger-to-Malcolm Epps touchdown that tied the game 7-7 in the first quarter. Second-half interceptions by Foster and Jamison, who had two picks, also led to short-field TD drives by the offense, and the Texas defense completely shut down WVU’s running game in the second half (10 for 26, 2.6 ypc).

Offensively, the story was Johnson. Texas needed every bit of Johnson’s 5.8-yards-per-carry average with Keaontay Ingram struggling (11 carries for 18 yards, 1.6 ypc) and also suffering a stinger with 3:28 left in the first quarter, although Ingram returned to action. Ingram had four carries for 4 yards before the stinger and seven carries for 14 yards after it. Ingram struggling in this game means Ingram has played six strong quarters this season (second half against Rice and against Oklahoma State). That’s a concern, and reinforces the impressive development of Roschon Johnson.

WHAT WENT RIGHT FOR TEXAS:

First and foremost, Texas is undefeated in conference play heading into the OU game. Texas, OU and Baylor (which won at K-State 31-12) are the undefeateds in Big 12 play. Plain and simply, Texas punished West Virginia’s mistakes and won a league road game in a tough environment one week before the Longhorns’ biggest rivalry game. Joseph Ossai led Texas in tackles with eight, followed by Anthony Cook (7 tackles), who made his first start of the season at cornerback and seemed to give up only one big play (a 39-yard pass in the fourth quarter despite decent coverage).

Texas, which ranked No. 2 in FBS converting third downs (57 percent) heading into Saturday’s game, opened 7-of-10 on third-down conversions and finished 10 of 18 (56 percent). Devin Duvernay (six catches for 86 yards and a 13-yard rushing TD) just continues to get it done.

TEXAS TURNS ONSIDE KICK RECOVERY INTO EHLINGER TD: After recovering a WVU onside kick attempt at the Mountaineers’ 47 with 3:57 left, Ehlinger handed the ball to Roschon Johnson for runs of 7, 1 and 6 yards before Ehlinger darted right through the heart of the WVU defense for a 23-yard touchdown run, putting Texas up 42-24 with 3:03 left. Compared to Chris Adimora’s juggling, onside kick recovery against Oklahoma State, Jordan Pouncey’s recovery of an onside kick in the fourth quarter was ho hum.

SECOND INT BY JAMISON SETS UP COSMI TD: D’Shawn Jamison stepped in front of Austin Kendall’s pass on an out route for Jamison’s second interception of the game and returned it 12 yards to the WVU 33 with 12:25 left. After Roschon Johnson runs of 10 and 4 yards and a 7-yard pass from Ehlinger to Jake Smith, we saw the offensive play call of the year so far as Ehlinger rolled right and threw a lateral back to 6-foot-7, 300-pound left tackle Samuel Cosmi, who rumbled 12 yards for the touchdown after a thunderous collision at the goal line with fellow 300-pounder, WVU DT Darius Stills. The TD put Texas up 35-17 with 10:31 left.

FOSTER INTERCEPTION LEADS TO TD: B.J. Foster made an acrobatic interception on a tipped pass at the WVU 18 with 13:32 left to play. After a 5-yard run by Roschon Johnson, Devin Duvernay took a handoff from Ehlinger, and made a nice cut-back on a 13-yard touchdown run, putting Texas up 28-17 with 12:42 left.

After WVU took possession at the Texas 14 following an interception by Sam Ehlinger, the Texas defense forced a 29-yard field goal after a great open-field tackle by D’Shawn Jamison on WVU receiver Sam James for a 1-yard gain on third-and-9. (James’ helmet bounced hard on the turf on the tackle, and he left the game with a head injury and didn’t return after making six catches for 66 yards and a touchdown).

JAMISON MAKES INCREDIBLE INTERCEPTION: After Texas’ opening drive of the second half totaled six plays for minus-6 yards and then a holding penalty on Cade Brewer resulted in a re-punt that gave WVU the ball at the UT 48 (instead of at WVU’s 30), Jamison made a one-handed interception worthy of SportsCenter’s Top 10 plays of the day. Jamison went up over WVU receiver Sam James and ripped the ball out of James hands with his right hand and pulled the ball into his chest — all in mid-air — before controlling the ball to the ground.

After a nine-play drive that took 3:28 off the clock, WVU junior kicker Evan Staley missed his second field goal of the first half as his 47-yard attempt on the final play of the first half was wide right.

EHLINGER 13-YARD TD RUN PUTS TEXAS UP 21-14: After Roschon Johnson runs of 13 and 17 yards as well as a 25-yard pass from Sam Ehlinger to tight end Cade Brewer, Ehlinger dropped back to pass, couldn’t find anyone open and ran 13 yards up the middle for a touchdown that gave Texas its first lead, 21-14, with 3:28 left in the second quarter. It was a six-play, 80-yard drive that took 2:40 off the clock.

Roschon Johnson threw a nice block on blitz pickup, giving Sam Ehlinger time to find Cade Brewer for a 25-yard pass down the left sideline late in the second quarter. One play earlier, Brewer threw a nice block that helped free Johnson for a 13-yard run. After a seven-play, 56-yard drive by the Mountaineers, WVU kicker Evan Staley missed a 36-yard field goal wide right with 6:08 left in the first half with the game tied 14-14.

BURT TD CATCH TIES GAME 14-14: A bunch of backups stepped up for the Longhorns during an 11-play, 69-yard touchdown drive, capped by a 13-yard TD pass from Sam Ehlinger to John Burt that tied the game 14-14 with 7:56 left in the second quarter. In addition to Burt, Roschon Johnson had three carries for 16 yards and a 10-yard catch; Marcus Washington had a 14-yard catch on third-and-4; and Kirk Johnson had two, 6-yard runs. After being pinned at the 1-yard-line on a punt by WVU, Ehlinger hit Devin Duvernay up the right sideline for a 36-yard completion on first down late in the first quarter. Both Cameron Dicker and B.J. Foster were called for targeting in the first half, but, upon review, were not ejected from the game.

