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When Texas played Missouri in 2004, I was completely convinced by halftime that the crew of Big 12officials who called that game had bet big, huge bucks on the Tigers to cover. There were so many awful calls that went against Texas in that first half that the game still ranks up there in my mind with Grant Teaff’s final game in Waco as one of the two worst officiating atrocities I have ever witnessed.
But Missouri is Missouri, always has been and always will be, and even with the assistance of at least half a dozen blatantly horrible calls going against the Longhorns in that first half, Vince Young still had his team on top 21-14, on their way to a 28-20 final score. So the good guys won in the end, but didn’t come close to covering the spread, and the memory of the one-sided officiating has stuck in my mind.
That memory gave me great pause as I tried to decide whether to put down a token bet on Texas to cover in this year’s game in Columbia. Frankly, that was the only thing that gave me any pause about this one, because again, Missouri is Missouri, and always will be.
What does that mean, you ask? Think of it this way: Missouri is like a very beautifully decorated angel food cake. It’s shiny, it’s got some very flashy features, maybe some nice ripe strawberries on top, it looks good sitting in the middle of your table, but when you finally cut it open and take a bite of it, there’s just not much substance to it.
This is the Missouri football program.
This is the story of the Missouri football program – always has been, always will be. There’s always some good looking talent on-hand, they always manage to whip up on a couple of early doormat opponents and get some notice from the poll voters. But when it comes down to having to toughen up against any really good team with a solid defense, we invariably discover there is just not much there. Missouri is the angel food cake of the Big 12 Conference. Always has been, always will be.
And so the Longhorns got their sugar rush on up in Columbia on Saturday, devouring virtually the entirety of Missouri’s homecoming angel food cake in the first two quarters of the game, just as they did in Austin in 2008. They scooped up a few remaining crumbs of cake and spots of icing with their fingers in the second half on their way to a very easy 41-7 final.
I’m a big fan of angel food cake, but I’d sure hate to be a fan of the Missouri Tigers.
Let’s go to the Good, Bad and Ugly:
Good - Another game with Missouri, another 35 point first half. Ho-hum.
Good - Marquise Goodwin loves to block – he never quits on a play, and is always looking for someone to block. I like this guy. A lot.
Good - Like the running game with guards pulling and misdirection. Is it really necessary to wait until the middle of the season to show that stuff? We ultimately put it in every season, so it’s not as if OU doesn’t know it’s in our playbook, and it’s not as if we were fooling the Sooner D last week. I also really liked the way we used our backs, and the backs we used. A Fozzy/Cody rotation gives this team its best chance to mount a consistent running game.
Good - Fozzy’s TD – he is the only back on the team that scores on that play. None of the other guys have the moves or the speed to get there. If Fozzy can stay healthy, our run game will be fine the rest of the year.
Good – the Heart Attack Hawkeyes. Iowa is probably the least impressive-looking Top 5 team I’ve ever seen, playing down or up to the level of their competition every week. But they just keep on winning, pulling out a last second stunner over Michigan State in East Lansing last night.
Bad – the performances yesterday by both Florida and Alabama. What we are seeing with these two teams is that their defenses are both great, and their offenses stink the place up. Neither team should scare Texas fans a bit. They are both very beatable.
Bad – pass protection, again. Missouri freshman Aldon Smith schooled Ulatoski, Hix, and let’s not forget Greg Smith, all night long. Aldon Smith finished the game with 11 total tackles, 4 TFLs and 2 sacks. Ugh.
Just OK - Referee Tom Walker and his crew – is this same crew that called last year’s A&M game? I’m not sure. I am sure that the head linesman in this game was consistently spotting the ball back – placing it at the spot where the knee hit the ground, rather than where the ball was when the knee touched. This is exactly what the Head Linesman did in our game with A&M last year, costing the RBs for both teams a yard or more on pretty much every running play. Very frustrating. Otherwise, the officiating was fine, although I still don’t understand why Missouri was awarded their TD, after their WR took not one, but two steps out of bounds and then came back in to make the catch. But whatever – it don’t make a shit, ref.
Good - Colt’s not sick, and it shows.
Good - What??? We actually threw the ball downfield to Chiles? How can that happen? I thought he was only allowed to run the 2 yard hitch route? Talk about diversifying the offense…
Ugly - Musberger talking about how critical “style points” are to the BCS system. Goddammit, this is football, not Dancing With the Freaking Stars. Ugh.
This is where “style points” matter, Brent.
Good – Kirk Herbstreit’s color commentary. This guy has become the best analyst working college football today. Always prepared, always astute, always adds to the audience understanding of what’s happening on the field. And most importantly, never detracts from what’s going on on the field with annoying or goofy antics. Lapham, Knoxie, and the entire FSN team could take lessons from this guy and be a lot better off for it.
