Media/$9.95-er postgame analysis articles (Week 7)

satyanash · October 13, 2018

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.

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.

satyanash · October 13, 2018

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

It always has to be close this year, I guess. I don't know how close that game would have been had Sam Ehlinger been not been knocked out of the game with a shoulder sprain. Texas had to lean on a cold Shane Buechele, put out there for his first appearance of the year, combined with defense and the run game to get out with the win. Now it's on to a badly needed bye week so Texas can try and get Ehlinger healthy, rest up everywhere, coach up some of the young stars on this team, and prepare for a final stretch of the season that will include league-deciding contests.

It's always nice to beat Baylor as well. The fact that the game came down to Baylor throwing repeatedly into the end zone with a chance to end the game on a TD reception was surely anxiety producing for Texas fans but also ultimately a gut punch loss for the Bears.

Quick thought no. 1: Quality back-up performance

Shane Buechele's final line went: 20-34 for 184 yards at 5.4 ypa with one TD pass and one INT (plus another one, debatably that was ruled incomplete). He also added four runs for 23 yards (after removing the sole sack) and made a few big throws throughout the game that put Texas in charge of the game and then helped them play keep away JUST well enough to hold on for the win. It wasn't an explosive or flashy performance but Buechele distributed the ball effectively to Texas' war horses in Lil'Jordan Humphrey, Collin Johnson, and Keaontay Ingram. He hit the receivers on screens late in the fourth when Baylor was crashing into the line with run blitzes every play and eventually set up a good Ryan Bujcevksi punt down to the Baylor three yard line.

They also started mixing in some zone-read and counter-option where Buechele didn't end up picking up many carries but did work to hold Bear defenders and free up Ingram to break free. It was basically exactly the kind of game you want and need from a back-up, minus the real INT which may have been him and Duvernay failing to be on the same page and minus the not-INT that was just a bad decision. Hats off to Shane Buechele, who just led Texas to bowl eligibility and preserved the undefeated mark in Big 12 play.

Quick thought no. 2: Collin Johnson is having a huge conference season

Double slants to Collin Johnson continues to be unguardable on third and anything less than six. Baylor even bailed a LB out there to light him up on one particular catch and Collin still saw the ball in and took the hit before falling forward for yet another first down. Texas converted five third downs throwing to Collin Johnson today. 14 targets, 11 catches, 132 yards, one TD, and 9.4 yards per target. That's yeoman's work. There will probably be some complaints about Texas' overall lack of offense in this game but their ability to bully opponents on the perimeter with their big wideouts is a huge advantage and as long as they protect the ball and continue to play good defense, it's a pretty good formula for success.

Quick thought no. 3: Dime defense for the win

Texas leaned very heavily on the dime package in this game, which carries a wide variety of different blitzes and schemes, many of them afforded by the hybrid skill sets of Breckyn Hager and B.J. Foster. Baylor's 3x1 sets often ran into trouble early in the game on third down when Texas would drop Hager like a MLB and help him over the top with a safety while bringing the ultra-violent B.J. Foster off the opposite edge.

Foster played an inspired game, although he may have been partially to blame for the whip-dig route combinations that Baylor was working on a rather sizable percentage of their big passing plays. At one point on Baylor's final drive I thought, "they should just call a timeout and talk that route combo over real quick, it'd be worth it." Then Texas called a timeout and Baylor couldn't connect again.

Foster's ability to play big and physical on the box and as a pass-rusher matches what Jason Hall brought to the field late last year, he's a special ball player. Of course the wolf of DKR Caden Sterns also made some nice tackles and a crucial INT when Brewer foolishly tried to beat him in cover 2.

Perhaps the most encouraging thing about the dime defense though was their play against the Baylor run game, which produced just 66 yards on 21 runs by their backs for 3.14 ypc. That's not winning football, not when the same dime defense is holding you to 6.3 ypa in the passing game. This package can get better down the stretch and after the bye week and it'll need to as Texas faces the Raid Bro gauntlet of Mike Gundy, Dana Holgorsen, and Kliff Kingsbury in succession.

Quick thought no. 4: Keaontay Ingram

Maryland: 6 carries, 37 yds, 6.2 ypc
Tulsa: 10 carries, 64 yds, 6.4 ypc
USC: DNP
TCU: 8 carries, 38 yds, 4.8 ypc
K-State: 10 carries, 68 yds, 6.8 ypc
Oklahoma: 13 carries, 86 yds, 6.6 ypc
Baylor: 19 carries, 110 yds, 5.8 ypc

Everyone will clamor for MOAR INGRAM! but you gotta like how he's been eased along this season. We'll see how the bye week treats him and his various maladies but there's a chance that his more conservative utilization will make him all the more likely to produce more 100-yard games down the stretch when Texas is trying to pound Air Raid teams every week and win the Big 12.

As an aside, an extra quick thought, Texas picked up a third and 13 throwing the shallow screen to D'Shawn Jamison that last year would always work like a charm and then always end up producing 1st and 15 when Texas was called for offensive pass interference (usually after a review). Jamison caught the ball behind the line of scrimmage and then turned on the jets coming upfield. It was nice to see a play for Jamison yield a positive result AND for that useful play to actually be executed.

Quick thought no. 5: Two weeks to heal up and plan

Texas is bowl eligible, pretty nice, but obviously that's not the goal this season. The goal is to keep administering punishment to a down Big 12 and win the conference title. Obviously that might even put Texas in the playoffs, which would be interesting and a helpful experience for the team if not an opportunity to do something special. Obviously the big question is the health of Sam Ehlinger. My best guess of what happened was that he dinged the shoulder running through Bears (or maybe on the power-read play early that got him popped at the line of scrimmage).

He also cut his hand somehow, which led him to being sent to the sideline to stop the bleeding. At that time, there didn't seem to be anything wrong with him at all, he was carving up the Bears on the ground and in the air. Then all of a sudden he was running to the locker room, then coming back with his arm hanging limply at his side. Herman says shoulder sprain that will only keep him from throwing for a few days. Ehlinger has two weeks to heal before a road trip to Oklahoma State, it's nice to know though that Shane Buechele can distribute the ball in this offense effectively enough to give Texas a chance to win. If he could connect with Duvernay deep then teams would probably be as afraid of Buechele as they are of Ehlinger.

The special teams are coming along, I know Cameron Dicker missed a few field goals today that made that game closer than it needed to be but he also made some long ones early in the game. He's an asset overall. Ryan Bujcevksi scares me to death but he pinned the Bears inside the 20 three times today and had some nice kicks. The defense has a few issues we talked about after last week but they have the chance to put together a big second half of the season and carry this team through some games.

For the rest of the year, the topics will be "WHICH postseason game will Texas participate in?" And "Can Texas FINISH and win the Big 12?"

satyanash · October 14, 2018

(Bobby Burton) Snap Judgments: Whew!

What an amazing turn of events. Texas loses its starting quarterback. Texas does not score a single point in the entire second half. Yet Texas somehow survives. It wasn’t the prettiest win. But it goes down in the victory column. The Horns are now 6-1 heading into a much-needed bye week.

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The Texas defense played bend but don’t break on the final drive. And thankfully, Baylor isn’t Oklahoma. The Horns’ D rose to the occasion stopping three consecutive passes into the end zone to end the game.

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The Bears even had to sideline freak receiver Denzel Mims (who should be off to the NFL after this season) because of injury on the final drive. Mims is a mix of speed, size and strength that NFL teams will covet.

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Kris Boyd is either playing great defense or teams have simply decided not to go in his direction. Instead, the last two weeks, teams have tried to go after Davante Davis and PJ Locke. Locke, in particular, is getting exposed for a lack of top-end speed.

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Charles Omenihu had a great pass rush on the game’s final play. He made Charles Brewer rush his final throw that never had a chance to be caught in-bounds.

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BJ Foster also made several big plays on blitzes, forcing Brewer to not be able to have a clean pocket and get sacks for both Breckyn Hager and Omenihu at different times.