EPPS TOUCHDOWN CATCH TIES GAME 7-7: Two plays after an Ayodele Adeoye interception, Ehlinger found Malcolm Epps for his first career touchdown on a 22-yard pass in the end zone with 5:52 left in the first quarter, tying the game 7-7.

ADEOYE INTERCEPTION GIVES TEXAS SHORT FIELD: Ayodele Adeoye showed nice hands in going up for an interception and then returned it 13 yards to the WVU 27 with 6:26 left in the first quarter. Texas converted its third third-down of UT’s first drive with a 10-yard pass from Sam Ehlinger to Devin Duvernay on third-and-7. Ehlinger found Devin Duvernay for a 16-yard gain on third-and-13 on the Horns’ first possession of the game. Sam Ehlinger ran for 18 yards on third-and-13 from UT’s 22 on the Horns’ first offensive possession.

WHAT WENT WRONG:

Injury report: S Chris Brown suffered a “pretty significant thigh contusion” … S B.J. Foster, RB Keaontay Ingram and TE Reese Leitao all suffered stingers but returned to action. … TE Cade Brewer suffered a helmet-to-helmet hit and will be evaluated Sunday. Texas suffered too many penalties (10 for 89 yards), including three personal fouls. Ehlinger’s second interception of the season was a bad decision.

With West Virginia going nowhere on the ground, WVU’s Austin Kendall kept throwing it and went 5-for-5 on a five-play, 74-yard touchdown drive, capped by a 19-yard scoring strike to T.J. Simmons, cutting Texas’ lead to 35-24 with 3:57 left . The key play in the scoring drive was a 39-yard pass to Sean Ryan against decent coverage from Anthony Cook.

EHLINGER INTERCEPTION LEADS TO WVU FG: Sam Ehlinger had Roschon Johnson open on a check-down pass but pushed the ball downfield instead and was intercepted by WVU’s corner Keith Washington, who returned it 34 yards to the Texas 28. A personal foul (unsportsmanlike conduct) penalty attributed to Devin Duvernay for bumping into an official during a sideline scrum following Junior Angilau’s tackle of Washington gave WVU the ball at the Texas 14. After a great stand by the Texas defense, WVU kicked a 29-yard field goal, cutting Texas’ lead to 21-17 with 1:59 left in the third quarter.

A 46-yard punt by Ryan Bujcevski that rolled out of bounds at the WVU 30 was negated by a holding flag on Cade Brewer. The re-punt resulted in a 34-yard punt that gave WVU possession at UT’s 49. Joseph Ossai was called for a personal foul (unnecssary roughness) — UT’s sixth flag of the first half — midway through the second quarter.

WVU TAKES 14-7 LEAD AFTER BIG PASS PLAY (MISSED TACKLE): On third-and-goal from the Texas 1, Montrell Estell came crashing in on a blitz and bit on a fake handoff, tackling the running back and leaving the edge unprotected for Austin Kendall kept on the zone read and walked in untouched for the score, giving WVU a 14-7 lead with 12:59 left in the second quarter. The five-play, 60-yard TD drive featured a 44-yard pass that included a costly missed tackle by Chris Brown.

The normally sure-tackling Chris Brown went for a big hit instead of wrapping up WVU receiver T.J. Simmons. Instead of bringing Simmons down for a 19-yard gain at the Texas 30, Simmons bounced off Brown’s hit and ran all the way to the Horns’ 5, setting up a Mountaineers’ touchdown in the second quarter. A holding penalty on tight end Reese Leitao negated a 7-yard gain by Devin Duvernay on a bubble screen on first down from the UT 18 late in the first quarter, which brought up first-and-19 from the UT 9.

Keaontay Ingram was slow to get up but jogged off the field with 3:28 left in the first quarter, appearing to complaining of a left shoulder/neck injury. Brandon Jones, who appeared to have time to signal for a fair catch at UT’s 10, chose not to field the ball, and it hit at the 10 and was downed at Texas’ 1 yard line with 4:07 left in the first quarter. It was Jones’ first time fielding a punt since he muffed one late in the game against Oklahoma State. B.J. Foster left the game with what appeared to be a shoulder injury after delivering a hit that resulted in him being called for targeting midway through the first quarter.

DICKER MISSES 42-YARD FIELD GOAL: With Texas trailing 7-0, Cameron Dicker missed a 42-yard field goal wide left after a good snap and hold, squandering a 16-play drive that took 6:55 off the clock, including three third-and-long conversions. Derek Kerstetter was flagged for a false start with 11:51 left in the first quarter, which brought up second-and-15. WVU’s Darius Stills dropped Keaontay Ingram for a 6-yard loss on UT’s first offensive play.

WVU TAKES 7-0 LEAD: B.J. Foster was in position, but wasn’t able to locate the ball on a 44-yard touchdown pass from Austin Kendall to Sam James with 13:31 left in the first quarter, giving WVU a 7-0 lead. It was the second-longest TD given up by Texas this season behind a 61-yard TD pass surrendered to LSU. D’Shawn Jamison was flagged for pass interference one play after B.J. Foster was flagged for a personal foul (unnecessary roughness) on a 6-yard completion on third-and-5, which gave West Virginia a first down near midfield on WVU’s first possession of the game.

OTHER NOTABLES:

Malcolm Epps caught his first career touchdown, and Ayodele Adeoye had his first career interception. Texas went a second straight game without a sack. UT had three tackles for loss (B.J. Foster, Joseph Ossai and a combined TFL from Ta’Quon Graham and Ayodele Adeoye). Anthony Cook and D’Shawn Jamison were the starting corners for Texas. And, yes, there was a Kirko Grinds (Kirk Johnson) sighting! His first two carries went for 6 yards each, and he finished with four carries for 15 yards.

 

[Nowhichski 32]

Thanks for posting this. 

[LTtxfan 49010]

Burton:  "If I could nitpick anything on Ehlinger today, it'd be his lack of dropping the ball down to the running backs more frequently instead of pushing the ball down the field so much. There were a few times that either Johnson or Ingram were open for good gains yet Ehlinger opted to go for bigger yardage and came up unsuccessful. On his lone INT, Ehlinger completely missed a wide open Johnson in the flat. It's something small, but it could be significant. Because the Sooners await."

