Media/$9.95-er postgame analysis articles (Week 9)

[satyanash 14281]

Collecting post-game analysis articles regarding the Baylor game here:

(Taylor Estes) FINAL: Texas drops another double-digit lead in 31-24 loss to Baylor

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The Longhorns and the Bears are set to kickoff bright and early inside McLane Stadium Saturday morning when Texas takes on No. 16 ranked Baylor in Waco, Texas. As of Saturday morning, the Longhorns are a 2.5-point underdog to the Bears in Steve Sarkisian's first matchup coaching against Dave Aranda as head coaches, though Sarkisian and Aranda do have some familiarity with one another from when Aranda was the defensive coordinator at LSU while Sarkisian was the offensive coordinator at Alabama.

Horns247 is live from Waco, Texas and will bring in game updates from Saturday's Big 12 matchup between Texas and Baylor.

FIRST QUARTER UPDATES

12:34 left in Q1: Texas is on the board first inside McLane Stadium. The Longhorns found the end zone on the offense's first possession of the ball game, which came earlier than expected. The Texas defense took the field first and got the ball in the hands of the Longhorns' offense after senior safety B.J. Foster intercepted Baylor QB Gerry Bohanon to set up the offense in positive field position. Texas QB Casey Thompson led the offense down the field and capped off the scoring drive when he connected with Joshua Moore for a 10-yard touchdown.

Texas 7, Baylor 0 (Longhorns' scoring drive: 4 plays, 31 yards, 10-yard TD, 1:43 used)

7:32 left in Q1: The Bears have answered. After Texas took a 7-0 lead early in the first quarter, the Baylor offense got rolling on an 11-play drive that ended with the Bears finding the end zone on a trick play when wide receiver Tyquan Thornton connected with wide receiver RJ Sneed for a 6-yard touchdown.

Texas 7, Baylor 7 (Bears' scoring drive: 11 plays, 75 yards, 6-yard TD, 5:02 used)

00:56 left in Q1: Baylor has extended the lead on Texas. The Bears took the ball down into Texas territory on a 9-play drive but the Longhorns stopped Baylor to force a field goal.

Baylor 10, Texas 7 (Bears' scoring drive: 9 plays, 53 yards, 38-yard FG, 4:33 used)

00:24 left in Q1: The Longhorns have answered. After Baylor took a 10-7 lead late in the first quarter, Texas bounced back when Thompson hit wide receiver Xavier Worthy for a 63-yard touchdown.

Texas 14, Baylor 10 (Longhorns' scoring summary: 2 plays, 75 yards, 63-yard TD, 32 seconds used)

END OF 1ST QUARTER: Texas 14, Baylor 10

HALFTIME: Texas 14, Baylor 10

THIRD QUARTER UPDATES

8:49 left in Q3: The Longhorns have extended their lead over the Bears in the third quarter. Texas found the end zone for the first time since the first quarter when Thompson led the offense on a 6-minute scoring drive that was capped off when running back Bijan Robinson ran it in from the one-yard line to give Texas a double-digit lead over Baylor.

Texas 21, Baylor 10 (Longhorns' scoring summary: 14 plays, 75 yards, 1-yard TD, 6:11 used)

4:45 left in Q3: Baylor is back on the board. The Bears offense went down the field 75 yards and ended the scoring drive when Bohanon ran in a 6-yard touchdown to cut the Longhorns' lead.

Texas 21, Baylor 17 (Bears' scoring summary: 9 plays, 75 yards, 6-yard TD, 4:04 used)

END OF 3RD QUARTER: Texas 21, Baylor 17

FOURTH QUARTER UPDATES

12:48 left in Q4: Baylor is back on top. The Bears took their first lead since the first quarter on a 14-play scoring drive that ended with Ben Sims running in a 1-yard touchdown to give Baylor a fourth quarter lead.

Baylor 24, Texas 21 (Bears' scoring summary: 14 plays, 80 yards, 1-yard TD, 5:36 used)

7:59 left in Q4: Baylor is rolling. The Bears took advantage of a positive field position after punter Cameron Dicker failed to convert a fake punt on 4th and 11 and answered by take a double-digit lead on the Longhorns midway through the fourth quarter.

Baylor 31, Texas 21 (Bears' scoring summary: 3 plays, 53 yards, 32-yard TD, 1:24 used)

4:40 left in Q4: Texas has trimmed Baylor's lead late in the fourth quarter. The Longhorns took the ball 66 yards down the field but were stopped by the Bears defense to settle for a 27-yard field goal.

Baylor 31, Texas 24 (Longhorns' scoring summary: 10 plays, 66 yards, 27-yard FG, 3:19 used)

FINAL: Baylor 31, Texas 24

Texas vs. Baylor: Saturday, Oct. 30

Kickoff: 11 a.m. CT

Location: McLane Stadium (Waco, Texas)

TV: ABC (Play-by-play: Joe Tessitore; Analyst: Greg McElroy; Sideline reporter: Katie George)

Local Radio: Longhorn IMG Radio Network, 104.9 FM in Austin. (Play-by-play: Craig Way; Analyst: Roger Wallace; Sideline reporter: Will Matthews)

Game Stream: FuboTV

Audio Stream: TexasSports.com

Live Stats: Side Arm Stats

Longhorn Network Pre-Game: Longhorn Network will start its live coverage of Texas Gameday two hours prior to kickoff beginning at 9 a.m. CT. LHN will return immediately following the game for Texas Gameday Final.

INSIDE THE ALL-TIME SERIES

Texas vs. Baylor all-time record ... Texas leads 79-27-4

— Texas vs. Baylor record in Austin, Texas … Texas leads 48-10-2

— Texas vs. Baylor record in Waco, Texas ... Texas leads, 31-17-2

Texas coach Steve Sarkisian's record as a head coach ... 50-38

Baylor coach Dave Aranda's record as a head coach ... 8-8

Last meeting ... Texas 27, Baylor 6 (Oct. 24, 2020)

A Texas win would mean ... Texas would move to 5-3 on the regular season and 3-2 in Big 12 play.

(Gerland Goodridge) Instant Reaction: Texas loses another double-digit lead in loss to Baylor

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The Texas Longhorns went into Waco with the hopes of stemming the tide of losses and started strong, but once again couldn’t do enough late in the game and lost to the Baylor Bears 31-24. Texas quarterback Casey Thompson had much of the game on his shoulders, as Baylor sold out to stop the run - holding Bijan Robinson to 43 yards and a touchdown on 17 carries. Xavier Worthy was once again electric for Texas on the receiving end with 115 yards and a touchdown on just four receptions. The Longhorns now head home to take on Iowa State in an effort to avoid a four-game losing streak and a losing record.

https://www.facebook.com/watch/live/?ref=external&v=234164928705086

 

[satyanash 14281]

(Bobby Burton) Snap Judgements: Enough

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I’ve seen enough. Perhaps so have you. The Texas defense allowed three consecutive TD drives in the second half, erasing an 11-point lead and turning it into a 10-point deficit. Every Power 5 school except Texas Tech has rushed for more than 200 yards on the Horns leading to long second half’s. The idea of letting your LBs and safeties fill run gaps is great IF you have good tackling and active safeties and linebackers. Texas has neither.

**

But the defense doesn’t bear the entire brunt of blame. Josh Moore is directly the cause of at least 10 points left on the field in Waco. A drop in the end zone and a fumble in field goal territory made Moore’s day miserable. Casey Thompson did not fair much better. Like it or not, Thompson is now just 3-3 as a starter and 0 for his last 3. Steve Sarkisian benched Hudson Card after starting the season 1-1. I’m not sure Thompson is good enough to get it done for the Horns, now or ever.