Bad - Deon Beasley’s got to be pissed today – John Chiles gets credit on Mack Brown.com for 2 tackles, including Beasley’s first quarter sack of Gabbert. The guy must feel like Rodney Dangerfield.
Good - Malcolm Williams – several things. He really does need to improve his ball protection skills. The first two times he caught the ball, he fumbled at the end of the play. Then he had the big drop later in the first half. But man, when he does catch the ball and hang onto it, he is freakishly good. I hope the coaches will finally show a little patience with him. Terrell Owens has crappy hands, too. Plus, Malcolm continues to make big plays on punt and kick coverages – he was pretty much the first guy down the field on every first half kickoff in this game. The kid works hard, and deserves a real chance to play. It’s not as if there’s anyone better waiting behind him.
Let Malcolm be Malcolm, please.
Good – It’s 21-0 with 10 minutes left in the 2nd quarter before Missouri runs a play in Texas territory. Gawd, I love this defense.
Good – our fourth possession of the night, early in the 2nd quarter, was the first time the Missouri defense had held our offense out of the endzone on a first half possession since 2005.
Bad – A&M destroys Tech at Lubbock, winning there for the first time since 1993. Or is that good? I can’t decide – I pick Bad because I just hate to see A&M win any football game. Aggies are much more fun in their traditional doormat role.
Ugly - the Big 12 North Division. Kansas State is going to win this division – that’s how bad it is. Bill Snyder shows back up in Manhattan at the age of 71 or so, and immediately gets a moribund KSU program back on top of this smelly heap of pissant teams. Nebraska, which two weeks ago looked to be the front-runner, has now dropped back-to-back games to Tech and Iowa freaking State. Bye-bye, Huskers. Todd Reising single-handedly threw the game away for Kansas against Oklahoma. Adios, Jayhawks. Colorado has been a Jekyl and Hyde team all year, and went back into its Hyde act on Saturday, falling to Snyder’s bunch, 20-6. Missouri conclusively demonstrated yet again that they simply aren’t tough enough to play with the big boys. Snyder’s KSU teams have never really had a problem with toughness, or lack thereof.
He’s baaaa-aaack.
Good – TCU. How good must the Horny Toads be? Blasting BYU in Mormon country is no small matter. Maybe they actually deserve to be ranked as highly as they are.
Good – Shipley in the slot. This is where Jordan needs to be – it’s where he’s most effective. This keeps him away from the other team’s best CB, and allows him to play catch and go with Colt on crossing routes and outs. Why we went away from this in the first half of the year is a bit of a mystery.
Ugly – Baylor’s all-gold home uniforms. Mercy. What nitwit thought those were a good idea? Seriously, somebody in a position of authority took a look at a mockup of those things and thought “Ohhhhh, yeaaaaahhhhhh, me likey those!” Really?
Ok, see the guy on the left? He looks like shit. Thanks.
Good – Texas special teams were very special in this game. The blocked punt TD by Curtis Brown was huge, obviously. But man, we were even covering KICKOFFS last night!
Good – Colt McCoy. His first half line read 18-21, 213 yards, 3 TDs. Makes you wonder how things might have been different the previous two weeks had he not been puking in the locker room just prior to kickoff. In all seriousness, this game was the first time the 2009 Colt McCoy truly looked like the 2008 Colt McCoy. Now that the coaches have taken the shackles off of Colt in the running game, and are beginning to allow him to actually throw the ball down the damn field every once in a while, maybe he’ll look this good the rest of the year. If he does, we will be playing in Pasadena.
Good – Big Defensive Stand. Early in the 3rd quarter, Colt threw his lone INT, giving the Tigers the ball on the Texas 39, their first short field situation of the night. What do our guys do? On first down, Curtis Brown devastates Gabbert for a 11 yard loss on a throwback pass play. On 2nd down, Brown has the intended receiver blanketed as Gabbert throws the ball incomplete at the guy’s feet. On 3rd and 21, Kindle breaks through and makes first contact on Gabbert, and then Eddie Jones pounds him to the turf for another sack. Verdict: 4th and 36. Muschamp was kind of happy. He was having so much fun on the sidelines, and it’s great to watch. I’m having a serious man crush on this guy. Not that there’s anything wrong with that.
I am not gay. But if I were to ever be gay, I would want to be gay with Will Muschamp.
Defensive Player of the Game – Curtis Brown. He just had an excellent night all around, and since I’m giving the special teams player of the game to someone else, I’m calling this one for Curtis. Truthfully, the entire D played so well, it is very hard to pick from about 8 guys, including Sergio Kindle (who just blew shit up all night), Eddie Jones, Lamarr Houston, Sam Acho and Earl Thomas, to name a few.
Special Teams Player of the Game – Malcolm Williams, who was ubiquitous on every coverage play of the night.
Offensive Player of the Game – Colt McCoy. Just a great night from a great football player.
