Leadership Crossroads

I agree with your conclusion. They really have no choice but to keep trying to run it. The receivers can’t catch, the QB isn’t very accurate, and the OT’s can’t protect.

As for the psycho-analysis of the GD unconscious mind, that’s a little over the top.

That makes a lot of sense and sort of parallels my own opinion: Mack Brown wanted the power running game but GD and probably McWhorter also only agreed on this course grudgingly. The latter likely realized he didn’t have the horses to make it work, and the former has never been especially creative with or at all committed to the run. Obviously.

Our OL recruiting, for whatever reason, has left us thin and not especially talented there, so perhaps this was a misguided strategy, but agree that it doesn’t appear the staff bought into it.

Having said all that I think we play OU from the shotgun, Gilbert and the WRs display flashes of brilliance, but OU gets pressure, we turn it over in sundry fashion, and the Sooners kick our ass.

Sorry.

Keep running because they can’t pass it. They definitely can’t run it and that wont change. Ditch the tight end,spread it out, and let chunk it down the field. They haven’t been so great at that either but it’s a better alternative than pounding the rock mindlessly into 8-9 man fronts.

Running a successful power running game for a stretch against Rice isn’t a good example of why the Horns should go back to it this week. Texas just isn’t built to do it upfront this season with their older or younger players. I agree that the program needs to sacrifice this season for the next several, but don’t see how we can move to a power running game with our lack of a consistent downfield threat at WR and with our current roster of OL, TEs and RBs.

If the coaching staff is going to “force” something this season I think they should force something that will build for next season and that is a spread out vertical passing game. Malcolm Williams being an inconsistent bust being able to catch the ball and Marquise Goodwin not being able to get separation in getting deep is KILLING this team offensively. Yeah they haven’t had many chances because of GD’s conservative nature, but the vertical passing game goes with any future power running game if it is ever going to happen and should be the focus.

Have been having similar thoughts.

The promise of a more aggressive, power-running, play-action passing offense had to play a role in helping us secure verbals from the nation’s best OL class set to sign next February as well as the top RB recruit in Malcolm Brown. Wonder what they thought of Mack and GD scrapping the new set for the old spread shotgun at the first sign of serious trouble midway through yesterday’s game? That had the whiff of panic to me and worries me more than the specific outcome of the game. If they go back to the spread as our base offense I wonder if they risk losing some of those commitments.

They also risk losing this year’s team in important ways. What kind of message does it send to work on a new scheme for all of spring practice and fall camp only to scrap it when things go bad? To your point, Texas should stick with the new approach if it is serious about keeping Muschamp. It will be hard enough to keep him from leaving for Georgia if that job comes open. Tougher still if they revert back to GD’s preferred passive, pass-first offense

Not only should we not scrap the new scheme, we should commit much more fully to it. So far, we have changed alignments and run/pass ratios but even in the new set we still run a Greg Davis offense. We have three or four basic running plays with no misdirection and none playing off the others to force defenders to stay home and protect gaps. Can you see Davis going to a more coherent offense that does those things? I can’t. Such an offense would seek to dictate tempo and impose its will on defenses rather than “take what they give us.” Davis should go. So should MacWhorter whose best days are clearly behind him.

I agreed that we should acknowledge this as a rebuilding year and stick with the power/play action scheme, particularly rotating the young OL that show promise (Ashcraft, Kelly, Porter, Hopkins). We also should go forward with playing the freshman WR’s Davis and White as they offer things the older players don’t: effort and future. Both the OL and WR groups are fundamentally sloppy. I like using a simple power running/play action passing offensive approach and stressing fundamentals.

Mack’s best moments in Austin have come at tough times that required changes—after OU loss in ‘04 (letting VY loose) and A&M loss in ’07 (open depth chart and more accountability). Agree that we are at a similar moment, though changes probably won’t be made until after the season. How will Mack respond?

The Horns should throw in the young Offensive lineman, spread it out and throw it downfield. Let the young guys learn how to communicate pass blocking up front this season to get ready for next season. Work on the power running game again in the spring after hopefully getting more help upfront in the cupboard at OL and TE.