 Agree with Bobby on this point.  Sam didn't see open checkdowns for easy yards on at least 3  plays.  No doubt Sam was off and missed the dependability of route running by Collin Johnson. 

Another trend that is concerning is the lack of catches from WRs not named Duvernay and Johnson.  Eagles needs more touches, and Washington might be a star in waiting if he can learn to run routes better.  Hopefully Herman can also figure out how to better utilize the TE's and Jake Smith in the offense too.  

[Hook1997 5291]

Yes the spreading of the ball is very concerning, not only are we not utilizing weapons but also you have to consider recruits and transfers now if we only throw to a couple guys.  Such is life in modern college football though.  It would help for more touches for people if Herman didn’t run the straight up the middle run (every once in a while the GD horizontal pass) about 95% of the time when we have a touchdown lead or more on every first and second down when we are not past the 50 yard line.  It’s like that is what his binder says so he does it and it’s mostly just the same run up the middle, I don’t get why teams don’t always stop it because all you have to do is jam the middle if they have watched any film on us.  Especially  if it’s a team we are suppose to beat.  It’s the same every time in the third and fourth quarter.

Edited October 6, 2019 by Hook1997

[Tex Pete 20188]

Anyone who whines about our penalties without noting that many were ticky tack at best and that WVU was largely given a pass, is a dumb motherfucker. I’m looking at you, Kirk Bohls. 

[bschoolprof 6233]

^The officiating was terrible and very one-sided.  

[LTtxfan 49010]

6 hours ago, LTtxfan said:

Agree with Bobby Burton....  Sam missed open checkdowns for easy yards on at least 3  plays.  No doubt Sam was off and missed the dependability of route running by Collin Johnson.     Another trend that is concerning is the lack of catches from WRs not named Duvernay and Johnson.  Eagles needs more touches, and Washington might be a star in waiting if he can learn to run routes better.  Hopefully Herman can also figure out how to better utilize the TE's and Jake Smith in the offense too.  

Utilizing more RB swing passes and possibly a wheel route might be something Herman has been saving for blOU....  remember a play something like that to Daniel Young against Mizzu.

 

[ClubWhatever 12087]

42 minutes ago, bschoolprof said:

^The officiating was terrible and very one-sided.  

If you’ve watched a lot of games the officiating is uniformly terrible.  They’ve put too much on the officials and/or the officials are not adequately turned over when they show physical or mental obsolescence.  It’s like the leagues are trying to solve a climate model with a TRS80.  I saw the refs yesterday more than I saw actual football.  Maybe they need to adopt some of the NFL practices on how to keep the games moving.  There are bad calls there too, but at least they don’t have several five-minute conferences per game to figure out what a ruling should be.   The quality of the white hat goes a long way in speeding things up so I would start there.  Also the targeting thing has gone a long way to killing the experience because it introduces 20 minutes extra of commercials per game.  

[MirrOlure 14638]

On the penalty count....if I accept that touching a sliding QB in the first quarter is unnecessary, then how in the world are (a) clobbering Cosmi 2 yards deep in the end zone-head to head nonetheless, and (b) dive bombing the onside kick recoverer who is cradling the ball on the ground, not penalized?

[Bullneck 19027]

20 minutes ago, LTtxfan said:

Utilizing more RB swing passes and possibly a wheel route might be something Herman has been saving for blOU....  remember a play something like that to Daniel Young against Mizzu.

 

Some serious holding at 0:29.

[Bullneck 19027]

5 minutes ago, ClubWhatever said:

If you’ve watched a lot of games the officiating is uniformly terrible.  They’ve put too much on the officials and/or the officials are not adequately turned over when they show physical or mental obsolescence.  It’s like the leagues are trying to solve a climate model with a TRS80.  I saw the refs yesterday more than I saw actual football.  Maybe they need to adopt some of the NFL practices on how to keep the games moving.  There are bad calls there too, but at least they don’t have several five-minute conferences per game to figure out what a ruling should be.   The quality of the white hat goes a long way in speeding things up so I would start there.  Also the targeting thing has gone a long way to killing the experience because it introduces 20 minutes extra of commercials per game.  

Whatever game slowdown that was going on about a minute before halftime caused me to get an early start on cleaning my car.  IIRC WVU was in FG range and there was some 10 minute review of something going on.  I said "Fuck it" and left, assuming they'd either have 3 more points when I got back to the TV or not.  But I had no patience to sit through that nonsense.

[bschoolprof 6233]

13 minutes ago, ClubWhatever said:

If you’ve watched a lot of games the officiating is uniformly terrible.  They’ve put too much on the officials and/or the officials are not adequately turned over when they show physical or mental obsolescence.  It’s like the leagues are trying to solve a climate model with a TRS80.  I saw the refs yesterday more than I saw actual football.  Maybe they need to adopt some of the NFL practices on how to keep the games moving.  There are bad calls there too, but at least they don’t have several five-minute conferences per game to figure out what a ruling should be.   The quality of the white hat goes a long way in speeding things up so I would start there.  Also the targeting thing has gone a long way to killing the experience because it introduces 20 minutes extra of commercials per game.  

I agree with all of this, but the officials yesterday were more one-sided in their incompetence.  We got called for ticky tack shit.  WVU hardly got called for anything.  

[ClubWhatever 12087]

13 minutes ago, bschoolprof said:

I agree with all of this, but the officials yesterday were more one-sided in their incompetence.  We got called for ticky tack shit.  WVU hardly got called for anything.  

Although they would never admit it I believe many officials are influenced by the expected reaction of the home bench/crowd, especially when the atmosphere is raucous.  It’s just another aspect of the general incompetence. 

Edited October 6, 2019 by ClubWhatever

[Machinator 32098]

6 hours ago, Hook1997 said:

Yes the spreading of the ball is very concerning, not only are we not utilizing weapons but also you have to consider recruits and transfers now if we only throw to a couple guys.

We had 9 players catch a pass.

[Dahobbs 17454]

Our problems on offense appear to mainly be two things: 1) we really miss cj, as the other receivers at his position arent quite ready, and 2) we have some tell when Ingram is in the game on running plays. 