Ok, listen up: Next week is the biggest game of the year. It’s the one game on this year’s schedule I’ve been most concerned about since about 5 minutes after we beat Ohio State in last year’s bowl game.
Oklahoma State at Stillwater is the most dangerous game left on the schedule, by far. The Cowboys have been a slight disappointment so far this year, but looked solid in all parts of the game yesterday at Baylor. Zac Robinson appears to have finally gotten in sync with his new WRs, and looked a lot like the guy we expected to see all year yesterday.
The OSU defense is not great, but it is strong and fast enough to give our offense some problems, certainly more than Missouri was able to present on Saturday. We should have a significant advantage in the special teams.
Bottom line: If Texas plays well, Texas beats OSU. The only way we lose is by committing mistakes and turnovers. Same way we lost to Tech at this point last year.
This year’s Longhorn team is overall a team that is better equipped to go undefeated than last year’s was. The reason why is obvious: Defense.
Last year’s Texas defense was good. This year’s Texas defense is great, possibly the very best defense in the country. While I think it is entirely possible our offense will show up in Stillwater unprepared to play, as it has 5 times already this season, the chances of Will Muschamp’s defense showing up unprepared to play ranges in the slim to none area, and Slim just left town.
Nationally, Texas has no superior. Florida and Alabama will remain ranked ahead of the Longhorns after their squeakers against Mississippi State and Tennessee, but neither team is a world beater. The reality of the national Top 3 is that they are all teams with hellacious defenses and offenses that are inconsistent at best. Of those three teams, Texas is the one with the most potential upside on the offensive side of the ball.
The Longhorn offense put some of that upside on display against Missouri. The changes at WR, with Williams and Goodwin as starters and the move of Shipley back to the slot, produced big dividends on the field. The implementation of counters and misdirection in the running scheme, along with letting Colt be Colt, produced similar improvements in the ground game. If the offense can continue to advance from week to week, Texas will most likely be the most balanced team in the nation by the end of the year.
They key now is for the coaches to keep everyone focused, and avoid the kind of mystery letdown that has plagued this program late in the year.
Personally, I like our chances.
Hook ‘em!!!
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The Tres Leches said:
October 25th, 2009 at 7:56 am
Last time Texas went to Columbia, we won 51-20. You’re thinking of the 2004 game in Austin.
EyesOfTX said:
October 25th, 2009 at 8:01 am
Goddammit. Thanks for the correction.
Trips Right said:
October 25th, 2009 at 8:05 am
A Sunday morning tradition barring weddings. Great piece.
You’re right on about the OSU game. This will be their jihad game ala tech last year. Unlike last year, this team is peaking at the right time and suspect the outcome will be much different.
blacklab said:
October 25th, 2009 at 8:10 am
And unlike last year this isn’t the 4th week in a row playing a top 10 team.
5thGenTx said:
October 25th, 2009 at 8:13 am
Great read.
Greg Davis scares me still, as he does for at least part of every season. If our O shows up to play in Stoolwater, that’ll be 2 straight weeks of great play on O-once that happens I’ll rest my nerves about us continuing to be inconsistent on offense.
That was a #1 team in the country performance last night. Offense, Defense, and ST all clicking while blowing out a team on primetime TV and on the road in a B12 game.
jinx said:
October 25th, 2009 at 8:18 am
Ugly - ABC deciding people in Florida would rather watch the USC - OSU game rather than the end of the Texas game. Didn’t seem like much happened after the switch though.
Ugly - CBS announcer continually reminding us that Bama - Tenn was as close to an NFL game in college as we would ever see. No wonder I only watch the NFL for fantasy football reasons.
hg03 said:
October 25th, 2009 at 8:23 am
Underrated point blacklab.
At this time last year our team (defense in particular) rolled into Lubbock with legs that probably felt like they were made of lead. Not to mention playing under that national microscope for 4 weeks in a row under tremendous pressure.
Last night our starting defense essentially spent 2 quarters on the sideline (we had the ball for 12 minutes in the 1st quarter). Anyone who has played a season of football at any level can tell you that’s not something to dismiss this late in the year.
Our guys will have a little extra giddyup this next week. There will be no letdown.
uthookem said:
October 25th, 2009 at 8:23 am
If we score early on OSU, the game is over (similar to what happened when OSU played Tech late last season).
Great read!
The Bobs said:
October 25th, 2009 at 8:24 am
re: those Baylor uniforms…
I saw those and immediately thought of Bob Falfa in American Graffiti:
“Say, I like the color of your car there. What’s that s’posed to be? Sort of a cross between piss yella’ and puke green ain’t it?”
EyesOfTX said:
October 25th, 2009 at 8:26 am
A Bob Falfa reference! Pure greatness. :)
BornaHorn said:
October 25th, 2009 at 8:35 am
That CBS comment about the NFL might have been accurate had it been limited to certain divisions - like the NFC East - where teams struggle to throw the ball (poor Qbs and stout defenses).