**

But neither Thompson, Moore nor the defense can take full credit. Cameron Dicker’s ill-fated fake punt threw salt in the wound and just added to the Bears’ growing momentum.

**

It’s time for Sarkisian to make a move of some sort. Whether that’s at quarterback, at redefining what he wants from his defensive coordinator or going to more reliable options at receiver, there have to be answers found. Right now, the Horns seem lost in the second half. And, as a result, they lost yet again.

(Joe Cook) RECAP: Baylor Bears 31, Texas Longhorns 24

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The Texas Longhorns lost a double-digit lead for the third consecutive game.

FIRST QUARTER

Baylor began with the football and picked up a first down with a play-action pass from Gerry Bohanon to RJ Sneed. His next pass ended up in the hands of BJ Foster, who is not his teammate. Texas moved inside the red zone with a pass from Casey Thompson to Joshua Moore. A few plays later, the duo repeated their connection for a 10-yard score to make it 7-0 early.

On Baylor’s second drive, the Bears moved into Texas territory with passes to Drew Estrada and Tyquan Thornton. But facing 3rd-and-6 on the Texas 38, the Bears ran a speed option to pick up the first and move to the Texas 20. Three plays later, some trickery earned six points when Thornton found Sneed for a six-yard score.

Texas’ second drive started poorly, first with a delay of game then a sack of Thompson. The drive ended quickly after three plays and a Cameron Dicker punt. Baylor moved in to Texas territory with another big run by Abram Smith. They moved closer to the end zone with a personal foul penalty on Moro Ojomo. The Bears eventually faced 3rd-and-13 and failed to convert after a short pass to Sneed. Texas forced a field goal, converted by Isaiah Hankins, to make it 10-7 Bears.

Texas took over on its own 25 with under a minute left in the first. Thompson found Moore for another first down. The next throw was a perfect slot fade from Thompson to Xavier Worthy for a 63-yard score, making it 14-10 Texas. Worthy moved one behind Roy Williams school record of eight touchdown receptions as a freshman with the score. Baylor ran one play for a gain of a handful as the quarter expired with Texas leading 14-10.

SECOND QUARTER

The quarter started hot for the Bears with a 32-yard gain by Smith to move into Texas territory. But the Bear offense stalled on the Texas 32 after several stops by the Longhorn defense. The stop was crucial as Hankins shanked a 51-yard attempt. Texas; drive moved into BU territory quickly with a Thompson scramble. A few short gains set up 3rd-and-7, then a 4th-and-4. Thompson stepped up in the pocket but his pass was broken up by Al Walcott and the Bears took over.

Baylor took over on its own side of the 50, and faced 3rd-&-6 out of the gate. Texas held them short on 3rd, then again on 4th down for a trade of possession. Jerrin Thompson was credited with the tackle for loss.

Texas faced 3rd-and-short after a handoff to Juan Davis and a pass to Marcus Washington. Texas picked up the first with a direct snap run to Roschon Johnson. Another 3rd-and-6 approached, and Thompson appeared to find Moore again for a first down. But after a spin move, Moore lost possession of the football and Jalen Pitre recovered the football to give Baylor the ball back with 6:06 left.

Despite the repeated shifts in momentum, the Texas defense held firm again and received an opportunity to score before halftime with 3:39 left, needing to travel 75 yards to do so. The Longhorns picked up 23 with a pass to Worthy, then a few more with a pass to Washington. But the Bears eventually forced a 3rd-and-5, and Texas could not convert. Baylor began on its eight-yard-line after Cameron Dicker’s punt. They picked up a first, but Bohanon threw his second pick to Luke Brockermeyer with 27 seconds left in the half.

Texas began on the Baylor 34. Cade Brewer picked up five with a reception. Thompson went for Moore in the end zone, but Moore could not haul it in for another score. On 3rd-and-5, Thompson threw a ball to Moore that deflected off his hands and into those of Baylor’s JT Woods. bWoods returned the ball to the Texas 39, but Bohanon’s halftime Hail Mary attempt fell short with it 14-10 Texas at the half.

THIRD QUARTER

Texas began the second half with a pass to Worthy for 19 yards. The Horns were stopped on 3rd-and-1, but converted on fourth with Roschon Johnson again. Texas picked up a first and moved into the red zone with a pass to Washington, then nine with Brewer. Texas made it 4th-and-goal from the one and brought in heavy personnel, with Robinson getting across to make it 21-10.

Two big play-action passes from Bohanon moved Baylor to the Texas 25. Facing a fourth down a few plays later, Bohanon completed a pass over the middle to make it 1st-and-goal Bears. On 2nd-and-goal, Bohanon finished the drive with a six-yard touchdown run to make it 21-17.

Needing momentum, Texas started the drive with a 25-yard run by Thompson but followed it with a four-yard loss by Robinson. Texas couldn’t pick up the 14 needed and sent on the punt team. Baylor picked up a first down to start the drive, then another on a pass from Bohanon to Thornton. Bohanon picked up a first down with his legs after avoiding a bltiz from Ovie Oghoufo, and then picked up five as the third quarter ended.

FOURTH QUARTER

Starting with 2nd-and-5 on the Texas 43, Bohanon went through his progressions on play-action to find Ben Sims to move to the Texas 15. A Smith run moved inside the five, and a handoff to Sims found the end zone to make it 24-21 Baylor with 12:48 left.

Texas picked up a first down with a couple of completions to Washington to start the ensuing drive. Then Jared Wiley gained enough to move the sticks in Baylor territory. But Texas moved backwards on a mishap between Robinson and Thompson to make it 2nd-and-16. Thompson helped gain back 10, setting up a third down. But they lost five on a false start, and Thompson’s prayer intended for Washington downfield fell incomplete.

Sarkisian elected to call a fake punt that was quickly snuffed out by the Baylor defense, giving BU the ball on its own 47. By that point, momentum belonged fully to those in green and gold. Texas had surrendered another fourth quarter lead, with Smith making it worse for the Longhorns with a 32-yard run to make it 31-21 with 7:59 left. In response, Texas drove 66 yards on 10 plays to add three points to make it 31-24 Baylor with 4:40 left.

Dicker kicked the ensuing kickoff deep and Baylor took it out to the 16. But two rushes picked up 16 yards for Baylor to pick up one first down. Texas began to play the timeout game on the ensuing play, taking its first. It eventually stopped Baylor and took over with no timeouts on its own 32.

First down resulted in an incompletion. Second down did too, but Thompson and Washington almost completed a huge gain that would have put Texas inside the Baylor 25. Third down was thrown away. Fourth down was intended for Worthy, and fell incomplete. Baylor knelt out the clock to end the game and drop Texas to 4-4.

 

[satyanash 14281]

Cody Daniel: Initial thoughts from Texas’ 31-24 loss to No. 16 Baylor

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Well, that was not fun. Texas led by double digits, and then they lost. Here are a few initial thoughts from Texas’ latest collapse.

