So here we are.
All the rhetoric, the politics, the meetings, the threats, the media attention, grandstanding, the fighting over high school game coverage, networks and lack thereof, and the entire 2011 football season … It’s over. It’s a moment that’s been building for two years and a moment that the entire state has been keeping an eye on since last summer when the Aggies decided to take their ball and go east, leaving the Big 12 for the SEC. And while we still have basketball and baseball season (among other things), this is truly the end of one of the oldest and deepest rivalries in all of college sports.
And believe me, it IS over. The Aggies have made it clear to anyone that will listen that the Big 12 is unfair because of Texas. The Texas Longhorns have their own network, a burnt orange media bias, their own network, an endless supply of money to fuel their machine and their own network. The Texas Longhorns have created an unfair playing field and the Fightin’ By God Aggies of Texas A&M University are not going to take it anymore … But they still want to play every year. Yeah, okay. Imagine someone telling you, “Hey, listen, it’s not me, it’s you. You are arrogant, mean, and don’t care about me or my feelings at all. I can’t stand you. I mean I really, can’t stand you. Hey everyone, look how much I hate this person! Look over here! Look at me yelling about how unfair this person is to me! In fact, I am moving so I don’t ever have to share air with you again … But it’s cool if I still come to your Super Bowl party, right?” No, thanks, Ags.
So this is it. I thought it wouldn’t affect me at all, but it is affecting me and I’m sure it is affecting you, too. Every single one of us has an Aggie in our family and no doubt the conversation turns to football at some point. Smack is talked, be it really aggressive or very subtle and joking, and there have definitely been moments at weddings, Christmas dinner, summer barbecues, etc. where they went all Aggie and you went all Longhorn. We grew up together, went to high school together, hung out in college during the breaks — How many of you made roadies to College Station? The Dixie Chicken has a bit of my money. — and some of you even married each other. We make fun of their ruralness and their Aggieness, and they make fun of whatever it is they make fun of that is supposed to be insulting that I don’t understand. It is just part of it and both sides have grown up knowing that the weekend of Thanksgiving was going to involve Texas vs. Texas A&M. Growing up many of us had our entire Thanksgiving weekend planned around that football game. You ate earlier on Thanksgiving Day than most people, or you ate out, because you were on the road to College Station or Austin as soon as you were done. Or you had it after you got there or even postponed it to Friday. And then there were the 10 am games on T+1 (the day after Thanksgiving) when everyone was up at dawn to get going. We all have those stories and memories.
And now it’s gone. Now you’ll just be another SEC team I occasionally pay attention to waiting for Texas to play, and Texas will be the Big 12 team you’re angry about being on your TV every weekend. It didn’t have to be this way, Ags, but it is this way. It’s going be weird not seeing you, but I guess we’ll both adjust, won’t we?
So let’s dance one last time, shall we? See you later this week, Ags, same time as always, at your house.
No.13 KANSAS ST. 17 No.23 TEXAS 13
Without hyperbole, that was the single most frustrating loss of recent memory for the Texas Longhorns. When Texas’ final pass fell incomplete, I think about half the stadium was about to explode. The frustration and anger were palpable, as unbelievably bad officiating and unbelievably bad offense overshadowed an unbelievably awesome defensive effort and sent Texas to 6-4 with their second straight loss. I don’t know the last time I’ve seen a team get so thoroughly dominated offensively and win the game, and even the K-State fans around me couldn’t believe what just happened. They did enough to win, though, as they seem to do every week. Post-mortem — here’s what I saw on Saturday:
Quarterbacks: I could dissect the qb spot all day, but the bottom line is it’s clear to me right now that Texas needs to give Case McCoy a shot quarterback, and I don’t mean in mop up or relief duty coming off the bench. Yes, some of his passes were short and yes, he doesn’t have the biggest arm in the league, but he seems so much more comfortable running the offense than David Ash does right now. I’m sure it has a lot to do with just being a year older and going through the grind of an entire season already as much as anything, but he looks more confident and more decisive out there right now. You just can’t turn the ball over that many times at the qb spot and keep your job. Case McCoy had a few high passes and a few deep balls he was off on, but I attribute that to a lack of reps with the first team as much as anything. It’s hard to be spot-on when you aren’t getting the majority of reps in practice.
I think that changes this week as McCoy gets the majority of the work leading to Thursday. It has to be him, because he gives Texas the best chance to win.