The Horns aren’t going to lose any commitments spreading it out and throwing it vertically….in fact that will help keep the guys because it will show them that they are needed to move to that which has been worked on so much in the off season.

But as Blogging Bevo says above—-running mindlessly in 8-9 man fronts behind suspect blocking the rest of this season would be assinine.

I totally agree. I am a longhorn fan as deep as they come but I don’t panic and I know when it’s just gonna be a tough year (because of young players and transitions). But when you have a young qb and a stout d that can keep u in ball games I just don’t understand why u abandon the run so early and start calling plays like the game is out of reach when ur down by 6 in the second quarter. Muschamp is great and it’s awesome knowing we have someone like him waiting to take over, but Mack is the G.O.A.T. (greatest of all time) and he is known for his second half adjustments and he needs to apply that specialty to his staff and make the change at OC to Mr. Major Applewhite. I know I’ll be voting Muschamp/Applewhite for the next class of longhorn leaders!

BrownDavis say every year they are going to establish a run game. And they fail to execute every year without Superfreak Young at QB. By now it might be a bit obvious that BrownDavis don’t know how. Passive spread offenses put up a lot of numbers and few championships. How many have BrownDavis won in their many years together?

God, please please get pummpeled by OU and Nebraska so we can fire someone (preferably GD, since I’m sure Mack isn’t going to fire himself).

“By now it might be a bit obvious that BrownDavis don’t know how.”

Ding ding ding

One big presumption I think is off base and that is the reasons for Mack wanting to go to the power running game. That was the offense Texas ran with Ricky and it was the basis for the offense until midway through Vince’s sophomore season. Over the next five years Texas went to a spread offense and slowly moved away from the running game.

Mack’s desire to return to the running game in my mind is not being pushed by Will. Mack made the comment after the championship game he did not want to be in the position where the success of the team rested on one player, Texas ran a run based offense during his early years in Austin as sited above, and it was the offense they ran at NC.

The problem Texas faces now is that they don’t have the receivers to be effective in a spread, don’t have the backs to be a power team, and did a poor job in the offensive line between 2005-2008.

When you look at the 2009-2010-2011 classes we see steps starting to be taken to change the shape of the offense, but until those kids get on campus and on the field it is going to be some rough afternoons for the offense.

A downhill running game this year is out of the question, and I believe out of the question for this group of coaches.

We aren’t just talking about a scheme — we are talking about a mindset, a Mission Statement if you will.

Our mindset has always been under Mack Brown to “take what the defense gives us.” That philosophy lets the defense dictate what you (try) to do. This philosophy is fine when you have superior talent (the defense can know what you are going to do and how to stop it, but it won’t matter in the end).

I don’t find that much of a Mission Statement.

If you want to run the ball, you can, but you have to be committed to the mindset.

Take a look at what Jim Harbough has done at Stanford. The cliche has always been that Stanford has to run a “soft” passing game because they can’t recruit enough talent and depth to run a power offense. They have to try and survive by throwing the ball around, hoping to get a min-John Elway and some swift receivers which will make them entertaining and enable them to go to a bowl and pull off an occasional upset.

Harbough came in and said “screw that, I am coaching what I know which is a power running game complemented by a vertical passing game.”

Do you know what Stanford’s season motto is?

“Win With Character, Win With Cruelty.”

In other words, we ask for no quarter, nor will we give it. We will play till the last echo of the whistle.

They lined up and ran over UCLA. They lined up and ran over Notre Dame. They still recruit the “Stanford” player — smart, athletic, but not necessarily seen as top D-1 talent, either because they are too small or a step too slow. That hasn’t stop Harbough from teaching the game as he sees it.

They used as many as 4 tackles on an offensive plays against Notre Dame. They had a tackle at tight end and fullback (and both BTW handled the ball). Tackles that might not be as big or as quick as elite D-1 tackles, but athletic enough.

They ran the counter trey. They lined up in a two-tight end and ran sweeps. They ran off-guard. They then had Luck throw over the middle and deep out of play action.

