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

Jeff Howe: No. 9 Texas slugs out hard-fought win over Baylor, 23-17

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AUSTIN, Texas — There was a moment in Saturday’s game against Baylor when No. 9 Texas appeared to be on the ropes. Trailing 10-6 and playing without quarterback Sam Ehlinger, the Longhorns were in need of a spark to get some separation from the Bears.

Making his 2018 debut in place of Ehlinger, who left the game in the first quarter due to a shoulder injury, Shane Buechele provided the jolt the Longhorns needed to pull away. Buechele’s 44-yard touchdown pass to Collin Johnson with 4:21 remaining on the first half clock gave Texas lead it never relinquished and served as the turning point in a 23-17 win over the Bears at Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium.

The story of the game was the Texas (6-1, 4-0 in the Big 12) offense spending most of the first half trying to find a rhythm without Ehlinger behind center. After hitting a lull in the second quarter with a sequence of nine snaps that netted one yard of total offense while Baylor (4-3, 2-2) snagged a four-point lead, two runs totaling 16 yards by Keaontay Ingram and a personal foul levied against the Baylor defense moved the ball into Bears territory at the 44-yard line.

That’s when Buechele woke up the offense and the home crowd with a 44-yard strike down the Baylor sideline to Johnson. The touchdown put the Longhorns ahead, 13-10, and they never looked back en route to their sixth win in a row. Baylor cut into a 23-10 halftime lead for the Longhorns in the third quarter as Jalen Hurd capped a 6-play, 56-yard drive following a Raleigh Texada interception of Buechele. However, the defense shut the door on Baylor early in the fourth quarter as the second sack of the day by Charles Omenihu ended a drive by the Bears in Texas territory.

Following the 3-play drive that ended the Buechele-to-Johnson touchdown, Baylor three-and-out was responded to by the Texas offense in the form of a 9-play, 70-yard scoring drive. Baylor defensive back Jameson Houston was denied an interception in the end zone (the play was ruled an incompletion on the field and held up following a review), which gave the Longhorns new life as Ingram covered 30 yards on the ground over the next four plays to set up a second-and-goal at the Baylor 3. That’s when Lil'Jordan Humphrey took a direct snap and plowed his way over the right side of the line for a touchdown and 10-point Texas lead, 20-10.

A Caden Sterns interception, his fourth of the year, ended the next Baylor drive and gave the Longhorns the ball back with 44 seconds to play until intermission. A middle screen to D’Shawn Jamison went for 17 yards on third-and-13, accounting for the biggest play on a 5-play, 18-yard drive that ended when Cameron Dicker split the uprights for the third and final time in the half with a 47-yard field goal at the gun. Texas finished the first half by scoring 17 points over the final 4:21 to take a 13-point lead into the locker room.

The first half was a feast or famine first 30 minutes of play for the Texas defense. Baylor became the fifth opponent in seven games to score on their opening drive against the Longhorns, but while Baylor’s two scoring drives covered 121 yards on 23 plays, the four other drives for the Bears saw them net 12 yards of total offense on 12 snaps to go along with a turnover. When the dust settled, the Longhorns did enough to keep themselves in the Big 12 title picture heading into next week's open date. Texas will be back in action on Oct. 27 at Boone Pickens Stadium in Stillwater, Okla. to take on Oklahoma State.

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Jeff Connor: Vindication

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I haven’t shared much personal information in C-BOG over the past few years. Watching Charlie Strong fail spectacularly as Texas’ head football coach was like watching a car crash in super slow motion – you could see pain, destruction, and misery coming, but you were helpless to do anything about it.

I know a true journalist is supposed to be emotionally detached from her or his subject, but I’m not a real reporter, and this column is a real female dog to write when the Horns aren’t playing well. The past two years, I frequently had to force myself to the keyboard and sit until words appeared on the screen.

Despite the sluggish start to the 2018 season, things have become much more agreeable as the Horns’ current five-game winning streak has unfolded. This baby practically writes itself these days. The other reason I haven’t shared much personal information has nothing to do with Texas football, the friendships I enjoy at Inside Texas, or my unbridled love for my alma mater. I’ve been going through a real Aggie storm professionally.