UF’s blocks were sad.The Bama guy got great push but the kicker hit him in the armpit. The kicker was hitting 2-irons when he should have been hitting 5-irons. I don’t know, maybe he thinned 5-irons.
Dawnpatrol said:
October 25th, 2009 at 8:42 am
Note to Self (Greg Davis) scribbled on his Crossword puzzle book:
Run Cody, throw to Malcom, no Wildcat, throw ball downfield, start Fozzy, tell Malcom to hold on to ball, we can throw to the TE, thank Will again and again, do not play conservative against Okie St….don’t forget bottle of vodka and Colt’s Emergen-C at store
Dawnpatrol said:
October 25th, 2009 at 8:43 am
Note to Self (Greg Davis) scribbled on his crossword puzzle book during Mizzu game:
Run Cody, throw to Malcom, no Wildcat, throw ball downfield, start Fozzy, tell Malcom to hold on to ball, we can throw to the TE, thank Will again and again, do not play conservative against Okie St….don’t forget bottle of vodka and Colt’s Emergen-C at store
p said:
October 25th, 2009 at 8:46 am
Watching SEC football, I had a few thoughts………
Man, I really missed playing middle school football.
Is the forward pass illegal in the SEC?
Does Tenn’s defense know that the Bama QB is only throwing to Jones?
Johnathan Crompton is turrible Kenny………turrible!
Is it me, or are the refs trying to make sure Fla and Bama stay undefeated?
Tim Tebow might try throwing with his right hand. Who knows……… he might be better.
HelmetBoy said:
October 25th, 2009 at 8:47 am
“Good – TCU. How good must the Horny Toads be? Blasting BYU in Mormon country is no small matter. Maybe they actually deserve to be ranked as highly as they are.”
Didn’t Florida State blast BYU in Mormon country? Gary Patterson has another nice team, but I’m not blown away by that result. Great write-up.
jinx said:
October 25th, 2009 at 8:48 am
Good - Navy beats Wake Forest without throwing a forward pass. Are they applying for membership to the SEC?
TXinDC said:
October 25th, 2009 at 8:51 am
“I still don’t understand why Missouri was awarded their TD, after their WR took not one, but two steps out of bounds and then came back in to make the catch.”
An offensive player can come back in-bounds and be eligible to make the catch if he is forced out by a defensive player (as opposed to the offensive player stepping out to avoid contact, in which case he is rendered ineligible). Although it’s definitely arguable, I would say our DB had pushed him towards the sideline, forcing him to step out. I’ll give it to him.
I loved the play call for the Chiles TD. It’s as if the coaches reviewed Chiles film and said, “hmm, if he makes contact (of the non-tackling type) after the catch, he’s got miles and miles of YAC.” So they told Chiles to run straight at the DB, cause some conflict, and then jet. It worked.
Beer Good said:
October 25th, 2009 at 8:58 am
Did Leach have any post game comments concerning Sherm’s QB usage?
Keep sprinkling in a win here and there Sherm. I’m in no hurry for aggy to wander back over to TCU with courtin’ on their minds..
ghostofagroundgame said:
October 25th, 2009 at 8:58 am
I love what Malc Williams showed last night. Dude can catch a bubble screen or the patented McCoy two-yard hitch and then accelerate down the line. He was turning those into 8-12 yard gains. Something Chiles can’t do. He does need to work on taking care of the ball. I assure you that every scouting report for the rest of the year will have something in it about trying to strip him after catches. Goodwin was quieter in the pass catching department, but my GOD he was blocking downfield. Loved that. Kirkendoll is nothing compared to Goodwin.
Glad to see Cody and Fozzy playing well. Colt looked rusty running the ball, but I was glad to see some of that too.
My favorite play of the night was the Power-I on 3rd and 1, when Houston was lead blocking for Cody. Shit, that is something no one else in the Big 12 can do. And that is an unpossibly good short-yardage play.
MerHorn said:
October 25th, 2009 at 8:59 am
Do we just ignore the two awful passes by Colt that should have been Int on back to back possessions?
The first he locked in on Malcolm and hit Weatherspoon in the chest. The second he looks to the middle of the field then throws right towards Malcolm w/out looking first, hits LB in the chest but he drops it.
TO’s are the only way we lose a conference game and those two throws can not be made by a 5th year senior. Maybe I set the bar too high.
ghostofagroundgame said:
October 25th, 2009 at 9:02 am
Mer -
That is part of the Colt package. He’ll dodge a couple of sure-fire sacks, make some key first downs with his legs, and throw at least 3 horrible should be picks a game. The good news is that he made those throws to the center of the field last night, rather than to the flats. One is just an INT, the other a pick-6.
