40 Acres Sports

Sometimes, I love ESPN Classic. Usually when they replay college football during the “dog days” of the season (May-July) that keeps my ever-present desire for college football that much sharper. One such occasion occurred last week, as ESPNC replayed the Texas/OU 2008 game in all its glory, unless you’re a Sooner. So, with pen and paper in hand, I decided to cue up my DVR and record some observations in hindsight (i.e. when I’m not shot gunning Modello’s and cursing whatever evil demon Bob Stoops sold his soul to). Enjoy!

1. Our offensive line got whipped in the first half.

Colt was running for his life in the 1st half, and our passing game was relegated to quick passes out of necessity. I forgot how badly we got worked in this area early on. The three first half sacks really could have been six were Colt not so mobile.

2. The Ryan Reynolds myth.

I have officially had enough of this crap; YOU know what I’m talking about, cause we’ve all heard this excuse since about five minutes after the final gun in the RRS. We only began to move the ball once Oklahoma’s leader Ryan Reynolds left the game with a knee injury, and IF he stays healthy it would have been a different story. If you need a refresher, just read this OU stooge or check the game recap at Red Dirt Kings.

Funny thing about it… Reynolds wasn’t even on the preseason All Big-12 team; after he tears his ACL every Sooner fan will tell you he’s the best MLB in the country. Let’s look at some hard data:

For the game, in which he lasted about 2 1/2 quarters, Reynolds registered 3 tackles. What’s more, two of them game on his first series (he stuck Chris Ogbonnaya for no gain, and then limited him to a 3 yard run). So, for those of you math majors, in the remaining 2 quarters he played (which translates to five series) he made ONE TACKLE!! Why the drop off in production? Simple once we went to the 4 WR formations, Reynolds became obsolete. He’s your typical OU linebacker, he plays the run aggressively and rushes the passer, but if you get him in coverage he is vulnerable. Three separate times in the first half, Jordan Shipley either shook him loose or made him miss badly on a tackle. It was a totally mismatch, and St. Reynolds became Donnie from The Big Lebowski…totally out of his element. The longer he would have stayed in the game, the worse he would have looked.

So, why did we start to move the ball better in the second half? Because their defensive line wore down, giving Colt more time to find holes in the zone defense Oklahoma was playing. Reynolds being in there would have lead to him having to cover someone down the field, and we’ve seen that movie (go cue up Jermichael Finley career highlight video, I swear half the plays are against Oklahoma. Where he was covered by… drumroll please… Ryan Reynolds).

One more thing, Reynolds’ replacement Brandon Crow, who OU fans blame solely for the loss to us, registered five tackles in barely over a quarter of action. That’s right, Reynolds’s replacement logged almost twice as many tackles than he did. So, that’s it, Ryan Reynolds is good not great and his injury didn’t hurt OU all that much. The next time snotty dirt burglar fans try to use his injury as an excuse, drop the hammer of knowledge on them.

3. Our “calls”

You know, cause between the refs screwing them AND losing the greatest linebacker every to step put on a pair of shoulder pads, what chance did OU have to win the game? This might be beating a dead horse, but I decided to look into this for the record. There were three main calls that drew criticism: the two roughing the passer calls and the “fumbled” interception in the end zone that was ruled an incomplete pass.

• The first roughing the passer call was a BAD call that went in our favor, no question about it. This call bailed us out of a 3rd and 14 and probably resulted in a “free” 3 points for us. No excuses.
• The second RTP penalty was correct. It wasn’t malicious, but Colt was a good four steps out of bound when Travis Lewis shoves him in the back and jerks his jersey. It looked to be one of those “I’ll hit you late, but not hard enough to get a flag” shenanigans that OU seems to specialize in. Keep your hands to yourself Mr. Lewis!
• The dropped interception…I don’t even know what to say. It’s like trying to explain to a grownup why water is wet; you don’t even know how to begin because the point is so blatantly obvious that any explanation feels asinine. Anyway, here goes… IF a player catches the ball, maintains possession, but when he hits the ground the ball gets jarred loose, IT IS NOT A CATCH!! Invariably there is always some moron who chimes in (usually very know-it-allish) “The ground can’t cause a fumble!” No, it can’t, but it damn sure can cause an incompletion. Learn it, live it, love it.

4. OU’s tomfoolery

Before I can get into this, I think everyone out there that supports the Burnt Orange can agree that Oklahoma cheats worse than a meth-addicted three card Monte dealer. However, that seems to be a common theme in ANY heated rivalry; the Haggys and Red Faders swear that the refs give us every call. The difference is, in this case it is totally true (see Big Red Auto Imports and any game film of an Oklahoma). But instead of making random claims, I decided to game to the game film:

• 1st drive of the game (that didn’t take long, did it?), Lamarr Houston beats Duke Robinson off the ball and has a beeline to sack Bradford. Robinson grabs Houston’s jersey and spins him (blatant holding) and Bradford has time to let the play develop and hit the running back for a 34-yard gain. There is no way that WASN’T holding! So instead of a third and long (if Houston makes the sack) or 2nd and 20 (if the refs could have found their flags), OU had a 1st down in Texas territory.
• In the second quarter, 2nd and 19, Oklahoma runs that jailbreak screen and Manual Johnson is a good yard past the line of scrimmage when he catches the ball. That would have been okay, except for the three OU linemen downfield. Instead of a 2nd and 24, they get 3rd and 6.
• In the third quarter, same situation that I just described, only this time Johnson is a good two yards past the line of scrimmage when he catches the ball. Instead of 3rd and 15, they score a touchdown.

That’s three infractions calls that OU got away with, all which lead to touchdowns. And don’t even get me started on Loadholt; he grabbed Orakpo so often I think he wanted to date him. Don’t be shy Phil, tell him how you feel!

• In the sake of fairness, there were a couple of plays I thought OU got away with something turned out to be legit. A few of their jailbreak screens WERE behind the line of scrimmage (nullifying the illegal man downfield) and the first touchdown where I thought Manual Johnson never broke the plane (he clearly did).
• You want proof of the Big 12 media bias for the Sooners? Trent Williams, the All-Big 12 first team and winner of the lineman of the year award, was absolutely destroyed by Sergio Kindle. Sergio beat him for a sack, two QB pressures and drew a holding penalty against Williams. DeMarcco Murray, who was a repeat selection on the All-Big 12 team first team, did absolutely nothing against us, gaining seven yards on six carries. And the Big 12 coach of the year Bob Stoops? He spent the entire second half taking turns looking confused, and then constipated.

In closing, now that I have watched this game for the third time, this was Oklahoma’s best shot. Seriously. DeMarcco Murray was healthy (for all the good he did), Oklahoma busted out their maddeningly effective jailbreak screen for this game (which we had no time to prepare for, as opposed to Florida) and they converted all their opportunities inside the red zone. For all the smoke being blown about how OU was a different team at the end of the season, with all due respect, so were we. Our freshman safeties had grown up, the young receivers had emerged and our defense was playing lights out (allowing 16 points combined it its last 2 regular season games). We could have played them again and the result would have been the same.

God, I can’t wait for October 17th!

The Texas Longhorns gave us the first real look at what next year’s team is going to look like on Sunday for the Spring Game. Of course these games need to be taken with a grain of salt because both sides bring vanilla game plans. Sergio Kindle didn’t play very much, but the defense dominated for most of the scrimmage. Here are five things we learned from the game.

1. The secondary has grown up.

A few months removed from being the perceived weak link of the defense the Longhorn secondary dominated the offense the whole game. The defense played predominately out of the 4-2-5 and showed very little blitzes but they made plays. Last year the group had troubles creating turnovers but the safeties intercepted two passes, the first by Nolan Brewster against the second team offense. The second interception was the play of day, a pick six by Earl Thomas off of Colt McCoy. Thomas was far and away the best player on the field on Sunday. The sophomore was everywhere, he showed off his coverage ability, he was a sure tackler, and show off his speed by running down a kick returner. Texas has four safeties that could start and all of them have at least three years of eligibility left. The corners looked good too. Aaron Williams and Chykie Brown have an opportunity to leave campus as the best duo Texas has had at cornerback. Add Curtis Brown and Deon Beasley and this group is deep and athletic. Will Muschamp couldn’t blitz as much as he might have liked last year because of the inexperience in the secondary, but the training wheels will come off this season. And it may just be scary good.

2. The tight end position is on life support.

It is true that this program has been spoiled at the tight end position in recent memory. It didn’t look like that was going to change with the emergence of Blaine Irby. A horrific injury to Irby, a few injuries to the back ups, and a few misses in recruiting later and we’re left with the current situation. Ian Harris bobbled a ball to cause the first interception of the game and Greg Smith almost did the same later on. Right now it looks like Texas may have to use the four or five receiver set as their base offense this year when they really want to move the ball. Mack Brown is hesitant to abandon the run, but having a tight end on the field is becoming a liability. Irby is nowhere close to be being back, and there is no guarantee he will ever be the same if or when does get back. Maybe if DJ Grant gets healthy or one of the two incoming freshman come in ready to contribute the position has a chance. But as we stand right now Greg Davis really needs to think about using the offense he used in the second half against Oklahoma for the majority of the snaps. Luckily Texas has the receivers to play that set with no problem. In fact keeping one of them on the sideline in favor of the current tight end on the roster is a form of football dyslexia.

3. Cody Johnson needs to be in shape

Both Vondrell McGee and Foswhitt Whittaker found the endzone on Sunday, and each showed a few flashes of their potential with the ball in their hands. But Texas averaged less than 3.0 yards per carry. Before his hamstring injury in the second half of the spring coaches and insiders had been raving about Johnson’s progress both running the ball and dedicating himself to being in shape. The knock on Johnson has always been his weight, but right now the coaching staff has decided to worry more about his body fat. Johnson is going to be counted on as the every down back if he can prove he can handle it. Right now Whittaker offers the team the skills needed in a third down back as long as he can prove he’ll block blitzing linebackers. Where that leads McGee is anybody’s guess, but with a good summer and fall practice it couldn’t be a total shock to see him get the opening day start. The variable in the whole situation is incoming freshman Chris Whaley. The big back from Madisonville just participated in the 100M at the Texas Relays and by all accounts the young man is an athletic specimen. The staff was so high on him as a running back, many experts project him to outgrow the position that they chose not to recruit another one. If he reports in shape and ready to take the punishment he will be given every opportunity to win the job. If all else fails the Texas offense may look like something from Lubbock. Is that a bad thing? I can’t decide.

4. Colt McCoy will have plenty of targets.

Texas’ leading returning receiver, and Colt McCoy’s roommate and fishing buddy if you haven’t heard, Jordan Shipley didn’t participate in spring practices to recover from injury the Longhorns fielded maybe the best trio of receivers ever at Texas. None of the wide outs are on the level of Roy Williams, but collectively this group may be better than the BJ Johnson and Sloan Thomas group. They weren’t as highly recruited but Malcolm Williams, Brandon Collins, and James Kirkendoll all bring something different to the field and they work great in this offense. The quarterbacks struggled with the wind, and the secondary had seen all the patterns every day in practice, but it was obvious how much big play potential will be on the field at all times. Kirkendoll showed off his speed on a reverse, Collins works the middle beautifully and led the team in yards, and Williams can get deep whenever he wants. McCoy’s bugaboo has been the deep ball and twice he nearly missed huge plays on the outside deep down the field with Williams. One was completed but the ball was too far outside to be kept in bounds and the other was thrown a little too far in front of the streaking Williams. The sophomore just looks the part out there in his number 9 uniform. Williams, fellow receiver Dan Buckner, and Aaron Williams just jump out at you from a pure athletic stand point when you look at their physique. Watching this group work has to put a smile on the Longhorn nation’s faces because they will be on campus for a few more years. That’s not even taking into account Buckner, John Chiles, and the red-shirt freshman on campus. With the questions at tight end and in the running game the receiver becomes the most important position besides quarterback for this offense.

