Instanalysis - Game 1

[Matt Cotcher]

The Longhorns got their first win under Head Coach Charlie Strong on Saturday night - INSTANALYSIS - GAME 1

 

[streettopeschel]

''The guys got complacent'

Wow.

 

[monarch]

hey look, i had some serious fun.  isn't this all that matters...​

 

[Matt Cotcher]

''The guys got complacent'

Wow.

I think he wanted that one back immediately after he said it.

 

[Lukus Alderman]

The total dominance of our defense surprised me as did the inconsistency of our offense. It was a bit of a give and take from the first game, but I'm not sure many people, myself included, realized just how difficult it would be for our offense to replace four starters on the offensive line. It's going to be a work in progress, especially considering the fact that we're implementing a brand new system.

That said, one of the big positives that we saw that nobody is talking about is that penalties by the offensive line were at an absolute minimum. I don't recall any false starts or holding calls on the line. That says to me that these guys are focused and are only going to improve as the season moves forward.

Defense will get tested next week and we'll need the offense to keep them off the field as much as possible.

 

[Lukus Alderman]

One other positive about the offense that just hit me us that we are obviously not going to be an exclusively conservative offense that I thought we were. As Matt mentioned in the analysis, we were about as balanced as can be and weren't afraid to throw the ball down the field. At the same time we had a relatively vanilla gameplan with no trick plays or misdirection. That may change next week with Daje Johnson possibly returning from suspension.

It's easy to point out the negatives, but there were a lot of positives with that offense.

 

[drgilbert]

I thought we only threw two deep balls and one was almost intercepted

 

[Lukus Alderman]

We may have different views of throwing down the field. I consider 10-15 past the LOS down the field.

 

[Juan]

— Twitter API (@twitterapi) November 7, 2011

 

[Juan]

a pretty graphic

 

[bcherry168]

We will finally be there when our offensive line can dominate like our defensive line did.

I was very impressed with the defense. Loved the attitude. And the execution was far better than we have seen in several years.

The offense is still a question mark. The OL was inconsistent, and Ash appeared to be a bit slow with his decision making at times. First game jitters? Maybe. UCLA looked even worse at times.

Watched BYU the other night. They will be a real test for us. Our offense will have to play at a higher level to win that one.

It is hard to express how impressed I am with what Charlie Strong has done with this team.

 

[killrjoe]

Ash got knocked down far too many times. They will have to greatly improve in that area if Ash is to stay healthy all season. Overall, a good performance.

 

[java]

We will finally be there when our offensive line can dominate like our defensive line did.

I was very impressed with the defense. Loved the attitude. And the execution was far better than we have seen in several years.

The offense is still a question mark. The OL was inconsistent, and Ash appeared to be a bit slow with his decision making at times. First game jitters? Maybe. UCLA looked even worse at times.

Watched BYU the other night. They will be a real test for us. Our offense will have to play at a higher level to win that one.

It is hard to express how impressed I am with what Charlie Strong has done with this team.

I cannot believe he changed the defense this much in one off-season!  It makes me think these guys were waiting to be unleashed, chomping at the bit!

UCLA looked dreadful, granted, I only saw a small portion of their game.  I attributed the hesitation (Ash) to the relatively inexperienced receivers.  That hesitation wasn't there when Shipley was in the game, at least I don't think so.  And, how 'bout those tight ends!  Are they eligible receivers?

Our O-line will be better...please, please, please!

Hook 'em!

 

[SFlonghorngirl]

Our defense will win us games. It's only game 1. Relax on Ash. Missed majority of last season and this is esentially his 2nd season. Coaches are slowly breaking him in and figuring out his comfort zone. Can't expose our playbook in game 1.  Vanilla is best.

Blocking is a concern, but line will gel with Raulerson.  This kid has moxy and brains.  

BYU's a big test.  It'll be a defensive battle but I like our chances.  Strong has the team focused.  

Such an awesome kickoff weekend.  So many close games with expected blow outs.  That's why we play the game.  You never know what could happen.  

CFB player I'm most impressed with: Christian Hackenberg. Was impressed with him last year as a freshman. This dude makes NFL throws.  Hope the 49ers trade up to draft him next year.

Hook'em Horns! \m/

 

[Matt Cotcher]

The majority of concerns with the OL came either when there was a 2nd teamer in or after Espinosa went out. Remember, they played without their starting RT also. 

I don't think we should judge the OL after that outing.

 

[java]

CFB player /s I'm most impressed with? Bedford/Strong's defense. With that D, the other team's quarterback will sometimes kneel rather than trying to make a play.

Oh, Hook 'em!

 

[HornEsch]

We had the fire I wanted to see in Strong's first game. The defense rocked and was fun to watch. The rest is fixable.

We will learn a whole lot more over the next 4 weeks.

 

[Matt Cotcher]

We will learn a whole lot more over the next 4 weeks.

We'll know plenty after only 2 weeks, IMO.

 

[HornEsch]

True, true.