Stanford - the small private school that supposedly couldn’t possibly line up and play with the big boys. But Harbough is committed to his coaching philosophy and they worked it-and recruited to it. His players believe in it, and they did to UCLA and Notre Dame exactly what the Bruins did to us.

They wore their asses out until they gave up.

Texas talked a good game during the off-season about setting up a run game. Paying lip service is not enough. It simply isn’t seen as important enough to be part of the Mission Statement.

I agree with your post, but have never seen anything from Mack or GD that would suggest there is any chance of it happening.

I’m heading up to Dallas with the lowest possible expectations.

I agree that the MackDavis hydra has shown zero ability to instil hardnosed running game. I wonder though if Will can declare Greg a rummy and have Mack hire a new OC as a token of good faith on the coach in waiting scenario.

I’ve always believed Mack and Greg are joined at the hip and their phiosophies at odds with one another creating what Mack must believe is a synergy but is actually incredibly destructive.

The accommodation to Will makes a bit of sense and presents a hybrid scenario where Mack doesn’t leave and neither does Will.

Mack excels at lip service. Coaching…not so much.

Theoretical scenario:

It’s January 1st. UT has already played in its bowl game, having gone 9-3, watching OU win the South and get the at-large BCS invite after losing to Nebraska in the last Big 12 title game. UT’s fanbase and donors are furious.

Meanwhile, Georgia went to an irrelevant 2nd tier bowl, and finished with 6 losses. Mark Richt is fired. And Georgia’s first call is to Will Muschamp. The offer is 3MM a year for 5 years with options for merit raises.

Muschamp comes in to inform Mack of this offer and lays down an ultimatum. Either Greg Davis hits the breadline, or Muschamp is on the next flight to Atlanta.

What do you guys think Mack Brown does in that situation?

I’m heading up to Dallas with the lowest possible expectations.

I elected not to head to Dallas…with the lowest possible expectations.

What do you guys think Mack Brown does in that situation?

He wishes Muschamp well in Athens. He loves Greg more than UT.

Nate – IMO, I don’t see Muschamp putting forward an ultimatum. Either Mack works directly with him to make the necessary staff changes or he doesn’t. If the latter, Muschamp jumps at the Georgia offer and he’s gone. If Mack is already working with him on staffing for 2011, he stays.

I followed your post until the recommendation at the end, which struck me as from logical left field.
 
We can’t teach the running game and we’re incapable of doing the things as a total offense to make it work.
 
There’s zero question that there’s a passive aggressive element to Davis and I’ve commented on it before, but it’s not purposeful in the sense that he’s holding teaching back. He doesn’t understand how to coordinate the running game except when he’s made to run Vince’s high school offense. The zone read’s genius is that it has 80% of the natural counters and constraint plays already built in.
 
Trying to run a power running offense with poor OL, average backs, bad schemes, no TEs, and no receiving threat wide is folly.

I loved everything about the original post, but I don’t understand the conclusion….no worries, I’m slow like that. Good read though!

I’m a big believer that the goal of the 2010 running game (and hence the emphasis on it this offseason) was simply to force the defense to keep 6-7 in the box, instead of the 5-man-in-box that we saw last season from Nebraska and Bama (and OU to a lesser extent).

I think we figured out that opposing DCs reaction to our 4 WR with a Flex End offense of 2008 was to flood the field with DBs, and force everything short. They could play a BASE Dime (6 DBs) and add a 7th DB in passing situations. The only way for us to counter these DB numbers was to be able to run the ball.

But, alas, we couldn’t run the ball, epsecially in our last two games of 2009, and thus GD and Mack spend the offseason trying to figure out how to make a defense pay for using 6-7 DBs. Clearly, we don’t have the personnel, scheme, coaching, or intestinal fortitude to make such a drastic change to a power running game in a single offseason, and so the question becomes “do we stick with this approach in 2011 and make the personnel, coaching, and recruiting changes necessary to make this philosophical shift work?”, or do we recede to our historical philosophy of “put lots of athletes on offense and take what the defense gives you”?