For four years, I taught 8th grade math and Pre-AP algebra to 8th graders at Taylor Middle School. My principal, Hector Martinez, was an amazing guy who gave me plenty of freedom to do my thing and was supportive with student discipline. Hector had a sarcastic nickname for me because I was infrequently in his office to complain: “Conner, you’re nothing but a damn whiner.”

When Hector started his Ph.D. at the University, I was thrilled. He’d give me periodic updates on his dissertation, and we’d talk about what professors were giving him grief about which portion of his writing. Then, Hector finished. No more Mr. Martinez; now it’s Doctor Martinez. Yay, Hector! Oh, crap. Hector? He’s a doctor now. Nobody with a Doctorate in Education from UT is a middle school principal. Doctor Hector is about to hit the road, Jack.

As we all expected, Hector did very well. He’s now the Assistant Superintendent in Brownwood, and it’s just a matter of time before he has his own gig running a school district. I’m proud of him and pleased for him. But my situation changed dramatically. There came a pharaoh who knew not Joseph.

I don’t want to delve into the minutiae of what happened or spend my time airing what might seem to be the petty complaints of a disgruntled former employee. Suffice it to say my last year at Taylor Middle School with the new principal was not a pleasant one. I don’t do well being micromanaged, I call bull Aggie when I see it, and, despite the fact that 100% of my algebra kids and 91% of my 8th graders passed their respective standardized tests, I was told that the recommendation to the school board would be that my contract not be renewed.

I wasn’t wanted in Taylor, but I was damn sure wanted in Elgin. So, I became a Wildcat. Problem is, Elgin is a pretty rough district. The kids coming into my 8th grade math class had a STAAR passing rate of 33%. That’s not a typo. Two-thirds of my kids failed the 7th grade Math STAAR. I worked my ass of last year under a new system with new requirements and procedures with kids who were missing huge chunks of basic math stuff. By the end of last school year, 100% of my algebra kids passed, and I was able to get the passing rate for my 8th graders up to 54%. It was a 21% improvement, but it still felt like a colossal failure.

I was frustrated and angry much of the time. I had near constant discipline problems, something I had rarely encountered in my teaching career. My patient, indulgent wife was nearing the end of her rope. For two straight years, I was damn near impossible to live with – grumpy, frustrated, irritable, irrational mood swings, not getting home until 6:30 at night, and falling asleep on the couch grading papers.

I told the folks in Elgin I was coming back next year, but only if I exclusively taught algebra – a condition to which they agreed. Then, after visiting my sister, nieces, and nephew in Lubbock, on the way home I stopped at the Whataburger in Sweetwater. I received a call from a former counselor at the Middle School. “There’s an opening at Legacy, but it won’t stay open long. Mr. Roth wants to hear from you.”

Legacy Early College High School doesn’t have electives. There is no football team, choir, or competitive robotics team. We don’t do UIL, and we don’t take away instruction time for pep rallies. The kids go to class and work their butts off. They have homework every night. At the end of four years, not only do they have their high school diploma, but they also have an associate’s degree from Temple Junior College.

The State of Texas pays for their first two years of college. For kids coming from poor households, that’s manna from heaven. I get to be a part of those successes.  Mr. Roth, the guy from the Tulsa rant, hired me on the spot. I’m still working my ass off – teaching two subjects I’ve never taught before (Algebra 2 and A.P. Statistics) is incredibly hard, but should be much easier next year when I have all my stuff in place.

My wife goes on and on about what a great mood I’m in and how much more pleasant I am to be around. I have zero discipline problems because the kids have to apply to come to Legacy. If my wards don’t take care of business academically, we withdraw them and send them to Taylor High School where they can do student loans until Jesus comes back to pay for those first two years of college. Life is good. It feels like … vindication.

Why am I telling you all this? Because the vindication I feel at being valued and wanted as a teacher was spread all across Tom Herman’s face after the Oklahoma game.  After Maryland, I doubted. After Tulsa, I doubted. After Kansas State, I doubted. But not Coach Herman. What I saw on his face was not relief that we avoided catastrophe in the fourth quarter. It was not exasperation that we almost blew a 21-point lead.