Texas imploded... again. Different week, same story. And coming off of a bye week, no less. The only logical explanation is that there’s something fundamentally wrong with this team and/or the culture under Steve Sarkisian. When Texas took its 21-10 lead, you almost knew what was coming — another collapse — and then it did. Baylor scored 21 unanswered points — and did so pretty easily — and Texas’ response was a late field goal, and after one of the defense’s few good drives of the game, a three-and-out with a chance to tie the game at stake. To be sure, Sarkisian largely did his job as a play-caller with relatively little help from his players in execution — Joshua Moore’s fumble and drops directly eliminated at least 10 potential points from the board, Casey Thompson couldn’t hit a wide open Xavier Worthy for a first-half TD, and Marcus Washington dropped a huge chunk play pass on the final drive that could have altered the outcome. But, that fact remains that as soon as momentum swings and things aren’t going well, Texas becomes a borderline incompetent team. In my mind, at least, that’s a culture issue. Sark and his staff can’t make the plays for their players, but something has to be adjusted so Texas doesn’t become a shell of itself every time adversity strikes.

Texas’ defense is soft. There will be glimpses of Pete Kwiatkowski’s defense making opportunistic plays, but all in all, it’s usually a unit that’s relatively easy to have your way with if you don’t try to get too cute with your scheme and game plan. As a perfect example of the PK era thus far, Texas had two opportunistic interceptions from BJ Foster and Luke Brockermeyer, along with a couple first half stops, but per usual, they were a punching bag in the second half. After Texas grabbed its 21-10 lead, Baylor did whatever it wanted offensively, cruising to three straight touchdown drives. BU’s running backs enjoyed wide running lanes against a front that was mostly outright bullied, and the secondary almost always gives receivers incredible cushions and is basically just reacting after easy catches, rather than making plays on the ball. In short, there’s very little about this Texas defense that should strike fear in any offensive coordinator.

75-27. That’s the scoring deficit Texas has suffered through in the second half of its three losses to OU, OSU, and BU. In three one-score losses, the Longhorns have been outscored by 48 points in the second half, That’s on both Sark’s offense for failing to produce much of anything after halftime and PK’s defense for failing to stop much of anything after the break. Sark said there was an emphasis on finishing a full 60 minutes of football heading into the Baylor game and well, he didn’t quite get what he wanted on Saturday as the Bears ended on a 21-3 run.

The season is, for all intents and purposes, over. I said it after the Oklahoma State loss when Texas cost itself control of its own destiny within the conference, but particularly because the way in which Texas was collapsing would be incredibly difficult to recover from. Now, add to that a third straight loss in the exact same fashion — after leading by double digits in the second half. So now, Texas is entering free fall mode with a road trip against No. 22 Iowa State looming, which will quite likely end with a fourth straight loss. Unless you’re stoked about Texas fighting for bowl eligibility down the stretch, there’s next to nothing left to play for aside from developmental playing time.

Where is Keilan Robinson? Sark said he wanted to get the explosive backup more involved in the offense, but on Saturday, the speedster got just one touch on a jet sweep in the first half. For an offense that’s in desperate need of playmakers to complement Bijan Robinson and Worthy, it’s difficult to comprehend how Keilan Robinson is hardly much more than a bystander.

Texas’ offensive line is awful. Anyone with eyes knew that already, but it needed to be said again. That is all.

 

[satyanash 14281]

 

[ClubWhatever 12087]

Bobby didn’t go far enough.  Use the rest of the season to see if Card can play.  Otherwise you need to go get one in the portal.  May have to anyway.  Thompson is just a jag, unfortunately. 

[satyanash 14281]

 

 

Edited October 30, 2021 by satyanash

[satyanash 14281]

(Ian Boyd) Five quick thoughts: Texas fades late once again

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The Longhorns made a number of adjustments in the bye week to try and avoid another 4th quarter fade yet succumbed once more. In Waco against the Baylor Bears they were defeated by a team with a more established sense of identity.

Baylor quarterback Gerry Bohanon had an awful first half, throwing a pair of picks and gifting Texas opportunities to blow the game open and deny the Bears a chance to get their run game going in the second half. Texas dropped these opportunities, quite literally, and the Bears ran the ball 23 times for 110 yards at 4.8 ypc in the second half while landing several key play-action shots to pull out a win.

Baylor knows who they are as a program. They have a clear identity built around the wide zone run game and Dave Aranda’s blitz packages from the 3-down defense. Everything they need to do in order to win games, they know how to execute.

Texas is a program who has yet to establish any identity. They know they want to be a bend don’t break defense, but they bend too easily at times. Steve Sarkisian has designed a shot-taking offense which wants to attack opponents down the field and routinely creates opportunities for big passes, but they hit them inconsistently. The plan to set up Bijan Robinson revolves around constraining defenses with RPOs and play-action, but opponents have been wiling to rope a dope Texas and let them punch themselves out knowing the shots won’t result in a knockout.

Texas now has zero chance of winning the Big 12 Championship and little chance of an inspiring season. The proof of concept for what a Sarkisian Longhorn team could be exists in outline form, but it’s not going to be realized in the 2021 season.

Quick thought no. 1: Rope a doped

It was a solid day at the office for Casey Thompson. Here was his line on the day: 23-38 passing for 280 yards at 7.4 ypa with two touchdowns and a single interception. Five carries for 31 yards rushing at 6.2 ypc. Texas had a number of drops on throws down the field and 15 for the game. Yes, 15 drops. One was a dropped touchdown pass just before the half, another was a tipped ball which immediately followed and was intercepted by Baylor, removing any scoring chance for the Longhorns.

Bijan Robinson, Texas’ star running back and perhaps the best offensive player in the conference, had 17 carries for 43 yards at 2.5 ypc with a single touchdown run. The way this offense is designed to maximize a special talent like Bijan Robinson is primarily to do so by attacking teams over the top with play-action. Those shots were available for the entire game, but because Thompson didn’t see them, missed them, was pressured, or had his throws dropped, Texas couldn’t do enough damage.

The entire shot-taking system of the Longhorn offense just isn’t good enough to establish Texas’ preferred identity and allow them to put away these Big 12 teams, all of whom they’ve played close before fading in the fourth quarter. The fourth quarter is where your identity shows up in a close game if you have one. Casey Thompson was on pace early in this game to throw for 300 or 400 yards, but eventually some of the shots dried up or Texas’ receivers couldn’t haul in contested catches.

The image of Casey Thompson scrambling to try and make a winning play while Bijan Robinson is trying to pick up a blitz is indeed the image of how this game was determined. The Bears succeeded in making Thompson out-produce the Baylor rushing attack.

Quick thought no. 2: Another fade by the defense

The Texas defense played a decent game, literally BARELY holding Baylor under 200 yards rushing and giving the Texas offense a chance to win the game in the first half with a pair of turnovers. Down the stretch, they couldn’t stop the run on a few key plays, particularly the speed option which was nearly as devastating and automatic for the Bears as counter was for the Sooners. This defense has not been good enough to handle the assignment they’re routinely handed, which is to try and help dominate single-score games played in the 20s.

They mixed in a few different packages and looks in this game and had Gerry Bohanon reeling in the first half, but when the interception let him off the hook the Bears were able to put together a second half plan which kept him clean from major responsibilities other than hitting all or nothing throws down the field on play-action.

There are a number of serious challenges left on the schedule for this unit, including next week’s road trip to Ames, IA to play an even better offense and then the season finale in Manhattan against one of the league’s better quarterbacks. This unit can continue to improve and perhaps work in some young players down the stretch but they simply couldn’t bend and hold up this season in any of the big games. They needed a cavalry charge that wasn’t coming.

Quick thought no. 3: Game slipped away on special teams

All three phases had their chance to either win or at least not blow this game and all three failed. On 4th-and-11 with the ball on the Baylor 49, punter Cameron Dicker was given the unfathomable task of trying to scramble for the marker against a defense which wasn’t fooled. He picked up only two of the 11 needed yards. With a short field, Baylor then drove 53 yards in three plays for a touchdown which put them ahead 31-21 and left Texas in a deep hole where they’d once held a solid lead.