I agree with the original poster that this philosophical debate will be part of the larger decisions of where this program is headed (and who is driving the bus) that will need to be addressed post-season. Get your popcorn ready.

Until then, expect this team to make wild swings in offensive approach and personnel on a game-by-game basis. Hell, we might come out in 2 TEs and an FB against OU, or we might come out in 5 WRs and play Mizzou-style offense against OU. Who knows…at this point, I don’t even think that Mack or GD know.

He trusts Greg Davis to do the right thing.

Davis, at this point, calls for a horizontal pass to a wide receiver.

There are some things we can do to salvage a ranked season, a decent bowl game, maybe a conference title, and even our pride. A great program doesn’t have to choose between winning this year and preparing for the future. Great ones do both. Change things gradually to match up with your personnel, which is why we are just not going to succeed with a “power running game” this year. I agree with several posts and comments from you good gents today and yesterday, and here are some similar basis points on where I am coming from before I give you the answer.

— we have no leadership, terrible execution, and played with no pride yesterday. I believe in our players and enough of our coaches to think that we can fix this. After that cluster of a game we better. BUT, this has to happen, and it’s not a given. If we don’t get the mental part of winning football down, ignore the rest of my comments and join Nordberg in staying off the forums for your own good.

— we have to run an offense that fits our players… and our OC and head coach. Greg Davis is at his best throwing it around with some type of spread or quasispread. Accept it. We have won and won a lot with it. But he/they aren’t going to change anytime soon, and we can win if we work within his limitations. And, we don’t have great RBs right now. Accept that too. (except maybe for Shead. That one’s for you big Scip)

— our running game is weak. Not completely useless, but it is obvious our best hope is to have enough of a run game to balance our primarily passing-based offensive attack. That’s just the way it is. We are weak here. Don’t cry about it or flail about helpless trying to get a pig to fly, just freakin maximize it. However low that ceiling is, at least reach that for crying out loud.

— our offensive players have speed and sometimes flash some big play talent. They do NOT flash any consistency at all, and won’t anytime this year. And, our best potential for big plays are with our WRs and DJ. Not our other running backs, and definitely not with our TEs. (understatement of the year candidate?)

— our defense is really great, but with a significant weakness. We are great against the pass and spread out offenses, but even with Lamar last year we were susceptible to power Os up the middle. That’s OK. Most teams we face will suck if we shut down their passing game, and we will. And those teams that can wear on us with their size in the running game will score some but not an insurmountable amount. (if we don’t quit again and play with pride on defense of course)

— THEREFORE, if we can get the mental side down (I think we can), and our offense scores just a little (I think we can), we can ride a great defense to a lot of victories. (if the defense doesn’t want this scenario, i.e. to lead and be a dominate defense, that is on them and their heart) Just like we all knew at the beginning of the season, the offense needs to work extremely hard to be a decent, above average offense. AND, here is how we do it.

1. Attack the defense with big plays in the passing game. We’re suppose to be attacking downfield, but M. Williams has 1 deep catch on the year. WTH. Stop with the insane notion that we need to keep it safe on O to help Gilbert. Freakin let him throw. It’s like we think merging onto I-35 going 25 instead of 55 is somehow easier or safer. IT IS NOT. It helps the defense just tee off on you, it hurts the running game that needs all the help it can get, and our guys are just not consistent enough for this. Take your chances downfield. Our net punts are only 30 yards anyway. Even if we throw a pick 1 out of 5 times deep, we’d be doing just fine compared to now. Throw deep. Get the ball to speed in the open field. Our receivers don’t have good hands and don’t run very good routes. So, take more real estate when you can. Do you want 7 out of 10 balls caught for 50 yards, or 5 out of 10 for 100 yards. With our defense and good field position, we don’t need long sustained drives. Just enough to put 20 on the board. Throw deep. Create space for our weak running game. Stop trying to wring water out of a dry towel. (I see Davis’ hands turning white trying to do this every game this year)

And to comment on Gilbert, he is not half as bad as some of you crazies think. 30 of 45 for 66%, 264 yards 1-1 isn’t that bad for a young QB. If we hadn’t dropped at least 5 passes I remember, he would have been 35 of 45. And some are saying he is not accurate. What tha hell do you want. Yes he missed the TD throw and had the pick. Those are the plays that Scip warned us about with a new starting QB. He is not at Colt or Vince level yet, but he does enough good things for us to win if we set him up for success. So far we haven’t. Yes his delivery is a little slow, so set up some good throwing lanes for him. He’s freakin got a Texas all time record arm, frekin use it down the field.