MerHorn said:
October 25th, 2009 at 9:02 am
TXinDC: I think they ruled he was pushed out so he could come back in. On the Chiles play..we run that route a lot and it was there at least 5 times last week as the CB would jump our slot running the 5yard out..Colt just did not throw it last week. I bet it had everything to do with film study from last week.
p said:
October 25th, 2009 at 9:15 am
MerHorn-
I saw those and thought, ” Even though we looked better, 2007 Colt is still in full swing”
I am worried about Colt’s turnovers. Last year vs OU and Mizzou are the only games in which we played a competent defense, and didn’t have a turnover.
This year we are turning it over at an alarming rate, and it’s pretty much been #12.
SL Xpress said:
October 25th, 2009 at 9:18 am
Just one thing about the OSU game. At this point, how big a lead would the Cowboys have to establish before people associated with the Texas and Oklahoma State programs feel like Texas can’t possibly make a comeback?
horn in exile said:
October 25th, 2009 at 9:29 am
The 2005 game was tied at 14 before vy blew it open in the 2nd half, and mizzou did have some defensive stops in that half. Therefore, no correction was needed.
NY Horn said:
October 25th, 2009 at 9:32 am
I agree that as long as we play well, we should win comfortably next weekend. OSU’s offense isn’t nearly as dynamic after losing Pettegrew, who tore us up last year. I also doubt Dez is cleared for our game. I see them scoring around 14-17 with our offense scoring around 27-31.
ghostofagroundgame said:
October 25th, 2009 at 9:37 am
Guys —
The one thing everyone is forgetting - we have the best defense I have ever seen from a Texas team (I was born in 1978 and started watching soon thereafter). I don’t see OSU’s offense scoring more than 14. If we lose it will be from bad turnovers. And I don’t think that is going to happen.
MerHorn said:
October 25th, 2009 at 10:03 am
P: Do not forget that last year he hit an ou LB in the chest late in the game when we were in the Red Zone and that LB dropped it as he hit the ground as somehow that guys could not figure out how to have a ball in his hands while keeping his feet under him. That TO would have been a killer IMO.
burnt orange outrage said:
October 25th, 2009 at 10:03 am
Thoroughly enjoyable writeup as always, Eyes.
I agree on Herbstreit being the best in the business. His competence is accentuated all the more by the fact that he has to broadcast games with Brent Musburger, who is and has always been nails on a chalkboard to me.
BTW, did anybody catch ESPN Gameday Saturday morning? When they were doing the picks, Corso said Arkansas had “shot their wad” last week and Herby just about lost it. He said, “Are you allowed to say that?” and then couldn’t get a complete sentence out the rest of the segment. Fowler finally said, “Behave yourself over there” as Herby was trying to stop laughing. It was the funniest shit I’ve seen on TV in a long time.
pfc said:
October 25th, 2009 at 10:05 am
Nice read. Good info.
I got to say bad for me was that maybe Dan Buckner has a ways to go. I thought he had broken out, but he looked lost out there. Good was how we got a defense/special teams where people just would rather not play, looked like Blaine Gabbert couldn’t wait to get off the field. I think the rest of the offense was jealous of him on the side lines.
If we play a SEC team for the title it’s going to be interesting. That Tennessee team is damn good so I was impressed with Alabama. They just play power football, HUGE lineman, it’s going to a massive challenge on our defense especially as the game wears on.
p said:
October 25th, 2009 at 10:14 am
ghostofagroundgame-
I think most people are waiting for this team to have a defensive let down against a potent offense.
ghostofagroundgame said:
October 25th, 2009 at 10:20 am
p -
I understand the concern. This year’s defense is different. Case in point — in year’s past if we were up 41-7 in the 4th quarter of a game you knew we’d give up at least two trash scores because we’d go into a prevent. Not this year. We are supremely talented, motivated, and playing 4 quarters of football. I understand the hesitancy, but this is a different defense and a different team in that regard. You’ll see.
Bartoncreek said:
October 25th, 2009 at 10:24 am
I assume that is sarcasm r.e. Tennessee. After all, they got manhandled by bad UCLA and Auburn teams in Knoxville.
This is the 2nd best defense we have had in the last 30 years. The 83 defense was better (15 players taken in draft that year). But, this defense is awesome and fun to watch. I get teary eyed wondering how good we’d be if Scott is able to play.
Thanks for the writeup, great as always, Eyes.
pfc said:
October 25th, 2009 at 10:28 am
Tennessee is a young team with a quarter back that was horrible that is now decent. They played Auburn before everyone figured out their offense. If you think we’d beat Tennessee by 30 you’re dreaming.
MerHorn said:
October 25th, 2009 at 10:29 am
p -
what do you consider a let down? I do not know one person who has watched this team this year week in and week out that expects this defense to lay an egg. If you are not convinced this defense is legit then I do not think anything can be said to make you feel better.