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Caden Sterns’ interception led to points before half despite Texas taking yet another delay of game penalty on a change of possession. It was a well designed play that got De’Shawn Jamison the ball on a drag route that out Texas in field goal range. Jamison showed some serious jets on that play.

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Cameron Dicker made all three field goal attempts in the first half. He looked rock solid. In the second half, he missed twice. Both times, a kick would have given Texas a two-score lead. Dicker must be more consistent. His misses very well could have cost Texas this ballgame.

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Shane Buechele, in place of Sam Ehlinger, played good in spots and poor in others. It’s what you’d expect of a QB who hadn’t taken any snaps this season. While Buechele played reasonably well for most of the game, especially on a couple of crucial third down throws late in the fourth quarter and the TD to Collin Johnson in the second quarter, it’s clear why Ehlinger is the starting QB. Ehlinger’s legs give Texas another viable option on third and short for opponents to defend and account for. And Ehlinger is also a little more accurate and timely on the short throws, too. My hats off to Buechele. What he did today was hard. No, he wasn’t perfect in the process. He had some overthrows that looked like they were five yards over the receivers heads. But he did his best. And it was just enough.

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The play of Collin Johnson was big time. Time after time, Johnson made contested catches. LJ Humphrey also moved the chains when it counted deep in the 4th quarter on a catch and absolutely dominating run.

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While the offense’s final drive didn’t result in points, it at least allowed Texas to pin the Bears back at their own three yard-line.

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Speaking of punting, Texas can not keep allowing free runs at the punter. The Horns narrowly averted a blocked punt in the second quarter that could have easily but points on the board for the Bears. Some advice for Coach Herman, take the bye week and get that fixed, or it will be a problem somewhere later this season.

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Keaontay Ingram made a run that I don’t think a handful of backs in the country could have made. He slipped a tackler at the line of scrimmage, burst through the hole, and broke another tackle deep in the secondary. Ingram finished with more than 100 yards on the day.

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Baylor could have won this game. There was the no-interception call that was close. There were those three final throws in the end zone. There were any number of opportunities for Baylor to win the game. But they didn’t. Texas did. And that’s the difference with this Texas team and the one a year ago. This team is winning close games.

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Not sure if many noticed and I’m not sure why as I type this but Pat Vahe and Zach Shackelford were not in the game on the Horns’ final drive. Derek Kerstetter was inserted, Elijah Rodriguez moved to center and JP Urquidez played left guard.

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Whew! Take a deep breath. Texas escaped with a win.

satyanash · October 14, 2018

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

AUSTIN, Texas — The Longhorns’ survived. After Charlie Brewer’s third straight pass into the end zone from the Texas 17 sailed incomplete, Breckyn Hager, P.J. Locke and Kris Boyd hugged each other in the end zone and then collapsed to the ground. They laid there for a second, staring up into the sky. It was that kind of day for Texas, which lost quarterback Sam Ehlinger to a shoulder injury on UT’s first drive of the game, saw kicker Cameron Dicker miss field goals 34 and 51 yards and failed to score a single point in the second half.

But the Longhorns’ survived with a 23-17 victory over a determined Baylor team to improve to 6-1 and 4-0 in the Big 12 with a bye week coming up. As always, here’s the GOOD, BAD and UGLY from Texas’ 23-17 victory over Baylor …

THE GOOD

Give a game ball to Texas senior defensive end Charles Omenihu, who got pressure on Baylor QB Charlie Brewer on all three of his pass attempts into the end zone from the Texas 17 in the final seconds of the game. Omenihu finished with two sacks and four quarterback hurries. His second sack came on third down early in the fourth quarter and helped kill a Baylor drive. Gary Johnson also bounced back from a sub-par game against Oklahoma with a monster performance: 11 tackles (9 solo), 2.5 tackles for loss and 2 QB hurries.

Keaontay Ingram became the first Texas back to go over 100 yards rushing this season (19 carries for 110 yards, 5.8 ypc) Collin Johnson came up with one big catch after another, finishing with 11 catches for 132 yards, including a 44-yard TD reception. Five of Johnson’s catches came in the fourth quarter, including two on third-down conversions. Shane Buechele finished 20 of 34 passing for 184 yards with one touchdown and one interception, replacing Ehlinger in the first quarter after Ehlinger had opened 4-of-5 passing for 35 yards.

Texas turned Caden Sterns' team-leading fourth interception of the season into a field goal in the second quarter. Ryan Bujcevski came up with a 55-yard punt downed at the Baylor 3 with 1:43 left to play. After Keaontay Ingram ran for no gain on second-and-5 from the UT42, Baylor took its final timeout with 2:37 left. On first down from the UT27 with just more than three minutes left to play, Buechele hit Collin Johnson for a 10-yard gain that kept the clock moving. Buechele then hit Johnson for a 5-yard gain to the UT42 with 2:41 left, but the clock stopped because of an injury to BU linebacker Clay Johnston.

The Longhorns took the ball at their own 17 with 4:46 left and converted second-and-8 on a receiver screen to Lil'Jordan Humphrey, who caught the ball 3 yards behind the line of scrimmage and then battled for 11 yards and a first down. After Tom Herman opted for a 51-yard field goal attempt instead of a punt, and Cameron Dicker missed, Baylor had the ball at its own 34 with 5:51 in a one-possession game. But the Texas defense forced a critical three-and-out.

Charles Omenihu came up with his second sack of the game with Baylor facing third-and-14 with 13:23 left Drew Galitz’s kickoff after Baylor cut Texas’ lead to 23-17 went out of bounds, giving UT the ball at its own 35. The Horns responded with runs of 3 and 30 yards by Keaontay Ingram, moving the ball to the BU32. Charles Omenihu was credited with a 5-yard sack of Charlie Brewer on third-and-5 from the BU23 midway through the third quarter. It was Omenihu’s fifth sack in five games.

Shane Buechele threw a 12-yard out to Collin Johnson on third-and-10 from the UT8 on UT’s first possession of the second half. (It ended up giving Texas a little more breathing room for a Ryan Bujcevski punt of 56 yards to the BU18.) Gary Johnson sacked Charlie Brewer for a 2-yard loss on third-and-10 from the BU49, leading to a punt on BU’s first possession of the second half. Chris Nelson had a nice hit on Charlie Brewer (after Brewer released a pass) on BU’s first drive of the second half.

HALFTIME STATS

Sam Ehlinger was 4-of-5 passing for 35 yards (before leaving the game with a shoulder injury) Shane Buechele was 7 of 16 for 88 yards, including a 44-yard TD pass to Collin Johnson

Receiving: Collin Johnson - 5 for 86, 1 TD | Lil'Jordan Humphrey - 4 for 28

Rushing: Keaontay Ingram - 8 carries for 56 yards (7.0 ypc) | Tre Watson - 8 carries for 26 yards (3.3 ypc)

Tackles: Anthony Wheeler - 6 tackles, 1 TFL

TEXAS TURNS STERNS’ PICKOFF INTO FG: Caden Sterns grabbed his team-leading fourth interception of the season, picking off Charlie Brewer at the BU48 with :44 left in the first half. Texas converted the turnover into a 47-yard field goal

TEXAS GOES UP 20-10 IN SECOND QUARTER: Lil'Jordan Humphrey ran for a 3-yard touchdown out of the wildcat, following runs of 18 and 2 yards by Keaontay Ingram to the BU5 and BU3. On third-and-5 from the UT35, Shane Buechele hit Collin Johnson for a 14-yard gain. A personal foul on Baylor’s Tyrone Hunt for illegal hands to the face moved the ball to the BU36 with just under three minutes left in the second quarter. Then, a post route thrown by Buechele to Devin Duvernay in the end zone was nearly picked off by BU’s Jameson Houston, but a review upheld the ruling on the field that Houston didn’t secure the catch. Breckyn Hager sacked Charlie Brewer, causing a fumble recovered by Baylor with four minutes left in the second quarter, bringing up third-and-8 from the BU 27. Jalen Hurd then dropped a perfect pass from Brewer that would’ve gone for a first down on the next play, leading to a punt.