Texas has routinely schemed up some good plays with special teams under Jeff Banks coordination, but something slipped in a major way here. To fail to punt on 4th-and-11 at midfield was a disaster. You don’t just win games on special teams, you also lose them. Shades of the Jeff Banks desperation “have the place-kicker lead block for Mac Jones in the National Championship game” call here.

Faced with a short field, the defense predictably snapped rather than bending (or holding firm) and Texas was nearly completely out of the game. If not for a fumbled snap by Baylor on their next drive, the game might have been over with the touchdown after this snafu.

Quick thought no. 4: Missed early opportunities

The best way for Texas to win games of this nature, in which opponents are committed to denying running room for Bijan and have the quality and discipline on defense to achieve such an outcome, is to light them up with the passing game. In particular, to light them up early when you get open receivers with the early play script. The blockers aren’t there on this roster to force their will in the run game and the trap is set every single week.

Opponents are looking to weather the storm, refuse to allow Bijan to control the game, and hope Texas can’t deal enough damage in the passing game to pull away. For three weeks in a row, Texas has done damage early before completely fading and failing to either score enough early or to score more later in the game.

There were a number of missed opportunities early in this game which would have made for a different contest. Casey Thompson threw pass from his back foot (needlessly) to a wide open Xavier Worthy who scores with a solid throw but was instead lead out of bounds. The drive was then ruined when a nice spin move by Joshua Moore to gain the marker was erased when he fumbled and Baylor recovered.

Another drive saw Casey Thompson hit Moore in the end zone, but the ball was dropped, then the next play on 3rd-and-5 a rushed bullet by Thompson went off Moore’s hands and into those of a Baylor safety. This the reverse of the situation later, when Baylor scored quickly off the horrible fake punt attempt by Dicker. Baylor’s big chance came late and they seized it. Texas’, as usual, came early and it was fumbled.

If Texas scored on those early drives, they had a chance to put a lot of pressure on a struggling quarterback and force a team who wants to run early and often to make plays in the passing game. Instead, they set up the now weekly late game fold.

Quick thought no. 5: What’s left for 2021?

There aren’t obvious paths for Texas for the rest of the year other than playing hard, trying to improve, and finishing this recruiting class while adding more through the transfer portal. They can play spoiler in Ames next week and potentially wreck Iowa State’s play for a Big 12 Championship after propelling Baylor’s efforts this week. A more modest goal would be simply to avoid either a beatdown or the second half fade which has defined this inaugural season for the new staff.

Ultimately, this team is a year away from realizing the vision of the new staff. They need more playmakers at linebackers (inside or outside), they need more time to develop good fundamental play in the defensive backfield, they need more weapons at wide receiver, more talent along the offensive line, and they need better pocket play at quarterback.

They’re close to being an upper tier Big 12 team, although the finish isn’t possible this season, but they aren’t close to being a champion in this league nor the next without some upgrades which fit the desired system. Many of those will be possible with a good recruiting class and perhaps a transfer or three combined with another offseason, but it all came up short for 2021. Next season the goal should be to have a team which can blow away opponents of this caliber rather than competing with them down to the wire.

Recruiting and development will now be a major focus for what’s officially a building season. Sark will face an interesting question in whether to keep starting a limited veteran in Casey Thompson who’s been close with no cigar in multiple games, or to give reps to Hudson Card. Iowa State and the flyover defense await.

 

[dcar00 14035]

that Sark comment is hilarious.  he's fucking done.  can we predict who will be avaialble on the carousel in 2024.

[jinx 2635]

Sark comment would have been accurate if he would have said decades instead of weeks. 

[Codaxx 5602]

50 minutes ago, satyanash said:

(Ian Boyd) Five quick thoughts: Texas fades late once again

 

Casey was 23-38.. LHn said 15 drops, just fuckin lazy to repeat that shit 

[Mo Horn 8807]

And if Penelope Cruz comes up to me and says she wants me to ravage her body, I'll get to bed a hot movie star. That's how this works, right Sark?

[satyanash 14281]

(Joe Cook) Deja Vu: Longhorns surrender another second-half double-digit lead

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WACO, Texas — It happened again. With two weeks to prepare for No. 16 Baylor, two weeks to try and overcome the continued struggles in the latter portions of games, and two weeks to ready for the battle of a sixty-minute football contest, the Texas Longhorns surrendered a second-half double-digit lead and lost, 31-24, dropping to 4-4 in Steve Sarkisian’s first season in Austin.

The second-half script barely changed from the previous two showings. The Longhorns surrendered 21 points and 217 yards in the second thirty-minutes while only scoring 10 points of their own. Three Bears, Abram Smith, Trestan Ebner, and Gerry Bohanon, averaged over 5.4 yards per carry. Bohanon wasn’t asked to do much in the passing game, particularly after throwing interceptions to BJ Foster and Luke Brockermeyer.

But Texas could only manage seven points off those two Baylor turnovers. And Baylor’s ground game did everything Dave Aranda’s squad needed in order to secure the win. Three of the four Bear touchdowns came via the rush. Bohanon reached paydirt after a nine-play, 75-yard drive midway through the third quarter. Tight end Ben Sims scored early in the fourth on a one-yard rush, and Smith added a late 32-yard run that gave the Bears a 10-point lead.

It wasn’t just the defense that held true to its poor form. The offense could not score 30 points, seemingly a magic number in Big 12 contests. Star running back Bijan Robinson couldn’t crack 100 yards, let alone 50. Texas itself needed 29 carries to muster 102 yards. Though Xavier Worthy added his third 100-yard game of the season along with a touchdown reception, Texas’ offense could not maintain the marginal effectiveness it had in the first half.

Add in an special teams blunder late in the fourth quarter on a fake punt attempt, and Texas completed the third in a trilogy of collapses. And there’s no way to know for certain when the series will end. “That was a tough one to swallow,” Sarkisian said. “Any time you lose a game like that, with the little bit of the trend we’ve had now for three consecutive weeks, that’s tough. That’s tough on our locker room.”

What was unique about Texas’ defeat issued by the Bears was that where the Longhorns played decently well in the first halves of the Oklahoma and Oklahoma State games, that was not the case in Waco. Robinson was stifled early, with Texas accumulating 36 yards on 12 carries in the first half. His lone score of the day was a one-yard run on the opening drive of the second half.

Joshua Moore caught a touchdown pass on Texas’ first drive, but struggled mightily as the first half wore on. He had a sequence where he dropped a pass from Casey Thompson in the end zone, then on the very next play had a pass slip through his hands and into a defender’s, costing the Longhorns a chance at points at the end of the first half. Moore wasn’t the only player who dropped passes on the day. Late in the game and down a touchdown, Thompson heaved a pass for Marcus Washington that would have put Texas in position to tie, but could not haul it in.

Two plays later, Texas turned it over on downs and Baylor knelt out the clock. “I’m sure those guys would love to have those plays back,” Sarkisian said. “They’d love to make those plays. It didn’t happen, but the sign of really good football teams is they overcome those obstacles when they present themselves and we just weren’t able to overcome them today.” Frustration surely exists within the Texas locker room. Thompson Ovie Oghoufo, Bijan Robinson, and Keondre Coburn said as much postgame.