Will Muschamp said:
October 25th, 2009 at 10:29 am
Good – Big Defensive Stand. Early in the 3rd quarter, Colt threw his lone INT, giving the Tigers the ball on the Texas 39, their first short field situation of the night. What do our guys do? On first down, Curtis Brown devastates Gabbert for a 11 yard loss on a throwback pass play. On 2nd down, Brown has the intended receiver blanketed as Gabbert throws the ball incomplete at the guy’s feet. On 3rd and 21, Kindle breaks through and makes first contact on Gabbert, and then Eddie Jones pounds him to the turf for another sack. Verdict: 4th and 36.
When Colt threw that int, Texas was at their own 33 yd line. When Missouri punted, Texas took over at thier own 40 yd line. The defense gave them a net gain of 7 yards on the exchange, including the punt yardage.
Baby Shit said:
October 25th, 2009 at 10:29 am
Baylor can expect legal action if those uni’s are ever worn again without my expressed written consent.
TXinDC said:
October 25th, 2009 at 10:34 am
Can I add:
Bad - Giving Gilbert only 3 tosses ahead of a big game for the whole team. This would’ve been a great opportunity to give the kid some driving practice, and instead he played insignificant mop-up.
Bartoncreek said:
October 25th, 2009 at 10:35 am
Never said we’d win by 30, but if anyone thinks we’d need to block a FG at home to escape with a win over Tennessee….. Alabama has looked like the best team in the country so far this year, but yesterday’s game was nothing short of pathetic and makes me wonder. There are definitely no world beaters this year.
HenryJames said:
October 25th, 2009 at 10:35 am
When Colt threw that int, Texas was at their own 33 yd line. When Missouri punted, Texas took over at thier own 40 yd line. The defense gave them a net gain of 7 yards on the exchange, including the punt yardage.
The defense is just ridiculous.
nordberg said:
October 25th, 2009 at 10:38 am
It’s almost unfair to compare this defense with the 83 one. For starters, imagine this defense going against 1983 offenses, and vice versa. It’s just a different era.
TXinDC said:
October 25th, 2009 at 10:48 am
One last point to make - this makes it 4 for 4 in the defense knocking the starting QB out of the game (Tech - Potts, Colorado - Hawkins, OU - Bradford, Mizzou - Gabbert).
ghostofagroundgame said:
October 25th, 2009 at 10:51 am
I enjoy this defense so much. And it adds a level of security to watching games that I cannot remember ever having.
Oh Chaucer said:
October 25th, 2009 at 11:00 am
Good- turning in that performance on ABC prime time just as the two craptastic SEC games were on.
Oh Chaucer said:
October 25th, 2009 at 11:01 am
Good- turning in that performance on ABC prime time just as the two craptastic SEC games were on. And with no Yankee game to distract from it.
JP said:
October 25th, 2009 at 11:01 am
ghost -
Coach Boom Motherfucker = nice, comfy, burnt orange blankie for all Horn fans…
pfc said:
October 25th, 2009 at 11:22 am
Yeah I didn’t mean to exaggerate you’re point on Tennessee. I actually only saw only about half the game but it looked so different. I was impressed by how much time Crompton had to throw the ball, AL got to him some on with speed guys on the outside but some plays he was just had plenty of time. Like the exact opposite of Colt who has been running for his life. Tennessee was able to power runs for a pretty much guaranteed 3-4 yards. Felt like SEC football is just different, less emphasis on speed and more one these giant OL guys, tight ends, full backs and powering runs.
I think Texas is shaping up to be the best team in the country. I love our defense. I’m just curious to see a game vs Alabama would go.
Florida doesn’t look that good to me. I’m not sure if they are over emphasizing Tebow in the redzone thinking of the heisman or they don’t trust anyone else.
houstonearler said:
October 25th, 2009 at 11:37 am
“The 2005 game was tied at 14 before vy blew it open in the 2nd half, and mizzou did have some defensive stops in that half. Therefore, no correction was needed.”
The refs were screwing us over left and right in that first half at Missouri 2005. Vince was pissed when he scrambled for 33 on 3rd and 30. He even mentioned something about the officiating after the game.
Macanudo said:
October 25th, 2009 at 11:55 am
“Bad – the performances yesterday by both Florida and Alabama. What we are seeing with these two teams is that their defenses are both great, and their offenses stink the place up.”
Great defenses or shitastic SEC offenses? Do you think Tennessee hangs around at all with Texas or Oregon or USC? I’d like to think that Crompton might not finish a game against a good non-SEC opponent. Hell, Cincinnati probably smokes Tennessee by 15-20 and I think the Bearcats are overrated.
