AUSTIN, Tx. — The Texas Longhorns (2-0) overcame a slow first-half start against UTEP (1-1) at Darrell K. Royal – Texas Memorial Stadium on Saturday night, notching a 41-7 victory and extending their win-streak to five games over the Miners.
Texas quarterback Shane Buechele picked up where he left off in last week’s win over Notre Dame, throwing with precision and using his mobility when forced to. Buechele finished 22-27 for 244 yards and 4 touchdowns in his second straight start for the 11th-ranked Longhorns. He also rushed 11 times for 50 yards, finishing the night as the team’s second-leading rusher.
The Longhorns struck first when Buechele hit converted wide receiver Jerrod Heard for a 29-yard touchdown reception at the 9:32 mark in the first quarter. Heard, who was celebrating his birthday today, would haul in another Buechele pass for a touchdown in the 4th quarter.
“He did a great job tonight. I love getting the ball out in his hands as well as every other receiver we have out there. He’s a great receiver, and like I said, just getting the ball out there and letting him do his thing is fun. He’s done a great job, and he’s a great athlete. He learns well, and he learns quick. He’s done a great job,” said Buechele about Heard.
Touchdown passes to Jacorey Warrick and Dorian Leonard would round out a successful and efficient night for the true freshman Buechele, who was sacked 3 times by the UTEP defense.
Chris Warren got the starting nod at tailback for the Longhorns in the absence of the injured D’Onta Foreman. Warren barely missed the century mark, rushing 20 times for 95 yards against the Miner defense. He would add a touchdown midway through the third quarter to put the Longhorns up 27-7.
Texas placekicker Trent Domingue hit field goals of 22 and 43 yards to improve to a perfect 3-0 on the season.
Texas amassed 416 yards of total offense on the night.
UTEP scored its only points of the game on a 51-yard touchdown run by running back Aaron Jones, thanks to a Texas defense that played with intensity, limiting UTEP to just 208 total yards (73 passing, 135 rushing).
Texas head Coach Charlie Strong knows a challenging road game in Berkeley looms next weekend, something he is already preparing his guys for. “But overall very pleased with the win. And we know we can always built on it; you always look for improvement from game one to game two. And we know we have a tough road test next week going out to California. We’re going to have to play much better than what we played tonight. But any time you are on the road, you’re going to have to pack your defense,” said Strong.
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[*]The Longhorns put up 91 points in the first two games of the season.
[*]Texas starts the season 2-0 for the first time since 2012.
[*]Texas played in and won its first game as a Top-25 ranked team under Charlie Strong as Texas’ head coach.
[*]Texas will travel to Berkeley, CA next week to face the Cal Golden Bears in their first true road test of the season. The Longhorns lost 45-44 to the Golden Bears last season on a missed PAT. All eyes will be on Shane Buechele in that contest.
[*]Charlie Strong won his 13th game as head coach of the Longhorns
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