It was not “Awe-shucks, this is a team victory.” It was vindication. Chest stuck out. Jaw clenched. You could read it all over his face. “I told you, MF. I KNEW doing it my way would work. We beat OU’s ass today. Their defense had more floppers than the Brazilian World Cup team. If we hadn’t given up two long scores, we would have blow their sorry ass clear back to Norman. I told you I knew what I was doing. I knew I wasn’t in over my head. Scoreboard, b****.”

Mean culpa, Coach. Congratulations. Crow never tasted so exquisite. By the way, the scores in Taylor from last year’s 8th grade math STAAR dropped from 91% to 53%. Scoreboard.

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(Ian Boyd) 5 Quick thoughts: Survive and advance to the bye week

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(Bobby Burton) Snap Judgments: Whew!

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Chip Brown: Good, Bad, Ugly from Texas' 23-17 win over Baylor

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Posted
  On 10/13/2018 at 11:41 PM, satyanash said:

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

Jeff Howe: No. 9 Texas slugs out hard-fought win over Baylor, 23-17

Jeff Connor: Vindication

 

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The fucks all this shit about Hector tho

Posted (edited)

Actually my pops did notice that Vahe and Shack weren’t in at the end of the game. Still not sure why that was. 

Edited by taybo20
Posted

(Bobby Burton) Texas-Baylor Grades: Offense escapes a close one

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Quarterbacks

Early on, it looked like Sam Ehlinger was off to a strong, economical start that has been his calling card. But after just 10 plays, he was sidelined by a shoulder injury. Shane Buechele entered and immediately got a delay of game penalty. Two steps forward, one step back. That’s the best way to describe Buechele for much of the day. Outside of his deep ball to Collin Johnson for a score, Buechele relied almost exclusively on out routes and bubble screens. He threw a few of those behind the receivers that didn’t allow them to maximize yardage after catch. He also airmailed a few, too. And he threw one interception, and another that very well could have been. It was a not great performance by Buechele. But it wasn’t horrible either for someone who had not seen any action in nearly 10 months. Outside of the one INT, he took pretty good care of the ball and was on target on the last drive of the game, except for the last throw that he hurried.

Grade: C

Running Backs

Keaontay Ingram broke the 100-yard barrier, toting the ball a season-high 18 times. Tre Watson got the start, and once again proved steady as a runner and pass protector. But it was Ingram’s afternoon. He broke what was probably the best run of the season for 30 yards in the third quarter when Baylor had seized the momentum. He eluded a free tackler at the line of scrimmage, darted to the second level and then shirked another tackler for an additional 10 yards. It was the best run I’ve seen from a Longhorn RB in quite awhile.

Grade: B-

Wide Receivers

Collin Johnson was the boss on Saturday afternoon. He hauled in 11 catches and, at times, manhandled the Baylor secondary. He made multiple, key third-down grabs that were bang-bang plays that he easily could have dropped. He also continued maximizing yards after catch. Lil'Jordan Humphrey didn’t break the big run after catch that he has become known for, but he made a key play in the fourth quarter and also scored a TD on a wildcat run. Devin Duvernay was overthrown multiple times on deep balls, and even on a sideline route. But he caught a pass for a first down in the fourth quarter. D’Shawn Jamison’s catch and run set up a field goal to end the first half. Jamison showed an elite burst on the play. Without this unit, this game is a loss IMO. They only made one big pass play but they helped Texas control the ball.

Grade: B+

Tight Ends

Andrew Beck dropped a pass. He also false started once. And he didn’t maximize any runs after catch. It was probably the senior’s worst game this season. Still, he was a more than capable blocker which is really his calling card. Cade Brewer saw limited action and couldn’t grab his one target.

Grade: C-

Offensive Line

In a game where the Horns desperately needed the OL to step up and take charge of the game, they simply never did. Part of that surely was the loss of Ehlinger in the run game but the interior of the OL was particularly weak at the point of attack. Texas also could not run out the clock on the final drive after three consecutive run plays. Sure, Baylor committed more players to the box, but Texas still should have produced more. The trio of Zach Shackelford, Elijah Rodriguez and Patrick Vahe just didn’t get any movement.