EyesOfTX said:
October 25th, 2009 at 12:12 pm
“BTW, did anybody catch ESPN Gameday Saturday morning? When they were doing the picks, Corso said Arkansas had “shot their wad” last week and Herby just about lost it. He said, “Are you allowed to say that?” and then couldn’t get a complete sentence out the rest of the segment. Fowler finally said, “Behave yourself over there” as Herby was trying to stop laughing. It was the funniest shit I’ve seen on TV in a long time.”
===========================================================
I saw that - it was hilarious.
To clarify on my questioning of the Missouri TD call: The WR does NOT have an ufettered right to run OOB simply to get around a CB and then run back in bounds to catch the ball. Chykie crowded the guy to the sidelines - that’s what a good CB is supposed to do on that play - but he did NOT shove the WR OOB. The guy simply ran OOB to get around Chykie. Because of that, IMO, that was an illegal touch and a bad call.
Not that it mattered, of course.
Hook ‘em!!!
p said:
October 25th, 2009 at 12:27 pm
MerHorn-
I didn’t say me………. I said some people. I was happy with Muschamp last year.
Eyes-
Even if the receiver is pushed, he cannot continue to run his route out of bounds, which in my opinion, the Mizzou receiver did just that. If you watch he took a good threw to four steps out of bound, after initial contact.
EyesOfTX said:
October 25th, 2009 at 12:32 pm
P Said - exactly. He should not have been awarded the TD. It made no difference in the outcome of the contest, obviously, but I’m sick to death of these obvious bad calls being made, and then made even worse by a replay official who apparently doesn’t know the damn rules well enough to reverse them.
Plus, I’d have liked to have seen if the D could have held them on that possession.
Hook ‘em!!!
Sugarpants said:
October 25th, 2009 at 12:37 pm
No doubt the receiver went out of bounds and made no attempt to get back in. It was a mercy call. Why be ticky-tacky in a blowout?
EyesOfTX said:
October 25th, 2009 at 12:46 pm
Sugarpants: because at that point, it was not yet a blowout. The Mizzou TD made the score 21-7, hardly blowout territory. It was obvious how the game was headed, of course, but strange shit happens sometimes, and the damn rules are the damn rules.
JMO, of course.
Hook ‘em!!!
bigdukesix said:
October 25th, 2009 at 12:48 pm
Florida doesn’t look that good to me. I’m not sure if they are over emphasizing Tebow in the redzone thinking of the heisman or they don’t trust anyone else.
The latter. Meyer isn’t the type to hurt his team just to improve a player’s Heisman chances (in other words, he’s not an idiot). Their RBs are all pretty mediocre and Hernandez appears to be their only pass-catcher worth a damn.
Wild Thing said:
October 25th, 2009 at 2:39 pm
Bad: Snow’s consistency on his shotgun snaps. A couple of those offerings were just a bit outside.
Sugarpants said:
October 25th, 2009 at 3:52 pm
Eyes - I think we could all see the direction the game was going. It was going to be a blowout unless Texas went to sleep in the second half. I know if was only 14 points at the time, but up until the M-I-Z…Z-O-U had done nothing.
charlie varrick said:
October 25th, 2009 at 3:53 pm
Sure the offenses are different between now and ‘83. But I agree that this defense is the best Longhorn defense I have seen since ‘83. The biggest similarity is that Leon Fuller and coach Boom were and are two of the best in the business. We’ve had other large fast defenses but not the coaches to stir the pot.
parlin said:
October 25th, 2009 at 4:02 pm
The infractions on that Missouri TD didn’t come from the receiver running out of bounds.
They were (1) the trademark infringement on WildHorn®; and (2) the fact that he decided to come back in and be part of an 11-man offensive play that gained positive yards.
Those were the infractions.
ransomstoddard said:
October 25th, 2009 at 5:40 pm
‘Shot its wad’ is not, as suggested, a profane reference but rather has its origins in the firing of cannons in the 1800’s. Now, resume discussing what a horrible excuse for a qb Tebow is. Seriously, does anyone not employed by ESPN think this guy will play one minute in the NFL?
Bob in Houston said:
October 25th, 2009 at 5:51 pm
Not as a QB, anyway.
ghostofagroundgame said:
October 25th, 2009 at 5:57 pm
Not as anything other than team chaplain.
BornaHorn said:
October 25th, 2009 at 6:54 pm
I like the comparison between Fuschamp and Fuller. It seems quite apt.
Dave said:
October 25th, 2009 at 10:27 pm
2000 Texas-Stanford outweighs the Grant Teaff game, the ‘72 US-USSR basketball game, and all of the Texas at Lubbock games combined in officiating infamy.
Art Vandelay said:
October 26th, 2009 at 7:27 am
Great post Eyes.
“Good – Marquise Goodwin loves to block – he never quits on a play, and is always looking for someone to block. I like this guy. A lot.”
He is an even better track athlete. Go watch him sometime when track gets rolling early in 2010. He will also have a very good shot at a medal in the long jump at the 2010 Olympics in London.