Getting CJ back will really improve the offense. I think Sam's struggles were mainly wide receiver's struggles, as the timing just seemed off on a lot of throws to receivers not named duvernay. 

[Machinator 32098]

(Scipio Tex) West Virginia Postmortem: Defense/Special Teams

This an odd game to evaluate for the Longhorn defense.

Texas came out in a 3-3-5 featuring Adeoye and Mitchell as inside twins (with McCulloch seeing limited action) and Ossai running around being what Dan Jenkins would term a semi-nickel.

Texas had injuries before and throughout the game, but tackling and angles weren't great. Some of those injuries were a direct consequence of bad tackling form.

There was a disjointed nature to the execution of some coverages that's difficult to square. How exactly is a Drop 8 defense allowing completions between two defenders standing still guarding ground instead of covering the human beings running through that space?

Texas allowed some bad personnel match-ups early when WVU schemed up some of our calls. That included BJ Foster iso'd on WVU's best WR Sam James on the sideline for an easy 44 yard TD throw. That can't and shouldn't ever happen. Worse was McCulloch manned up on a WR allowing a 36 yard gain after Chris Brown missed a tackle behind him. There were multiple instances of five (and four - yes, a couple) man boxes against WVU +TE formations. Texas held West Virginia under 100 yards rushing largely because they didn't press the issue, but watching a RB run for eight yards before encountering a white jersey never thrills me.

Texas forced four turnovers and repeatedly set up the offense with short fields in the second half. Absolutely decisive to the game outcome as the Longhorns scored 21 points off of turnovers to West Virginia's 3. Two of those interceptions were incredibly athletic plays (the phenomenal Jamison one-handed deep ball pick, the Foster break and self-tip drill). Two were very solid plays on terrible throws (the Jamison break on a poor Kendall outside route, Adeoye's LB drop into a poor Kendall read).

Texas turned arguably the weakest offense in the Big 12, averaging 4.7 yards per play against a murderer's row that included James Madison, NC State, Missouri and Kansas, into an explosive first half passing and rushing offense that notched 6.7 yards per play for the game. We're five games in and that trend is unabated. On the positive side, Texas was solid on money downs, holding WVU to 6 of 16 conversions on 3rd and 4th down.

The Texas D also completely stoned West Virginia in the second half including some terrific sudden change defense to hold WVU to a field goal after a horrible Ehlinger interception and held WVU to 23 plays for 70 yards (and three turnovers) on their second half possessions ....until allowing the Mountaineers two touchdowns (16 plays, 155 yards) in the last 5:27 of the game playing a mix of DL reserves and defense that was more allow than prevent. That wasn't pure garbage time as an 11 point game with some time on the clock (I'm talking 35-24 and 4:00 on the clock) is a losable football game if they hit their onside kick, but on that last Mountaineer possession, it certainly felt like Texas was already packing for Austin.

Once again, Texas blew outside containment on the QB on a 3rd and goal line for a Kendall Austin stroll-in touchdown. That look familiar to anyone? How many times does it need to happen before we realize that the interior DL can hold up in goal line without blindly stunting our free edge defender to "make something happen?" I'm pretty sure the Mountaineers had that one on their call sheet titled "Sure Scoring Play For Red Zone - see all Orlando tape ever."

Special Teams

Dicker missed a <40 yard field goal, Brandon Jones let a punt roll that was downed on the 1 yard line, Brewer had a penalty that forced a re-punt that cost some yardage, and the kickoff team had one shoddy coverage. On the positive side of the ledger, Texas punting and coverage was on point and Texas fielded two onside kicks cleanly. Field goal defense was also outstanding!

DL

I love Keondre Coburn. The box score only credits him two tackles, but he was relentless, with consistent penetration. If Texas could properly set the edge on a running play more than half of the time, he'd have had multiple TFLs. Roach was very active and had several hustle plays, but it seems to me that even when the pass rush wasn't three men, they told the rushers to keep Kendall in the pocket and force him to throw. Fair enough given the four turnovers, but rush-to-contain means you still rush and try to walk back the OL while honoring your lanes. You don't lock up and slow dance. For that reason, the DL was either outnumbered and doubled at the point of attack on run plays (see five man boxes) or effectively schemed out of pass rushing.

LB

McCulloch was effectively demoted for the twin interior look of Adeoye and Mitchell while Ossai played 250 pound Mega-Nickel.

Juwan's best play was a beautiful screen snuff early and he had four solo tackles. Adeoye had a pretty flow tackle on outside zone to help create a TFL in the second half in addition to his early Kendall interception. On the negative side of the ledger, Mitchell gifted WVU five yards on an offsides blitz and Adeoye looked very wooden at times flowing to the ball. Ossai led the team with 8 tackles. I'm not sure making him a coverage LB who stunts occasionally is his best use, but damned if the guy doesn't play his ass off doing whatever he's tasked with. Real ballplayer. He had a regrettable personal foul as his primary hickey.

DB

The good was obvious. I'll let the video tell the tale:

Fluttering throw, incredible effort. This is the level of athlete Orlando/Washington have to work with. Let's shore up the fundamentals and focus that ability.

Jamison knew what the route was and ran it for the receiver. Kendall made a poor decision.

Excellent break on the ball by Foster. He's squatting on the short route and self-tips the INT.

Obviously, some terrific individual plays by the secondary. They also had some tough moments, primarily when asked to play as a unit or exhibit more fundamental run-of-the-mill play: getting off blocks, understanding where help is, angles, tackling, finding the ball in the air.

Kendall was 15 of 18 for 163 yards at halftime. Let's not fall into the "WVU just got second half garbage yards" trap. They made Kendall look quite efficient for big stretches, even when throwing into unfavorable numbers comprised of soft zone or combo coverages. The fact that Kendall isn't very good and threw some picks doesn't free them of their grades elsewhere. So while we should celebrate the individual athletic plays, because we'll sure need them to beat Oklahoma, this secondary and staff have a lot to clean up with respect to unit play. Pointing to injuries as the culprit is whistling past the graveyard. These issues have been consistent since La Tech.