5. Texas football is in good hands.

Mack Brown has been the best thing that has happened to this program, and maybe to the University as a whole from an athletic standpoint, than anybody since Darrell K. Royal. With as good as Brown has been, head coach to be Will Muschamp has injected an energy into this program that needed a little jumpstart following the departure of Vince Young and the rest of the 2002 recruiting class. With one hire, and Brown deserves credit for making it and then realizing he couldn’t lose his personal energizer bunny on Red Bull, the stigma of Texas being soft or unmotivated was erased for the present future. Just a few years ago these Spring Jamborees were offensive exhibitions. Remember when the opening kickoff was returned for a touchdown every year? That won’t happen anymore. Muschamp has made everything competitive. He has given the defense pride, and more importantly, thanks to Brown he has given them stability. A stability that the offense has had the luxury of since Brown and Greg Davis arrived on campus. For the first time in a decade the defense is going to have a steady hand leading the way. With Muschamp the hand might not be steady, it may be pumping up and down, but I’ll take it.

Texas will enter the 2009 season with national yitle hopes after a stellar 2008 campaign. In fact, Mack Brown was pointing towards 2009 last offseason as the team he was looking forward to taking to his second title. Even with the anticipated success there are a few question marks on the field.

1. Will the offensive line play get better?

Texas struggled to run the ball late in games all of last year. Mack Brown wants that to change. So much so that all accounts point to the team spending most of the spring figuring out what needs to change. Outsiders point to scheme, but this is the same scheme that allowed Vince Young, Selvin Young, and Jamaal Charles to rack up tons of yards in 2005. The difference is Kasey Studdard, Jonathan Scott, and Justin Blalock won’t be in the starting lineup. The big guys up front have been good, but not great, and with most of them now in their third and fourth year in the program there are no more excuses. Texas’ offensive lineman must play stronger at the point of attack for this offense to be as balanced as Brown wants it to be. The Longhorns may not have a true game breaker in the backfield, but they’re good enough to do damage if given the holes. If Texas can get a running game going the offense could be the best ever at Texas. Guys like Charlie Tanner, Michael Huey, and Kyle Hix need to step up and be as dominant as most think they can be.

2. Who is going to step up at running back?

For most of the spring Cody Johnson was running with the first team. Texas is looking to go under center more this year, and Johnson is clearly the best downhill runner on the roster, at least until Chris Whaley reports. Unfortunately, Johnson got hurt and will miss the spring game on Sunday. The door could be no more wide open for the likes of Vondrell McGee, Foswhitt Whittaker, Tre Newton, and Jeremy Hills. The staff knows what they have in McGee and Whittaker. McGee is explosive and a hard runner, but doesn’t offer the receiving and/or blocking skills position coach Major Applewhite stresses in his players. A lot of people feel like the staff wants Whittaker to be the guy because of his skill set, but the little guy just can’t stay healthy. There hasn’t been a huge buzz around Hills or Newton but an eye opening spring game could set them up for playing time in the fall. The fact is somebody needs to step up because the running game is the only thing holding this offense back.

3. Who will get to the quarterback?

We all know Sergio Kindle will be on one side, but who will be the other defensive end? Texas feels like Kindle will replace the production provided by soon to be multi-millionaire Brian Orakpo, but who will replace Kindle’s? Right now it looks like Sam Acho will get the start with Eddie Jones and maybe even freshman Alex Okafor getting looks on pure rushing situations. Defensive coordinator Will Muschamp has Acho’s brother Emmanuel working at the buck end position along with starting inside linebacker Jared Norton. More than likely it won’t matter who is on the field, Muschamp won’t allow the defense not to get pressure. How much will Texas show in the spring game is a question that can’t be answered, but with a secondary that returns all but one contributor it is likely that Muschamp will unleash the hounds this year. The question is will he apply pressure because of his personnel like last year, or will he have to do it with scheme.

4. Who’ll play in the nickel formation?

For all intents and purposes the Longhorn defense is a 4-2-5. Texas says their base is a three linebacker set, but with the offenses they face in the Big 12 more times than not five defensive backs on the field. Going into the spring there were grumblings about the perceived battle between returning starter Blake Gideon and the message board deity Christian Scott and who will get the snaps, but it looks like Muschamp has found an answer, and that answer is both. The speed and versatility of Earl Thomas has allowed Muschamp to play him in the slot while keeping the brains of Gideon on the field while not sacrificing the athletic gifts of Scott. The cornerback situation appears to have already settled despite what anybody says. Right now Chykie Brown and Aaron Williams are locked in as the starters with Curtis Brown and Deon Beasley backing up. In the past it has been hard for underclassman to jump over guys with more experience but it looks like the talent of Williams is too much to overlook. The true sophomore to be has a chance to be one of the best defensive backs to come through the 40 acres if what the staff thinks about him is true. The whole formation depends on how Thomas does in the slot. If he can stay there, Texas can have three safeties on the field.

5. Who will step up and lead?

We know who the likely candidates are on offense. Colt McCoy, Jordan Shipley, and Adam Ulatoski would figure to take charge on that side of the ball. All three levels of the defense will lose the guy most pegged as their emotional leader. The defensive line lost Roy Miller and Brian Orakpo, the linebackers lost Rashad Bobino, and the defensive backs lost Ryan Palmer. If last year’s team taught us anything it is that leadership or the lack there of can never be overlooked. If you need any other evidence take a look at the Cowboys. From a talent perspective Kindle and Roddrick Muckelroy would lead the charge, but both of those guys are quiet and low key by nature. Lamarr Houston has been said to be taking charge in the front seven and Thomas has it locked in the secondary. The team keeping the momentum and mentality of last year will ultimately decide if all the goals are met this season.

Lance Zierlein of the Houston Chronicle has posted his list of the five best and worst underclassmen decisions of 2009 draft and I think they’re pretty dead on. He’s one of the few guys out there that really knows his stuff regarding the NFL Draft and Big 12 football.

Zierlein thinks Texas linebacker/defensive end Sergio Kindle made the right call by returning to Texas for his senior season. Right now Kindle is still relatively raw at both linebacker and as a pass rusher, and with another year of seasoning under Will Muschamp he could explode in 2009. I also agree completely with his thoughts on the decisions by players such as USC’s Mark Sanchez, OU’s Sam Bradford, and Kansas State’s Josh Freeman.

The relevant notes from Zierlein are posted below:

Best

3. Sergio Kindle, DE/OLB, Texas - Staying In: Kindle opened up many scouts eyes as a pass-rusher this year at Texas. Will Muschamp recognized that Kindle’s top potential wasn’t at LB but as a pass rusher. Kindle has good straight line speed but needs to become a more fluid athlete and he has a chance to do that with another year at Texas.

Worst

2. Sam Bradford, QB, Oklahoma - Staying In: I say this is a bad decision, but as long as he plays well next year, he’ll be a top 3 pick next season. The problem is that he is losing almost his entire offensive line as well as two of his top targets. Injury is the only real concern for me here, but he probably would have been a top 3 pick this season and maybe the top pick.

3. Josh Freeman, QB, Kansas State - Coming Out - What are you thinking, Josh? You have the size and arm strength that NFL teams would salivate over if you could just put together a big year on the collegiate level. Why not go back and improve on your numbers and then become the hot name in the 2010 draft?

Source

Our live stream of consciousness posted from @40acressports on Twitter from during the Fiesta Bowl is posted below:

• It was cool when they let blind guys sing the national anthem, but wasn’t letting a blind man design the Fiesta Bowl trophy enough? #UT 25 minutes ago
• @springnet 77 is Luke Poehlmann, a very promising true freshman lineman. He deserves to start in 09 just due to his sweet mullet. 31 minutes ago
• @HookEmSarah as Mack said this week, gatorade baths are for 7-5 coaches. plus I’m sure there nothing but whining on #UT msg boards. 37 minutes ago
• What a game. Congrats Horns on the big tough win. Congrats to the seniors. #UT 40 minutes ago
• I heart Quan and Brian Orakpo. Huge sack (and good job tackling QB too.) #UT 42 minutes ago
• ANnouncers are acting like this thing is over. #UT 44 minutes ago
• Unsportsmanlike could be huge. OSU kicker has big leg. Come on kickoff team. #UT 45 minutes ago
• Tressel’s challenge gives #UT much needed timeout. Horns should actually gain yards with review. 49 minutes ago
• That was a terrible initial spot. Clearly got first down. Replay will give it to #UT if spot doesn’t. 51 minutes ago
• #UT needs to be in bigger hurry. 56 minutes ago
• Not sure who #77 for #UT is but that mullet deserves playing time. 57 minutes ago
• There’s no such thing as double pass interference, whoevere initiated contact deserves the flag. #UT 58 minutes ago
• @joneke defense has been fantastic all game long. about an hour ago
• Absolutely terrible pass interference call. Beasley has right to ball and ball was way short. F***! #UT about an hour ago
• Well defended? Malcolm Williams was wide open and Colt just put it too wide. #UT about an hour ago
• 4th quarter! Wrap this thing up boys. #UT about an hour ago
• Attaboy Colt! You too Coach Davis. All three drives this half have been good ones (sans 20 yd sack.) #UT about an hour ago
• Matt Hasselback is the NFL qb you reference? Weird. Is Tim announcing the game? #UT about an hour ago
• When do you think we’ll see screen and go to Shipley? Looks set up well. #UT about an hour ago
• 4th and 36 and we can’t even punt for first down yardage. Momentum squandered. #UT about an hour ago
• Terrible play by Colt. Has to expect pressure on RB screen call. Drive killer. #UT about an hour ago
• Dear Greg Davis, finally a designed run for Colt and you get a beauty of a TD run for #UT. Let’s go defense!! about 2 hours ago
• #90 for Ohio St is dirty POS. 2nd time he clearly and intentionly went high with his hands on Colt. Hit was fine, hands to helmet isn’t. #UT about 2 hours ago
• Very good effort by R Bobino to get first down when there wasn’t much room on fake punt. #UT about 2 hours ago
• Fiesta Bowl trophy is one of the ugliest things on the planet. #UT about 2 hours ago
• Crap. Holding call turns 2nd and inches into 2nd and long. #UT about 2 hours ago
• Set your feet Colt. #UT about 2 hours ago
• @kbohls you have to be able to trust you junior QB not to take bad risk. That one is on Colt. #UT about 2 hours ago
• Bad underthrow by Colt costs #UT chance at at least tying FG. Huge mistake and momentum killer into halftime. about 2 hours ago
• False starts on wide receivers drive me bats***. #UT about 3 hours ago
• @kbohls blame out of position linebackers (due to play and blitzes) more than D-line for long runs. Agree about QB contain. #UT about 3 hours ago
• Getting the awful feeling opposing fans felt when VY was at quarterback. Glad Pryor has no clue about watching for 1st down markers. #UT about 3 hours ago
• 2nd and goal from 17 and we run a draw to Chris O? WTF? #UT about 3 hours ago
• Speaking of running, where’s Fozzy? #UT about 3 hours ago
• No attempts to get Colt McCoy running yet. Turn him loose Greg! #UT about 3 hours ago
• Better drive by #UT offense but inability to get positive yards on 2nd & short is killing us. about 3 hours ago
• Apparently that was a token holding call earlier, some pretty blatant ones on this series but we get pressure and S Kindle gets sack. #UT about 3 hours ago
• 1st freshman mistake for Pryor. Good run but stepped out before first down with no one about to hit him. Melton rushing out of control. #UT about 4 hours ago
• Woot!!!! Apparently holding still exists outside the Big 12! Good sign for Rak! #UT about 4 hours ago
• Chris Hall is playing. Retweeting @suzhalliburton: @40acressports They used the depth chart from A&M about 4 hours ago
• Chris Hall wasn’t on official depth chart for the game but #71 is in uniform at least for the Horns. Hope he’s 100% and starting. #UT about 4 hours ago
• RT @CedGolden: Is it me or is Barry Switzer wearing a burnt orange tie with a matching hanky? #UT about 4 hours ago
• Score predictions for #UT vs Ohio State: http://is.gd/eEb5 All three of us have the Horns winning a pretty close game. about 4 hours ago
• RT @bevobeat: Blaine Irby up and about. Horns’ injured tight end was out tossing the ball around in pregame. http://twitpic.com/100fd about 4 hours ago
• Ah oh: No Chris Hall on the 3 deep at center for Fiesta Bowl depth chart: http://is.gd/eDRj True frosh D Snow gets start. about 5 hours ago

