Follow along as I jot down notes from today’s game between the Texas Longhorns and the Kansas State Wildcats.
First Quarter:
Solid start to the game for redshirt freshman quarterback Maalik Murphy who found Adonai Mitchell on a deep ball 37-yard touchdown pass to open the game’s scoring action. You can tell that Sarkisian wanted Murphy to get in rhythm early, opting for the first play to be a quick pass to Xavier Worthy for a decent gain.
The Longhorns defense is flying to the football early against the Wildcats. Both Barryn Sorrell and Ethan Burke have already tallied sacks, and several defensive backs have already provided some big hits.
Second Quarter:
After Jonathon Brooks had to be attended to in Texas’ injury tent, freshman running back CJ Baxter checked into the game and has made a lot of noise so far. Remember: Baxter was actually Texas’ opening day starter. But, that just speaks to the quality of the Longhorns running back room.
Later in the second quarter, Jonathon Brooks checked back into the game which is, of course, a good sign.
Right now, the Longhorns defense is playing with a level of confidence that we have not seen since their loss to Oklahoma in the Red River game.
Patience is needed with Maalik Murphy. As I have said in the past, the young gunslinger is only a redshirt freshman and needs time to grow. He had a questionable pass into triple coverage that was intercepted (his receiver fell as well, which does not help), but we will have to see how he bounces back.
Steve Sarkisian preaches the need for complementary football but, right now, the offense is not holding up their end of the bargain. After a solid start to the game, they have not capitalized on solid opportunities. As a result, Kansas State continues to hang in the game.
Halftime Thoughts:
Luckily for Kansas State, the Longhorns slowed themselves down entering the half. While Texas possesses a 10-point lead at the half, it feels as if they should be up by 20 points instead.
However, on the positive side of things, the Longhorns have a lead against a ranked opponent and are still in the driver’s seat. Additionally, the defense has played well so far, especially considering some of the circumstances that the Texas offense has put them in.
Third Quarter:
Longhorns defensive lineman Ethan Burke is back from an injury and is making plays. I stated earlier in the week that the Longhorns needed improvement from the defensive line (yes, even the defensive line has areas to improve!) in terms of bringing down opposing quarterbacks. The sophomore already has two sacks today, and his strip sack fumble against Kansas State quarterback Will Howard directly set up the Texas offense for a Jonathon Brooks 5-yard touchdown rush.
The Longhorns defense gave a lackadaisical effort on Will Howard’s 26-yard touchdown pass to Phillip Brooks. The Kansas State wide receiver left two Longhorn defensive backs in the dirt with crafty spin moves, keeping the Wildcats in the game as time expired in the third quarter.
Fourth Quarter:
The Longhorns offense has found the other end of the productive spectrum with their fourth quarter play as turnovers by both Maalik Murphy and Jonathon Brooks have put the team in a tough spot. The first quarter and a half was beautiful offensively, when you consider the fact that today is Murphy’s second career start. But, almost everything that could go wrong has gone wrong.
With all that has gone wrong in their game against Kansas State, at one point blowing a 20-point lead, the Longhorns received a stroke of luck with a missed field goal by the Wildcats. The field goal would have tied the game at 30-30 with just under two minutes to play in the game.
Overtime:
While the score might say otherwise, the Longhorns defense once again bailed the offense out with stout play. Despite of a stressful game, one must remember that a win is a win. Now, Texas moves past a major conference foe with their eyes on TCU.
