What do Texas A&M, Baylor, SMU, and U.T. San Antonio have in common? They’re institutions of higher learning with football teams in Texas that are ranked higher than the Longhorns in the current A.P. and Coach’s college football polls. Okay, so you say there’s no way SMU and UTSA have better football teams than Texas? Maybe you’re right. But these rankings are indicative of the Longhorns underachievement. Again.
Four Fingers
Since Texas has been outscored 41-7 during the 4th quarter in their last two games do you think they should participate in the cliched four-finger wave before the start of the 4th quarter against Baylor?
Coffee is for Closers
So Sarkisian showed the team a popular motivational video called “What if he falls?” The video depicts free-climber Alex Honnold who climbs the 3,200 feet of El Capitan at Yosemite National Park without a rope. Honnold could’ve quit many times on the way up the mountain but finishes strong.
Here’s the video I would show them.
But seriously folks, all this talk the last couple of weeks about team psyche regarding the second halves of football games is psychobabble gobbledygook. Texas simply needs to make a play or three when the going gets tough. And it wouldn’t hurt if Steve Sarkisian had a play-call or two when the offense needs to change the momentum with the game on the line. For all his play-calling prowess, I haven’t seen a perfectly timed play-call that Sarkisian had up his sleeve when he needed to win one for the Gipper.
Attitude
In many close games during the past 10 seasons, it seemed to me a Big 12 opponent such as Iowa State, Oklahoma, or Oklahoma State played and coached with more confidence and wanted to win more than Texas did. Beyond the Sugar Bowl win over Georgia, it’s hard to recall Texas playing a game with attitude. Rice doesn’t count.
Casey Thompson
Texas is an average team. Nothing more, nothing less. Average is good enough to win every game remaining on Texas’s schedule with one caveat. To win every remaining game or even four out of the last five requires a better-than-average quarterback. Through six games as a starter, in my opinion, Casey Thompson has been average. He did not play well versus TCU or Oklahoma State. He could evolve into a good quarterback, but the clock is ticking. He doesn’t have the arm talent to be a great quarterback.
Hudson Card
Well, everyone I talk to is down on Hudson Card because of the Arkansas game. In my opinion, Sarkisian and his staff were as much responsible for Card’s struggles in that game as Card was himself. I think I saw enough in the Louisiana game to believe that Card could be a way above average quarterback. He has the arm talent. At some point it would be best for the long-term prospects of the Longhorns that he gets an extended chance to play.
Baylor
Baylor is an average 6-1. Three of their wins came versus Texas State (not yet ranked higher than Texas), Texas Southern, and Kansas. Their notable wins were over Iowa State and BYU.
Baylor is 7th in the country in rushing averaging 238 yards a game at 6.1 yards a pop. Texas is 115th in the country allowing 201.3 yards a game at 5.2 yards a rush. Uh oh. The old irresistible force versus the very movable object. Ian Boyd who covers the Horns for Inside Texas points out that if you remove the Oklahoma game from the equation, Texas is giving up only 144 yards per game at 3.7 yards per rush. Yes, and if you take out my junior year 1.8 GPA—don’t ask—I had a 3.0 overall GPA.
Baylor Quarterback Gerry Bohanon is listed as 6’3” and 221 pounds. He has modest rushing statistics, but he has run for 6 touchdowns, and I’ll bet he’ll have key runs in this game. He’s averaging 224 yards per game passing with a healthy 9.1 yards per attempt.
Baylor’s leading rusher is Abram Smith with 785 rushing yards and 10 touchdowns. They also have Trestan Ebner who has 496 yards with a 188-yard 3-touchdown performance versus BYU.
On paper this is not a good matchup for Texas and Baylor is favored by 2.5 points. Texas is coming off a bye week with time—theoretically—to correct recurring mistakes and gather themselves for the second half of the season.
Seems to me the quarterback matchup is the key to this game. Which one will play better?
Willie Earl’s Song of the Week
“Amarillo by Morning” Written by Terry Stafford and Paul Fraser. Performed best by George Strait.
This is by far my favorite Country song and it’s in my Apple Music Library and on several of my playlists. I first heard it while taking a free introductory Country dancing lesson with Helen at Arthur Murray in 1985. It’s one of “Our” songs.
But I’ll be lookin’ for eight
When they pull that gate
And I hope that
Judge ain’t blind
Amarillo by mornin’
Amarillo’s on my mind
Hook “Em,
W.E.
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