It’s hard to remember the last time Texas was competitive in the Red River Rivalry, let alone the last time they won, and when you try to remember it’s even harder looking back on it.
But as hard as it may be, we reflect, somehow wading through the thick memories of embarrassment and disappointment like we’re lost in a jungle full of tall grass and tangled vines hacking at everything in the way with a dull machete just trying to find a way out of this mess.
We remember. We remember 55-17 in 2011 and, much to the enjoyment of the Oklahoma fan base, yes; we remember 63-21 from last year. We also remember that at halftime Texas trailed 34-10 in 2011 and 36-2 last season.
I’m not trying to be the homeless guy on the corner with a cardboard sign and a megaphone shouting that the world is going to end but the deterioration of this program has gotten worse by the year and it’s on the verge of eroding to a state of rubble that I’m not sure any coach would want to come in and try to re-build with the pressures that be surrounding.
But I’m also not going to treat this game like it’s the same as any other game Texas will play this season. Yes, It’s a must win but it’s a must win in it’s own right. This game is bigger than the season. Not for the sake of Brown’s job, I fear it’s the end of the road one way or another for him as it is. But for so many other reasons this is it.
A Texas win tomorrow can send a second wind to this team. Like a boxer up against the ropes bloodied and bruised all it takes is one last-gasp effort, lay a good punch and start fighting back. A Texas win sends a message to an inconsistent Big 12 that the Longhorns may not be national title contenders, but they are Big 12 contenders and they are laying down for no one. It doesn’t erase the fact that the last two seasons the points OU scored in the second quarter of this game alone could have beat Texas but it damn sure helps us all forget.
This game is to Texas fans what a night light is to a child. This game is like the soul food to a traveling man’s hunger. It’s a life insurance policy for a family of seven. It makes Texas fans feel warm and fuzzy inside because nobody likes getting beat so bad they start leaving the Red River Rivalry at halftime; all that leads to is a state of depression followed by binge eating at the Texas State Fair and that is neither good for the cholesterol nor heart.
Here’s the deal: every fan knows what has happened to this program and the last two seasons in this game. We all saw the BYU game and tried to stay positive and optimistic throughout the Ole Miss game.
But at what point will a Texas player come out and say:
“This sucks and we know we are better. We know we got our asses kicked the last two seasons. We know we lost to a BYU team that we should have beat and came out flat in the second half of an Ole Miss game we were still in. We know everyone wants coach Brown gone and we hear it all Sunday through Friday every week and we’re sick of it!,â€
Is that detrimental to team conduct? Is it wrong for someone to step up as a leader and address the fact that it’s not just the fans but that the players also wanted to throw up during the BYU game and the last two Red River Rivalry games? That despite Coach Brown’s happy-go-lucky “we’re still positive†Monday pressers, inside that locker room there is frustration and anger that this team has underachieved greatly?
There has to be.
Mike Davis’ cheap shot on Iowa State’s Deon Broomfield was wrong and motivated by selfishness but it’s also the only time this season I’ve seen a Longhorn player show any sign of fed up emotion on the field. Other than Davis’ poor decision making, this Longhorns team remains a pacifist while every opponent, especially OU, is showing up for a fight.
Of course, when Kansas State linebacker Tre Walker said Texas “laid down a little bit,†all of the Longhorns players were in an uproar of disagreement, fired up and pissed off. That got everyone rowed up? It wasn’t embarrassment on national TV and being outscored 118-38 the last two seasons by your biggest rival?
It’s the same song, different station and it’s played out.
This Texas team is good enough and in the cases of their two losses they were better than they played; plain and simple. There is no reason why a senior QB should look so lost at times on the field and unprepared to do his job. There is no reason why, even against lowly Iowa State, this Texas team should whiff and miss on so many fundamental tackles. There is absolutely no reason why after losing an embarrassing game to BYU the Longhorns returned home and showed up for just the first half and the first half only against Ole Miss.
There is no reason for any of it.
So, this is it, Texas. This is your moment. It’s not about Coach Brown or one particular person or player. Every last one of you worked hard for a chance to play at this school and in this game and for the seniors facing an 0-4 career record against OU with a loss tomorrow, it’s bigger than any one of us sitting at a desk writing about you can fathom.
A win tomorrow isn’t going to change a lot of opinions and feelings about this program or Coach Brown for that matter, but, it would be a damn good place to start.