And after three-straight losses in heartbreaking manner, why wouldn’t it? The same applies to the coaches, too. “When you don’t ultimately get the result that you’re looking for, that’s disheartening for them and so I feel frustrated for them because I know what they put into it,” Sarkisian said. “My job ultimately is to get them to continue to put in what they’re putting in, and if all of us can get one percent better in whatever capacity our responsibilities are, we’ll get over this hump. And it’ll be very gratifying when that happens.”

Responsibility never falls solely on the coaches. Players shoulder some of the blame as well, and several Longhorns have ideas on how to turn things around before the season is out even with conference title hopes seemingly lost. “Small margin losses, those are the ones that hurt the most,” Ovie Oghoufo said. “That also gives us hope that we can fix it up.” Keondre Coburn put it this way: “We’re in the fight the whole game until it’s just a couple plays, a couple series that aren’t in our hands. That means we have to execute more than we have been doing.”

Said Robinson, “We need to understand every team is going to bring it no matter who we play. We have to execute at a high level and sustain in the game. We’ve got four quarters to play, and we just can’t let up at any point in the game.” And Thompson? “I just think we need to make the corrections we need to make throughout the week, then translate it to the field on Saturdays,” he said.

Sarkisian mentioned how in addition to execution, the psyche issues that hampered Texas versus Oklahoma and Oklahoma State did so again versus Baylor. He admitted it’s on the coaches to draw the players out of that rut while also encouraging better execution. But when given the chance to prove those psyche issues were a thing of the past, they thrust themselves back into Texas’ present. “That’s something we worked on this week,” Sarkisian said. “I thought we were better, but clearly it wasn’t good enough.”

 

[satyanash 14281]

Chip Brown's Quick Takes: Texas loses another double-digit, second-half lead in 31-24 loss at No. 16 Baylor

Quote

WACO, Texas — Once again, the Texas Longhorns played well enough to build a double-digit lead in the second half before unraveling in the fourth quarter and losing at 16th-ranked Baylor 31-24 Saturday. Make it three games in a row that Texas has held a double-digit lead in the third quarter before ending up with a loss. "That’s a tough one to swallow," said first-year Texas coach Steve Sarkisian. "Anytime you lose a game like that with the little bit of the trend we’ve had now for three consecutive weeks, that’s tough. It’s tough on our locker room."

In the previous two losses - against Oklahoma in the Cotton Bowl and at home against Oklahoma State - it was the defense giving out (OU) or the offense making critical mistakes (OSU). Against Baylor, it was a group effort collapse that included dropped passes, costly pre-snap penalties, a brutal failed fake punt, too many rushing yards allowed and not enough rushing yards for star back Bijan Robinson, who finished with a season-low 43 yards on 17 carries (2.5 yards per carry).

"They did a good job of stopping the run," Robinson said. "Our O-line was having a couple issues trying to execute with what they were coming with. They were in the backfield a lot this game, and I had to try  to make happen whatever I could to try to get back to the line of scrimmage."

Robinson's lone touchdown came on a 1-yard run behind nose tackle Keondre Coburn as his lead blocker and put UT up 21-10 with 8:49 left in the third quarter. But then Baylor went on a 21-0 run as Texas' defense, which forced two first-half turnovers, started giving up big plays, including a critical fourth-and-5 from the Texas 20 that continued a drive to a touchdown that cut UT's lead to 21-17.

Texas receivers dropped big-play passes - Joshua Moore dropped a pass in the end zone in the first half, and Marcus Washington dropped what would've been a 49-yard gain to the Baylor 20 with 2:03 left with Texas trailing by seven. Moore also had a fumble in Baylor territory in the second quarter.

"I never want to be negative," Texas quarterback Casey Thompson said. "Obviously, they didn’t try to drop the pass on purpose. You know, nobody ever tries to make a mistake on purpose. So you just encourage them and try to stay positive. I’m always trying to uplift the guys on the sideline.

"Those guys do a good job of staying positive and encouraging me as well. But the fact of the matter is, we can’t always say, hey, good job. On to the next one. At some point, we have to focus on that play and not worry about the next one or about the last one. We just need to live in the moment and execute the play at hand. If that means catching a 50-50 jump ball out of the air, over the defender - that’s what it means. If it means running the ball on first down, then we need to run the ball on first down."

On special teams, Texas butchered a fake punt attempt on fourth-and-11 from Baylor 49 with 9:23 left with the Longhorns trailing 24-21. Baylor turned that blunder into a three-play touchdown drive that put the Bears up by 10 with 7:59 left. "I thought there was a couple critical plays that didn’t go our way," Sarkisian said. "Clearly, the fake punt doesn’t hit, and they end up getting some momentum there and ultimately go down and score a few plays later."

The Longhorns, who spent their off week working on their ability to finish games, fall to 4-4 and 2-3 in Big 12 play with a road trip to No. 22 Iowa State next Saturday. "I feel for our guys," Sarkisian said. "I’m frustrated for them, because I thought they put in a lot of work. But the one thing I know is we’ll continue to fight and grind at this thing. That’s the only thing I know how to do. So, we’ll get back to it, and one of these weeks we’ll get over this hump. And when we do, we’ll become a very dangerous football team. But we’ve got to get over this hump right now that we’re having a hard time getting over."

***

After Texas’ Steve Sarkisian opted for a 27-yard field goal instead of going for it on fourth-and-4 from the Baylor 9, Sarkisian needed his defense to make a stop and get the ball back to his offense - pronto. Baylor’s first six runs of the fourth quarter went for 61 yards (10.1 ypc), including a 32-yard touchdown run by Abram Smith that put Baylor up 31-21 with 7:59 left. After giving up runs of 7 and 9 yards to start Baylor’s drive, Texas’ defense bowed up, forcing a punt that gave Texas the ball at its own 31 with 2:07 left to play.

Texas appeared to have the play of the game on a deep-ball throw from Casey Thompson to Marcus Washington that would’ve covered 49 yards to the Baylor 20. But Washington, who had the ball in his hands, lost control of it while trying to secure it against his body. "I will say I was proud of our guys for continuing to fight, getting a stop on defense and giving us an opportunity on offense there late in the game," Sarkisian said. "We just couldn’t make the plays."

Thompson’s pass attempts on third-and-10 and fourth-and-10 fell incomplete, and Baylor ran out the final 1:40 as its fans chanted, “S-E-C! … S-E-C!” Thompson finished the game 23 of 38 passing for 280 yards and touchdown passes of 10 yards to Joshua Moore and 63 yards to Xavier Worthy, who finished with four catches for 115 yards. Thompson also had an interception on a pass that glanced off the hands of Moore into the hands of a Baylor defender.

"Obviously losing sucks and nobody wants to lose," Thompson said. "Obviously, it's supposed to hurt right now. But I wouldn't say there's a high level of frustration. I just think we have to continue to work hard and try to get better and stay positive." Thompson went on to say he believes these tribulations will ultimately make this Texas team tougher.

"I really do think this is going to be a positive in the end," Thompson said. "I don’t know at what point this is going to be a positive for us. But if you just look at it like that and trust the process, at some point it’s gonna give you a return on investment. And so that’s what I’m hoping and planning for."

***

Texas’ day running the ball was epitomized by a third-and-4 from the Baylor 9 with 5:05 left and Texas trailing by 10. Bijan Robinson was stuffed for no gain, and Texas opted for a 27-yard Cameron Dicker field goal, cutting Baylor’s lead to 31-24 with 4:40 left. Texas finished with a season-low, 102 yards rushing on 29 attempts (3.5 yards per carry).