Anthony Cook had 3 good quarters of play before giving up a play or two he'd like back outside.

Final Thoughts

West Virginia is a bad team. We won on the road. That's meaningful, even against bad teams. 4-1 and moving on to Dallas.

Beat OU.

[Pato del Muerto 52360]

1 hour ago, MirrOlure said:

On the penalty count....if I accept that touching a sliding QB in the first quarter is unnecessary, then how in the world are (a) clobbering Cosmi 2 yards deep in the end zone-head to head nonetheless, and (b) dive bombing the onside kick recoverer who is cradling the ball on the ground, not penalized?

This, and the targeting call on foster and review on dicker had me looking for head down hits all game, which happened, but never called or reviewed. Such as the blitz that Ingram got hurt picking up. The lb either ducked his head or head butted Ingram. No look and no mention. 

Offensive players do actively avoid being tackled. If you want to tackle somebody in the midsection, you have to lower your body to that level. They move and sometimes your helmet hits them instead of your shoulder. 

[satyanash 14281]

57 minutes ago, Machinator said:

We had 9 players catch a pass.

That doesn't necessarily mean we're spreading the ball. With CJ out Duvernay's shouldering a massive receiving burden.

WVU

Okie Lite

[thepop 4409]

7 hours ago, Hook1997 said:

Yes the spreading of the ball is very concerning, not only are we not utilizing weapons

Is this a joke

[Red Five 40694]

We had 9 players catch a pass.

That doesn’t even include any offensive tackles.

[GringoSalado 1651]

I like how quickly Braun heads upfield on Ehlinger's TD scramble. Also how he seems almost dejected when we score before he can pancake anybody.

[Pato del Muerto 52360]

28 minutes ago, satyanash said:

That doesn't necessarily mean we're spreading the ball. With CJ out Duvernay's shouldering a massive receiving burden.

WVU

Okie Lite

You’d prefer we throw less to the reliable duvernay in favor of Malcolm Epps?

[Bateshorn 9908]

8 hours ago, Pato del Muerto said:

This, and the targeting call on foster and review on dicker had me looking for head down hits all game, which happened, but never called or reviewed. Such as the blitz that Ingram got hurt picking up. The lb either ducked his head or head butted Ingram. No look and no mention. 

Offensive players do actively avoid being tackled. If you want to tackle somebody in the midsection, you have to lower your body to that level. They move and sometimes your helmet hits them instead of your shoulder. 

Both the Ingram block and the Cosmi. TD  hit were crown of the helmet to helmet hits that should have been reviewed. The Ingram block was probably ejectable.  The LB saw Ingram in his path, lowered his head,  and used the crown of his helmet as a battering ram.

[Machinator 32098]

(Scipio Tex) West Virginia Postmortem: Offense

Collectively, the first effort of the year that resembled some of the lowlights of last year's offense: a second half descent into why-is-everything-is-so-hard grind, way too many 3rd and longs, overall poor play (penalties, Ehlinger's bad INT, bad routes, a couple of OL defeats) in the 3rd quarter, and some struggles with Mountaineer defensive adjustments out of halftime.

Fortunately, even when this year's offense deteriorates, the floor and ceiling are a lot higher than any other Herman Longhorn offense. For the game, Texas totaled 427 total yards (211 passing, 216 rushing) but it took 82 plays at 5.2 yards per snap to get there.

About that 3rd quarter. The third quarter was hard enough to view in real time, but really hard on re-watch. After scoring on the last two possessions of the 1st half (2 crisp touchdowns drives of 69 and 80 yards, respectively), Texas started the 3rd quarter with the ball, the lead, and the opportunity to assert itself. Right where you want to be on the road having just stifled moonshine momentum. Time to create separation, feast on Kendall mistakes, and cruise to the blowout road win.

Ah, not so much.

This is how Texas performed in five 3rd quarter possessions:

6 plays, -6 yards PUNT
3 plays, 7 yards PUNT
7 plays, 25 yards PUNT
1 play, Ehlinger INT (which gave ball to WVU deep in Texas territory)
5 plays, 23 yards PUNT

That's 22 plays in a single quarter totaling 49 yards of offense. Two of those UT possessions began at midfield. Result? Four punts and a bad interception that set up WVU deep in Longhorn territory. Fortunately, the Texas defense (with a nod to Austin Kendall's judgement) gifted the offense with multiple short fields that snapped Longhorn offensive lethargy and created 21 4th quarter points. While that can turn into a "Texas got it done because them is gutty winners and don't you know Herman coaches like this on purpose because 4D Chess" narrative pretty easily, it's bull****, and if we do that in Dallas, the postgame corn dogs will taste like sadness.

On the very positive side, the Longhorn offense went 10 of 18 on 3rd down, scored four touchdowns in four red zone trips and there's a lot of Longhorn playbook still available when we use Sam Ehlinger as a backside running game constraint and Collin Johnson provides a major chain moving upgrade to our current X options.

QB

Ehlinger's first half stat line: 13 of 21 for 176 yards, 2 touchdowns. Second half stat line? 5 of 12 for 35 yards, 1 interception. The interception was an under throw into triple coverage and his first real WTF throw of the season. Five games in, Ehlinger played his first poor half of football. At least as a thrower. He has other attributes. Sam used his legs in the second half to score two touchdowns, pacing him to 65 rushing yards (-20 in sacks for the official box score) and foreshadowing how we'll attack Oklahoma if they try to strictly play coverage (also foreshadowing what OU will do with Hurts). The sneaky hesitation move he dropped on a WVU defender at the five yard line on his broken pocket scamper touchdown is rewind worthy.

In the second half, #11 was handicapped a bit by our lack of experienced receiving options when WVU schemed out Duvernay and challenged Epps. Collin Johnson would have had a series of 10-15 yard chain movers, but the staff wisely had their sights set on Dallas. Sam could've helped his cause a few times taking easy check downs to the running backs and I'm sure he'll see that on film.

Ehlinger's big-time 25 yard throw to Cade Brewer on the left sideline was exceptional. NFL stuff. As was his accurate rope to Eagles on a 3rd and long. Dropped.