“I am sure that the head linesman in this game was consistently spotting the ball back – placing it at the spot where the knee hit the ground, rather than where the ball was when the knee touched. This is exactly what the Head Linesman did in our game with A&M last year, costing the RBs for both teams a yard or more on pretty much every running play.”
Thank you for pointing this out. It was driving me nuts as well.
“Good – Malcolm Williams – several things.”
Malcolm Williams may be the most physically gifted player on the team, and his hustle blows me away.
Finally, I know it’s Tech but how do explain the A&M/Tech score… and the fact that it wasn’t a sellout?
Gene Claude said:
October 26th, 2009 at 7:59 am
Bring back James Brown, please.
Gene Claude said:
October 26th, 2009 at 8:13 am
And, the only thing more annoying than fans that whine about officiating are those that whine about officiating from games half a decade ago, after they win both the current and the half-a-decade-ago game. Christ.
What would complete the Texas hegemony right now? I realize it isn’t enough to complete 75% of your passes, turn four star recruits away at the door and have the hottest women on earth. Do you need to realign the remaining Big 12 states so they actually orbit Texas? (Please make Kansas Pluto, sirs). Should there be a brief pre-game fealty-to-Texas period in which opposing fans, players and refs genuflect to the south? Perhaps the Texas justice system could spare time from its busy execution schedule to inject an offending referree as part of the pre-game ceremonies?
houstonearler said:
October 26th, 2009 at 8:56 am
“I am sure that the head linesman in this game was consistently spotting the ball back – placing it at the spot where the knee hit the ground, rather than where the ball was when the knee touched. This is exactly what the Head Linesman did in our game with A&M last year, costing the RBs for both teams a yard or more on pretty much every running play.”
He must have been related to the Head Linesmen at the UT-USC game. That guy screwed Texas out of about 50 yards that night.
Vasherized said:
October 26th, 2009 at 9:58 am
What would complete the Texas hegemony right now? I realize it isn’t enough to complete 75% of your passes, turn four star recruits away at the door and have the hottest women on earth. Do you need to realign the remaining Big 12 states so they actually orbit Texas? (Please make Kansas Pluto, sirs). Should there be a brief pre-game fealty-to-Texas period in which opposing fans, players and refs genuflect to the south? Perhaps the Texas justice system could spare time from its busy execution schedule to inject an offending referree as part of the pre-game ceremonies?
Nice work, GC.
Yes to all of the above. Now assume a kneeling position and stroke the ring.
HenryJames said:
October 26th, 2009 at 10:14 am
When Brown chased after Colt when got hit out of bounds, I can’t decide if that was good, bad or ugly.
BrickHorn said:
October 26th, 2009 at 10:40 am
Now assume a kneeling position and stroke the ring.
No thanks. Not that there would be anything wrong with that…
topo gigio said:
October 26th, 2009 at 10:42 am
Gene Claude - please be sure the pre game homage to UT includes chicken blood. It’s gotta have chicken blood.
bill w said:
October 26th, 2009 at 12:04 pm
Scipio,
I will disagree with you on this one. Missouri’s DC just did not bother to copy the way OU defended us until the second half. Once he did, they basically shut our offense down even with Colt in there. The UT defense played great! Our offense still needs to be more unpredictable, put receivers in who can get open and catch the ball, and utilize some plays actually designed to effectively run the ball. Heck, GD could just copy Missouri’s run scheme and we would be much better.
We have some good receivers, but as you have mentioned before they do not see much game time. Just send Marquise deep once a quarter, and it will definitely loosen up the defense so that GD’s short passing scheme will work much better. I would hate to defend that young man on a deep route.
hornbymarriage said:
October 26th, 2009 at 1:09 pm
“I am not gay. But if I were to ever be gay, I would want to be gay with Will Muschamp.”
I’m glad I’m not the only one who feels this way. Let’s pray it keeps the pressure on GD to continue to actually try “coaching” for a change.
bill w does make a good point about our second half O.
ghostofagroundgame said:
October 26th, 2009 at 3:00 pm
I’m not sure that is a good point about our second half offense. We kind of folded up and went conservative, as is Mack’s usual M.O. in a blow-out. I will say this — Colt looked much, much worse in the second half, which might have been due to some defensive adjustments. We also played our second-team for most of the 4th quarter and saw alot more Kirkendoll and Chiles.
EyesOfTX said:
October 27th, 2009 at 6:49 am
Just a note about Malcolm Williams - in his presser yesterday, Mack went out of his way to praise Malcolm, and told the press that he had graded out at 38 on special teams, which is the highest grade any Texas player has achieved under the coaches’ scoring system. Given the great coverage guys we have had in the past under Mack, that is H-U-G-E.
Hook ‘em!!!
action said:
October 27th, 2009 at 2:19 pm
Sorry Dave, nothing outweighs the Grant Teaff Game.