Grade: D

Offense Overall

Texas managed 389 yards of total offense and 23 points. The utter lack of big plays in the passing game, save the Johnson score, made for a weak offensive showing. And Ingram’s 30-yard run was the only big play in the run game. The Horns couldn’t get anything consistent in the run game either. Maybe the gameplan was limited because of Buechele’s relative inability as a runner. But Texas was held scoreless in the second half. That would usually spell a loss. The Horns are lucky it didn’t. It’s not like Baylor is a great defense either.

Grade: D+

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Bobby Burton: Sunday

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A dose of reality on Sunday morning. Texas was not a very good football team yesterday. Yes, the Horns won. But don’t let the final score fool you. This was not a K-State game which Texas controlled for much of the contest. It wasn’t Tulsa, where the Horns drove the ball to end the game. And it certainly wasn’t USC or Oklahoma when the Horns dominated for long periods of time. No, this looked more like the Texas team of a year ago. The Horns were disjointed on offense and could never really put a solid drive together. There was nothing Texas did on offense that looked repeatable with any degree of certainty. The Texas defense was the better unit on Saturday. But even the D gave up chunk plays more frequently than they should. And special teams play was spotty. There was a blocked punt that should have been, a fumbled snap and two missed field goals.

This felt more like 2017 Texas than the Texas of 2018. Perhaps it was primarily about QB play. That’s my thinking this morning. The lack of a QB run game obviously put the Texas O into reset mode. And Sam Ehlinger’s feel for the speed of the game is better than some people appreciate. And at least the Horns emerged victorious with a last-minute defensive stand that Charles Omenihu should be remembered for.

But... When we ask ourselves if Texas is “back”, let’s remember this game. Texas is better than many teams, no doubt. And the trajectory of the squad and its depth finally looks on the right track. But the Horns are not all the way back, not when Texas didn’t have the horses to blow the game open against an improving, yet average Baylor squad.

**

Anyone else ready for Denzel Mims to go pro? He reminds me of Dez Bryant. Perhaps not quite as physical, but terrific size and probably more speed.

**

Cameron Dicker almost cost Texas this football game. A week after the hero kick at OU, he easily could have been the goat against Baylor.

**

Outside of Ehlinger, Texas again emerged from the Baylor game relatively injury free. This is getting to be more than just a trend. Strength and conditioning coach Yancy McKnight truly deserves a pat on the back.

**

Charles Omenihu, BJ Foster and Gary Johnson also deserve pats on the back because they made key plays on that final Baylor drive.

**

Enjoy the W. Even though it wasn’t exactly what the Horns wanted or it didn’t show what some had hoped, it’s still a win. 6-1 is 6-1. Hard to believe the Horns have reeled off six straight after Maryland.

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Posted

Joseph Cook: Defense, backup QB play enough for UT to hold off Baylor, 23-17

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  On 10/14/2018 at 2:08 PM, taybo20 said:

Andrew Beck looked dinged up too a lot. This team was in desperate need of the by week.

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Agreed.... Nice comment on Beck appearing banged up.  Not sure why Texas Oline was not able to open more holes yesterday..... Will be interesting to watch replays to find out.

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  On 10/14/2018 at 2:17 PM, LTtxfan said:
Agreed.... Nice comment on Beck appearing banged up.  Not sure why Texas Oline was not able to open more holes yesterday..... Will be interesting to watch replays to find out.

There were a couple of plays that he got up slowly or you could tell he was hurt on. One play, I think the officials should have stopped the clock and made him leave.
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InsideTexas: Offensive Report Card---Baylor

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Inside Texas: Defensive Report Card---Baylor

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(Bobby Burton) Texas-Baylor Grades: Defense shows up when it matters most

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  On 10/14/2018 at 7:43 PM, Machinator said:
Coach Venables does. Scip usually does more descriptive post-mortems that come out a little later.
  On 10/14/2018 at 8:16 PM, satyanash said:
*Venable, ftr. He was a defensive coach at Duncanville HS for quite a while
Happy Dance! Happy Dance!
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Scipio Tex: Texas-Baylor Post-Mortem: Offense

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  On 10/15/2018 at 6:15 PM, Machinator said:

Scipio Tex: Texas-Baylor Post-Mortem: Offense

 

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So, did I miss something or is Scipio a fucking team doctor now? 

Posted

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

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