Running Back: You saw flashes of what the talented freshmen could do, but you could also tell they were both still hurting and not 100%. Cody Johnson almost had the play of year when he took the Wildcat snap and squeezed through the line of scrimmage and then galloped 55 yards to the K-State 23 to give a Texas chance to tie the game.
Excuse me, Mr. Referee: What exactly is a horse collar tackle? On that play a K-State defender grabbed Johnson by the collar from behind to bring him down. He couldn’t do it, but he slowed him down enough doing it to tackle him at the 23. I didn’t realize you had to be successful in your horse collar tackle for it to be flagged. Is that what you thought, or were you totally blind? Which one is it, you need glasses or you need a rule book? It should have been Texas’ ball on the K-State 10 or so after that penalty, but you blew that call, too. You are terrible.
It was great to see Cody Johnson be a factor in his last home game after all he’s given to Texas, but I sure wish he had another 23 yards in him. Not a bad day from the backs at all, but, aside from that run, I saw no big plays from anyone to break a tight game open.
Wide Outs/Tight Ends: Another incomplete? In the first half they were open, but everything was high or behind them, or both. The interception in the first quarter was the right read, but it was off target, causing a ricochet into a Kansas State linebacker’s arms.
I loved the pass to Irby for a touchdown and it was awesome to see him get a score on Senior Day in his last home game — probably not his last game if he wants to stay, a medical hardship surely brings him back — but Texas seems to have totally gone away from the tight end in the last few weeks. Maybe it’s a product of the quarterback play, but it’s time to revisit them, yes?
A healthy Jaxon Shipley changes that game with his abilities underneath and the guys out there were fighting their tails off, but they need more passes in better spots to be effective. Marquis Goodwin seemed SO CLOSE on his reverses. He finished with 35 yards on three carries and was great on the end around.
Offensive Line: Much better this week. It wasn’t great and it wasn’t dominant, but they weren’t whipped like they were in Mizzou. It’s hard to put it on them when the K-State had no respect for Texas’ passing game and had the entire defense on the line of scrimmage all day. Keep fighting guys, because almost all of you are back next year.
Defensive Line: Outstanding. Jackson Jeffcoat and Alex Okafor combined for 12 tackles including eight for loss with two sacks. The two were relentless in their pursuit of Collin Klein, who had four yards rushing after sacks, and I’m sure he’s still seeing them when he closes his eyes. Inside the tackles also did an excellent job, with the top three combining for 8 tackles. Kheeston Randall was a beast with four tackles and a half sack and looks like the NFL tackle we thought he would be. I really like the rotation of Dorsey, Howell, and Jackson along with Randall. You just don’t run on these guys. At all.
Texas had to shut down Collin Klein and the K-State running game to win and they did exactly that.
Linebackers: Emmanuel Acho is on fire right now. He again led the team in tackles with 12 including a sack. He was everywhere, as were Keenan Robinson and Jordan Hicks, who added eight and five tackles respectively. That’s 25 tackles from the linebackers, who along with the defensive line held the power running game of K-State to a mere 38 yards rushing.
Terrific.
Secondary: What an awesome statement made by Quandre Diggs on the first play for the K-State offense. The Wildcats threw a quick pass to try and catch Texas inside waiting for the run. Collin Klein threw it outside and the second receiver was to block Diggs; however, Diggs had other ideas. He fought through that block, hit the receiver with the ball and not only made the tackle, but picked him up and body slammed him in spectacular fashion for a loss. The secondary held K-State to 83 yards passing and while they gave up a touchdown, they never let K-State get anything going. Just as important, they didn’t allow the K-State running game to break any long runs, and they kept Collin Klein from making any big plays with his feet.
Aside from the big gain on 3rd down at the end of the first half, K-State was as ineffective throwing the ball as Texas was. And why no review on that play? Again, terrible officiating.
Special Teams: That call changed the game. Tied at 3 right before half, Texas punted and the K-State punt returner fumbled and the Horns recovered inside the Wildcat 30. But, as you saw, the referee threw a flag for kick-catch interference and Kansas State got the ball back. Only problem was THERE WAS NO KICK CATCH INTERFERENCE. He wasn’t any closer than, say, every K-State defender on every fair catch Texas had. Awful, awful call as it went from 1st & 10 Texas at the Kansas State 29 to 1st & 10 Kansas State at their own 46. Credit to the Wildcats for taking advantage and scoring, but it should never have happened. That was the worst, most idiotic call of the day in college football. It absolutely changed the game, because if Texas gets the ball, it’s at least 6-3, and the odds are very high Kansas State doesn’t get the ball back with enough time to score at the end of the half. Being up 6-3 instead of trailing 10-3 is kind of a big deal, don’t you think? Absolutely awful call.