TEXAS TAKES 13-10 LEAD ON TD PASS TO JOHNSON: Only Georgia State had given up more plays of 40 yards or longer this season than Baylor, and Texas joined in on the fun with a 44-yard TD pass from Shane Buechele to Collin Johnson for Texas’ first lead of the game - 13-10 - with 4:21 left in the second quarter. It was a three-play scoring drive that included runs of 3 and 13 yards by Keaontay Ingram. Facing third-and-5 from the UT 22, Baylor had several players flagged for a false start. On third-and-10 from the UT 27, Charlie Brewer threw a perfect pass into the end zone to Tyquan Thornton against good coverage by Davante Davis, but Thornton dropped it, leading to a 46-yard field goal, giving the Bears a 10-6 lead with 5:03 left in the second quarter.

Anthony Wheeler made a great stop on Charlie Brewer for a 3-yard loss on third-and-7 from the BU19 with just more than 10 minutes left in the second quarter. Then, Baylor punter Drew Galitz shanked a 26-yard punt to the BU42. Texas forced a three-and-out on Baylor’s second possession thanks to QB hurries by B.J. Foster and Gary Johnson on second down and by Anthony Wheeler and Charles Omenihu on third down.

SECOND DICKER FIELD GOAL CUTS BU LEAD TO 7-6: With Ehlinger watching from the sidelines with a bandage between his thumb and four fingers on his throwing hand as well as a right shoulder injury, Texas went 57 yards in 10 plays, capped by a 35-yard field goal by Dicker.

TEXAS 14-PLAY DRIVE LEADS TO FG: Despite Sam Ehlinger coming out of the game because of a bloody cut on his right (throwing) hand and Texas suffering a delay of game when Shane Buechele came in to replace him and then a false start on Samuel Cosmi - the Longhorns went 52 yards in 14 plays to a 40-yard field goal by Cameron Dicker, putting Texas up 3-0 with 8:57 left in the first. Texas converted its first third down (third-and-6) on a 7-yard pass from Sam Ehlinger to Collin Johnson.

THE BAD

Buechele and the offense couldn’t score a point in the second half. After Cameron Dicker made his first three field goal attempts from 40, 35 and 47 yards in the first half as Texas took a 23-10 lead at intermission, Dicker missed from 34 and 51 yards in the second half. The Texas defense gave up eight pass plays of 15 yards or longer - three to Denzel Mims (3 receptions, 80 yards, 1 TD), including a 19-yard TD; three to Jalen Hurd (5-72) and two to Pooh Stricklin (2-39).

Baylor QB Charlie Brewer finished 20 of 39 passing for 240 yards with one touchdown and one interception. The final minute of the game was a nailbiter: Baylor’s Trestan Ebner ran for 11 yards and a first down to the UT28 and then Charlie Brewer threw for 9 yards to Chris Platt to the UT19. Brewer then ran for 2 yards on third-and-1 to the UT17, stopping the clock with :17 left. Brewer ran for 9 yards to the Texas 39 with :45 left.

Charlie Brewer got Baylor off the goal line with a 20-yard post pass to Pooh Stricklin and followed it up with a 19-yard post pass to Stricklin on second-and-10 to the Texas 48 with :53 left. Texas suffered eight penalties for 52 yards (Baylor had 10 for 92 yards). On third-and-5 from the UT42, Texas ran a direct snap to Lil'Jordan Humphrey, who was stopped for no gain, forcing a punt with 5:51 left.

Texas took 6:44 off the clock with a 14-play drive midway through the fourth quarter, but it covered only 49 yards and ended with a missed 51-yard field goal (hooked wide left) by Cameron Dicker with 5:51 left. Baylor linebacker Deonte Williams had to be carted off the field with 3:41 left in the third quarter.

BAYLOR TURNS BUECHELE INT INTO TD: After Baylor picked off Shane Buechele and took possession at its own 44, Charlie Brewer converted third-and-4 from the 50, hitting Denzel Mims for a 45-yard, catch-and-run despite double coverage from B.J. Foster and Caden Sterns. After a false start penalty and an 8-yard run by JaMycal Hasty, BU’s Jalen Hurd scored on a 2-yard run, cutting Texas’ lead to 23-17 with 4:33 left in the third quarter.

On first-and-10 from the UT15, Shane Buechele was intercepted by Baylor CB Raleigh Texada on a deep post to Devin Duvernay with 6:37 left in the third quarter, giving the Bears the ball at their own 44. Texas was called for two penalties on a punt return by D’Shawn Jamison with 6:44 left in the third quarter - an illegal block in the back by Josh Thompson (not accepted) and holding on Kris Boyd (accepted). UT announced at the start of the second half QB Sam Ehlinger wouldn’t return to the game with a right shoulder injury.

BAYLOR GOES UP 10-6:Baylor converted second-and-12, third-and-10 and second-and-14 en route to a 46-yard field goal that put BU up 10-6 with 5:03 left in the second quarter. P.J. Locke, covering Jalen Hurd in the slot, was turned inside out by Hurd on a 26-yard gain to the BU46 on second-and-12 midway through the second quarter. On the same drive, Locke was beat by Hurd for a 15-yard gain on second-and-14. Brewer hit Denzel Mims for 16 yards on third-and-10.

After Baylor punter Drew Galitz shanked a 26-yard punt, giving Texas the ball at the BU42, the Longhorns ended up punting from their own 48 when Buechele was sacked for a 12-yard loss on third-and-8 with 9:40 left in the second quarter. Officials seemed to miss a running into the kicker foul on Baylor on a punt by Ryan Bujcevski, and then called off-setting personal fouls on BU’s Jalen Hurd and UT’s Gary Johnson, when Hurd stepped over Kris Boyd and smacked Johnson in the facemask early in the second quarter. With 12:57 left in the second quarter, Texas announced Sam Ehlinger had a right shoulder injury and would be re-evaluated at halftime. Against the Big 12’s worst run defense, Keaontay Ingram didn’t get a carry on Texas’ two first-quarter possessions. After the first quarter, Tre Watson had eight carries for 26 yards (3.2 ypc).

BAYLOR GOES UP 7-3 AFTER 12-PLAY DRIVE: The Texas defense allowed BU quarterback Charlie Brewer to convert third-and-12, third-and-1 and third-and-11 en route to a 12-play, 70-yard touchdown drive on Baylor’s opening possession. Brewer converted third-and-12 from the BU28 on a 17-yard pass to Jalen Hurd with Caden Sterns in coverage. Brewer converted third-and-1 from the UT32 with a 14-yard sneak. A 5-yard run by Brewer to the Texas 14 was wiped out by a holding call on BU’s Patrick Lawrence. But it didn’t matter. Brewer converted third-and-11 from the UT19 with a touchdown pass to Denzel Mims, who beat the coverage of Davante Davis, putting BU up 7-3 with 3:08 left in the first quarter.

Texas suffered a delay of game (Shane Buechele) and a false start (Sam Cosmi) on its opening possession. Sam Ehlinger came out of the game with 10:47 left in the first quarter — on Texas’ first possession — because he suffered a cut on his right (throwing) hand that resulted in a lot of blood. Shane Buechele replaced him.

THE UGLY

Seeing Sam Ehlinger leave the game in the first quarter with a bloody throwing hand (a cut between his thumb and four fingers) and then learning he was out with a right shoulder injury.

52-80 · October 14, 2018

11 hours ago, 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

The fucks all this shit about Hector tho

taybo20 · October 14, 2018

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 October 14, 2018 by taybo20

dingleberryswitzer · October 14, 2018

12 hours ago, satyanash said:

But they didn’t. Texas did. And that’s the difference with this Texas team and the one a year ago. This team is winning close games.