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(Side note: This is the site’s 2,500th post. Kind of cool.)

Tostitos Fiesta Bowl
	#10 Ohio St. (10-2) vs. #3 Texas (11-1) Jan. 5, 7:00 p.m. (Fox) Favorite: Texas by 8

The Texas Longhorns and Ohio State Buckeyes will face each other for the third time in the last four seasons on January 5th in the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl. Splitting the home-and-home series back in 2005 and 2006, the two teams will get the chance to settle the score on the field. The Longhorns are disappointed to be here while the Buckeyes have been embarrassed the last two seasons in BCS championship games, which team will show up in Glendale, Arizona motivated and ready?

As in seasons past, Ohio State relies on a dominating defense and their running game to win games. Behind captains and All-Americans James Laurinaitis and Malcolm Jenkins the OSU defense is in the top 10 nationally in several categories including total defense and scoring defense. On the other side of the football true freshman blue chipper Terrelle Pryor has started at quarterback since the USC loss and got better every week. Pryor is good, but running back Chris “Beanie” Wells is both the star and the workhouse who lugged it for over 1,000 yards this season despite missing three games.

The Horns are of course led by Heisman finalist QB Colt McCoy. McCoy and the Texas offense lit up scoreboards all season long even without a consistent rushing attack. McCoy found his favorite targets Quan Cosby and Jordan Shipley to the tune of 3,445 yards and 32 TDs while blowing away Daunte Culpepper’s completion percentage record. The Texas defense has been re-energized by head coach in waiting Will Muschamp. Thanks to the outstanding play by Nagurski Trophy winner Brian Orakpo and Sergio Kindle the defense has been a strength despite extreme youth in the secondary. They match-up well against the Buckeyes as the nation’s number two rushing defense.

Players to Watch

Texas: QB Colt McCoy, WR Jordan Shipley, LB Sergio Kindle, LB Roddrick Muckelroy
Ohio State: QB Terrelle Pryor, RB Beanie Wells, LB James Laurinaitis, CB Malcolm Jenkins

40 Acres Fiesta Bowl Coverage

• Bowl Game Looms Large for Texas Team
• Five Longhorns to watch: Fiesta Bowl
• Three redshirt freshmen don’t make trip to Fiesta Bowl
• Some Players need to step up in Bowl Practices

Related Stories

• ESPN Accuscore prediction: Texas 32, Ohio State 25
• Title solidifies Brown’s standing
• Buckeyes are aware of lack of respect
• Big D in Texas?
• Ranking the bowls

Related Videos

• Mack Brown press conference
• ESPN Tostitos Fiesta Bowl Breakdown

Texas did everything they could on Thanksgiving night beating the Aggies 49-9. The defense was dominant and Colt McCoy may have secured the Heisman Trophy. The Longhorns wait to see how the BCS situation shakes out while we look at the top 11 performers from Thursday night.

1. Colt McCoy - McCoy bounced back from a turnover filled sophomore season with arguably the best season a Texas quarterback has ever experienced. Texas A&M had been the bugaboo for the junior star until Thursday night. McCoy did everything once again for the Longhorns accounting for four total touchdowns and over 300 yards passing. He continued to be Texas’ number one running threat while completing his passes at a record breaking clip. Texas needed to impress the voters and their quarterback made sure they did.

2. Sergio Kindle - There are a lot of players that deserved the top spot on Texas’ defense but Sergio is going to get the nod. Kindle was everywhere on the night showing off his unfair athletic ability. Kindle has found his home coming off the edge for the Longhorn defense but showed Thursday night the ability to play in space. The former Dallas prep star finished with five tackles, three of which were for losses, and a sack against the overmatched Aggies. Aggie quarterback Stephen McGee thought he had something to say after Kindle’s sack but quickly realized it would have been a very bad idea.

3. Brian Orakpo - The soon to be first round pick made a huge impact in his first extended game action since the injury he suffered in the Texas Tech game. Orakpo is the most physically dominating player on the field every time he steps on the field. Even facing double teams and chips from running backs and tight ends, Orakpo is able to disrupt seemingly every play. He finished with a sack and a half and added four more recorded quarterback hits. The pressure the front four produces allows the secondary to get better each week.

4. Brandon Collins - Seemingly all year long the young receivers have taken turns making an impact as the third receiver for the Longhorn offense. It was Collins’ turn this week. Collins had a team high 103 yards on a tied for team high six receptions. The sophomore did most of his damage on middle screens out of the spread set. His 20 yard touchdown catch in the second quarter gave the Longhorn offense the momentum it needed to get the scoring rolling. Texas would score a touchdown on the next four possessions.

5. Earl Thomas - There will be no more questions on Earl Thomas’ speed. The freshman safety made two jaw dropping plays on the night, one being when he caught speedy Mike Goodson on what appeared to be a 90+ yard touchdown reception. Despite a bad angle Thomas caught Goodson and let him know about it. Thomas gives the secondary an edge and was in on a number plays on Thursday night in both the run and pass game. Thomas has bounced back from the end of the Texas Tech game with three outstanding performances from his safety position.

6. Quan Cosby - The senior made his last game in DKR a memorable one by catching one of McCoy’s two touchdown passes. Cosby was one of the few players on this team that got on the field in the win over USC in 2005, so I’m sure he was happy to see the team back on top. Cosby has been McCoy’s rock all season and continued to come up with key third down and red zone completions. Cosby finished with six catches and 80 yards to go along with the touchdown.

7. Cody Johnson - It is hard to account for two touchdowns and over 100 yards on the ground and not earn top five ranking but the truth of the matter is that Johnson’s yards came mostly when the game was out of reach. The big guy in the backfield did show some impressive speed on his 61 yard run late in the game. Johnson has continued to be excellent in his role as short yardage back, but could be so much more for this team moving forward if he can get his weight down 10 pounds or so. It will be interesting to see how the coaching staff uses the red-shirt freshman in the bowl workouts and in the Spring.

8. Roddrick Muckelroy - Texas A&M managed to gain -24 yards rushing on the night. Texas’ run defense has been ranked in the top five all season in yards given up per game and while a lot of that may be attributed to the offenses that are ran in the Big 12 the man playing the best week in and week out against the run has been Roddrick Muckelroy. The junior is becoming one of the best linebackers in the Mack Brown era. He leads the team in tackles on the year and seems to do so in every game. Muckelroy finished with a tie for the team lead with six tackles, including one for a loss.

9. Jordan Shipley - Shipley had a quiet day by his standards for most of the game against the Aggies, but was able to come up with the highlight of the game on a 68 yard catch over the middle to set up a first and goal. Colt McCoy’s roommate, in case you didn’t know, caught for balls for 85 yards. Shipley seemed to be the focal point for the A&M defense which allowed other players, such as Collins, to step up. Did you know Shipley and McCoy go fishing and hunting together?

10. Roy Miller - Roy Miller has played great in the middle all season for Texas. His impact cannot be measured by looking at the box score, but he finished with two tackles, a pass breakup, and two quarterback hits. Texas A&M could get nothing going up the middle from the run or screen game for the entire 60 minutes. Miller must be given credit for his lead blocking on short yardage situations for the offense as well.

11. David Snow - Didn’t hear his name on Thursday? That is a good thing. With no fanfare at all the true freshman has stepped in to play center for a potential national championship team and nobody has even noticed. Texas continues to struggle in the run game and has not protected McCoy as well as they would like but Snow has stepped up tremendously with Chris Hall injured. It is likely Hall will be back for the bowl game, and in that case Snow will get snaps at guard on top of backup center.

Texas’ defense stepped up big posting a shutout in the first half and only seven points in the whole game. Colt McCoy played another good game keeping the teams championship hopes as well as his Heisman hopes alive. Texas did what they had to do, but it may not be enough as they do not control their own destiny to either the conference or national title game.