Sam had an unproductive second half throwing - and still accounted for four touchdowns.

RB

Keontay got injured early picking up a VanDarius Cowan blitz and didn't look right when he returned. He also had the misfortune of getting the nod on some runs that Stills blew up and before the OL (and Ingram) got the timing on some of the WVU front movements. That's why he put up a disappointing 11-18 on the box score. Surprising given last week's breakthrough against Oklahoma State. We got to see Kirk Johnson for the first time in a long time and he looked solid, tallying four carries in limited action.

A few weeks ago, Roschon Johnson was taking snaps from center, wearing a Don't-Touch-Him jersey in scrimmages, and learning college coverages. Against West Virginia, he was the Longhorn workhorse running back totaling 121 yards on 21 carries and averaging 5.8 yards a pop. He also added a catch for a first down and there was more available with him in the passing game had Ehlinger checked down a time or two. Watching him hold up in blitz pick up is pretty amazing.

While it's important to acknowledge his gameness, adaptability, toughness and unselfishness, I'm also going to evaluate him at his position. Once the Texas OL settled in and the backs figured out where to find space and let the WVU defenders wash out, there were some big holes. RoJo ran the majority of his carries for what the play was blocked for (when you average nearly 6 per carry and your longest run is 17, that's inferential confirmation if you don't believe my eyes). #2 does a good job of working through hands and arms near the LOS and timing up his initial cut, but his next evolution will be in creating more at the second level and not going down at first contact. There was some meat left on the bone. I bet RoJo takes bigger bites as he continues to learn his new trade.

WR/TE

Devin Duvernay is so important to all we do. He dominated in the first half, tallying 5 catches for 81 yards. West Virginia took him away in the second half (1 catch, 5 yards) and that's strong evidence that Texas really needs a reliable route running option to complement him. Duvernay had an amazing sideline catch that he made look routine and his 13 yard touchdown run, while well blocked, was a great example of his desire to score.

Epps benefitted from off coverage early (3-34-1) and he had a 22 yard touchdown where he created space on a freshman West Virginia cornerback in the paint and played as big as his 6-6, 240 pound frame. He showed his limitations as a route runner over the course of the game and that gave the Mountaineer defense some options to gang up on Duvernay and crowd the middle of the field. Marcus Washington and John Burt each had catches (Burt's for six) but were otherwise quiet.

Brennan Eagles was targeted frequently but couldn't convert on a 3rd down drop (on a very good Ehlinger throw) and endured a couple of early breaks on the ball that weren't flagged. He's a very dangerous third receiver with a very specific function when teams put coverage attention on Duvernay and CJ. He is not a zone busting route runner. At least not yet.

Jake Smith (3-23) got some attention in the screen game and he looked better making decisions based on where the blocker's leverage is.

Leitao had a hold call. Brewer had a drop on contact and a hold penalty on a punt, but had a nice snag of an Ehlinger sideline dime. The staff bringing in Wiley late was not by accident. He gave us some solid blocking on West Virginia's perimeter smalls when we ran counter. Having a 6-7 guy stalk safeties usually works out well if the TE has good feet. Wiley will be a good player for us, particularly as he fills out to 265+ and gives us a perimeter edge winner.

OL

The right side of the Texas OL had some struggles with Darius Stills #56. If you read my preview, you knew who he was and hopefully got to sound like the smart guy at your Longhorn game watch party. Stills notched a sack and had three tackles for loss in addition to his more subtle impacts. He really hurt us on the backside of our zone blocking schemes, where he proved way too quick and physical for Junior Angilau to reach block with no help. This small nitpick is probably the only area where I'd question Herb Hand in his entire time here, as in my estimation you have to tell Shack to help out with the angle and not ask Junior to get his head across a NFL DL lined up inside of him. Gotta double that dude and ride him and alert the RB to the cutback possibility or block down and run base or counter (which we later did). Stills other big impact play was a sack where he ran through Kerstetter on a T/E stunt. Stills is already crayoned in on my fictitious 1st Team All Big 12 ballot.

Denzel Okafor got some play when they moved Kerstetter to guard for a series and he blocked well.

Overall, the OL was good after struggling with some of WVU's movement and #56 on our left side. Braun and Cosmi were good to dominant for four quarters. There were a half dozen instances of monster holes where an elite RB might have turned a 8-12 yard gain into something bigger.

Final

The first really disjointed offensive effort of the season - focused mainly in a very sloppy 3rd quarter. Beyond that, I expect a lot better offense in Dallas with a healthy CJ creating more space for Duvernay and Eagles benefitting from the attentions of the Sooner's 3rd best coverage option. Throw in a handful of Ehlinger power runs and backside containment punishers and the running game should profit as well.

Hate Week initiated. Destroy OU.

[dcar00 14036]

IMO opinion the hit needs to be obviously purposeful, especially if you are diving waist high or below.  you can't know what the offensive player will do.  your only choice is to target waist high or below. 

 

[LTtxfan 49010]

3 hours ago, Machinator said:

(Scipio Tex) West Virginia Postmortem: Offense

 

  Reveal hidden contents

 

Collectively, the first effort of the year that resembled some of the lowlights of last year's offense: a second half descent into why-is-everything-is-so-hard grind, way too many 3rd and longs, overall poor play (penalties, Ehlinger's bad INT, bad routes, a couple of OL defeats) in the 3rd quarter, and some struggles with Mountaineer defensive adjustments out of halftime.

Fortunately, even when this year's offense deteriorates, the floor and ceiling are a lot higher than any other Herman Longhorn offense. For the game, Texas totaled 427 total yards (211 passing, 216 rushing) but it took 82 plays at 5.2 yards per snap to get there.

About that 3rd quarter. The third quarter was hard enough to view in real time, but really hard on re-watch. After scoring on the last two possessions of the 1st half (2 crisp touchdowns drives of 69 and 80 yards, respectively), Texas started the 3rd quarter with the ball, the lead, and the opportunity to assert itself. Right where you want to be on the road having just stifled moonshine momentum. Time to create separation, feast on Kendall mistakes, and cruise to the blowout road win.