This is key. Several close games last season.

ChickenSandwich · October 14, 2018

1 hour ago, taybo20 said:

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

I saw Vahe limp off at some point late fourth. He was in a pile downfield.

satyanash · October 14, 2018

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

Quote

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+

Bobby Burton: Sunday

Quote

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.

ClubWhatever · October 14, 2018

Bobby’s not wrong but his bitchassedness always oozes through. I bet vacations with him are miserable terrible affairs.

taybo20 · October 14, 2018

31 minutes ago, ChickenSandwich said:

I saw Vahe limp off at some point late fourth. He was in a pile downfield.

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

satyanash · October 14, 2018

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

AUSTIN -- While one Texas injury changed the course of the game, in the end, it didn’t completely change the course of Texas’ season. Sophomore Sam Ehlinger was pulled from the game by the officials on the Longhorns’ first drive with blood on his hand. When he got to the sideline he wasn’t out for a couple of plays, but rather for the rest of the game with a shoulder injury. Junior Shane Buechele replaced him, and along with a stout defensive performance, helped navigate the No. 9 Longhorns to a 23-17 win over Baylor.

Texas improves to 6-1 and remains an undefeated 4-0 in the Big 12. They achieve bowl eligibility in October for the first time since 2012. “We knew this wasn’t going to be easy, and then when your starting quarterback goes out in the first drive, there could have been some panic,” Herman said. “Could have been a little shock to everybody, especially knowing that they went down and scored right after that.”

It could have been a shock, but Herman’s backup quarterback helped guide Texas across the finish line for the win. “I have told you guys and I want to tell the world: Shane Buechele is the most engaged; he’s the most prepared; he’s the most positive coaching backup quarterback I’ve ever been around in my life,” Herman said. “I’ve been around some really good ones, really, really good ones.”

The Longhorns needed a defensive stop late in order to seal the victory, a continuing trend for this team. Baylor’s Charlie Brewer orchestrated a 13-play, 80 yard drive in an attempt to tie the game. He needed 97, and after Brewer’s final throw sailed out the back of the end zone, Texas players ran onto the field in celebration. “Great stop,” Herman said after the game.

It wasn’t clear how long Ehlinger would be out when he left on Texas’ opening drive. He sustained a cut that bled enough for officials to remove him from the game, but when he got to the sideline he told the coaches something else was ailing him. “He came off, he goes ‘coach, my shoulder is (pauses) messed up,’” Herman said. “So we had the trainers look at him, and the shoulder was messed up.”

Herman said in his postgame conference Ehlinger was diagnosed with a sprain of the AC joint in his throwing shoulder. He said Ehlinger will get an MRI to make sure there’s no ligament damage, but hoped to have him throwing by the end of the week. Buechele then took the field as QB1. Texas finished the drive with a Cameron Dicker field goal to give the Longhorns a 3-0 lead. Baylor scored on the ensuing drive, and Texas responded with another Dicker field goal. Buechele was 2-of-4 for 19 yards on the second field drive.

Buechele never settled into a rhythm throughout the course of the game, finishing 20-of-34 for 184 yards with a TD and an interception. Though he didn’t find his touch, he still found chemistry with his favorite target and close friend, junior Collin Johnson. Trailing 10-6 in the late second quarter, Texas moved into Baylor territory thanks to two rushes from freshman Keaontay Ingram and a facemask penalty by the Bears. On first-and-ten, Buechele dropped back and threw down the far sideline. Johnson extended his arms, found the football, and ran into the end zone to give Texas the lead. “All of our quarterbacks love throwing him the ball because they trust him,” Herman said.

Texas’ defense stood strong on the next drive and gave the Longhorns the ball back with 3:40 remaining in the half. That drive became the Ingram show. Ingram had rushes of 5, 10, and 18 that helped move the ball to the Baylor three. Lil’Jordan Humphrey lined up at quarterback and ran the ball in for the score. Ingram helped the Longhorns with 19 carries for 110 yards, the first 100-yard rusher for the Longhorns in more than a year.

Texas’ defense stood strong again, leaving enough time for Dicker to hit another field goal as time expired in the second quarter. After halftime, the Texas offense struggled to pick up chunk plays and put points on the board. Buechele’s longest pass was 12 yards, and he recorded his first interception of the season on a long attempt to junior Devin Duvernay. In addition, the hero of the Oklahoma game struggled. Dicker missed a 34-yard field goal that would have made it a two possession game in response to a Jalen Hurd touchdown run for Baylor. Instead, Texas entered the fourth with a 23-17 lead.

Where Buechele struggled, the other side of the ball held up just enough. The Longhorns gave up 53 yards through the air and 15 yards on the ground in the fourth, with most of those yards coming on Baylor’s final drive. In the end, Texas made sure not to give up the 20 more that would have earned Baylor its first win over the Longhorns since 2014. After helping guide his team to the win, Buechele’s backup play was praised by his head coach following the game.

“I told him we’re not going to change because you’re in here,” Herman said. “If Sam is 1A, you’re 1B, and we feel confident that you can execute the game plan.” Herman also had reason to compliment the play of his defense who totaled 10 tackles for loss, three sacks, and one Caden Sterns interception against the Bears. Sterns’ interception was his fourth of the season, tying the freshman record with Chris Carter and Quandre Diggs.

Though there was solid defensive play for most of the game (Orlando’s ninth time holding a Longhorn Power 5 opponent under 20 points), Herman still has some parts of the game that need fine tuning. “We know we’ve got some work to do on that side of the ball in the fourth quarter,” Herman said. “What that is, I don’t know.” Texas now enters its only open weekend of the season prior to beginning the final stretch at Oklahoma State. The focus will be on getting everyone healthy, specifically the Longhorns’ starting quarterback.

“The off week comes at a very good time, and we need to rest,” Herman said. “We need to heal. We’ve been playing football for 11 straight weeks, and the guys need to take a nice deep breath, exhale, and get ready to come to work on Tuesday.”

LTtxfan · October 14, 2018

6 minutes ago, taybo20 said:

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

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.

Vertigo · October 14, 2018

Ingram was dinged late as well. I bet half the 2 deep is in the training room this week

LTtxfan · October 14, 2018

+1 Thanks for this thread each Week 🤘

horn_of_the_morning · October 14, 2018

52 minutes ago, ClubWhatever said:

Bobby’s not wrong but his bitchassedness always oozes through. I bet vacations with him are miserable terrible affairs.

He is too much of a bitchass to have an affair.

Jkwellborn · October 14, 2018

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.

Red Five · October 14, 2018

Were we really playing Urquidez at LG?

Reynolds Woodcock · October 14, 2018

Were we really playing Urquidez at LG?

*Tex Pete’s head explodes*

satyanash · October 14, 2018

InsideTexas: Offensive Report Card---Baylor

We knew it was coming. The good news is we hired coach Hand last spring. The bad news is we don't fully understand finish despite preaching to the choir all off season. The even better news is we still won. Thank goodness for off week. We can mend and hopefully reflect where we are and where we are going. The Oline played extremely well as a unit. The WR bunch played extremely well. The RB's were very good. It's hard to figure but we still found a way to limit our scoring opportunities to just two td's and attempt four FG's despite playing well above average at so many positions. Yep, we found a way to keep the issue in doubt until the final whistle.