***

A fake punt by Texas on fourth-and-11 from the Baylor 49 with 9:23 to play (with the Longhorns trailing 24-21) completely blew up on UT and helped continue a 21-0 second-half run by the Bears. Cameron Dicker took the snap and started moving to his right while holding the ball as if he was going to rugby kick it and then brought the ball up as if he was going to throw it and ended up tucking it and running, getting tackled for a 2-yard gain at the Baylor 47.

The Bears needed just three plays - all runs of 3, 18 and 32 yards - to turn the failed fake punt into seven points and a 31-21 lead with 7:59 left to play. Baylor finished with 42 carries for 199 yards (4.7 ypc) and three touchdowns on the ground. Thirteen of those 42 carries came in the fourth quarter for 69 yards (5.3 ypc), including Abram Smith's 32-yard touchdown run with 7:59 left to play.

***

There were three close-call reviews on huge plays that went Baylor’s way in the game. The first was a fumble by Joshua Moore at Baylor’s 26 in the second quarter in which it appeared Moore might’ve been down before the ball came out. But review upheld the ruling of a fumble.

No. 2: Officials reviewed whether Baylor’s RJ Sneed even touched the ball on an attempted punt block in which Sneed ran into Texas punter Cameron Dicker head-on with 3:24 left in the third quarter. Upon further review, officials determined Sneed tipped the ball, which ended up traveling 34 yards to the Baylor 20.

No. 3: Baylor’s Tyquan Thornton was credited with a 6-yard catch on third-and-6 late in the third quarter when it appeared the ball might’ve bounced off the ground. After review, the ruling on the field of a catch was confirmed, continuing a drive to a touchdown that put Baylor up 24-21 with 12:48 left to play.

***

Texas had just gone up 21-10 following 14-play, 75-yard TD drive that took 6:11 off the clock in the third quarter, when Baylor answered with a nine-play, 75-yard TD drive that took 4:04 off the clock. After Baylor hit Texas for a pair of 23-yard passes, DeMarvion Overshown dropped Baylor running back Trestan Ebner for a 1-yard loss on third-and-4. But Baylor went for it on fourth-and-5 from the Texas 20 and converted as Gerry Bohanon hit RJ Sneed on a crossing route for 14 yards.

On second-and-goal from the 6, Bohanon scored on a speed option to the left. Texas linebacker Jaylan Ford overran the gap Bohanon ran through, and Texas safety B.J. Foster missed a tackle at the 3 as Baylor cut Texas’ lead to 21-17 with 4:45 left in the third quarter.

***

The Texas defense was led in tackles by DeMarvion Overshown, Ovie Oghoufo, Jerrin Thompson, Ray Thornton and Luke Brockermeyer, who each had five tackles. B.J. Foster collected his team-leading third interception of the season Saturday, while Brockermeyer posted his second interception of the season. Baylor quarterback Gerry Bohanon, who finished 18 of 31 passing for 222 yards while running five times for 27 yards and a touchdown, had thrown only one interception through seven games before throwing two against Texas on Saturday.

***

On Texas’ first possession of the second half - a 14-play, 75-yard touchdown drive that took 6:11 off the clock - the Longhorns converted fourth-and-1 from the Baylor 47 on a direct-snap run by Roschon Johnson. Texas then overcame a first-down false start penalty on Xavier Worthy by converting third-and-8 on a 22-yard pass from Casey Thompson to Marcus Washington to the Baylor 19.

The most exciting 9-yard gain of Cade Brewer’s life came on the next play as Brewer took a pass from Thompson and attempted to hurdle a BU defender, somersaulting near the sideline. Texas had first-and-goal from the Baylor 7, but after a 4-yard pass to Bijan Robinson on third-and-goal came up 1 yard short, Texas went for it. In came Keondre Coburn as Robinson’s lead blocker, and Coburn put a bear hug on Baylor nickel Jalen Pitre, but there was no call as Robinson crashed into the end zone for a 1-yard TD run that put Texas up 21-10 with 8:49 left in the third quarter.

***

Texas led 14-10 at halftime, but Baylor was outrushing Texas 89-36 yards, holding Bijan Robinson to just 15 yards on seven carries (2.1 ypc). Baylor also had run 12 more plays than Texas at halftime, resulting in a time of possession advantage of 17:37-12:23. The turnover battle was even: 2-2 Texas’ offense suffered a fumble by Joshua Moore and an interception by Casey Thompson (that went through Moore’s hands).

Texas’ defense came up with two interceptions of Baylor QB Gerry Bohanan by B.J. Foster (that led to a UT TD) and by linebacker Luke Brockermeyer (that resulted in the INT thrown by Thompson).

***

Texas looked like it was going to get some more points just before halftime after an interception by Luke Brockermeyer gave Texas the ball at the Baylor 34 with 27 seconds left in the second quarter. But after a 5-yard pass from Casey Thompson to Cade Brewer and a timeout by Steve Sarkisian with :20 left, Thompson’s pass into the end zone was dropped by Joshua Moore.

On the next play, Thompson’s pass to Moore on a crossing route also went through Moore’s hands and was intercepted by Baylor safety JT Woods and returned to the Texas 39 with :03 left in the half. An attempted Hail Mary on the last play of the half fell incomplete, and Texas took a 14-10 lead into halftime.

***

After a fourth-down stop by the Texas defense at the Longhorns’ 49, the UT offense was driving and appeared to have a first down at the Baylor 26. But after catching a 13-yard pass from Casey Thompson on third-and-6 from the Baylor 32, UT receiver Joshua Moore was ruled to have fumbled after being stripped by BU linebacker Dillon Doyle. The ball was recovered by Baylor nickel Jalen Pitre, who returned it to the Baylor 29. The play was reviewed, and the fumble ruling on the field was upheld.

***

Alfred Collins forced a fumble in the first quarter (recovered by Baylor) and then came up with a big third-down stop of Baylor running back Abram Smith in the second quarter that set up a fourth-and-1 for the Bears from the Texas 47. Jerrin Thompson, who was one-on-one with OU quarterback Caleb Williams behind the line on fourth-and-1 and missed him (resulting in a 66-yard TD run by Williams), didn’t miss Abram Smith on this fourth-and-1, dropping him for a 2-yard loss and giving the ball back to Texas with 8:51 left in the second quarter.

***

Casey Thompson finished the first quarter 5-of-5 passing for 101 yards and two touchdowns, including a 63-yard TD strike down the right sideline to Xavier Worthy, who got behind Baylor safety Jairon McVee, allowing Texas to retake the lead - 14-10 - with :24 left in the first quarter. Texas held the lead after the first quarter, but Baylor racked up nine first downs, ran 13 more plays than Texas and held the ball for 10:42 compared to Texas’ 4:18.

***

In the epitome of Pete Kwiatkowski’s bend-but-don’t-break defense, Baylor drove the ball from its own 28 to Texas’ 24 late in the first quarter, including a 20-yard run up the middle by Abram Smith (that Jaylan Ford barely missed the tackle near the line of scrimmage) - and then the Texas defense bowed up. Darion Dunn broke up a first down pass. On second-and-10, Alfred Collins forced a fumble by Smith that Baylor recovered, resulting in a 3-yard loss. And on third-and-13, Texas stopped the Bears, forcing a 38-yard field goal that put BU up 10-7.