Once again the special teams put the offense in a place to score, and once again the offense couldn’t close. Last week a big punt return resulted in a missed field goal and this week a big return netted nothing. After cutting the lead to 17-13 and holding K-State to a 3 & out, Quandre Diggs returned a punt 24 yards to the K-State 49. He actually took it another 10 yards or so, but upon review he stepped out at the 49. So that’s reviewable, but the long reception on the sideline by K-State at the end of the first half isn’t? Sure, that sounds right. I wish there was html code for snarky sarcasm, because I would have this entire sentence in the (rude sarcasm) (/rude sarcasm) tags. But Texas went 4 & out after four straight passes.
Texas was very close to popping that Diggs return for a score, but they didn’t. I surely don’t fault the effort, but with an offense struggling, the specials (and the defense) needed to score but couldn’t do it.
So …
So many chances to win that game and it just didn’t happen. The turnovers were deadly and the officiating was AWFUL, but in the end Texas lost because they didn’t score when they had to. That must change this week or it will be more of the same. Mack Brown has a 24-hour rule, meaning 24 hours after the game you put it away, so that’s what I’m doing. Texas is 6-4 and I think you’ll see a new quarterback and some healthier bodies on offense.
It’s Aggie week!
No. 25 TEXAS (6-4/3-4) @ TEXAS A&M (6-5/4-4)
Thursday, November 24th
7 pm
ESPN
Alright, fellas, it’s time for the last trip to Gig’em. These fans are sky high because, honestly, they hate Texas that much. This is the biggest game ever in College Station. How big? Some idiot has malformed a longhorn by weighing its horns down, and there is internet buzz this longhorn with downward shaped horns will be on the field at halftime. Yeah, that’s how much they hate Texas. This means everything to them, and if Texas doesn’t respond in kind, they will get blown out.
Expect Texas to respond in kind.
Ags
These Ags look a lot like Mizzou on paper. They have a great offense, a suspect defense in places, but excel in other places defensively. Can Texas find those places and exploit? Can the defense slow them down enough to win this game? Let’s see.
Offense
This offense is excellent. They rank sixth nationally in total offense, averaging over 512 yards per game, and they do it with a balanced attack — 218 yards a game on the ground (15th nationally) and 293 yards through the air (18th nationally) — and while they can score (40.91 points per game), they can also turn it over.
The trigger man is Ryan Tannehill. The 6-foot-4, 222-pound senior took over last season when the Aggies went on their November run and has never looked back. On the season he has 3,191 yards passing with 26 touchdowns and seven interceptions. He’s completing 63.5% of his passes and has 275 yards rushing and four scores on the ground. Tannehill is a great athlete who started his career as a wide out before moving back to qb and has good speed, a good arm and knows his offense. There are times when he’ll make some questionable throws, but for the most part he’s on target and smart with the ball. Obviously, he can run and he will run, mostly by design, but he’ll also scramble out of trouble as well. Tannehill is the leader of this team and the guys respond to him. He can and will pick a defense apart if given the time.
His top targets when he has that time are Ryan Swope, Jeff Fuller, and Uzoma Nwachakwu. Fuller is the beast with NFL talent and bloodlines and was considered the star coming into the season. He’s got next level size at 6-foot-4, 222 pounds and over his career he’s shown the ability to be the No.1 guy. Injuries this year have sapped him of that confidence and production, but he still has 602 yards receiving and four scores. And don’t forget his torching of Texas in 2009. He’s still that same guy. The No.1 guy now is a senior from Austin, Ryan Swope. The 6-foot, 206-pound Westlake alumnus has 1,069 yards receiving and 11 touchdowns, both team highs. He looks like Jordan Shipley with his great routes, great hands and playmaking ability and he just seems to be in the right place at the right time all the time, scoring touchdowns and making highlight reel catches. He has great speed, but mostly does damage by getting to spots and finding holes in the coverage. Allen junior Uzoma Nwachakwu also had a career day against Texas in 2009, if you remember. At 6-foot, 194 pounds, he’s similar to Swope in size and abilities, but he isn’t quite as polished as Swope right now. He’s third on the team with 549 yards and two scores and has shown the willingness and ability to go over the middle. There are other guys that Tannehill will throw to, but these are three that move the chains and make plays.