If wishes and buts were candy and nuts we will find a OC that specializes in play calling. This would allow coach Herman to go back to doing head coaching things instead of dividing his time between media events and film study. Right now we can't stand prosperity. We find a way to pitch in a clinker in every drive. It's almost always a play from left field that doesn't come close to matching a successful series that counteracts the most obvious defensive adjustment. Here are the grades:

11---Sam---A-

7---Shane---B

5---Watson---B+

26---Ingram---A-

6---Duvernay---A-

9---Johnson---A-

17---Jamison---A-

84---Humphrey---A-

47---Beck---B

52---Cosmi---B+

56---Shack---B

66---Anderson---A-

68---Kerstetter---A-

72---Rodriguez---B+

77---Vahe---B

Notes from the bleachers:

Collin Johnson (9) is not only a great player but also a true clutch player---throw in a bunch of leadership and you have CJ. Zero disappearing acts this year. LJ Humphrey (84) is a great player with toughness and awareness abundantly visible. You win championships with the LJH's of the world. He's fun to watch. Calvin Anderson (66) had his best game as a Horn. It's a genuine pleasure to see a quality technician operate in close quarters. Yes, he's gotten better and so have we.

Shack (56) played well but still has problems with delayed stunts/blitzes. He gets involved in a double with the OG and never recognizes the blitz, twist, cross. Beck blocked well but had one drop, one miscommunication, and penalty on his dance card. Shane (7) had some rust to rub off and found his way to get that done. It wasn't the loss of accurate throws nor the lack of smoothness in the exchanges that were the disturbing part of Shane's game to me---it's the fact that Shane still tries to escape the rush by going backwards instead of peeling it and eating it upfield. He is serving up his OT for a sack despite the OT doing his job---plus turning the bad play into a bigger loss than necessary.

Ingram (26) is wise way beyond his years. Plus he's talented as they come. Rodriguez (72) had a very solid game---he might be our most under appreciated offensive player. Both guard positions today. Great win. We did make it too interesting though. Heal them up and get ready to finish the quest.

My grading system is based on total points earned against number of plays played. The points are awarded individually on each and every separate play. There are five different possible grades for each play. Players may earn a plus three (3) for a five star type play—-plus two (2) for above average execution—-plus one (1) for doing their job successfully—-zero (0) for getting beat but knowing and attempting their assignment—-and minus 3 (-3) for a missed assignment.

Each player has a total number of points and a total number of his own individual plays. You divide the total number of plays into the total number of points which gives you scale. The grading scale is as follows: Any player averaging one point per play (1.0) grades out a B which is winning football. If a player plays 60 plays with 60 total points he would earn a passing grade—each point he goes over the total number of plays raises his grade accordingly. The system is built around rewarding any player that doesn’t beat himself or his team with mental mistakes.

The system also punishes any player that knows what to do but loses too many individual battles. If a player plays 60 plays but loses 10 of those with zero special plays (60 plays—50 points) he falls below the 1.0 needed for a passing grade of B. I use the plus/minus (A-, B+, etc,) when the numbers indicate a partial add or subtract from the grade. This system was used by my first coaching staff and I kinda carried it with me for thirty years—it’s not perfect but it gives the position coach a measuring stick for his individual players.

The only way to earn the highest grade of A is to play a perfect game. I’ve had exactly zero up to right now so great games still can be better so A- is a very popular second best. This system and my grades will always be subjective filled with agree and disagree opinions. It’s entirely fair for disagreement (without it we might not have horse races) but it’s important to remember that each play only counts once instead of allowing a big mistake to have major influence on an individual’s final grade.

Machinator · October 14, 2018

Inside Texas: Defensive Report Card---Baylor

Spoiler

The best thing about our defensive effort yesterday was the individual performances by quality players playing up to their standard. We had so many missed tackles, poor angles, and worthless reactions to thrown balls it's a wonder we won. That's the key to a winner though---win when you don't play very well. Mission accomplished.

We had guys sell out---sadly, they kinda ran out of gas because we failed to find any semblance of rotational integrity despite the obvious need at most positions. Going thru the motions is no way to play a football game. We need better eyes on that problem---that needs to come from the top. It's probably going to take a loss to get this corrected.

We won't grade out very well this week. We still basically play nine against eleven in most situations where we are forced to attach miscast individuals into areas they can't be successful. The problem is the number of areas that they can't function is growing and it's now out of hand. I no longer believe that "accountability" applies on defense in certain cases. We still won and that's the bottom line. It will catch up to the offenders though. Always has----always will.

Here are the grades:

90---Omenihu---A-

44---Hager---A-

49---Graham---B

42---Bimage---B

97---Nelson---A-

94---Wilbon---B+

33---Johnson---B+

45---Wheeler---D+

2---Boyd---A-

7---Sterns---B+

11---Locke---D+

18---Davis---B

19---Jones---B+

25---Foster---B+

29---Thompson---B

Notes from out of bounds:

Foster (25) did not play pattern match pass pro very well in a seldom used role. Foster did play lights out against the ground game and was a terrific blitzer. I would love to have twin BJ Foster's--this guy is the real deal.

Omenihu (90) is one fine football player. He does the grunt work without fanfare and always manages to make something happen. He may not make the tackle or sack but if you look closely enough he's at the center of disruption time after time. Dependable and salty at the same time.

Nelson (97) makes all the plays he is supposed to and then some. Thank for coming back. You have done yourself proud.

Johnson (33) is a special talent. He got tired yesterday. GJ can run down a tornado once he spots the swirl---he just has some brain freezes at times.

Wheeler (45) made two good plays each half yesterday. I refuse to type the number of bad plays. It's getting very old watching this while Jeff (23) watches in wait. I will say the coverage assignments are well hidden and even better performed.

Boyd (2) had an excellent game. Far too many hate him and he does act human at times---remember Kris is often given the toughest matchup. We forget that too often.

Jones (19) really got tired and it showed. He made five star plays and allowed easy efforts to succeed.

Hager (44) gave his typical performance---aces on pass rush/disruptions but hidden in the grunt work too much of the time.

Locke (11) made three nice plays yesterday. He had many more bad plays. He had several really bad plays. I don't think this system fits his talent very well. If some might wonder exactly why he's still playing every down I refer back to the "accountability" issue mention somewhere sometime.

We think so much of his abilities we have now assigned him "man coverage" against their best receiver in GL defense. Yep, I looked up and there's PJ on the island versus their top WR guy. Our plan worked---they threw too high to a wide open slant/short post. I'm not sure I would continue to bank on that happening much more.

We won---it just wasn't very pretty. Correct mistakes and get healthy is next week's assignment.

satyanash · October 14, 2018

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

Defensive Line

Charles Omenihu rose to the occasion. Omenihu has proven to get those one or two series a game where he just overtakes his opponent. Thankfully for the Horns, those moments came in the fourth quarter. Omenihu finished with two sacks and harassed Charlie Brewer with the game in the balance. Chris Nelson was spelled more frequently than usual and it looked like it may have done him some good. He created problems for the Bears in the run game. Breckyn Hager tried to play contain against Brewer rather than free rush. But he’s still not producing the numbers hoped of him.

Grade: B-

Linebackers

Gary Johnson was all over the field on Saturday. The senior finished with 11 tackles. He played hard from start to finish. Twice on the game-defining stop, it was Johnson who flushed Brewer and/or made the stop on a scramble. Anthony Wheeler was second on the team in tackles. He played solidly although his lane awareness in the passing game could have been better and perhaps helped some of those routes over the middle that Baylor capitalized on so well.

Grade: B+

Secondary

For the second week in a row, I feel like the secondary was more victimized than the one inflicting the damage. Sure, BJ Foster is an absolute missile in pass rush situations. He forced one of Omenihu’s sacks by blowing up the pocket. And he looked like he was shot out of a rocket on the pass rush on the game’s second to last play. But outside of the interception by Caden Sterns, it was a difficult day for the Horns. P.J. Locke continues to get isolated and beaten regularly in coverage. Davante Davis’ lack of speed gave Texas some issues on the back end, too. Kris Boyd was rarely targeted. Brandon Jones almost felt like a non-factor, too.

Grade: C

Defense

Texas yielded 328 yards of offense and just 17 points. Tom Herman would take that effort every weekend if he could get it. The Horns also came up with stops when they needed it most. Of course, there was the final drive of the game where Baylor’s three throws to the end zone fell helpless to the ground. But the drive before that, with great field position for the Bears, the Horns forced a three and out. This wasn’t a dominating performance. The gave up too many big plays and allowed too many third-and-long conversions early in the contest. But the Texas defense won the day.