***

Texas’ second possession of the game started with a delay of game penalty on the Longhorns (as Steve Sarkisian was asking for the officials to reset the play clock). The drive went down from there as Baylor LB Terrel Bernard came on a delayed blitz on first-and-15, collapsed the pocket and allowed nose tackle Siaki Ika to sack Thompson for an 8-yard loss. The failed drive resulted in a punt from UT’s 16. Fortunately, Cameron Dicker boomed a 58-yard punt to flip the field.

Dicker punted three times with an average of 44.7 yards per punt, including a 42-yarder downed at the Baylor 7 as well as the 34-yarder officials said was partially blocked.

***

On Baylor’s first touchdown drive, the Bears were able to convert third-and-7 from the Texas 38 with an outside zone run to the right by Trestan Ebner that went for 18 yards to the Texas 20. After a screen pass from Bohanon to Sneed for 7 yards on the left side and then a screen to Sneed on the right side for 7 yards, Baylor scored on a trick play in which Ebner pitched it to receiver Tyquan Thornton on a reverse, and Thornton hit Sneed for a 6-yard TD pass, tying the game 7-7 with 7:32 left in the first quarter.

***

Texas needed to go just 31 yards for its first touchdown thanks to an interception by B.J. Foster. Casey Thompson completed passes of 15 yards to Joshua Moore and 1 yard to Cade Brewer before Bijan Robinson ran for 5 yards, setting up third-and-4 from the Baylor 10. Thompson faked a handoff to Robinson, which caused the safety to come up, leaving Joshua Moore one-on-one with BU cornerback Raleigh Texada, and Thompson hit Moore right in the hands in stride for the 10-yard touchdown and a 7-0 lead just 43 seconds into the game.

***

Keilan Robinson started Saturday’s game, lining up in an off-set formation behind the tight end. Robinson ended up catching one pass in the game for minus-1 yard.

***

Texas got off to a great start thanks to an interception on Baylor’s first possession. BU quarterback Gerry Bohanon had just one interception coming into the game, but Bohanon never looked at B.J. Foster in Texas’ two-high safety look when he threw a pass over the middle intended for R.J. Sneed. Foster returned the pickoff 31 yards to the BU 31, setting up the Longhorns’ first touchdown and a 7-0 lead for the Longhorns.

 

[FORTY NINE TO ZERO 2630]

Wonder how long until the media starts taking the kid gloves off…

[B00M 6280]

46 minutes ago, Codaxx said:

Casey was 23-38.. LHn said 15 drops, just fuckin lazy to repeat that shit 

I mean that seemed outrageous as fuck. There were lots of drops but 15 would have to be a record.

Also glad to see you here. Fuck that BON comment section you single handedly carry lol

[satyanash 14281]

(Scipio Tex) 2021 Texas-Baylor Post Mortem: Defense/Special Teams

Quote

With two weeks off to reflect on a Longhorn defensive approach that hasn't been working, featuring second half run defense swoons that would shame any southern belle, Pete Kwiatkoski's midseason adjustments were to to play a few more backups snaps in the secondary, double down on turning the Longhorn defensive front into stalemate-seeking block magnets, and drill a coverage wrinkle.

Not quite the level of introspection and critical analysis I was hoping for from the Longhorn defensive chief. In fact, it was staking out a defensive identity of the "on this hill we will die" variety. Baylor was glad to help the Texas defensive brain trust with its death wish once Gerry Bohanon stopped throwing it to Texas defenders standing in the middle of the field. Baylor's first three possessions of the second half went:

9-75 Touchdown
14-80 Touchdown
3-53 Touchdown

Welcome to Boot Hill. A headstone reads: Here, the stubborn and the dead. The Texas defensive second half "stops" were Baylor running clock with a ten-point lead, which included running a QB counter on 3rd and 14, and a kneel down. Had the game been in doubt, Baylor would have continued doing what it wanted. The Texas DC wants it one way. It's the other way.

1. The Texas DL has the potential to be disruptive. Specifically: Collins, Sweat, Ojomo, Murphy. In the few instances where they were allowed to attack, disrupt, and one gap, the results were pretty good. Watch the 4th and 1 stand. Those times were rare. They spent an inordinate amount of time catching blocks and eating space. When DL lined up in a gap, far too often it was to hold it, influence, and draw bodies, rather than take it, be an athlete, and wreck things. Why neuter your front for the illusion of freeing your linebackers? Not this front, not for those linebackers.

2. Within that system, they execute it poorly. I mean pad level up front. Hand placement. Fits from the linebackers and safeties. Basic understanding of gap integrity. It stinks and the only cover for it is hustle and effort. As fatigue erodes those qualities, the defense wilts. The Longhorn players are trying hard, which is what really guts me.

3. This isn't PK's fault, but the team is physically weak. Which is a particularly poor match for PK's insistence on asking the DL to hold ground instead of take it. Weaker teams don't claim space well. If you think strength is just about "being strong" and lifting heavy ****, you misunderstand its value. It makes all things more sub-maximal. It underpins all other athletic attributes. Which means it has an effect on your conditioning. Football is a largely anaerobic sport with accumulated fatigue with bursts of aerobic activity that generally don't accumulate fatigue. When you're not strong and fit, everything gets harder. Plays you can make in the 1st quarter won't be made in the 4th.

4. Let's use the phrase complementary football correctly. Yes, the Texas offense has failed in this regard. But Xavier Worthy isn't going to kneel a 63 yard touchdown at the Baylor 20 so we can run more plays. And the Texas defense has it within its power to make the other offense get off of the field. If you give up 26 plays in three consecutive drives, I don't want to hear about the offense. 22 of Baylor's 26 plays on those three scoring drives occurred on 1st or 2nd down. That's Canadian Football. That's not bend but don't break. That's bend and break. Yes, you get tired when it's perpetually 2nd and 2.

Guess what else doesn't play well to Pete's approach if your players can't handle accumulated fatigue? Bend but don't break. This is a bad marriage of scheme, players, and offseason prep.

5. Speed option isn't that mystifying.

6. Count the number of times that Texas defenders move backwards at contact. Meeting a ballcarrier. Meeting a blocker. In the second half, who was the hammer and who was the nail? PK thinks he has an anvil that defuses the hammer's blow. It's a nail.

DL

I'm not evaluating individual play in a group that's not being utilized constructively. What's the point? Knock yourself out if you'd like to do so. I will praise freshman Byron Murphy for his effort and gameness.

LB

Right now, Jaylan Ford isn't the answer at linebacker, unfortunately. Demarvion and Brock are currently our best options. Overshown had a nice couple of blitzes, a clean hard tackle in the open field, and a good breakup of a likely touchdown to Ebner when he swatted the QB's arm. His flow against pin n' pull and a lot of conventional runs is basically guesswork. Brock had a gift pick on a deep drop and some clean tackles, but unfortunately, we're robbing Peter to pay Paul.

DB

A lot of guys played, so that's good. I saw Barron, Adimora, Dunn get real work. BJ Foster had the early pick on a bad Bohanon read and made two good clean tackles on 3rd down passes. A lot of guys played and the general goal was to make Bohanon do QB things and make throws outside of the hash to the sideline. That tactic varied in its success, trailing off as Baylor realized they could run the ball for chunk gains with their reconverted linebacker. I did see several Longhorn corners come up and contest throws, have break ups, and make good, hard tackles throughout the game. Josh Thompson had some good examples. That's the aspect of the defense I can live with when these guys tackle well and if Texas could shore it up against the run, the season record would be different.