But if the Aggies are successful they want to run the ball. They took a hit when Christine Michael went out for the year, but they still have running back Cyrus Gray. I still see Gray running for DAYS last year in Austin. Anyway, Gray is the real deal and will play on Sundays. On the season the senior has 1,045 yards rushing and 12 scores and at 5-foot-10, 200 pounds, he is the complete package with speed and power; but mostly speed. If he gets into the open field, good night. A&M has lost their rotation at tailback, but they still have an excellent one in Gray. They want to get Gray going downhill, controlling the line of scrimmage and then take shots downfield to their wide outs.
Knowing that running is the key, they will put this game in the hands of their excellent offensive line. They are young but very, very good. You see the great numbers the offense puts up, but they have only allowed seven sacks on the season, which is dynamite. They are big, strong, talented and young and I will not miss these guys next year, because with no upperclassmen starting, they are going to be even better in 2012. Get ready, Horns, because this line is as good as any you have played all season.
Even still, the yards inside are going to be tough to get. Texas has shown they can play some run defense, so I expect A&M to spread Texas out and come out throwing, testing the Texas safeties in coverage. Up tempo, no huddle and see if you can catch Texas out of position. The Aggies want to knock Texas out early with the passing game, then run away and hide with their strong ground game in the second half. Can they do that? Sure they can, but will they? Who knows? They don’t seem to do anything rational in the second half, so they’ll probably throw a ton and even if they have a lead, letting Texas back in.
Defense
They really get after the quarterback. Their 3-4 look is very hard to deal with, because hardly anyone runs it and, like a defense getting ready for the option, your scout team never runs it as well or as fast as the opponent’s starters who do it every day full speed. That confusion leads to blown assignments, and those blown assignments lead to sacks. So far the Aggies have 41 on the year, which is eighth nationally. They like to bring their linebackers to get to the qb and do it well with Sean Porter (8.5 sacks) and Demontre Hurst (6.5 sacks), similar to the old school Aggie defenses you remember.
And while they excel at stopping the run (107 yards per game) it looks like they do it with scheme as much as talent. Don’t get me wrong, starters at a (probably never) SEC Championship team have to be good, but the numbers tell me that when and if an offense figures out protection, they can absolutely shred this secondary. They allow 292 yards a game through the air and 17 touchdowns.
I see a defense that relies on its scheme to make plays, and while winning is winning and playmaking is playmaking, it means that there will be opportunities for an offense to out-scheme them. It’s a different story when the opponent just overpowers you because there isn’t anything you can do about that. That isn’t the case with this defense; and if Texas can scheme it right, I see lots of opportunities.
Special Teams
They are excellent at punt returns with Dustin Harris, who averages 20.5 yards per return with a score. Just like Texas, they have proven commodities at kick returner, but the 21 yards-per-return on kickoffs tell me they haven’t figured out how to break them loose. Harris can make plays, as can Cyrus Gray if they want him returning kicks again.
Kicker Randy Bullock is 21-25 on the season and is automatic inside 30 yards, but not so automatic outside of 30. They need touchdowns, because if this gets into a field goal game, it’s not going right for them.
Both kickoffs and punts are solid to very good. Punter Ryan Epperson can flip the field with a long kick, evidenced by his nine punts over 50 yards.
They need to not lose this phase. That’s a win for them, because it means Texas didn’t win.
TEXAS
Shake it off, fellas. It was ugly, it was frustrating, and it was another loss; but I see some positives coming out of this. Here we go:
Offense
As I said above, let’s give Case McCoy the keys and see how he drives. Not for a series, not for a quarter, but for the game. David Ash is a big boy and he knows what’s going on, so get him ready as the back-up and let’s see what Mr. McCoy can do.
Texas obviously wants to get the ground game with the running backs established, but this game is going to be won on the arm and legs of McCoy and the play calling of Brian Harsin. Like I said, I think this defense has big holes that many teams have shown the ability to take advantage of; but Texas is going to have to throw the ball to make that happen. I expect Texas will get their yards on the ground, but I don’t know if it will be enough to counter the points A&M will score. Case McCoy will get a chance to show us if he can throw the ball and win this game. And with the pressure coming from the linebackers, he will also get a chance to show us how well he scrambles. A couple of broken pocket scrambles for first down will back that blitz off and loosen everything up. Case McCoy came to Texas to follow in his brother’s footsteps and be the next great Texas quarterback: I think he gets his shot Thursday night.
And Brian Harsin will get a chance to make some things happen. I think you’ll see more of the free-wheeling offense of the early season — some more reverses, a reverse pass, something like that. The tailbacks will be a week healthier, and I think a really confident Case McCoy will make this offense better.