Ah, not so much.

This is how Texas performed in five 3rd quarter possessions:

6 plays, -6 yards PUNT
3 plays, 7 yards PUNT
7 plays, 25 yards PUNT
1 play, Ehlinger INT (which gave ball to WVU deep in Texas territory)
5 plays, 23 yards PUNT

That's 22 plays in a single quarter totaling 49 yards of offense. Two of those UT possessions began at midfield. Result? Four punts and a bad interception that set up WVU deep in Longhorn territory. Fortunately, the Texas defense (with a nod to Austin Kendall's judgement) gifted the offense with multiple short fields that snapped Longhorn offensive lethargy and created 21 4th quarter points. While that can turn into a "Texas got it done because them is gutty winners and don't you know Herman coaches like this on purpose because 4D Chess" narrative pretty easily, it's bull****, and if we do that in Dallas, the postgame corn dogs will taste like sadness.

On the very positive side, the Longhorn offense went 10 of 18 on 3rd down, scored four touchdowns in four red zone trips and there's a lot of Longhorn playbook still available when we use Sam Ehlinger as a backside running game constraint and Collin Johnson provides a major chain moving upgrade to our current X options.

QB

Ehlinger's first half stat line: 13 of 21 for 176 yards, 2 touchdowns. Second half stat line? 5 of 12 for 35 yards, 1 interception. The interception was an under throw into triple coverage and his first real WTF throw of the season. Five games in, Ehlinger played his first poor half of football. At least as a thrower. He has other attributes. Sam used his legs in the second half to score two touchdowns, pacing him to 65 rushing yards (-20 in sacks for the official box score) and foreshadowing how we'll attack Oklahoma if they try to strictly play coverage (also foreshadowing what OU will do with Hurts). The sneaky hesitation move he dropped on a WVU defender at the five yard line on his broken pocket scamper touchdown is rewind worthy.

In the second half, #11 was handicapped a bit by our lack of experienced receiving options when WVU schemed out Duvernay and challenged Epps. Collin Johnson would have had a series of 10-15 yard chain movers, but the staff wisely had their sights set on Dallas. Sam could've helped his cause a few times taking easy check downs to the running backs and I'm sure he'll see that on film.

Ehlinger's big-time 25 yard throw to Cade Brewer on the left sideline was exceptional. NFL stuff. As was his accurate rope to Eagles on a 3rd and long. Dropped.

Sam had an unproductive second half throwing - and still accounted for four touchdowns.

RB

Keontay got injured early picking up a VanDarius Cowan blitz and didn't look right when he returned. He also had the misfortune of getting the nod on some runs that Stills blew up and before the OL (and Ingram) got the timing on some of the WVU front movements. That's why he put up a disappointing 11-18 on the box score. Surprising given last week's breakthrough against Oklahoma State. We got to see Kirk Johnson for the first time in a long time and he looked solid, tallying four carries in limited action.

A few weeks ago, Roschon Johnson was taking snaps from center, wearing a Don't-Touch-Him jersey in scrimmages, and learning college coverages. Against West Virginia, he was the Longhorn workhorse running back totaling 121 yards on 21 carries and averaging 5.8 yards a pop. He also added a catch for a first down and there was more available with him in the passing game had Ehlinger checked down a time or two. Watching him hold up in blitz pick up is pretty amazing.

While it's important to acknowledge his gameness, adaptability, toughness and unselfishness, I'm also going to evaluate him at his position. Once the Texas OL settled in and the backs figured out where to find space and let the WVU defenders wash out, there were some big holes. RoJo ran the majority of his carries for what the play was blocked for (when you average nearly 6 per carry and your longest run is 17, that's inferential confirmation if you don't believe my eyes). #2 does a good job of working through hands and arms near the LOS and timing up his initial cut, but his next evolution will be in creating more at the second level and not going down at first contact. There was some meat left on the bone. I bet RoJo takes bigger bites as he continues to learn his new trade.

WR/TE

Devin Duvernay is so important to all we do. He dominated in the first half, tallying 5 catches for 81 yards. West Virginia took him away in the second half (1 catch, 5 yards) and that's strong evidence that Texas really needs a reliable route running option to complement him. Duvernay had an amazing sideline catch that he made look routine and his 13 yard touchdown run, while well blocked, was a great example of his desire to score.

Epps benefitted from off coverage early (3-34-1) and he had a 22 yard touchdown where he created space on a freshman West Virginia cornerback in the paint and played as big as his 6-6, 240 pound frame. He showed his limitations as a route runner over the course of the game and that gave the Mountaineer defense some options to gang up on Duvernay and crowd the middle of the field. Marcus Washington and John Burt each had catches (Burt's for six) but were otherwise quiet.

Brennan Eagles was targeted frequently but couldn't convert on a 3rd down drop (on a very good Ehlinger throw) and endured a couple of early breaks on the ball that weren't flagged. He's a very dangerous third receiver with a very specific function when teams put coverage attention on Duvernay and CJ. He is not a zone busting route runner. At least not yet.

Jake Smith (3-23) got some attention in the screen game and he looked better making decisions based on where the blocker's leverage is.

Leitao had a hold call. Brewer had a drop on contact and a hold penalty on a punt, but had a nice snag of an Ehlinger sideline dime. The staff bringing in Wiley late was not by accident. He gave us some solid blocking on West Virginia's perimeter smalls when we ran counter. Having a 6-7 guy stalk safeties usually works out well if the TE has good feet. Wiley will be a good player for us, particularly as he fills out to 265+ and gives us a perimeter edge winner.

OL

The right side of the Texas OL had some struggles with Darius Stills #56. If you read my preview, you knew who he was and hopefully got to sound like the smart guy at your Longhorn game watch party. Stills notched a sack and had three tackles for loss in addition to his more subtle impacts. He really hurt us on the backside of our zone blocking schemes, where he proved way too quick and physical for Junior Angilau to reach block with no help. This small nitpick is probably the only area where I'd question Herb Hand in his entire time here, as in my estimation you have to tell Shack to help out with the angle and not ask Junior to get his head across a NFL DL lined up inside of him. Gotta double that dude and ride him and alert the RB to the cutback possibility or block down and run base or counter (which we later did). Stills other big impact play was a sack where he ran through Kerstetter on a T/E stunt. Stills is already crayoned in on my fictitious 1st Team All Big 12 ballot.

