Hanging in there or hanging on, Longhorn fans?  Which one is it? My guess is many of you are probably hanging around because one way or another this season hasn’t satisfied anyone yet.
Two weeks ago the Longhorns traveled to Dallas with every odd in the entire world seemingly pitted against them. Now, Texas is back in the DFW area and some of those odds are no longer considered to be against Texas.
Why?
Why would anybody let Texas off the hook that quickly? Just because Texas went into the Red River Rivalry and came out with a statement victory that screamed “Hook ‘Em Horns!†so loudly the entire college football world heard it, doesn’t mean the entire college football world should believe this team is anything more than the mediocre, at times embarrassing and extremely disappointing team they have been for the past three seasons.
Case McCoy looked fantastic two weeks ago, but, he also looked clueless against Ole Miss—a game the Longhorns took themselves out of—and Iowa State (Let’s not talk about the Iowa State game.)
Whether Major Applewhite finally realized that he has three of the most superb running backs in the country or just simply decided it was time to use them accordingly is still up for debate. Meanwhile, a receiving core highlighted by what was supposed to be stupid-numbers-seasons for Jaxon Shipley and Mike Davis has turned into the Kendall Sanders and Marcus Johnson show.
The only thing at this point in the season any and every Texas fan should be satisfied with is beating Oklahoma and firing Manny Diaz.
This fight is not over. This battle of what if’s, why’s and Nick Saban the savior is far from settled. The worse thing that could happen is Texas fans assuming Case will finish the rest of the season on such a hot streak we are calling him “Colt†by the end of the year. Even more so, letting your guard down now will only result in more ridiculous overreaction when the ‘Horns do drop a game they should have handled from start to finish.
Didn’t anyone ever listen to the wisdom of their grandparents? “Be thankful for what you’ve got instead of always wanting more.†Or “Prepare for the worst; hope for the best.â€
Slow and steady wins the race, people. So to refer back to my own, exact words from a recent article; all there is-is this weekend, this game, this day. Tomorrow hasn’t happened so we shouldn’t be looking any further than the TCU Horned Frogs.
Would it be nice to win the Big 12? Hell yes it would. Who doesn’t want to go to the Fiesta Bowl and bring back that warm and fuzzy feeling we have when the Longhorns are at the top of the food chain?
So, if you left that game in Dallas two weeks ago only to return this evening with a feeling of “we got this†“we’re back†or “we are Texas and y’all aren’t†humble yourself by asking this simple question: Can Texas beat Baylor, Oklahoma State, West Virginia and Texas Tech?
Yeah, that’s what I thought. It just got really quiet in here didn’t it?
So while we all get to relish in the glory of 365 straight days of being able to throw our weight around with Oklahoma, let’s all remember, that is one piece successfully placed into a puzzle that still has quite a few pieces that aren’t fitting and can’t be found.
Tonight Texas has to do three things that they did against Oklahoma and if they do these things, Longhorn Nation will once again breather a little bit easier than the last game.
Establish the running game from the start. You have the tools, use them. While only one running back has gone over 100 yards against TCU this season, Texas has two that could do it in one game if the Longhorns bring it.
On defense, get off the field on third downs and on offense keep the drive going on third downs. I sat there and watched against Oklahoma writing off the offense as they came to the line. But, to mine and everyone’s surprise (almost as if Texas had practiced it all week) there were the Longhorns on third and nine: McCoy completes one to Shipley. On third and three: Gray trucks ahead for four yards. And on defense, DB’s stuck like glue to receivers and, who would have imagined, Texas wrapping up and finishing the tackle.
Lastly, Texas has to force Trevone Boykin to throw the football because he hasn’t been able to do so efficiently the entire season—much like Oklahoma’s Bell. On third and anything over five yards the Longhorns have to bring the blitz, jam the Horned Frog receivers and drop one or two people into zones to eliminate underneath routes and check downs. On two occasions where Texas did this against Oklahoma on third down it resulted in two interceptions, one of which went back for six.
It’s not rocket science, gang. Texas, while they have been capable all seasons, is still vulnerable. They have to continue the consistently solid play on the field. As for you fans, while you can see land ahead just over the horizon, remember that we are still emptying water out of the boat. This is far from satisfactory. A win tonight just gets the Longhorns one step closer.