1. Sergio Kindle – It just makes sense to have a defensive player at the top of the big board. When the game was in doubt the defense was suffocating. On three straight drives in the first half Kansas turned the ball over twice on downs and fumbled. The reason for the success was the pressure on quarterback Todd Reesing. Sergio Kindle led the way off the edge with Brian Orakpo limited in what he could do. Kindle managed a sack and a half but put pressure on Kansas all game.
2. Colt McCoy – McCoy just continues to perform at a level that none could have predicted. Most onlookers have probably waited for the Heisman candidate to come back to earth, but McCoy has done no such thing. He played good in the passing game, especially considering the conditions, and provided yards on the ground when the running backs struggled to do so. McCoy has been invaluable to this team. He controls everything the Longhorn offense does. He finished 24 of 34 for 255 yards and two touchdowns. McCoy added 83 yards and a touchdown on the ground.
3. Quan Cosby – For all of the pub that McCoy and Jordan Shipley get for being roommates and child hood friends, it is Cosby that makes the Longhorn passing offense go. When Cosby went down in the Tech game it was obvious that the passing game struggled to find a new identity. Cosby puts Texas in consistent second and third and shorts and is the guy that stretches the field. He scored a touchdown in the second half while grabbing six balls for 70 yards.
4. Roy Miller – The senior defensive tackle is going to be the hardest Longhorn to replace next year. Miller has become a monster in the middle with the ability to play the run and the pass. He has become a leader on the team, and seemingly shows up with his “A” game every week. He recorded a half sack early in the game and made it impossible for Kansas to get anything going in the run game. The Texas defense has survived with Brian Orakpo so far, I’m not sure it would without Miller right now.
5. Henry Melton – Too bad Melton is a senior because he is a year or so away from becoming a dominant defensive end. His athleticism, especially his footwork, allows him to make plays despite being behind in his technique at the position. The former running back gets better every time he steps on the field as he has finally seemed to embrace being a defensive player. He finished with three tackles, a sack, and two tackles for loss in the win.
6. David Snow – It is hard to measure the play of the individual offensive lineman without knowing their assignments. But when a true freshman that has been splitting his time between two different positions steps in to play center on three days notice and you barely think about it the whole game somebody is playing well. Snow had one bad snap, on a short yardage play. It was hard to tell if it was a bad snap, a miscommunication, or if McCoy simply dropped it. With Chris Hall coming back next year it is hard to see where Snow will fit in to the starting lineup. But one thing is for sure, he will get snaps somewhere.
7. Eddie Jones – The best thing that can come out of an injury to a key player is the emergence of the next star. It may be premature to call Jones a star, but the talent is there and a performance like his against Kansas can give everyone some hope moving forward. The former five star recruit showed his athleticism on a pitch play in the first half. He tracked down the running back in space and forced a fourth down play. His stat sheet doesn’t wow you, only two tackles, one being for a loss, and one quarterback hit. But with Melton and Orakpo being gone next year, it was nice to see Jones make an impact.
8. Christian Scott – It took one play for Scott to make an impact from his safety position. On the snap after Kansas running back Angus Quigley knocked starter Blake Gideon out of the game Scott came in and violently sent a message back. For the rest of the game Scott was all over the field. Will Muschamp has said Scott possesses the most physical upside of any of the young safeties. Scott is going to have to be more than just a Saturday performer to get consistent snaps however. Muschamp wants hard work in the film room and on the practice field, and if Scott can put that work in Gideon and Earl Thomas may have some competition in the secondary.
9. Blake Gideon – Before the injury in the third quarter Gideon was playing one of his best games all season. He was making plays in the secondary as well as putting pressure on the quarterback in key situations. The true freshman is just a solid football player that puts his nose in any and everything he can. He flies around the field and always appears to be in the right place at the right time. Gideon appeared to suffer a concussion, so it will be interesting to see how cautious the staff is moving forward.
10. Foswhitt Whittaker – The Texas game struggled on the day, but Whittaker found a way to contribute in the passing game. In the first half he recorded all his receptions, a total of five for 42 yards. Whittaker is the one back on the roster that can put a defense on their heels and it was important for the red-shirt freshman to show he can block and catch out of the backfield. The staff needs to find better ways to get him the ball on handoffs, but the fact he was able to play as much as he did is a good sign for the Longhorn offense.
11. Roddrick Muckelroy – Muckelroy has been Texas’ most consistent linebacker all year long. He leads the team in tackles on the season and finished tied for second on the team against Kansas with six tackles. Kansas’ offense puts more pressure on the corners than the linebackers, but Muckelroy consistently showed up on plays. He swarms to the ball and provides support in both the run game and the middle passing game. The junior’s value, opposed to say a Jared Norton, is that he can play on every down in distance. He is no longer a liability in the passing game.

Texas enters their last road game of the year with a beat up football team. The weather is supposed to be bad with wind and cold weather in the forecast and a number of Longhorn players are banged up. As always players such as Colt McCoy and Roddrick Muckelroy will need to play well for Texas to keep their conference and national championship hopes alive, but some guys under the radar will have to step up to come away with the win.

Vondrell McGee

With the emergence of Chris Ogbonnaya and the comeback of a healthy Foswhitt Whittaker, the sophomore has become a forgotten man in the Longhorn backfield. Ogbonnaya is still suffering through an ankle injury while Whittaker doesn’t have the body to carry an entire games worth of runs. Because of this McGee has found himself still getting carries after a slow start to the season. In fairness to McGee he was banged up as well early in the year but appears to be back close to 100%. Quietly McGee has played extremely well in the last few weeks. On the road, especially in windy and cold conditions, good teams need to be able to get some plays out of the running game. Whittaker will be the main guy, but if McGee can come in and keep the chains moving the Longhorns may be able to wear out an undersized Kansas defense. McGee performs best when he is coming off the bench and with Whittaker and maybe Ogbonnaya in front of him this week McGee is right where he needs to be.

David Snow

Last week many were wondering if the true freshman from Gilmer was beginning to push the older guys at the guard position for some serious playing time. The coaching staff loves Snow’s mean streak and competitive nature. This week starting center Chris Hall went down in practice with a leg injury and with the dismissal of Buck Burnette for racist comments on the internet Snow finds himself the starting center for the first time in his career. Snow should get a challenge in his first start because it is on the road and opposing teams have been found of blitzing Colt McCoy. Snow has played mostly guard on the season, but Mack Brown says he still practices snaps before every practice. Certainly Snow has concentrated more on center for the past week and a half after the dismissal of Burnette. Having the quarterback in the shotgun for the majority of the game should help the young center, but if Texas looks lost in blitz pickup we’ll know the freshman is taking his lumps.

Sergio Kindle

Of course everyone looks for Kindle every game. He has become a dominant force on the Texas defense, and may have done enough over the season to become a hot target in this year’s NFL draft. This week don’t necessarily just watch Kindle’s play, watch where the junior lines up. Kindle is listed as a linebacker, but as the season progresses he has been lined up more and more at defensive end. For the first part of the season he only did this on obvious passing downs, but with Brian Orakpo missing last week’s game Kindle lined up at defensive end almost exclusively. Kindle excels when playing downhill and coming off the edge. He has struggled in space on pass coverage, so Will Muschamp has turned Kindle into Texas’ version of Lawrence Taylor. Orakpo is expected to be back, but it is unlikely he will be at full strength. Look to see the ratio of snaps at defensive end to linebacker for Kindle this week.

Earl Thomas

The red-shirt freshman safety played his best game of his young college career last week against Baylor, a week after being one of the two players that gave up Michael Crabtree’s winning touchdown in Lubbock. It was huge for Thomas to bounce back and he did, showing the mental toughness that Muschamp has been glowing about since spring practice. Stop me if you’ve heard this before, but the young Texas secondary faces another tough test in the passing game. The young safeties have had their struggles on the season but they have played extremely well for the most part. The best evidence for that was the long pass play the Texas defense gave up on the first play Thomas was out with a minor injury. Ben Wells came in to replace Thomas and got beat deep for the only long passing play Baylor was able to muster against the Longhorns. Thomas was able to come back into the game and continued to play well. He may have been the best player on the field for UT’s defense last week and that kind of play will be huge again for Texas to avoid an upset in Lawrence.

Ryan Bailey/Hunter Lawrence

Most fans are hoping this game doesn’t come down to a field goal. Not because they don’t have confidence in the Texas kicking game, but because they feel UT should be able to win big against a struggling Kansas team. The last time Texas went to Lawrence they barely came out with a victory, so a close game is not out of the question. After being the place kicker last year Ryan Bailey lost his job in fall camp to Hunter Lawrence. The change had come without much fanfare because Lawrence was perfect on the season. That changed last week when Lawrence missed both of his field goals. In the end the misses did not matter, but when Texas lined up for their third field goat attempt Ryan Bailey trotted out for the try. Bailey made the kick and the questions about who would be the kicker going forward began before the referees even raised their arms. Bailey didn’t appear to do anything to loss his job, and he has proven he can make big kicks as he did in Nebraska. The coaches said Lawrence didn’t kick the last field goal because he was “sore”. We will know on the first field goal attempt if this was just lip service or not.

Feel free to have your own opinion of what Buck Burnette’s punishment should have been and whether a mistake that destroys a team is worse than other criminal offenses, but at least don’t base it on “facts” that you made up yourself.

Read the story below from SI.com, no link because they don’t deserve it:

Crime and punishment at Texas
Bill Trocchi

Sorry if I’m late on this topic, but let me get this straight.

Texas linebacker Sergio Kindle was arrested for driving while intoxicated in the summer of 2007 and got a three-game suspension.

Texas defensive end Henry Melton was arrested for driving while intoxicated in the summer of 2007 and got a three-game suspension.

Texas defensive tackle Lamarr Houston was arrested for driving while intoxicated in September and got a one-game suspension. Here’s a link on all three arrests.

Texas center Buck Burnette posted a text message he received from a friend that contained a racial slur directed at Barack Obama on his Facebook page and was dismissed from the team.

Huh?

Ah, now I see. Look at the depth chart. Kindle, Melton and Houston all start. Burnette was a backup. Hmmmm.

Clearly, discipline needed to be handed out in all four cases. But the Facebook incident is by far the least punishable. Offensive? Yes. Stupid? Yes. Endangering the lives of others? No.

You can’t suspend a guy for one game after a DWI arrest and dismiss another for a Facebook racial slur. It is an insincere attempt to show you run such a clean and virtuous a program that you boot (backup) players when they post stupid, racially insensitive remarks on a Facebook page.

And then you hope nobody notices you start three drunk drivers on defense.

Let’s review those facts…

• Melton, Kindle, and Houston received lighter punishments because they’re starters. - Actually only Houston was a starter at the time of his arrest. Kindle was a second stringer who mainly saw time on special teams while Melton was buried on the depth chart after switching to defense from running back.
• “The Facebook incident is by far the least punishable.” - Actually, threatening the life of the President is a federal offense, but it doesn’t sound like he knew what Burnette actually said. Just today a Spring man was sentenced to 30 months in jail for threatening George W. Bush and another man faces up to 35 years in jail for threats he made on Internet message boards. Sounds pretty serious to me. The first DWI offense in Texas is punishable with up to 180 days in jail.
• Backups don’t matter so it’s okay to punish them. - With the injury this week to starting center Chris Hall the importance of backups is even more clear. Texas will be starting a true freshman at center against Kansas instead of Burnette.

I can see that he’s easily confused.

I’m not sure what fact checking Sports Illustrated does of their FanNation blog, but this article should have never gone up. Despite repeated corrections to the article being posted by commenters the original story still hasn’t been updated or corrected.

Coming off a loss to Texas Tech that knocked the Longhorns from title favorites to title contenders, the team will look to rebound today against Baylor. Sitting at number four in the BCS rankings if the Horns can take care of their business starting today they could easily climb their way back into things. Baylor is a better team than in year’s past so Texas won’t be able to sleepwalk through this one.

After a tough loss and a week of distractions, can Texas avoid the upset? Find out what we think below:

Brian - This is a huge game for the Longhorns. There are so many reason the team could be headed for a let down against Baylor, coming off a ferocious stretch of games and also coming off a loss. Baylor, led by Robert Griffin, is a solid team that as they showed last week against Missouri can play with anybody these days. Texas is still a class above them and I think the leadership of this team is strong. Colt McCoy and Jordan Shipley are going to get back on track. We’ll also see huge games for linebackers Sergio Kindle and Roddrick Muckelroy as they try to keep Griffin from going off. Texas 48 - Baylor 20

Mike - This game could go two ways. The hangover of last week combined with a dead stadium early Saturday morning against the year in and year out door mat team of the Big 12 could lead to a tightly played, poorly executed ball game. Or Texas could come out and dominate trying to prove a point that last week is in the past. Great teams rebound from a tough loss and while I’m not convinced this UT squad is a great team, I do think they are mentally tough enough to bounce back from a loss that would send some teams into a downward spiral. Texas is bigger, faster, and should be hungrier than a much improved Baylor team. It won’t be the laugher it has been, but Texas wins going away after a slow first quarter. Texas 45 - Baylor 17

For the first time in over a month Texas faces an opponent that hasn’t been ranked in the top 10 at some point in the season. The players and the staff faced the challenge of staying “up” for such a difficult streak of games, but getting “up” for a game against an inferior opponent like Baylor after a heartbreaking loss may prove to be more of a challenge. Texas appears to have an advantage at every position, even with Brian Orakpo and Quan Cosby not likely to play.