Baylor did hurt Texas with some set piece RPOs, particularly when their running game started clicking, but the Baylor passing game isn't what won it for them. Jeff Grimes was nearly as scared of his QB as Steve Sarkisian is of Thompson, but the Longhorn inability to stifle the Baylor run game situationally never put passing game pressure back on Baylor. When the game mattered most, Baylor could run the ball when it wanted and Texas couldn't.

Special Teams

I can't imagine the Dicker punt run was a called play, but rather a player taking what he perceived as an optional green light in a horrible game situation where he thought he saw something that wasn't. Like Xavier Worthy taking a kickoff back five yards deep against OU and fumbling, coaches need to remind the player of the situation and turn that green light option to a cautious yellow or outright red.

Final

There is a real tension between a coach installing and doing what he wants to do vs. optimizing the assets they inherit. The coach has to build towards his vision, but also remain practical about the near term. This is the fundamental tension of coaching and there's no black and white answer. However, coaches who wish to see near term success should seek happy mediums between their vision of how to play the game vs. player suitability.

More crucially, if other critical systems that support that vision are failing - whether conditioning, or talent levels at linebacker and safety, what you want to do doesn't really matter. It better be about what they can do.

 

[Monahorns 34]

If PK is waiting for excellent LB play get rid of him now.  How often has the Texas D relied on high level LB play?  Maybe with Hicks and Robinson 8 years ago.  Before that with Derrick Johnson.  That's it.

[eljinca 279]

Did Scipio do a PM on the Offense?

[satyanash 14281]

(Scipio Tex) 2021 Texas-Baylor Post Mortem: Offense

Quote

Steve Sarkisian set up the Texas offense to score 40+ points but player error largely kept the Horns stuck at 24. If my defensive postmortem was a deconstruction of stubborn coaching and a lack of introspection, the offensive postmortem is a highlight of player failure to capitalize on opportunities. The score at halftime should have been 31-10, Texas. Then the game might have taken on a very different quality if the already twice intercepted Gerry Bohanon had to throw the ball repeatedly on predictable downs to catch back up. Just kidding. Baylor would have kept running the ball and the game would have still been close, but the Horns likely escape with a W.

Baylor OC Jeff Grimes and Steve Sarkisian were both frightened of their starting quarterback doing traditional quarterback things on 3rd and 5+, so both coordinators had to find their opportunities where they could. Grimes had the easier task and did it by establishing the run against the Texas defense - because who can't? - and then layering back on single read RPOs and underneath routes on the sideline to exploit off coverage, while Sarkisian schemed up set piece wide open deep shots on neutral downs where he could correctly predict Baylor's defensive coverages and put their DBs into conflict.

That's how it looked when the Horn players sank their layups. Unfortunately, that was the exception. If you've blocked out how many times Texas players didn't draw iron on their free throws, here's a brief recap...

- Joshua Moore dropped an easy touchdown pass that Casey Thompson delivered right on the money between two Baylor defenders before the half. 7 off of the board.

- Casey Thompson threw a horrific fade away helium ball off of his back foot in the general vicinity of Xavier Worthy. The directional arm punt managed to drift out of bounds instead of into the hands of a wide open Worthy who would have scored easily. Any competent throw scores 7 points there.

- Joshua Moore volleyball set an imperfect but catchable Thompson throw at the Baylor 29 yard line. The ball was returned 40 yards to the Texas 39. 3 or 7 points taken off of the board, complete field flip.

- Joshua Moore was stripped and fumbled on the Baylor 19 yard line by Doyle. 3 or 7 off of the board.

- A poor blitz pick up from Robinson and slow recognition from Thompson prevented Texas hitting a wide open receiver in the middle of the field who could have jogged in for a long touchdown. Instead, sack.

- 3rd and 6 on the Baylor 44 in the 4th quarter down 3 points, Tope Imade false started due to...gravity? Texas goes from being able to run two plays (and call the 3rd down play with the awareness that 4th down is available) to 3rd and 11 and a predictable passing situation that exposes Thompson. Stupid punt fake ensues.

I could go on, but you get the drift. If I have any quibbles with Sark, it's that I'd like to have seen more of Bijan in the passing game, a sprint pass that goes against the flow of outside zone that Baylor was jumping, and more of the RoCat on normal downs as a change up with the conventional running game struggling.

QB

Casey had two effective scrambles and did put some balls on the money, but he held back the offense overall. Since TCU, I've cautioned against evaluating quarterbacks purely by box scores (Thompson's was a respectable 23 of 38 for 280 yards, 2 touchdowns, 1 pick), "winnerness" (Casey is 3-0!), and media narrative personality cults. They eventually meet the reality of skill set and the ability of the player to make the actual plays presented on the field. Sark is cautious with his starting QB on predictable passing downs where he'll have to make a read and stand strong in the pocket. Count up the number of Bijan Robinson runs on 3rd and 5+ in the first half. Not to mention 2nd and 23 and 3rd and 20. That sort of play calling is not just changing it up trying to catch a defense napping.

Little surprise that Texas was 3 of 14 on third down conversions.

While the Texas receivers not named Worthy didn't much help the QB, it's important to note that Casey's velocity and late recognition create some of the contested balls and pass break ups that dominated the 4th quarter of play. Weak-armed QBs must throw with anticipation and they certainly can't overcome self-imposed poor mechanics. Poor pocket presence, slow recognition, and an unreliable arm are not ideal traits for a consistent wide-open passing game. #11's best bet to win games is to nail the clean shots that Sark schemes up and then take care of the ball. He sure as heck needs more help from his receivers than what #6 gave him.

RB

Bijan Robinson had no space in the running game and no real opportunities in the passing game. 17 carries, 43 yards, longest run of 9. That's disappointing. Roschon was really good from the RoCat and brought some physicality and energy in his opportunities. I also liked his willingness to seek contact as a blocker. 5 carries for 23 yards. I was left wanting more RoCat variety on regular downs as a change up - not only using Roschon running power off tackle, but also running legitimate zone read with Bijan, bringing a jet sweeper across to punish overplay, and perhaps even working in a little pop pass.

I think Sark is going to have to start manufacturing offense down the backstretch of the season.

WR/TE

Texas has a #1 WR who is a 160 pound true freshman and several #4 receivers pretending to be #2. Joshua Moore was worth -14 to -17 points on Saturday. 11 targets yielded only 5 completions for 64 yards despite single coverage, dropped a touchdown, had two turnovers in Baylor territory. Rough outing and it doesn't speak well for the options behind him that he wasn't or can't be pulled. I have questions for Andre Coleman.

Xavier Worthy notched 115 yards on 4 catches, but Baylor was able to take him out of the game for long stretches with more coverage attention. Marcus Washington plays hard though he has athletic limitations. 7-70 yards. Had one clear drop, but two other balls were broken up due to throws timed on an hourglass. It's hard to imagine that the most commoditized position in football that goes 15 to 20 deep in quality in the state high school football ranks is in scarcity at Texas.

The tight ends combined for 5 catches underneath for 28 yards. Wiley's blocking is a tough watch.

OL

They surrendered 2 sacks and some pressures, but only two other tackles for loss in the running game. Protection wasn't good, but often adequate to get the throw off. The running game could have benefited from some diversity, but Baylor did a terrific job of getting there first while not losing backside containment and this system doesn't have the counters built into the passing and outside zone running game that come from a more concentrated focus. Not really a criticism, just sort of how it is. Imade's feet hamper wide zone.

Final

The Texas offensive coaches gave the Longhorn offense - particularly the passing game - multiple big play opportunities that the Longhorn players are capable of converting. To me, that's effective coaching. Putting the players, even limited ones, in position to succeed. The players have to do their part.