Grade: B

Special Teams

It’s hard to get certain plays out of your mind. Mine is the blocked punt that should have been. Texas continues to have problems identifying free rushers in the punt game and it almost cost Texas dearly. Then there’s the two big misses by Cameron Dicker, a botched snap on a punt and D’Shawn Jamison playing perhaps a little too loose with the ball on a punt return. I did not like the play of the special teams unit. If not for Ryan Bujcevski’s final punt being downed at the three-yard line, this would have been the worst performance of this unit this season. Special teams very well could have cost Texas this game.

Grade: D

Machinator · October 14, 2018

4 hours ago, Red Five said:

Were we really playing Urquidez at LG?

No, Burton was wrong. It was Rodriguez at LG and Kerstetter at RG after Vahe got hurt.

El Hornarino · October 14, 2018

It's always fun to read Burton's grades back to back with Coach V's.

TwiceHorn · October 14, 2018

Does Scipio do the report cards for IT? Oh, apparently not. Does Scipio do breakdowns anywhere anymore?

Edited October 14, 2018 by TwiceHorn

Machinator · October 14, 2018

Just now, TwiceHorn said:

Does Scipio do the report cards for IT?

Coach Venables does. Scip usually does more descriptive post-mortems that come out a little later.

satyanash · October 14, 2018

32 minutes ago, Machinator said:

Coach Venables does. Scip usually does more descriptive post-mortems that come out a little later.

*Venable, ftr. He was a defensive coach at Duncanville HS for quite a while

MrPhlegm · October 14, 2018

Coach Venables does. Scip usually does more descriptive post-mortems that come out a little later.

*Venable, ftr. He was a defensive coach at Duncanville HS for quite a while

Happy Dance! Happy Dance!

Machinator · October 15, 2018

Scipio Tex: Texas-Baylor Post-Mortem: Offense

Texas survived an early first quarter starting QB injury and secured the win over a game Baylor football squad despite a sputtering Longhorn offense underperforming against a bottom tier FBS defense. It felt a bit Tulsa-like, including the scoreless offensive second half. The bye week couldn't be better timed to get Ehlinger healthier, Shane Buechele more reps with the 1s, and a can of WD-40 for #7's throwing arm. Some realizations come only through contrast and for me this game highlighted Sam's growth from last year and through this year while demonstrating Buechele's relative stasis from what we saw in 2017. Now #7 has a chance to take his own evolutionary steps as the likely road starter in Stillwater in a little less than two weeks.

On re-watch, it was even more apparent that Texas left a lot of points out on the field, largely because of miscues in the passing game, along with Dicker's two missed second half field goals. This could have very easily been a 37-17 sort of win with the benefit of a handful of throws to open up the Baylor defense and give Keaontay Ingram a little more running room. Instead, the coaching staff effectively ran a reduced playbook after seeing some of Buechele's earlier work, content to let the Texas offense not lose the game and hope that the Longhorn defense could continue holding out. Probably best highlighted when Texas ran the ball with LJH from Wildcat on 3rd and 5, up six points, on the Baylor 42 yard line with around 2:00 left on the clock. That's an ultra-conservative call and something of an indicator of the staff's confidence level in the quarterback and the Texas defense. Buechele needs to log some practices this week and next that will allow that play call to become a throw to CJ on a dig route so that Texas can move the sticks, get in scoring range and eat up the rest of that clock so Charlie Brewer isn't throwing potential game winning passes into the other end zone going the other way.

RB

Keaontay Ingram had his first 100+ yard rushing game as a Longhorn while logging a college career high 19 carries (19-110). It won't be his last 100 yarder. He looks nearly fully recovered from his knee tweak and the bye week should allow him to hit Stillwater at 100%. We'll need him. Ingram had a terrific game and his 403 rushing yards on the season (at 6.1 yards per carry) now leads this Longhorn team. A 1,000 yard season is still not out of the question.

Tre Watson logged the early hard carries while Baylor was still fresh (13-41) and our run game was a bit vanilla. I was hoping to see him engaged more in the passing game, as always. The difference between he and Ingram in burst out of a cut is notable, but his role is secure.

WR/TE

Only four Longhorns caught passes despite 20 completions. Jamison had a single 17 yard catch - waiting 'til the 7th game of his career for a positive yardage offensive play. I guess the jet sweep has been mothballed.

CJ is now the Great Dane who just realized that he's not a puppy anymore and can now set about smashing the other dogs at the park who want his chew toy. 11 catches, 132 yards, 1 TD on 14 passing targets. He also drew a pass interference penalty and could have added another 2 catches if not for two errant throws. Whatever effectiveness Buechele experienced at QB against Baylor passed through Johnson. Because the non-CJ work was pretty bad. LJH was reduced to screen work and logged only 41 yards on 7 catches. Duvernay and Buechele were definitely not on the same page and despite several opportunities, DD was held without a catch. Beck logged two catches for 11 yards and blocked OK, but he also had a drop and a motion penalty.

OL

Anderson and Cosmi were good all game. Cosmi was particularly awesome blocking down and did a great job of establishing a soft edge for Texas runners. Anderson is just too athletic for second tier edge rushers to get much going on. At this stage, both should receive 1st or 2nd team All Big 12 consideration. Rodriguez was very steady and ended up playing both guard positions when they inserted Kerstetter late, who also gave us good snaps. Vahe was pulled at one point, not sure if it was injury or performance. He struggled with Baylor's twists and didn't get much push inside. As I mentioned in my preview, Baylor has two surprisingly solid interior DL (Roy and Lewis) but none of Vahe's teammates struggled comparably. Shack had a hold on the 1st possession of the 2nd half and didn't seem to meld with Vahe very effectively. Both Vahe and Shack have a habit of turning their shoulders in pass protection to assist a teammate instead of staying square and helping the teammate with an arm and their body. The minute they turn, it opens a path for a blitzer or looping stunt. Overall this group played better than the box score suggests - Texas left a lot of yards out on the field. Some of that is play-calling related. Some of it was the QB doing very little to help them as pass protectors or simply inability to take plays that were there. Much of it was the latter seeming to affect the former.

QB

Caveats about rust aside, it's very difficult to judge what Shane will be in Stillwater after two weeks of practice and an offense better tailored around his skill set, but his level of play was poor and if it continues, Texas will play another nail biter @Oklahoma State, at minimum. I see the "played good enough to win" comments proliferating and while that's undeniably true because 1) he played and 2) Texas won, he was the governor on the offense against a bad Baylor defense. He finished 20 of 34 for 184 yards, with 1 touchdown and 1 interception. Beyond the statistics, he was inaccurate downfield, didn't recognize double coverage on post routes, should have had another bad interception on a throw into double coverage, and repeatedly shied from pressure instead of sliding or stepping up against penetrating Baylor DL who weren't completely free and whose momentum was still being controlled by a Texas OL. He got a little more comfortable in the short game late as Texas moved the sticks against a loaded Baylor front, throwing some accurate balls after throwing behind his receivers early.

It's a straightforward observation that #7 requires a different page of offense from Ehlinger, but being the tempo cerebral short passer guy doesn't work well if he's not making good decisions and is inaccurate. The point is that he wasn't playing that well in the areas that are his supposed wheelhouse. His only real success came through Collin Johnson (he was effectively 9 of 20 for 52 yards on his other throws) and that's something both our staff and OSU's staff should take notice of. We'll see how much practice with the 1s can get him right, but it would make sense to start off in Stillwater at tempo with Buechele throwing the ball against the early coverages he knows he'll see, throwing the two or three concepts that make him comfortable. After that, settle in with Ingram, work in a few wrinkles throwing it to the backs and hope that CJ and LJH can overwhelm their opponents.