When Texas has the ball

The Texas offense found their stride late in the Tech game after struggling to get anything going in the first two and a half quarters. Colt McCoy had a decent game, but it was no where near the level he had been playing at before the second half of the Oklahoma State game. The Longhorn offense struggled after Cosby went down, but the emergence of Malcolm Williams as a deep threat could be the silver lining. When Cosby is able to get back, and he will at Kansas, Texas will finally have a three wide receiver set that scares opposing defenses.

The biggest concern coming out of the loss in Lubbock is the play of the offensive line. The big guys up front got beat up for most of the night night. They couldn’t open up holes for the run game or protect McCoy in the passing game. The ability is there, and if some of the older guys like Cedric Dockery and Charlie Tanner don’t step it up they may lose more snaps to younger guys like Michael Huey and David Snow.

Texas’ offense has gone all year without a consistent run game and it is probably naïve to believe one is miraculously going to appear. The hope for Texas is that a healthy and utilized Foswhitt Whittaker can provide enough of a spark to take some pressure off of Colt McCoy. McCoy proved to be human last week and in those games the Longhorns have to be able to run the ball to stay effective. They couldn’t in last week’s loss and it may have cost them a shot at the Conference and National Championships.

Texas should be able to move the ball against Baylor. The Bears defense has allowed over 30 points in five of their last six games, all of which were losses. Applying pressure and creating turnovers are the only way Baylor stays in this game and the Bears defense has not been good at either.

When Baylor has the ball

This is not your older brother’s Baylor offense. First year coach Art Briles found his future in his first year. That future goes by the name Robert Griffin. The freshman quarterback has been nothing short of outstanding. He can run and pass, and was the last quarterback in Division I to throw an interception. For the first time in a long time Baylor has a player that can scare you on every play.

The Longhorn defense played well in the second half last week. The only touchdown they gave up came with one second left in the game. The task this week will be to rebuild the psyche of the young secondary. Curtis Brown, Blake Gideon, and Earl Thomas all had a forgettable last minute of the game, and each of them may have left the field with the feeling they were the reason their team is no longer number one in the nation.

The staff and fellow players have spent a whole week assuring these guys that one play and one guy has never lost a football game. But with young emotional players no one can tell how they will react their next time out. They could turtle up and play tentative from here on out, or they can feed off of the emotion and become better football players because of it.

Texas lost their best player for the week in Brian Orakpo. Most would believe that Texas doesn’t need Orakpo to win the game, but when facing a dual threat quarterback like the one Baylor has every team would want to be at full strength.

Just like on offense, the biggest concern heading out of last game was the play of the defensive line. Texas Tech’s offensive line won the individual battles last week. Baylor won’t have the talent that Texas faced last week and it will be important to regain confidence with early pressure.

Texas’ speed should be able to nullify most of what Baylor would like to do. Even with Orakpo out Texas should be able to get pressure with Sergio Kindle, Sam Acho, and Henry Melton. The key for this defense will be keeping Baylor out of manageable third downs. If Texas can force Baylor’s freshman quarterback into long distance plays, one would think defensive coordinator Will Muschamp can overwhelm him with schemes.

It wasn’t the greatest game for the Longhorns individually. In the heartbreaking loss to Texas Tech only Malcolm Williams had the kind of night you brag about to your friends. Most weeks it is a struggle to settle on the top 11 players, but this week it was a struggle to simply find 11 players to put on the big board.

1. Malcolm Williams - All year Texas’ offense has searched for a legitimate deep threat out of their third receiver. Many around the program felt that the guy would be red-shirt freshman Malcolm Williams because of his size and speed. Saturday Texas found their deep threat, but it took Quan Cosby getting hurt to do it. Williams had without question his best game as a college player finishing with 182 yards on four catches including two touchdowns.
2. Colt McCoy - Colt McCoy entered the Tech game as the clear leader for the Heisman trophy, and while Texas lost and McCoy didn’t play his best game he still led his team to a potential comeback. McCoy finished the game 20 of 34 for 294 yards and two touchdown passes. McCoy’s struggles came in large part to his offensive line getting manhandled all night. He was sacked four times.
3. Sergio Kindle - It wasn’t a great day for the Texas defense, but Kindle made some plays. Kindle finished with six tackles, a sack, and a forced fumble. The Texas defensive line failed to get pressure throughout the night giving Tech’s offense all the time it needed to make plays. After Brian Orakpo went down with an injury Kindle was being used almost exclusively at defensive end.
4. Jordan Shipley - Down 5-0 in the first quarter Shipley dropped a deep pass that would have given Texas the early lead. After that play Shipley played a pretty good game. He got Texas back in the game with a punt return for a touchdown in the second half. Shipley ended his night with six catches for 45 yards.
5. Roddrick Muckelroy - The Junior linebacker continues to lead Texas in tackling in seemingly every game. Saturday night Muckelroy registered 12 tackles, most coming in the middle of the field. Tech had a little success running the ball, but in the second half Texas’ defense shut out the Red Raiders until their last drive of the game.
6. Earl Thomas - Most people will only remember the last play of the game where the freshmen tried to undercut Harrell’s pass to Crabtree allowing a touchdown pass. What most people won’t remember is that Thomas was playing maybe his best game as a Longhorn before he took that chance at the end of the game. Thomas had ten tackles with two pass breakups on the night.
7. Foswhitt Whittaker - Fozzy has been struggling all season to get on the field. Early in the year he suffered through two nagging knee injuries only to see senior Chris Ogbonnaya secure the running back position by the time Fozzy got back healthy. The Texas staff didn’t allow the speedy freshman to make an impact until the second half, but when they did the potential big play ability he brings to the position was clear. On a night where Texas could do nothing on the ground Whittaker averaged seven yards on six carries in limited action.
8. Roy Miller - When Texas did apply pressure it seemed the big man in the middle was the one applying it. Miller went down with an injury during the game but was able to get back on the field. Miller has been the most consistent player on the d-line this year. He finished the game with five tackles and one of UT’s two sacks.
9. Hunter Lawrence - You know it is bad when a kicker made an impact in a loss. Lawrence continues to be the model of consistency going two for two on the game. Lawrence has been perfect on the season even though he entered it without being expected to get the job.
10. Aaron Williams - The true freshman doesn’t get the chance to play as much as the other corners, but he continues to stand out every time he is on the field. Williams is quickly becoming a playmaker on special teams recording another blocked punt against Tech. He recovered a fumble, had two pass breakups, and made a great play on a screen pass during the game.
11. Justin Tucker - Two kickers on one list? I know, I know, but try to find someone who made more of an impact than Tucker. The rugby style kicks he utilized on Saturday night ended up working extremely well for Texas as they averaged over 50 yards. Tucker also continues to get his kickoffs consistently into the end zone.

The number one ranked Longhorns had an impressive win in front of a national audience last Saturday when they beat the Missouri Tigers 56-31. The game wasn’t even as close as the final scored would indicate as Texas jumped on Missouri early, taking a 35-3 lead into halftime. Some of the usual suspects and some new faces came up big in a night that could turn out to be the highlight of the 2008 season. Here is the big board:

1. Colt McCoy - Could anyone else be on top of the board? The Heisman front runner turned in his best performance of the season Saturday night. Colt went 29 of 32 (92%) for 337 yards and two touchdowns. He also added two touchdowns on the ground. McCoy is playing better than anyone in the country and seems to break a UT passing record every single time he steps on the field.
2. Sergio Kindle - No Texas defender put up huge stats this weekend, but Kindle was everywhere all night. His athleticism is second to none as he showed on one play chasing down a Missouri reverse after being blocked. The linebacker/defensive end ended the night with five tackles and one of UT’s two sacks of Chase Daniel.
3. Chris Ogbonnaya - Ogbonnaya has come out of nowhere to become the unquestioned go to back in Texas’ backfield. For the first few games of the season Texas fans and their staff were searching for a guy to break out. It was Chris “O” all along. The former wide receiver led the team in rushing, gaining 68 yards on 13 carries including two touchdown runs. The senior’s main strength may be what he does when receiving out of the backfield where he added another 68 yards on six catches. McCoy is driving this team, but the emergence of Ogbonnaya has been the best thing that has happened to this offense so far this season.
4. Brian Orakpo - His stats will not impress you: only one tackle. But how he changes a game can not be measured by a box score. O-Sackpo as his teammates are calling him forced Chase Daniel to move around all night. He forced Daniel into Kindle’s arms for one sack and caused the hurried throw by Daniel in the end zone that led to Ryan Palmer’s interception. Orakpo has been unblock able all year, and will be on everyone’s All American team as this year finishes.
5. Brandon Collins - Yes, Jordan Shipley and Quan Cosby had more catches but the emergence of Collins as a third receiver was huge for this team. He made a huge catch early in the game to get the offense going and continued to make plays in the slot throughout the night. Collins finished with six catches for 76 yards clearly becoming the best option not named Shipley or Cosby for McCoy in the passing game. As important as it was in this game, the impact of Collins’ night will have an effect on how defenses have to prepare for this offense moving forward.
6. Blake Gideon - This guy impresses more and more with each game. Watching the true freshman on TV does not due him justice. Gideon makes all the calls for the secondary, frequently barking out calls or make hand gestures right before the snap because he saw something that needed to be changed. He is a sure tackler that isn’t afraid of contact as he proved when putting a lick on tight end Chase Coffman early in the game. The combination of Gideon and fellow freshman Earl Thomas has improved significantly to the point that the safeties are becoming a strength of this team instead of a liability.
7. Charlie Tanner - The big guys on the offensive line need some love. Tanner went out early in the season and the so called experts (message board coaches) thought that the injury could be a good thing for the line because it would allow higher rated Michael Huey to get more game time. The fact is that this unit struggled with Tanner not in the lineup and the proof is that now Huey and David Snow take senior Cedric Dockery’s snaps when they come into the ball game and not Tanner’s.
8. Jordan Shipley - The chemistry between Shipley and McCoy is unfair at this point. Shipley has become essentially the tight end for this football team and frankly the offense is more explosive because of it. Shipley ended the night with another touchdown (he has scored at least one in every game) on eight catches for 89 yards. Missouri showed Shipley respect by not kicking to him at all on the evening.
9. Roddrick Muckelroy - “Muck” probably deserves to be higher on the list because he led the team in tackles once again accounting for 11 total on the night. Missouri’s offense got away from the run early because of the score but Muckelroy was still able to make an impact. The junior linebacker doesn’t make the “wow” plays that Kindle and Orakpo do but there is no doubt that Roddrick is the best and most complete linebacker on the team. He has struggled with injuries in his career but has stayed healthy and come into his own this season.
10. Ryan Palmer - There was concern coming into the game that the senior cornerback wasn’t going to be able to play because of the hamstring he injured in the Oklahoma game. Palmer played and made a big impact on the night, recording Texas’ lone turnover on an interception and almost making another pick early in the game that would have been returned for a touchdown if the not so sure handed corner would have held on. Palmer may not have the physical gifts that some of the younger defensive backs on the roster have, but he plays hard and with an attitude that I think is beginning to rub off on guys like Chykie Brown and Earl Thomas.
11. Quan Cosby - McCoy is going to get a lot of credit for the passing attack, and rightfully so, but Cosby and Shipley have played at another level this whole year. Cosby finished the night with seven catches for 74 yards. Cosby plays harder than anybody on the team and just appears to max out his ability on every snap of every game. He contributes in the return game on punts and kicks and has become one of Texas’ better blocking receivers. With Shipley moving inside, Cosby has become UT’s go to outside receiver and he has yet to disappoint.