Throw the ball. Take your chances down the field. Score two TDs and get in field goal range twice a game. That is all that I ask, and all we need.

2. Dump the tight ends. Completely ineffective. I like them as people, and Matthews will be good someday. But right now, they are wasted space on offense. It would be better to trot out another tackle to block than EBS or Matthews if we needed a TE to run. But we don’t. We suck at running right now with our TE sets. Replace the TEs with another playmaker. (and I mean that in the literal sense of the word. Not world beater. Just someone who is actually capable, at least once, of making a positive play for the offense) 4 wide would be way better than our 11 personal set, but even better would be…

3. 3 WR-2 RB sets. I formation or split, with Cody as fullback and DJ as starting tailback (fozzy and tre can spell him and mix it up with more runs inside) Run DJ to the outside, on counters and especially delays and draw up the middle. He is deadly on a draw. It’s safer for him. And remember, we are not trying to pound it down anybody’s throut here with a 170 lb guy, just trying to hurt the defense for sending 7 in coverage deep down the field. You can mix it up when Tre and Fozzy are in with more runs up the middle. The genius here is with 3 wide going middle to deep most plays, and with DJ a threat on the corner, Cody would become a good inside running option against a spread out defense. Lots of opportunity here for misdirection, stretching the defense out to maybe generate a hole or two, who’s running the ball where, and it gives our running game a chance to succeed a little. 7 carries for 65 yards screams underutilization to me. 106 for 439 not so much. And, Cody is better in the passing game than the TEs. If you want him to block on the edge or get a pass, motion him. He will catch more balls than any TE of ours right now, and he might not go straight down when he does.

4. Don’t ever, ever, ever run another screen, dump off, or flare throw to our running backs. They are not good in space. Our RBs are 15 for 55 yards on catches, an impressive 3.73 y/catch. You think our run game sucks. At least these guys get 3.8 y/c when they run it. Just scratch those plays from the playbook. And while we are at it, never, never, never throw a WR screen to anybody but DJ, Goodwin, or Mike Davis. Minus the Kirkendoll TD late (after which he celebrates as any well-seasoned senior would do in that situation) he had 5 balls for 26 yards. Seriously. Why throw to him short. He has no ability to create something from that. And the screen game just puts our OL in another position to fail. Just have them lock on to a DL or LB for 2 seconds and hit that tiny hole with a quick scatback before it’s gone. Our Oline average close to 310 pounds. Don’t put them in space, just have them lean on somebody, whoknowwhatimean.

5. Separate your WRs into two groups. Possession/deep receivers and creaters. (I know possession and any of our receivers is funny, but hang with me, making something of this offense aint’ easy) Kirkendoll, Chiles, and Williams only go intermediate to deep, never short. Please let Malcolm drop deep passes with a chance of a first down, not the 2 yard interception waiting to happen. Mike Davis, Goodwin, Monroe, and White should get some WR screens. But use the screens appropriately, as change of pace from going downfield and to spread the D laterally, again, to help the run game up the middle with Cody.

6. Mike Davis 16 for 183 11.4 y/c 2 TDs What is wrong with this picture. Frekin throw him and others the ball DOWNFIELD.

Sorry for this novel, but it’s late and I could still go on with a few more ideas to optimize the offense. At least the above puts most of the guys in their best position to succeed while losing nothing by taking the TEs off the field. After that, it will truly be on the players to do what they can with the opportunity.

The Applewhite to OC fanboys are comical.

Applewhite could not even convince Mack to take Christine Michaels when it was clear Whaley had not delivered on his earlier promise, in both ability and attitude. He would get rolled as Mack’s OC. It would end badly for everyone.