The elephant in the room is that Texas is handing over the reins and the hopes of a Big 12 title game to a QB who was probably looking to preserve his redshirt so that he could transfer out. Or at least have that option at season's end. Unlike a Jevan Snead/Colt McCoy sort of situation, Shane seems to be invested, but it's hard to know the mental shift he's going to have to undergo from detached observer to primary actor with the game on his shoulders. The good news is that there's no better audition tape for a grad transfer at Boise State than throwing three touchdowns at Oklahoma State in a win. So perhaps everyone's interests are aligned.

Final

6-1 and Ehlinger with a treatable injury is a pretty enviable place to be given the alternatives. I'm not expecting us to play Sam in Stillwater. The Texas offense will rise and fall with #7 because we're not good enough elsewhere to shield the QB position.

Sejjr · October 16, 2018

12 hours ago, Machinator said:

Scipio Tex: Texas-Baylor Post-Mortem: Offense

Reveal hidden contents

Texas survived an early first quarter starting QB injury and secured the win over a game Baylor football squad despite a sputtering Longhorn offense underperforming against a bottom tier FBS defense. It felt a bit Tulsa-like, including the scoreless offensive second half. The bye week couldn't be better timed to get Ehlinger healthier, Shane Buechele more reps with the 1s, and a can of WD-40 for #7's throwing arm. Some realizations come only through contrast and for me this game highlighted Sam's growth from last year and through this year while demonstrating Buechele's relative stasis from what we saw in 2017. Now #7 has a chance to take his own evolutionary steps as the likely road starter in Stillwater in a little less than two weeks.

On re-watch, it was even more apparent that Texas left a lot of points out on the field, largely because of miscues in the passing game, along with Dicker's two missed second half field goals. This could have very easily been a 37-17 sort of win with the benefit of a handful of throws to open up the Baylor defense and give Keaontay Ingram a little more running room. Instead, the coaching staff effectively ran a reduced playbook after seeing some of Buechele's earlier work, content to let the Texas offense not lose the game and hope that the Longhorn defense could continue holding out. Probably best highlighted when Texas ran the ball with LJH from Wildcat on 3rd and 5, up six points, on the Baylor 42 yard line with around 2:00 left on the clock. That's an ultra-conservative call and something of an indicator of the staff's confidence level in the quarterback and the Texas defense. Buechele needs to log some practices this week and next that will allow that play call to become a throw to CJ on a dig route so that Texas can move the sticks, get in scoring range and eat up the rest of that clock so Charlie Brewer isn't throwing potential game winning passes into the other end zone going the other way.

RB

Keaontay Ingram had his first 100+ yard rushing game as a Longhorn while logging a college career high 19 carries (19-110). It won't be his last 100 yarder. He looks nearly fully recovered from his knee tweak and the bye week should allow him to hit Stillwater at 100%. We'll need him. Ingram had a terrific game and his 403 rushing yards on the season (at 6.1 yards per carry) now leads this Longhorn team. A 1,000 yard season is still not out of the question.

Tre Watson logged the early hard carries while Baylor was still fresh (13-41) and our run game was a bit vanilla. I was hoping to see him engaged more in the passing game, as always. The difference between he and Ingram in burst out of a cut is notable, but his role is secure.

WR/TE

Only four Longhorns caught passes despite 20 completions. Jamison had a single 17 yard catch - waiting 'til the 7th game of his career for a positive yardage offensive play. I guess the jet sweep has been mothballed.

CJ is now the Great Dane who just realized that he's not a puppy anymore and can now set about smashing the other dogs at the park who want his chew toy. 11 catches, 132 yards, 1 TD on 14 passing targets. He also drew a pass interference penalty and could have added another 2 catches if not for two errant throws. Whatever effectiveness Buechele experienced at QB against Baylor passed through Johnson. Because the non-CJ work was pretty bad. LJH was reduced to screen work and logged only 41 yards on 7 catches. Duvernay and Buechele were definitely not on the same page and despite several opportunities, DD was held without a catch. Beck logged two catches for 11 yards and blocked OK, but he also had a drop and a motion penalty.

OL

Anderson and Cosmi were good all game. Cosmi was particularly awesome blocking down and did a great job of establishing a soft edge for Texas runners. Anderson is just too athletic for second tier edge rushers to get much going on. At this stage, both should receive 1st or 2nd team All Big 12 consideration. Rodriguez was very steady and ended up playing both guard positions when they inserted Kerstetter late, who also gave us good snaps. Vahe was pulled at one point, not sure if it was injury or performance. He struggled with Baylor's twists and didn't get much push inside. As I mentioned in my preview, Baylor has two surprisingly solid interior DL (Roy and Lewis) but none of Vahe's teammates struggled comparably. Shack had a hold on the 1st possession of the 2nd half and didn't seem to meld with Vahe very effectively. Both Vahe and Shack have a habit of turning their shoulders in pass protection to assist a teammate instead of staying square and helping the teammate with an arm and their body. The minute they turn, it opens a path for a blitzer or looping stunt. Overall this group played better than the box score suggests - Texas left a lot of yards out on the field. Some of that is play-calling related. Some of it was the QB doing very little to help them as pass protectors or simply inability to take plays that were there. Much of it was the latter seeming to affect the former.

QB

Caveats about rust aside, it's very difficult to judge what Shane will be in Stillwater after two weeks of practice and an offense better tailored around his skill set, but his level of play was poor and if it continues, Texas will play another nail biter @Oklahoma State, at minimum. I see the "played good enough to win" comments proliferating and while that's undeniably true because 1) he played and 2) Texas won, he was the governor on the offense against a bad Baylor defense. He finished 20 of 34 for 184 yards, with 1 touchdown and 1 interception. Beyond the statistics, he was inaccurate downfield, didn't recognize double coverage on post routes, should have had another bad interception on a throw into double coverage, and repeatedly shied from pressure instead of sliding or stepping up against penetrating Baylor DL who weren't completely free and whose momentum was still being controlled by a Texas OL. He got a little more comfortable in the short game late as Texas moved the sticks against a loaded Baylor front, throwing some accurate balls after throwing behind his receivers early.

It's a straightforward observation that #7 requires a different page of offense from Ehlinger, but being the tempo cerebral short passer guy doesn't work well if he's not making good decisions and is inaccurate. The point is that he wasn't playing that well in the areas that are his supposed wheelhouse. His only real success came through Collin Johnson (he was effectively 9 of 20 for 52 yards on his other throws) and that's something both our staff and OSU's staff should take notice of. We'll see how much practice with the 1s can get him right, but it would make sense to start off in Stillwater at tempo with Buechele throwing the ball against the early coverages he knows he'll see, throwing the two or three concepts that make him comfortable. After that, settle in with Ingram, work in a few wrinkles throwing it to the backs and hope that CJ and LJH can overwhelm their opponents.

The elephant in the room is that Texas is handing over the reins and the hopes of a Big 12 title game to a QB who was probably looking to preserve his redshirt so that he could transfer out. Or at least have that option at season's end. Unlike a Jevan Snead/Colt McCoy sort of situation, Shane seems to be invested, but it's hard to know the mental shift he's going to have to undergo from detached observer to primary actor with the game on his shoulders. The good news is that there's no better audition tape for a grad transfer at Boise State than throwing three touchdowns at Oklahoma State in a win. So perhaps everyone's interests are aligned.

Final

6-1 and Ehlinger with a treatable injury is a pretty enviable place to be given the alternatives. I'm not expecting us to play Sam in Stillwater. The Texas offense will rise and fall with #7 because we're not good enough elsewhere to shield the QB position.

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

ClubWhatever · October 16, 2018

3 hours ago, Sejjr said:

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

Well, he does do the Post Mortem every week, so...