The #1 Texas Longhorns versus the #11 Missouri Tigers is the biggest game of the weekend in college football. The two high scoring offenses will match-up tonight at 7pm in a nationally televised game on ABC and ESPN Gameday was live from the forty acres this morning. With an even bigger target on their backs than usual, can the Longhorns continue their high level play and stay at the top of the polls? See what the editors of Bevo Sports think below:

Brian - Oklahoma State did a great job slowing down Mizzou’s offense in their upset last week and Texas is even better on that side of the ball. If OSU can get after Chase Daniel with their defensive line than Brian Orakpo and Sergio Kindle are going to have huge games. With their defense the Tigers will need to score 50+ to win against good teams, they’re not going to do it tonight. Texas will frustrate Daniel into making mistakes and the Horns are going to win big because of it. Texas 48 - Missouri 27

Matt - Many Longhorn fans seem to think this game is going to be easy. This scares me a little. Missouri is a tough team and they don’t average 555 yards (383 yards passing) for nothing. And then you have the fact that Texas just gave up 5 passing touchdowns. And then you have Chase Daniel who is probably still pissed off with past recruiting issues and will probably be trying extra hard to prove Texas wrong. Now with all of that said I think Texas will be ready for this game and won’t get caught in all the hype the #1 ranking brings. This will be be a high scoring affair (the O/U is only 65). Texas 48 - Missouri 38

Mike - Last week I made the mistake of picking against Texas. This week I’m torn between made to look like an idiot for two straight weeks and jinxing the Horns by picking them to win. I’m hoping Colt McCoy and Will Muschamp are enough to overcome my jinx because I’m picking Texas in this one. Both teams have Heisman Trophy candidates at quarterback, both teams can make plays in the special teams, and both teams are coming off of season changing games. The difference in this one will be turnovers and pass defense. I think Texas holds the advantage in both of those categories. McCoy is going to shred an overmatched Tiger secondary and the combination of Orakpo and Kindle will remind Chase Daniel why he always wanted to be a Longhorn. Texas 41 - Missouri 20

Another week, another tough opponent for the Longhorns. This week it’s Missouri and their Heisman candidate quarterback Chase Daniel in a national primetime game on ABC. The Texas defense will be trying to slow down the Tigers’ offense while Colt McCoy and the offense attempt to continue to put up huge numbers on the scoreboard.

Read on below to see what the keys are for the Longhorns to come out on top:

1. Use Missouri’s wide splits against them.

ESPN was useful for the first time in years when they posted a video breakdown of how Oklahoma State’s defense slowed down the Mizzou offense. The defensive end instead of trying to get outside simply takes advantage of the wide splits and speeds right at the quarterback while the defensive tackle twists outside to provide contain pressure. The Missouri offensive coaches better either have come up with a counter for that or change strategy completely because if they don’t Brian Orakpo and Sergio Kindle are going to blow things up all game long.

2. Don’t let Jeremy Maclin change momentum with a kick return.

Last week against Oklahoma the Longhorns were down by 11 when a big Jordan Shipley kickoff return for a score completely flipped the game’s score and momentum. Texas can’t let Missouri wide receiver Jeremy Maclin do the same thing in this game. Texas needs punter John Gold and kickoff specialist Justin Tucker to either kick it away from Maclin or put it high enough and deep enough that the coverage teams can do their job.

3. Continue developing third receiving option.

Last week Shipley and Quan Cosby together absolutely torched the OU defense but at some point this year the Horns will face a team with cornerbacks who can man up against those guys. The team needs to find another option Colt McCoy can rely on. Sophomore Brandon Collins caught three passes against the Sooners and may be becoming that guy. Now that the Texas offense will be using more four wide receiver sets both Collins and James Kirkendoll will get their chances and need to step up.

It could have been a match-up of top three teams but Missouri’s loss to Oklahoma State takes just a little away from this Saturday’s game between the Longhorns and Tigers. With the Horns now the number one team in the country every game is huge so the atmosphere for a night game at DKR should still be incredible. ESPN’s College Gameday will be present once again as the Longhorns try to keep another dynamic offense from scoring as many points as Colt McCoy can muster.

When Texas has the ball

Texas’ offense looked great last week against a solid Oklahoma defense. The offense found a running game in the second half, they proved the wide receivers could get deep in one-on-one coverage, and coordinator Greg Davis showed an ability to make adjustments and exploit a defense’s weakness. All of these things had not been proven heading into last week’s game.

Missouri’s defense has not looked so good. They probably played their best game last week in the loss to Oklahoma State. The Tiger defense struggles in pass coverage, so expect Colt McCoy, Jordan Shipley, and Quan Cosby to have another big day. The Longhorn offenses wants to find a third receiver, but at this point any production outside of Shipley and Cosby will be considered a bonus. Texas will be able to move the ball against Missouri, but the Horns must capitalize inside the red-zone with touchdowns not field goals.

The offensive line is playing great and should have a physical advantage across the board on Saturday night. McCoy helps the big guys out by buying time in the pocket. If McCoy can break contain and put Mizzou’s linebackers in awkward spots Texas will move the ball with ease. The Tigers must force McCoy to stay in the pocket and make mistakes to have any chance.

The running game has come alive the past two games because of senior Chris Ogbonnaya. His name has been typed so much the past two weeks that sports writers can finally spell it without referring to the media guide each time. At this point it appears Fozzy Whittaker will not be a factor this year. His knee injuries have only allowed him to play in one game, and I don’t expect the coaches to give the redshirt freshman many carries in big games moving forward. The ball will be in Ogbonnaya’s hands a lot in the running and passing game, but the key may be the short yardage play of Cody Johnson. If the big guy can continue his success there is not much defenses can do against this team.

Like last week, Texas faces another high powered offense with the ability to score quickly and frequently. It will be up to McCoy’s offense to put points on the board, and to take time off the clock. Last week Texas was brilliant in this regard. The offense picked up third down conversions when they needed to and stuck with the running game even when it appeared they had no chance to make plays. This effort wore down the Oklahoma defense and got Sam Bradford and the Sooner offense out of rhythm. Texas outscored OU 25-7 in the last quarter and a half last week and will need that type of effort again to come out with a victory.

When Missouri has the ball

Missouri may be the best offense this Texas defense has to face this year. Quarterback Chase Daniel is a Texas native and has expressed his interest on many occasions to prove he should have been recruited harder by the Longhorn staff. Daniel isn’t the most dangerous player on Mizzou’s team however, that honor goes to red-shirt sophomore Jeremy Maclin. Maclin can do it all, he catches, he runs, and he is deadly in returns. It will be interesting to see what coordinator Will Muschamp comes up with to defense Maclin. If cornerback Ryan Palmer isn’t healthy I’d suspect Texas shadows Maclin with a safety over the top. If Palmer can go, look for the senior to get matched up on Maclin for most of the game. Both guys are small and quick and would provide a great match up on the outside. Missouri does a good job of moving Maclin around; Texas’ most important job pre-snap will be to identify the dangerous Maclin.

The Tiger offense creates big plays, but they don’t necessarily do it through deep passes. Daniel likes to get the ball out quickly underneath and let his playmakers make plays with their feet. Texas’ best weapon on defense is their pass rush, led by Brian Orakpo and super freak Sergio Kindle. Missouri will look to throw a lot of screens. The screen game was effective against Texas in their last two games because of the Horns eagerness to get to the quarterback. Unlike McCoy, Daniel is not a great quarterback if he is forced to move around and create plays. It will be up to the front four to provide that pressure for Texas’ defense because the linebackers will need to be used to stop the short passing game.

Texas faced a great tight end last week, and will face another one this week. Missouri’s Chase Coffman is one of the best in the nation. Roddrick Muckelroy was in coverage for most of the second half against OU’s Gresham, if Coffman has early success Muschamp will go back to this strategy. But Texas must be careful to not forget about the running game. UT’s defense has been great against the run. They face a decent back this weekend in Derrick Washington. Washington leads the nation in scoring. He is a powerful back that has the ability to make big runs if he can get to the second level with a full head of steam.

Missouri’s offensive line uses big splits, like Texas Tech, to provide more time and space for their quick passing game. Last week, Oklahoma State tried to go inside the tackles in order to force Daniel to scramble. Texas would like to get conventional pressure from the corner, but may use this strategy if no pressure is being made. I’d expect a lot of three defensive end looks, or a 3-3-5 look with Kindle playing linebacker or defensive end depending on the circumstances. If Texas can put pressure on Missouri and keep everything in front of them it has a chance to be a great night for the Horns.

Wow, what a game. I must say that after Oklahoma scored so quickly on their first two possessions, I thought we were going to get run out of the Cotton Bowl. Thankfully Jordan Shipley stepped up and Colt McCoy was able to keep the team calm. After that our defense made some big plays and Colt seemed to have full control of the game.

My favorite play of the game was easily the Quan Cosby block where he laid out #11. And my least favorite had to be the horrible penalty call when we supposedly “ran into” the punter. That punter has been watching too much soccer because that was some serious flopping.

So now Texas is 6-0 and #1 in the nation. No more relaxing, the target is on our backs. But enough of that, let’s see how each position fared against OU:

Quarterback - Overall Grade: A-

Even though Colt McCoy’s stats don’t really show he had a great game, I felt his leadership and calmness was the key to victory against OU. Colt finished with 28/35 passing, 277 yards, and 1 touchdown. The most important stat Colt put up Saturday was zero turnovers. Colt simply didn’t make any mistakes. Colt definitely put himself into the thick of the Heisman race with this victory, and I think it is about time. Sam Bradford may have had better numbers, but I would take Colt any day.

John Chiles actually got some early playing time, probably trying to catch OU off-guard, but it was to no avail. Chiles did absolutely nothing and continues to disappoint.

Running Backs - Overall Grade: A-

Chris Ogbonnaya got the start again Saturday, and I think he proved why. He ended up with 127 yards on only 15 carries, including a long 62 yard run which sealed the game for Texas. And even though Cody Johnson only got 3 carries, he made the most of them scoring touchdowns on each one. He has proved he is a great goal line runner, and he and Ogbonnaya are proving to be a lethal 1-2 punch. In our most important game of the year so far, Vondrell McGee ended up with only 1 carry for -2 yards. I think it is safe to say the coaches know who to give the ball to now.