The Major’s wife did him a disservice demanding he come home to Austin. It was a short-sighted career move. Not fatal, but not the right call. I wouldn’t be surprised to see him head to Athens with Muschamp; probably not as OC but more than a RB coach.

Thank God we’ll always have Bruce Chambers. Cause we ain’t getting rid of him unless we change the locks. (That might be a gratuitous shot, but we have waaaay too much deadwood on our staff.)

srr – great post. I’ve thought for a year or two that Harbaugh might be the guy. This year has convinced me of it. I don’t think there will be a call back home to Ann Arbor, certainly not anytime soon at least. Rumors have been that he’d ultimately like to return to the pros; I certainly don’t think Stanford is his last stop. Any thoughts?

Unfortunately, logic and reason rarely dictate what people will do. Emotion is the stronger driving force. How Mack FEELS about the current situation will determine what he does long term. I don’t purport to be able to predict that. From the outside looking in, it’s obvious that fresh minds are needed on offense. Nothing will happen there until the offseason, though, so this season is whatever Mack will make of it under current conditions.
Watching the postgame presser with Mack, I don’t recall ever seeing him look so disgusted, even disheartened. How much of it is anger, I can’t tell. I’m hoping he’s royally pissed off (Royally?).
A mad Mack Brown won’t accept bullshit. Maybe this was an eye-opener for him.
Time will tell.

If we have minus-five yards rushing after the first quarter, we’ll be a yard ahead of UCLA.

Just had to repeat it

spoke with my frend breefly after the game. the O line is really going to be stout in the coming stretch of games. he’s exited to see such tenacity in the trenches. The lite has really come on for Hix, Huey, et al, and Snow is a monster.

Scholes — Harbough is very comfortable at Stanford (he played for Palo Alto HS while is dad was on the Cardinal staff) and I think you are correct in that his next move is probably to the NFL.

ou is going to make us squeal like a pig.

I haven’t seen anybody mention this particular dilemma yet: Say, Mack does actually decide its time to move on from Greg Davis. With Muschamp already named as coach-in-waiting, that puts a very low glass ceiling over any new OC’s head. Seems to me you’re only going to get two types of OC with that limitation: those looking at the job as a temporary stepping stone to a head coaching job somewhere else, and those who for whatever reason are content with remaining an OC indefinitely. The former has obvious disadvantages that we dealt with on the DC side for several years before Muschamp. The latter category: I suspect that a rare breed and not necessarily a good attribute as ambition usually goes hand-in-hand with performance.

I don’t believe Greg is sandbagging the scheme or playcalls – he just doesn’t know how to do anything differently from what he does.

The offense isn’t getting better because 1) Davis doesn’t know how to construct a proper running game, and 2) when it fails to work, his reaction is to fall back into what he’s done in the past (and what he believes will work). Look at the regression over the last few games:

- Rice: tried to make it work, had some trouble along with some hopeful signs
- Wyoming: a bit of improvement on some of the blocking and running, but a noticeable increase in passing plays
- Tech: a clear move back to a pass-first offense, and a clear digression in the run game, out-of-context play calls. A step back.
- UCLA: meltdown – return of the early-2000s offense. Horizontal passing plays. Short conservative routes.

This offense has been headed in the wrong direction since the Wyoming game. The coaches will likely retrace back to their comfort zone, and Mack Brown will wag his finger at us and remind us that we’re not coaches.

I loved Major as a player but he hasn’t proven much as a coach. He seems to be a good recruiter and I want him on the staff but he was going to be demoted at bama before he came here.

anyone who thinks it was a bad idea for him to come here has never been to tuscaloosa and has never met nick saban.

Levander – I know it’s an outrageous accusation to say that GD has been sandbagging, and I do think he’s doing everything in his own mind to serve the best interests of the program, but the play-calling on the first drive of the Rice game struck me – at the time – as outrageous. It looked to me like they were trying to empty CJ’s tank on the first series.