Machinator · October 16, 2018

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

The Longhorn Defense held a Baylor offense averaging 36 points per game to less than half of their season average and also forced the Bears to log seasons lows in production (328 yards) and yards per play (4.4). The Bears had been surprisingly effective running the ball to date, but Texas held them to 88 yards on 34 attempts and right around 3 yards per carry on normal runs (i.e. take out sacks). In all, Texas registered 10 tackles for loss and anytime a defense can ring up double digits in that category while minimizing big plays over the top, they're very likely on the way to a winning defensive performance.

When Texas can stop the run from the dime, it's just really hard for an offense to break out unless Texas repeatedly busts coverages. A lot of credit goes to the Texas front and Gary Johnson for allowing that to happen. That's the plan against Oklahoma State, West Virginia and Texas Tech. The more subtle key will be how Texas mixes up coverage and plays match-ups against those offenses.

Against the Baylor passing game and the effective troika of Charlie Brewer, Jalen Hurd and Tevin Mims, the Longhorns held the Bears to 20 of 40 for 241 yards, 1 touchdown and 1 interception, while adding three sacks and several big hits and QB pressures on Brewer. Texas chose to double team Mims or shade coverage heavily to his area on about 80% of snaps and the three times Mims caught a pass, he showed us the wisdom of that philosophy as he gained 80 yards, including a big 45 yard catch and run on a slant defeating Longhorn double coverage and a red zone score on 3rd and long when we singled Davante up with him and launched a slow motion delayed blitz. After that, Mims went into perma-double team. He's the first wide receiver we've played this year that Orlando has afforded that level of respect. The more interesting takeaway for me is that Texas did it more often with Davante Davis and help rather than putting Kris Boyd on an island on him. On those snaps, that put Boyd on a Baylor tertiary receiver on an island, who he largely locked down. PJ Locke drew a tougher assignment inside against Jalen Hurd, which met with mixed results. Hard to argue against 6 yards per attempt allowed, but Baylor receivers also dropped two touchdown passes. There was a Tulsa vibe going for a couple of stretches (including the game-ending drive that ended in deep Texas territory) and Texas won't be able to afford more of those lapses down the road.

DB

PJ Locke has been the subject of fairly withering criticism so far this year and before I subject him to more, I will point out that he was aggressive (6 solo tackles), had a nice pass break up and had a strong containment play or two. His willingness to mix it up is never in question. He struggled a bit with Hurd's strength and size, most evident when Hurd beat him for an easy TD catch which Hurd somehow managed to drop on a perfect throw from Brewer. I don't mind Locke losing a physical battle against a NFL level athlete, but it's hard for me to understand his technique or coverage approach on certain downs and distance. He's also been a very ineffective blitzer and thankfully has ceded some of that role to BJ Foster.

Would the defense benefit from trying someone else at nickel? The bye week represents a good opportunity to do just that. Unfortunately, according to Orlando's press conference comments, Josh Thompson hasn't evidenced the physicality that our DC wants in holding up the edge (and if the nickel doesn't do that, the 3-2-6 falls apart) and to date, he's been exploited pretty badly in deep coverage over the top in limited appearances last year against Texas Tech and this year against Tulsa. Fans have audited that out in their memories, as the back-up always represents greener grass and sunshine. But PJ's issues have been glaring, at least to my eyes. I think most coaches have a tough time pulling the trigger on a senior starter, as they tend to accept and scheme around known deficiencies over scary unknowns. The only way to see on Thompson is with more playing time, but that requires diving into the deep end.

Brandon Jones had a terrific tackle for loss early in the game and provided good help over the top. He also took a terrible angle against Hasty on a goal line run that set up Hurd's short yardage touchdown (more on that later) and had an ill-advised face mask penalty when he had a Baylor RB hemmed up behind the LOS near the sideline and Texas defenders on either side of him. All he had to do was grab anywhere but there. We'll need him at the top of his game in Stillwater coming downhill against Justice Hill and keeping a cover over OSU's vertical game.

BJ Foster is the best blitzer on the Longhorn roster. He has natural timing, unbridled aggression, quickness and a pretty sweet swim move that our DL should study. He dropped a great move on the Baylor tackle on a blitz to get a pressure and then absolutely blew up a Baylor RB on a 3rd and 14 that led to an Omenihu sack. He refuses to accept blocking. He reminds me a lot of former Eagle Brian Dawkins, which is about the highest praise possible for a blitzing safety. His final havoc tally was 6 tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss, a pressure, a QB hit and a lot of energy.

Caden Sterns had his fourth INT of the season on a sweet sideline pick in Baylor territory, tying a single season UT record for freshman. Tremendous range and ball skills.

Kris Boyd locked down Baylor's #3 and #4 guys for much of the game, but did draw a personal foul on a frustrated Jalen Hurd. It's always nice to see the penalty flag going away from Mr Boyd.

Davante Davis drew a tough assignment on Mims and did fine. I thinks Mims traumatized him a little early with how easy he ran by him and it took him some time to get more confidence cutting off his release and having faith that the safety had his back behind.

LB

Gary Johnson made a lot more good plays than bad and racked up 11 tackles, a sack, 2.5 tackles for loss and two QB hits on Brewer. Big energy game for him after a tough one against OU and when Texas suckered Baylor into trying to run outside, it played right into #33's hands. His worst hickey was on Hurd's 3rd down goal line score where he got lost in the chaff. On the same play, Anthony Wheeler was unblocked and ran blindly to an exterior gap for no good reason on what was pretty clearly a power run up the gut. Not our LBs best moment and if properly played, Baylor is kicking a field goal there.

The first quarter Brewer 3rd and 1 QB sneak for 14 yards was also not a clinic of interior defense. Wheeler had some good plays in pursuit late. His game speed is interesting to watch - once he gets going, he's fine, but his initial steps look like a man trying to run on glass. There was an early jailhouse blitz where Wheeler had a free run at Brewer but his first three steps were straight out of the sarcophagus.

As with Locke, there's a legitimate question as to whether the defense would improve with McCullough playing off the ball in lieu of Wheeler. While McCullough can do that, I don't think it's his forte and there are questions about his reliability and simple inexperience in that specific role. We can't see practice, but I have to wonder if two dozens snaps a game for McCulloch to take his temperature isn't needed.

DL

Chris Nelson had his best sequence of the season in a second half series where he drove a Baylor OL five yards into the backfield for a QB pressure and then followed it with a TFL by splitting a flat footed double team. Tell 'em about it, big fella! He followed that later with a tipped ball on a penetration. Nelson isn't a pass rusher, but that displacement and disruption inside is what we have to have if we're going to win out. He doesn't need to log a sack to impact the opponent passing game.

Charles Omemihu dominated with two sacks, four pressures and some huge QB hits, including the final play of the game where he absolutely plastered Brewer on his release. Omenihu has been chippy the last three weeks after the play and I enjoy seeing #90 pissed off at the world. Right now, he's probably my midseason Defensive MVP.

Hager had an excellent pressure when he ran through a Baylor RB on a 2nd half 3rd and 10. He was quiet beyond that and you can credit the defensive alignment with a lot of that. It's thankless work.

I liked what I saw from Graham as he notched two hustle tackles. The rest of our reserves did very little and we need more from them unless we want to see our entire pass rush tap out late or resort to more blitzing to manufacture pressure.

Special Teams

Dicker went 3 for 5 after a promising start, missing from 34 and 51 in the second half, but making in the first half from 35, 40 and 47. He's now 10 of 15 on the year. Buj had his first positive performance as a punter averaging 47.8 on 4 kicks but our protection broke down again, allowing a free run that could have been a block. D'shawn Jamison terrifies me as a returner at times.

Final

The bye week represents a good opportunity to make an appraisal of the entire defense and the totality of play through 7 games of action against a range of opponents. I'd like to see measured doses of Thompson and McCullough, but I don't see either player as a panacea. It's entirely possible that our flawed seniors are better and the D should move forward accordingly. But I'd like to know that after seeing their backups 20-25 snaps a game. Based on their performance, increase or decrease snaps accordingly.

On to Oklahoma State, where the Texas defense needs to create mayhem from the opening whistle.

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