Wide Receivers - Overall Grade: A

I didn’t think Texas could win this game with only 2 receivers, but the combo of Jordan Shipley and Quan Cosby was just too much for the Oklahoma secondary. Shipley seemed like he was open on every play and made some key first downs. He finished with 11 catches, 112 yards, and 1 touchdown. Cosby was all over the place too adding 9 catches and 122 yards. Cosby may be a little undersized, but he probably has some of the best hands in the Big 12 and always seems to make big plays. The rest of the receivers combined for 4 catches and 16 yards.

Defense - Overall Grade: B+

Even though I think the defense played great, I do have to dock them for allowing 5 passing touchdowns. The greatest part of the defense on Saturday is that I actually noticed our safeties, and in a good way. Blake Gideon seemed to always be around for the tackle, and Earl Thomas ended up with two interceptions. Both young safeties seem to be coming around and I can’t wait to see how much more they can improve before Missouri. And Roddrick Muckelroy was simply ridiculous. He led the team with 16 tackles, 13 of them solo. Didn’t you notice every time OU ran the ball they seemed to go nowhere? Yeah, that was “Muck”. Sergio Kindle showed again that he is scary athletic. Kindle flies around the field with reckless abandon, and the combo off him and Brian Orakpo coming off the edges is just too much for most teams to handle.

Special Teams - Overall Grade: A

The A mainly comes from Jordan Shipley’s 96 yards kickoff return in the 2nd quarter. Texas was down 14-3 at that point and it looked like it could be a blow-out. I think that play single handedly kept Texas in the game and was the spark to get the team going. Hunter Lawrence added 3 field goals and looks like he is a kicker that we can rely on in tough situations.

Overall Grade: A-

How can you not be pleased after that game. Even after the referees giving OU a free touchdown, Texas still prevailed. Now Texas faces the pressure of being #1, and the schedule doesn’t get any easier. They only have #11 Missouri, #8 Oklahoma State, @#7 Texas Tech, and @#16 Kansas. And did you realize the Big 12 Conference South Division has 4 teams in the top 8? That has to be a first.

The Texas Longhorns were led to victory in the Red River Rivalry by two wide receivers that ABC/ESPN’s studio guys called “no names” before the game. Jordan Shipley and Quan Cosby combined to catch 20 passes for 234 yards and Shipley added a momentum changing 96-yard kickoff return for a touchdown as well. Check out the hottest 11 Longhorns after the Oklahoma game:

1. Jordan Shipley - Shipley led the team in catches with 11 for 112 yards and a touchdown. He did most of his damage in the middle of the field once Oklahoma linebacker Ryan Reynolds tore his ACL. Shipley’s biggest play came on special teams when he took a kickoff 96 yards for a touchdown that kept Texas in the game. Without that play Oklahoma is still number one in the nation.
2. Roddrick Muckelroy - “Muck” is a beast. He led the team in tackles again, this time compiling 16 with 13 of them being solo. He did a good job when matched up on OU tight end Jermai Gresham and completely shut down the Sooners running game. Sergio Kindle gets the attention, but Muckelroy is the best linebacker on the team.
3. Colt McCoy - What is there left to say about Colt? The guy is everything you want in a quarterback. He has now won two out of three in the Red River Rivalry and has played good in each game. He finished the day 28 of 34 for 277 yards and a touchdown as a passer while adding another 59 yards on the ground. He kept plays and drives alive when he had to, and most importantly never made a mistake to take his team out of the game.
4. Quan Cosby - Cosby is a man. Literally. He is a few years older than the guys he is playing with and against because of his baseball career. The maturity exudes off of him when he is on the field. He had nine catches for 122 yards, and may have had the play of the game when he decleated Lendy Holmes on a Jordan Shipley pass reception. Texas finally found a deep threat and it was Cosby all along.
5. Brian Orakpo - “Rak” is officially rich. The big defensive end has played great all year and has finally become the dominant presence the staff hoped he would be. He racked up seven total tackles, two sacks, four tackles for loss, and a fumble recovery. By the end of the game OU quarterback Sam Bradford was looking for him after every snap. Orakpo has made this defense go, and will be a top pick in the upcoming draft if he can stay healthy.
6. Earl Thomas - Sure he made a few mistakes, but the red-shirt freshman made two interceptions of Sam Bradford with one setting up a field goal before the end of the first half. Thomas has the attitude that is infectious to the rest of his teammates, and as he gets more and more comfortable playing in the deep middle for Texas his athleticism and hunger for the game have become evident to everyone. This secondary play hinges on Thomas and for the last few games that has been a good thing.
7. Chris Ogbonnaya - All Spring, summer, and for four games of the regular season the staff and the fans have been searching for a go to running back. The whole time it was senior Chris Ogbonnaya. Chris “O” became the first running back of the year to go over 100 yards in a game when he ran the ball 15 times for 130 yards. He had two big runs in the second half, the last one sealing the game. He can run, he can catch, and he can block. Look for his role to expand moving forward.
8. Sergio Kindle - The athleticism of Sergio Kindle is off the charts. He finished the game with five tackles and a sack, but his effect on a game can not be measured. He flies around the field, and when he hits someone he hits them hard. I thought he was going to break Sam Bradford in half on his lone sack of the game. The combination of Orakpo and Kindle coming off the edge gives Texas an advantage that it has never had, and the two will be the key to stopping the high powered offenses Texas still has to face.
9. Cody Johnson - Last week I said two touchdowns will get you on the big board every week, so three has to right? The big guy only had three carries, but he made them all count. His role seems to be cemented with the emergence of Ogbonnaya as the goal line and short yard specialist.
10. Blake Gideon - The true freshman plays quietly in games. He is always where he needs to be and makes sure tackles when he has the chance. Gideon has become the quarterback of this defense which is remarkable when you realize he was at the prom less than six months ago. He had eight tackles and a pass breakup against OU. The best part is the combination of Thomas and Gideon still has four years of eligibility.
11. Hunter Lawrence - Lawrence made all three field goals he attempted. The margin of victory was 10 points. Coming into the season many expected Ryan Bailey to continue to be the kicker, but Lawrence has grabbed the position and won’t let go. He has a powerful leg and has been perfect on the season. Odds are a game or two will come down to his leg and right now Texas has got to like their chances when it does.

Starting this year the coaches have started to keep a “big board” of the top 11 players on the offense and defense each week. With the start of conference play, we’ve decided to make one of our own. Here’s the list after the Colorado game:

1. Chris Ogbonnaya - Texas may have found their running back. Chris “O” made the game’s first big play on a 65 yard touchdown catch from Colt McCoy that set the tone. He also added 75 yards on the ground and showed some big play ability.
2. Roy Miller - The big guy was everywhere on Saturday night. Miller had eight tackles, a fumble recovery, three quarterback hits, and two pass breakups. He may be the conferences best in the middle.
3. Colt McCoy - It says a lot about McCoy’s play thus far this year that the game versus Colorado is a step back. Colt had been playing out of this world so far, and came back to earth a bit against a Colorado team that decided to blitz all night. He finished 23 of 30 for 262 yards including two touchdowns and interceptions. McCoy didn’t lead the team in rushing finally, rushing for a solid 59 yards.
4. Roddrick Muckelroy - Muckelroy was all over the field in this game. He led the team in tackling again, accounting for 10 tackles and a pass break up. The speed and violence he is bringing to this line backing core has the unit playing better than any group in Mack Brown’s tenure.
5. Brian Orakpo - “B-Rak” is making himself a lot of money this year. Texas fans were hoping he’d put it all together on the field and he hasn’t disappointed. When teams decided to block him with just one guy he seems to get at least a hit on the quarterback every time. He finished with only two tackles, but had five hits on the quarterback and made the pocket a place CU’s quarterback Cody Hawkins a place he didn’t want to be.
6. Earl Thomas - As Earl Thomas goes, so goes this young secondary. The red shirt freshman appears to be the emotional leader of the group in the back. Earl’s name wasn’t mentioned all that much last night, and that is a good sign. He had two pass breakups and provided good support in the run game.
7. Cody Johnson - Johnson began the game as the starting running back for the first time in his young career at Texas. With Ogbonnaya having such a big game and the score becoming lopsided, Cody was limited to a short yardage back. He capitalized however, and two touchdowns will get you on the big board every week.
8. Jordan Shipley - Shipley caught the other McCoy pass on the night. It wasn’t a huge day for the ex Burnet star, but he got in the end zone and moved the chains on a few receptions. He has definitely become the guy McCoy looks to on hot reads and around the goal line. Their chemistry is amazing.
9. Quan Cosby - Cosby had the most catches on the team and appeared to be the most explosive on the night. The old guy on the team finished with nine catches for 71 yards. His long was just 15 however, as all the wide outs failed to make a big play.
10. Sergio Kindle - Sergio is just a physical freak. He causes havoc wherever he is on the field. When he lines up opposite Orakpo in the “buck” package an offense has no chance. Kindle looked better playing in space as he gets more and more comfortable on his surgically prepared knee. The light has finally come on in his third year on campus, and the sky appears to be the limit for this guy.
11. Chykie Brown - Chykie Brown played his best game as a Longhorn Saturday night against Colorado. It started early, as the starting corner knocked down a long pass attempt by Cody Hawkins. If that pass is completed the game may have been completely different. The whole secondary played with a swagger it never had last year. The Tony Yayo hand dance needs to go, but the play of this group is here to stay.

The Longhorns get conference play started this week with a road game against the Colorado Buffaloes. Texas has been on a roll, while CU enters the game after suffering their first loss of the season last week in Florida State. Last year, Colorado shocked Oklahoma in Boulder the week before the UT-OU showdown so Texas will have to show up to play and not look ahead to Dallas if they want to leave undefeated.

When Texas has the ball

Quarterback Colt McCoy has played as good as any other quarterback in the country. McCoy has played as good as any player in the country. Period. The guy has done everything for the Longhorns: he runs, he passes, he pooch punts, if he cleaned the locker room and prepared the food would you be shocked? Me neither. A great quarterback gives a football team a chance to win every game. McCoy is a great quarterback, and shows no signs of slowing down in the first test Texas faces this season. The offensive line has been above average. While the pass coverage has been outstanding, this group must take some of the blame for a lack of production from the backs. Colorado has given up a ton of yards in back to back games to West Virginia and Florida State. A good day would be great for confidence heading into OU week.

The Colorado defense is simple, but good. They don’t blitz a lot, they don’t disguise coverage, they play mostly zone. Expect Texas to pass, and do it often with McCoy getting pre-snap reads on virtually every play. Texas is hopeful running back Foswhitt Whittaker will be back this weekend. Couple the darting style of Whittaker with the emergent bruising style of Cody Johnson and the struggling Longhorn backfield could become one of the better tandems in the nation. Take into account that both of them are freshman and it should ease the anxiety of a Longhorn fan base that is used to stars toting the rock.

The biggest concern for Texas fans should be the inability of Malcolm Williams, and to a lesser extent Dan Buckner, to become a deep threat that opposing coaches must worry about. I can not remember one deep ball thrown to either of these guys when the ball wasn’t near the goal line. Quan Cosby and Jordan Shipley have been very good, but with the loss of Blaine Irby a threat down the field needs to replace the threat in the middle to allow space for Cosby and Shipley. If the offense can’t find one, the room Shipley and Cosby have been enjoying will dry up quickly.