The Titans are giving their own CJ the ball 25-30 times a game, but you won’t see him get five carries in six plays while running up-tempo, and you won’t see him get four straight carries in goal line formation starting at the 4.

If you think this doesn’t happen in real life, you haven’t seen Hot Shots! lately. That’s the one where the squadron leader conspires with an aerospace company to sabotage the current jets in order to spur the air force to buying more advanced technology. The squadron leader believed he was serving the best interests of his country, even though his treachery indirectly led to the demise of Dead Meat.

Without trying to look like a complete Applewhite apologist, I’m tempted to say that he’s the only offensive position coach that is doing any coaching in a positive way. Discounting the contribution of each position’s players to the overall mess that is our offense, I see RBs making the least of the fundamental & effort-related mistakes.

WRs (Kennedy) show little interest in blocking, poor situational awareness (run your route past the 1st down marker). Our best players are our younger ones (Davis, Goodwin). Kirkendoll and Chiles have attitude issues and Williams has bad hands. Kennedy appears to be a ‘recruiting hire’.

TEs (Chambers) are even worse. Smith is what he is, and Matthews is struggling with blocking and catching – had at least two critical mental errors that killed drives (either caught the pass short of the marker or dropped it altogether). No one else is stepping up. Chambers has been on-staff since Mack came in 1998 – recall that he was the RBs coach before that, and his only other coaching experience has been at Dallas Carter High School. Another apparent ‘recruiting hire’.

OL (McWhorter) is a disaster. Remember how excited we got several years ago when Nunez was ushered out, McWhorter was hired and the blocking sled was taken out of the shed? If we still use the sled, it doesn’t show. Passive, hit & release blocking without any engagement and drive. Guys standing around looking around while the play concludes. McWhorter doesn’t strike me as a recruiting hire, and I’ve seen him chew ass on the sideline, so I have to think that he’s accepted the inevitable and chosen to stop fighting City Hall until he’s sacrificed on the altar of the Brown/Davis conservative offense.

RBs (Applewhite) – I’ve seen what Major did at Rice with a bunch of brain surgeons and attorneys, so he’s capable of creating a cohesive game plan & scheme when allowed do. Less success at Alabama, but he was in an odd role-sharing situation there. I generally don’t see a lack of effort from our RBs, and the offseason message to Cody Johnson (re: lose weight or sit) seemed to hit home. I think these guys are trying to do what they can, without a lot of help.

QBs (Davis) – leaving the OC situation aside, I’m feeling bipolar about whether Davis is a good QB coach or not. At times, he seems to have done really well, helping Young round out some of the passing aspects of the game and developing McCoy. Then again, Young’s success was more attributable to what he did with improvisation and slowing the defense. Also, given what we saw with Simms and what appears to be happening with Gilbert, I wonder whether he knows how to teach anything other than short, low-risk passes to the edges. Again, it’s hard to tell where the OC stops and the QB coach begins.

Letting WM leave for Georgia would be like sacrificing your queen to save a pawn

I like what Balltastic Motivization said.

Putting our current TE’s on the field is a waste.

A combo of throwing deep and using Monroe as a scatback could at least make defenses have to think when they play us.

Deliberately running into 8-9 man fronts is stupid with our personnel.

Our defense is good enough that an average offense would give us a decent season in a rebuilding year.

Hook’em.

Balltastic: Phenomenal post/rant. Texas has always been bad at offensive player optimization. Especially the last couple years.

“The Applewhite to OC fanboys are comical.

Applewhite could not even convince Mack to take Christine Michaels when it was clear Whaley had not delivered on his earlier promise, in both ability and attitude. He would get rolled as Mack’s OC. It would end badly for everyone."

Please tell me this is some kind of sick, twisted joke. Of all the reasons to NOT have Applewhite as the OC, you choose the fact that he was the ONLY non-imbecile that saw how good Michael was and begged Brown to let him take him. Despite being the youngest coach on the entire team, he stood up to the rest of the coaching staff. His fucking debating abilities aren’t high enough or something? What was he supposed to do, sleep with their wives and blackmail them? These are the most stubborn, narrow-minded, egotistical people in the country. I’m hellzuh proud of Major for being the only offensive coach who doesn’t have his head stuck so far up his ass he can see his esophagus.