Denzel Okafor got some play when they moved Kerstetter to guard for a series and he blocked well.

Overall, the OL was good after struggling with some of WVU's movement and #56 on our left side. Braun and Cosmi were good to dominant for four quarters. There were a half dozen instances of monster holes where an elite RB might have turned a 8-12 yard gain into something bigger.

Final

The first really disjointed offensive effort of the season - focused mainly in a very sloppy 3rd quarter. Beyond that, I expect a lot better offense in Dallas with a healthy CJ creating more space for Duvernay and Eagles benefitting from the attentions of the Sooner's 3rd best coverage option. Throw in a handful of Ehlinger power runs and backside containment punishers and the running game should profit as well.

Hate Week initiated. Destroy OU.

 

Great Stuff.... Thx @Machinator  

Still wish our WRs route running was developed better.  If better trained, Eagles and Washington could dominate once CJ returns to starting lineup.

Epps is a terrible route runner...

Edited October 7, 2019 by LTtxfan

[Burt Macklin 19000]

40 minutes ago, LTtxfan said:

Great Stuff.... Thx @Machinator  

Still wish our WRs route running was developed better.  If better trained, Eagles and Washington could dominate once CJ returns to starting lineup.

Epps is a terrible route runner...

I honestly have no clue what you’re talking about. Epps and Washington do not project to great route runners this year no matter who was coaching them.
Eagles routes have generally been fine, but he’s tall and heavy. He’s never projected as a great route runner. He has tight hips and It’s hard for a guy that big to sink his hips and cut. He runs routes well at Z because he runs a lot of posts, go’s, and nines. Washington is a true freshman who wasn’t even an EE. Very few true freshman are great route runners. 

[ChickenSandwich 9798]

4 hours ago, dcar00 said:

IMO opinion the hit needs to be obviously purposeful, especially if you are diving waist high or below.  you can't know what the offensive player will do.  your only choice is to target waist high or below. 

 

Too many deep balls early in games. Our best offense is chain moving drives. Start with that. 
 

The early deep ball offense, hit or miss, doesn’t develop rhythm...and if you miss you put pressure on the defense quickly and your third down offense (see first drive of game)

Edited October 7, 2019 by ChickenSandwich

[LTtxfan 49010]

20 minutes ago, Burt Macklin said:

I honestly have no clue what you’re talking about. Epps and Washington do not project to great route runners this year no matter who was coaching them.  Eagles routes have generally been fine, but he’s tall and heavy. He’s never projected as a great route runner. He has tight hips and It’s hard for a guy that big to sink his hips and cut. He runs routes well at Z because he runs a lot of posts, go’s, and nines. Washington is a true freshman who wasn’t even an EE. Very few true freshman are great route runners. 

Washington is stud that with better coaching should be balling out a lot more as a true freshman.  Just because a player is tall, doesn't mean they can't run routes better.  Eagles is a 2nd year player that sure as shit should be a better route runner than he currently is.  Epps is a redshirt freshman that runs routes like he's had no college training

Scipio was also critical of Eagles route running in his post below.  Hope that helps yah...

"Brennan Eagles was targeted frequently but couldn't convert on a 3rd down drop (on a very good Ehlinger throw) and endured a couple of early breaks on the ball that weren't flagged. He's a very dangerous third receiver with a very specific function when teams put coverage attention on Duvernay and CJ. He is not a zone busting route runner. At least not yet. "

 

Edited October 7, 2019 by LTtxfan
typo

[Burt Macklin 19000]

5 minutes ago, LTtxfan said:

Washington is stud that with better coaching should be balling out a lot more as a true freshman.  Just because a player is tall, doesn't mean they can't run routes better.  Eagles is a 2nd year player that sure as shit should be a better route runner than he currently is.  Epps is a redshirt freshman that runs routes like he's had no college training

Scipio was also critical of Eagles route running in his post below.  Hope that helps yah...

"Brennan Eagles was targeted frequently but couldn't convert on a 3rd down drop (on a very good Ehlinger throw) and endured a couple of early breaks on the ball that weren't flagged. He's a very dangerous third receiver with a very specific function when teams put coverage attention on Duvernay and CJ. He is not a zone busting route runner. At least not yet. "

 

Eagles has never projected to that and his route running isn’t bad. Again, Washington is a true freshman who didn’t even enroll early. He played at a small HS and didn’t have the best coaching. He was never expected to come in and tear it up this year.
 

Edited October 7, 2019 by Burt Macklin

[Machinator 32098]

4 minutes ago, LTtxfan said:

Washington is stud that with better coaching should be balling out a lot more as a true freshman.  Just because a player is tall, doesn't mean they can't run routes better.  Eagles is a 2nd year player that sure as shit should be a better route runner than he currently is.  Epps is a redshirt freshman that runs routes like he's had no college training

Scipio was also critical of Eagles route running in his post below.  Hope that helps yah...

"Brennan Eagles was targeted frequently but couldn't convert on a 3rd down drop (on a very good Ehlinger throw) and endured a couple of early breaks on the ball that weren't flagged. He's a very dangerous third receiver with a very specific function when teams put coverage attention on Duvernay and CJ. He is not a zone busting route runner. At least not yet. "

 

You have no ability to exhibit independent thought, do you?

[texifornia 56564]

3 minutes ago, Machinator said:

You have no ability to exhibit independent thought, do you?

AI programming SMACKDOWN mode engaged

[LTtxfan 49010]

21 minutes ago, Machinator said:

You have no ability to exhibit independent thought, do you?

So 3rd year that Herman is here and folks are ok that only 2 WRs are decent route runners??

It's bullshit.... seems like an independent thought😎

[JBJ 3649]

It really bugs me that Boyd insists on calling the 3-safety look 'Inverted Tampa 2.'

Theres nothing inverted about it and Inverted Tampa 2 already means something.