The o-line needs to be dialed in. They need to talk, communicate, and pass off players in protection. This defense is hard to figure out, but it can be figured out. As Dalton says in Road House, “Watch my back, I’ll watch yours, and take out the trash.” Give McCoy some time, fellas, and he’ll make some plays.
Defense
Keep on keepin’ on, boys. The Horns are playing a potent offense, but they will not be intimidated or shy away from the moment. This is the best offensive line Texas has played, but this might be the best defensive line Texas A&M has played. You don’t have to get sacks, but you need to get into the backfield and disrupt Tannehill. Come to stop the run in the front seven, keep Tannehill in the pocket, and don’t let him break contain.
The secondary is going to give up some plays and some yards, but they can’t let the Aggies get second chances. If you get a hand on the ball, CATCH IT. No missed tackles, no blown assignments. Last year Texas’ breakdowns in the secondary, particularly at safety, were devastating against Texas A&M, as Cyrus Gray got into the secondary and scored twice. The same thing happened against Oklahoma State. Know where you have to be and make the tackle.
The biggest thing the defense needs to do is keep Texas hanging around. A&M is explosive and will score, but they have shown they will wilt, both mentally and physically, in the second half. Keep the game close and you’ll see their attitude change as the fourth quarter starts.
Aggies will score, but the defense will keep this close enough for the offense to win it.
Special Teams
And the special teams can also make this happen today. They need to keep Dustin Harris in check, because he can break one, but Texas’ punt coverage and rugby punting can do just do that. I like Justin Tucker in the kicker match ups, and I could care less about the 12th man. A big return for Texas will set something up. It has to in order to help the offense.
IT’S ON …
This is winnable, don’t think for a second it isn’t. Texas A&M can move the ball, but Texas has shown they can stop you, whoever “you” are. The defense and special teams are going to keep this close enough for the offense to win it, and if the staff will trust Case McCoy to make some plays, the offense can come together.
We got nothing to lose, boys, because I’m sure everyone has A&M winning this. The atmosphere will be nuts, the armed band will make right turns with stunning accuracy for the screaming masses, the stadium will rock and sway, and the (almost surely never) SEC Champs will be sky high. So everyone stay loose, talk at the line of scrimmage, trust each other and yourselves, and this could end up being a day very similar to Texas at Nebraska last year.
LAST WEEK IN THE BIG 12
Friday, November 18th
No. 2 OKLAHOMA STATE (10-0/7-0) @ IOWA STATE 37 2 OT
Oh, you’re so Oklahoma State. Look at you, getting all Oklahoma State-y. I was expecting this at Texas a few weeks ago, but since then I thought you were truly a team on the way to play for it all. But no, I guess not. Still, you can win the conference, but who cares? I love Paul Rhoads after a big win. He’s awesome. Was that field goal good? Hmm.
Saturday, November 19th
No.5 oklahoma 38 BAYLOR 45
Anyone try the bbq grilled cheese?
KANSAS 7 TEXAS A&M 61
Whoop! Whoooooooooooooooooop! Now THAT is how it’s done. Who is next? Who will the (undoubtedly not going to be) SEC Champs take on next? Texas? TEXAS? The Longhorns? WHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOPPPPPPPPPPPP! WHOOOO … (passes out)
TEXAS TECH 27 MISSOURI 31
Not exactly as I thought it would go, but the end was the same. Mizzou is bowl eligible; Tech is done. DONE.
THIS WEEK IN THE BIG 12
No. 4 OKLAHOMA STATE (10-1/7-1) IDLE
No. 11 KANSAS STATE (9-2/6-2) IDLE
Saturday, November 26th
No. 9 oklahoma (8-2/6-2) @ IOWA STATE (6-5/3-4) 11 am F/X
You know who went to Iowa State? Me, neither.
KANSAS (2-9/0-8) vs. MISSOURI (6-5/4-4) 2:30 pm ABC
This is hate. This isn’t like Texas/ou hate, this is Civil War, border-state atrocities hate. This is Josey Wales leaving and going to the SEC and John Brown wanting one last shot at him before he leaves. This hate will make this close, for a while. Josey Wales wins. Big.
No. 18 BAYLOR (7-3/4-3) vs. TEXAS TECH (5-6/2-6) 6 pm FSN
Baylor. Big. BIG. I guess. This is it for Tech, who came with far more energy than I expected last week. They need this to get to a bowl, but Baylor is hitting on all cylinders right now and RGIII is back in the Heisman race. I expect the Bears to take over Cowboys Stadium for this game and I expect they mop the floor with Tech’s face. |