When Colorado has the ball

Last week we finally got to see what Will Muschamp is going to do with the Texas defense. Attack, attack, attack. The Longhorn defense was flying to the ball, and when they got their they made sure Arkansas ball carriers remembered it. Never under Mack Brown has a defense been as fast and aggressive as the defense was this week. When the knowledge and experience that only comes with game snaps catches up with the raw talent and energy of this defense this group is going to remind a lot of people of the old Miami and Florida State defenses UT fans used to beg for. Mack Brown’s best coaching move may be hiring Will Muschamp when it is all said and done.

On offense Colorado is just a solid football team. They don’t do a lot of things great, but they don’t hurt themselves. These are the types of teams that can jump up and bite a better team. If Texas makes mistakes and lets Colorado hang around, the home crowd could put them over the top. However, these types of teams can also be overwhelmed if the better team applies pressure from the beginning. The best way to silence a crowd is to make big plays with your defense.

UT has already scored twice this year on the defensive side of the ball. Texas is ranked in the top 10 in scoring defense, and has been applying a ton of pressure the last two games. The combination of Brian Orakpo and Sergio Kindle has to keep opposing quarterbacks awake at night. With those two coming off the edge, it has almost been a guarantee someone is getting to the quarterback. Add Lamarr Houston, Henry Melton, Sam Acho, and Eddie Jones, and you can see how Texas has recorded seven sacks in each of the last two games.

Muschamp biggest contribution could be the job he is doing as the linebackers coach. Last year this same group of players looked lost in many situations. The scheme seemed to have them playing on their hills, a skill the collective group lacks. The scheme brought in by Muschamp has the linebacker’s core playing downhill and loving it. And while the group of Rashad Bobino, Roddrick Muckelroy, Sergio Kindle, and Jared Norton have been great; the next great linebacker at Texas may have had his coming out party against Arkansas in the second half. His name is Keenan Robinson. The freshman was everywhere, and just appeared to be playing at a different speed. Muschamp loves speed. I don’t know whose snaps will be taken away, but Robinson is going to play more and more.

The secondary is coming together, and it has all hinged on the play of safety Earl Thomas. The secondary is what it is, but if Thomas can play with his swagger, and the front seven keeps applying pressure they have a chance to improve greatly. The best friend to a secondary is a pass rush, and I expect Texas to blitz a lot from here on out. The young secondary will get beat a few times, but so far they have gotten better each week. Muschamp will make sure that continues.

Three games into the 2008 season the Texas Longhorns have answered most of the preseason questions facing the team. However going into this week’s game against Arkansas things are still hazy in the running game, at tight end, and with the pass defense. Read on below to see five players to keep an eye on this Saturday afternoon who might provide some much needed answers.

John Chiles

The Texas staff stressed getting the best 11 players out on the field this year regardless of class or position. Chiles is clearly one of those players even if he is not the best quarterback on the team. Chiles offers the big play ability that UT severely needs for this offense to be as dynamic as it can be. Offensive coordinator Greg Davis must find ways to get the former blue chip recruit involved, be it in the running game or in the passing game as a quarterback or as a receiver.

Vondrell McGee

This could be McGee’s last week to show the coaches he is worthy of important carries in important games. So far the sophomore has done nothing to warrant a starting job and is not only getting pushed by injured Foswhitt Whittaker, but by bruiser Cody Johnson. With Texas wanting big plays out of the running game, expect to see fewer and fewer carries for McGee unless he comes out and impresses this weekend against a SEC defense in Arkansas.

Peter Ullman

Losing Blaine Irby for the season is a huge blow for Texas’ offense. Irby allowed the Longhorn offense to lineup in four receiver sets without changing personnel. While Ullman will never scare opposing defenses in the passing game, he will be an upgrade in the running game and if he can add a few catches in the flats or in the shallow middle of the field Texas’ offense will continue to succeed. If the former Round Rock Dragon cannot offer any threat to opposing defenses UT may have to look at a different position for a player to contribute at the tight end position.

Sam Acho

The coaches have been impressed with Acho since fall camp began. In reserve duty behind star Brian Orakpo Acho has played well. If he continues to outplay Henry Melton (who isn’t playing poorly) and backup Eddie Jones, the staff may have to look at getting Orakpo, Sergio Kindle, and Acho on the field at the same time. Texas wants pressure on the quarterback, and through the first three games Acho has shown more ability to do that on a consistent basis than any other defensive lineman not named Brian Orakpo. If it continues some upperclassmen are going to find themselves standing next to Will Muschamp more than they’d like.

Chykie Brown

It is no secret that the weak link on the defense; and the team for that matter is in the Texas secondary. Going into the season most onlookers expected Deon Beasley to start next to Ryan Palmer, but through the first three games it has been sophomore Chykie Brown. Brown had his struggles tackling in the first game, with every other member of the secondary, but has made good strides in the last two ball games. Texas plays a lot of five defensive back sets with Beasley playing in the slot. Opposing defenses will continue to test Brown until he shows he can make plays. A good game heading into conference play will go a long way in building confidence for the ultra talented corner.

The Texas offense was again on point racking up a total of 600 yards (341 pass, 259 rush). Colt McCoy controlled the game and looks like a quarterback playing with great confidence. The Texas defense continued its trend of bend-don’t-break, allowing 300 passing yards but only 10 points. Overall I would say Texas looked like the #7 team in the nation dominating a decent Rice team.

Now let’s see how each position fared:

Quarterback - Overall Grade: A+

Finally Colt McCoy gets that A+. Colt had all of his talents on display. He threw with great accuracy, controlled the game, and ran with speed and power. Colt threw for 329 yards on 19/23 passing and 4 touchdowns, and added 83 yards and a touchdown on the ground. If you haven’t seen it yet, you must see the highlight of Colt’s touchdown where he ran over two defenders before stepping into the end-zone. You don’t often see that from a quarterback. And if all of that wasn’t enough, Colt also became the new career touchdown pass leader with 62, breaking the previous mark of 60 set by Major Applewhite. All in days work for Colt.

Since the game was a blowout, John Chiles got some decent action rushing for an impressive 72 yards on 10 carries, including a 25 yard run in the 4th quarter for a touchdown. Chiles was only called on to throw the ball once, which he completed for 12 yards.

Running Backs - Overall Grade: B+

Cody Johnson seems to have emerged as the goto back for the Texas Longhorns. We all know Johnson has the power to run up the middle, but against Rice he also showed he has some serious speed on the outside. Johnson ended up with 67 yards on 15 carriers and 1 touchdown. Vondrell McGee also got a few carriers, but turned out to be not all that effective. Chris Ogbonnaya continues to impress catching passes out of the backfield, breaking one for a 46 yard touchdown in the 3rd quarter.

Receivers - Overall Grade: B+

Jordan Shipley had the best game of his career, racking up 155 yards on 5 catches and 2 touchdowns. On Shipley’s second touchdown of the second quarter, he was so wide open there wasn’t a defender within 15 yards. Quan Cosby was the consistent player he always is, catching 7 passes for 90 yards and a score, the only issue being the fumble near the end-zone which ended up as a touchback for Rice. Those types of mistakes can’t happen during Big 12 play. Losing Irby for the season is big, but hopefully Ullman and/or Smith can step-up continue to be a safety valve for Colt.

Defense - Overall Grade: B

Allowing 301 passing yards is obvious cause for worry with our young secondary. We still have a few games left before we hit the meat of our schedule, so hopefully that will be enough time for Will Muschamp to work his magic. Thankfully the Texas front seven is looking strong. They recorded seven sacks and dominated the line of scrimmage. Sergio Kindle ran around like a mad-man disrupting many a play, and Brian Orakpo proved why he is one of the better defensive ends in the nation recording 2 sacks for 29 yards lost and 1 forced fumble. If the young secondary can improve by the beginning of October, Texas will have a very formidable defense.

The highlight of the day for the defense had to be the goal-line stand from the 2 yard line. Texas endured 11 plays and 2 pass interference calls, ending with a interception in the end-zone. Not often you see something like that.

Overall Grade: A-

Colt looks like he is on a mission and has this offense on a roll that cannot be stopped. The defense continues to look a little shaky, but luckily right now the greatness of the offense is outweighing the weakness of the defense. I actually feel pretty good right now about how things are progressing.

Follow along below with our live thoughts and analysis during tonight’s game versus Rice. Feel free to leave comments and questions using the live tool, but not all comments will be published. Read below for more notes on comments and how the live blog will work. Hook ‘em!

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Texas heads into this week’s game against Rice off an unexpected bye week thanks to Hurricane Ike. Going into this game, the emphasis will not necessarily be on winning (that should come from just showing up), the emphasis will be on setting a tone for the upcoming Big 12 season.

When Texas has the ball

Through the first two games, one thing has become unmistakably obvious: this is Colt McCoy’s football team. This year’s Longhorns will go as far as he takes them, and so far that seems to be a good thing. After a sophomore slump that saw McCoy’s interceptions jump up significantly from his freshman year, McCoy has started off his junior year in spectacular fashion, including only throwing one interception.

On top of his improved passing game, McCoy is also leading the Horns in rushing. He is the only Longhorn to have over 100 yards on the season. This needs to change, and luckily for UT the Rice Owls are just what the doctor ordered for the Texas running game in the past few years.

New running backs coach Major Applewhite has stressed ball security and pass blocking over explosive plays in the running game, but if Texas wants to get to their yearly goals of playing for the Big 12 championship and reaching a BCS game both need to happen. Texas ranks 23rd in the nation in pass offense, but sixth in the Big 12. The good teams in conference will be able to put up points, and with the youth in Texas’ secondary, UT’s offense must find a way to control the ball and shorten the game. This offense will not be able to score with the likes of Missouri and Oklahoma. In games like this weekend’s versus Rice, the running game needs to start asserting itself.

Texas’ offensive line should be able to physically dominate the smaller Rice defense. Expect the line to come out and quiet the naysayers after being out rushed by UTEP.

The receiving corps has been solid with Quan Cosby and Jordan Shipley being the go to guys. Against Rice look for Texas to try and get Malcolm Williams and Dan Buckner deep, these two flankers need confidence heading into the upcoming schedule. So far, the biggest surprise has been the play of tight end Blaine Irby who has scored in the first two games.

When Rice has the ball

Another week, another spread offense for Texas’ young secondary to deal with. The preseason schedule has worked out perfectly in terms of giving this group practice seeing the types of offense they will in the Big 12. The talent will obviously be a step up once conference games begin, but don’t be surprised if the Owl offense presents a challenge for the defense. Quarterback Chase Clement and wide receiver Jarrett Dillard are no slouches, especially Dillard who could be the best player to come out of Rice in recent memory.

Texas ranks 98th in the nation against the pass so look for defensive coordinator Will Muschamp to start bringing more pressure as the season wears on. In a game like this one where the outcome isn’t in much question UT may play close to the vest on offense and defense, but if Rice has success early look for Sergio Kindle to be unleashed. Texas has worked on a “Buck” package with Kindle coming off the edge. This should become more and more a staple of this defense.

Rice offers no real threat to Texas on the ground. The linebacker corps has played as good as it ever has under Mack Brown. Texas’ emphasis moving forward in the season is to create more turnovers and to create more pressure. With offenses running the way they do now, sacks are not as easy to come by. Muschamp keeps track of pressures and hits on the quarterbacks each week. He would like the number to continue to go up.