Fear not Longhorn fan. A nice day in the sun at the CottonBowl will be just the elixer to set Bevo Nation squarely on its feet. The Sooners have played four games and allegedly won them all. I doubt that. I sincerely feel my beloved Sooners are at 1-3 and hope anyone can prove me wrong.

This is a typical setting for Medium-Game Bob and the crew of over-hyped coordinators to have the team overwhelmingly unready to perform and unable to take advantage of the situation. My prediction is that Fuzzy Whitacker and Gilbert Godfrey are both Heisman contenders after the game Saturday. The other reason for my prediction is that I am wasting yet another Saturday in October to drive down to Dallas and watch the debacle. That guarantees a Longhorn W. The Sooners haven’t won while I was in attendance since Roy Williams (the OU version) bitch-slapped Chrissy Sims in Aught One.

It’s said in Norman that John Blake was the best coach Texas ever had. If that’s true, Brent Venables is the best D-Coordinator Texas ever had.

Just do me a favor, don’t think too highly of your pending victory over the Sooners. The Sooners ain’t that much. It’s much like asking a girl to the prom. You can ask the ugly girl and get an assured yes, cause it’s inlikely she’s gonna get a better offer. Or you can ask the prettest girl, but know your probably gonna get sand kicked in your face. So you ask the ugly girland puff your chest out ‘cause you got a date. Well, we really know it doesn’t mean that much and their ain’t that much to be proud of.

I agree that Davis either does not want to run the ball so he goes passive aggressive and sabotages with play selection or is just completely inept at play calling and it just looks like sabotage. Since this has been going on so long I think it is more of the latter.

No matter how the past has worked out, sometimes you just have to start over.

Balltastic moto…….good solid thinking with your post…..I’ll say it another way, “go win with what we have.”

NO SIDEWAYS OFFENSE until the downhill offense takes hold. Malcolm should be getting the ball at a miminum of 12-15 yards into the secondary everytime. Take advantage of his frame and speed, get a matchup that goes in our favor. Best catch Mike Davis has made so far was out of bounds against tech. Use his athleticism. Go routes to Goodwin with Malcolm on a post to keep the safeties honest.

The OL has shown zero ability to move in space and put their body on someone, believe Mitchell is 0 for 25 so far (three whiffs on one play, a reverse with Goodwin in the first game). Better bring out the FB and run lead and dive and lead.

GG seems to be getting younger with each game. He’s looking like your star 4A player who passed up his place in Sam Houston State history hoping to hit the lottery. An established deep threat would be a big help but no one tranferred in.

“I would hope that he would enjoy an exit like Tom Osborne, who finished his coaching career on a 60-3 run with three national championships in four years.”

Mack is too nice of a guy to do that.

I just watched the game again, and it was worse this time. I knew what was coming and not as emotionally invested as the first time. But man, with my 30 sec FF button, we really had one terrible play after the other. Again and again and again. Rapid fire. Boom, fumble. Boom, penalty. Boom, two dropped passes. Boom, players giving up and not tackling. It was shockingly horrific.

The good plays I saw on offense were down the field throws and the ONE delay draw that I noticed.

What a douche…why does everything have to come back to Nick Saban??? Scared of the future..i don’t blame you!

IDIOT!

We have recruits who were recruited for one system (wide open spread attack) who are watching an announced transition to another, much more conservative system. Guess what they’re thinking.

And yes, I have first-hand knowledge of one of our prized recruits thoughts, and they’re not pretty.

@orsitito you evidently cant sing and have no listening skills soo ill help you out here on what you should do- STFU!

There are actually loads of details like that to take into consideration. That may be a great point to carry up. I supply the ideas above as basic inspiration but clearly there are questions like the one you bring up where an important thing will probably be working in honest good faith. I don?t know if finest practices have emerged round things like that, however I’m certain that your job is clearly identified as a fair game. Both boys and girls feel the influence of only a moment’s pleasure, for the remainder of their lives.