Nothing gets me more fired up than watching Ducks Unlimited TV before a big Longhorn game. Do you think Versus would show a show about hunting and killing ducks if Oregon was playing instead of Texas and [tag]Baylor[/tag]? That might be a little awkward.
If you’re not one of the many Texas fans who made the trip to Waco you’ll have to surf through about 1,000 channels before you’ll find Versus and you’re probably only getting it if you have satellite or digital cable. Versus is on channel 603 on DirecTV, channel 151 on Dish Network, and on 470 if you’ve got Time Warner digital cable in Austin.
Here we go…
First Quarter
- I like the straight zone run play with [tag]Jamaal Charles[/tag] than the zone read or the counter. Gives Jamaal a chance to hit the hole fast and get going north/south quicker.
- I like that a professional football announcer doesn’t know the difference between the zone read and a counter. Not even run out of the shotgun is a zone read.
- Three attempts towards [tag]Jermichael Finley[/tag] already. One good completion, one ball he should have caught, and one that he and [tag]Colt McCoy[/tag] had a miscommunication on.
- And another pass towards Finley. Texas attempts a fake field goal after he goes out wide and uncovered but [tag]Jordan Shipley[/tag] can’t get the play off quickly enough and then can’t get the ball out to him before the defense adjusted. Versus missed the whole play because we were zoomed in on kicker Ryan Bailey’s helmet.
- [tag]Erick Jackson[/tag] has been serviceable at safety this season but he is absolutely awful at adjusting to the ball in the air. He was there in coverage on a terrible Baylor pass but couldn’t make a play on the ball. Looked similar to the unnecessary pass interference penalty he picked up last week.
- Baylor offensive lineman Dan Gay IV commits a holding penalty. How unfortunate is that last name? Especially with the IV after it. You can essentially put any noun after that and hilarity will ensue.
- I’m surprised how empty Floyd Casey Stadium is. Enough Texas fans normally make that trip to fill up the place a little better.
- Second time already that I thought the Baylor defensive back got there early on pass coverage. [tag]Quan Cosby[/tag] doesn’t drop many passes, it looked like he got bumped early.
- Great punt but Jackson can’t down it before it bounces into the end zone. The only good thing to come out of the Kansas State game is punter Justin Moore.
- Versus really likes to use the camera angle from the roof of the press box. The damn thing is so high i can’t tell anybody’s number.
- [tag]John Chiles[/tag] and the second team offense is in there for this series. I actually like the timing of this one better than last week. The first team offense didn’t have much momentum so it’s not really going to disrupt them.
- Chiles has to be more careful with the football. First downs are important but not as important as holding onto the football. Don’t stretch the ball out in traffic on your own 40 yard line.
- Smithson Valley sucks!
- Big run by [tag]Vondrell McGee[/tag] up the middle. 18 yards on the carry is probably the second teamers biggest gain against first team defenses. I think as Chiles gains more experience running the zone read the whole offense opens up. Right now he looks a little like he’s keeping and handing off randomly and not doing a great job reading the defensive end. That’s a tough read and you can only really learn in live game situations.
- Set your feet before you throw John.
- [tag]Ryan Bailey[/tag] nails the 46-yard field goal into the wind. Right down the middle.
Texas 3, Baylor 0
- How sad is Baylor that the announcers are talking about their defense getting a victory by holding the second team defense to only a field goal?
- Not sure if this is their first series or not, but the young group of linebackers are in there now for Texas.
- What did they rule that play on the field? I thought I saw an official pointing that he was down before the fumble. Looks to me like the ball is coming loose a little before the Baylor running back hits the ground.
- Not sure how they ruled he was down after reviewing that play. Looked pretty clear from one angle that the ball was loose before his butt hit the ground.
Second Quarter
- I think that’s at least the fourth dropped pass today for the Horns. Colt lofted the ball a little too much but Finley should have come down with it. Interception by Baylor
- Screen to the running back for solid yards for Baylor. Looks like they’ve done their homework as well. The young guys are in there at linebacker and flying all over the place so throw screens and trick plays at them to take advantage of that aggressiveness. There’s a Baylor player down with an injury.
- Great athletic play by linebacker [tag]Jared Norton[/tag]. Pass tipped up in the air and Norton goes up and grabs it and gets the ball back for the Longhorns.
- Wow what an incredible catch by Quan Cosby. Gets nailed while fully extending to catch a short pass but Quan pulls it in.
- Colt McCoy is an animal. Another great job of avoiding the sack a couple of times and then breaks another tackle to pick up an 8-yard gain.
- Texas is inside the ten but I’m holding my breath because of our playcalling and Charles’ ability to protect the football. Yikes.
- Great 3rd and goal play call but McCoy misses a wide open Peter Ullman in the endzone.
- Lazy pitch by McCoy on the 4th and goal option play turns into a huge play for Baylor. Muffed the option and Baylor runs 60 or 70 yards the other direction. Instead of 6 points for Texas now the Bears are in great shape. Crap.
Texas 3, Baylor 7
- Colt fall down instead of getting the one extra yard.
- Versus announcers are clearly watching their first Texas game of the year. And they’re somehow blaming that fumble on McGee despite the fact that it was an option pitch that was behind him. There’s a difference between fumbling and muffing a tough pitch.
- McCoy again takes a hit he didn’t need to. Running and making good decisions but after you get the first down don’t take a big hit for an extra yard or two.
- Great “catch” by [tag]Nate Jones[/tag] but the officials are going to rule that he was out of bounds. Can we get a replay?? Texas picks up 15 yards though due to a pass interference.
- Jones got a knee down but did he have control of the ball at the time? Looks awfully close and we’re getting a review. We need 6, this is a big call.
- Ha! Touchdown Texas! The call is reversed by replay and ruled a touchdown for Nate Jones. I love Mack Brown’s reaction. He was like, “Holy sh** touchdown!!” Definitely looked like he didn’t think the review would go our way.
Texas 10, Baylor 7
- Great kickoff coverage by [tag]Drew Kelson[/tag]. Came flying down the field but broke down as he approached the returner and forced him sideways before he and the cavalry made the tackle back deep in Baylor territory.
- Texas front four on defense are getting no pressure on the Baylor quarterback.
- How in the hell is that not grounding? The Baylor quarterback CLEARLY was inside the tackles and threw the ball to no one 10 yards out of bounds. What an incredibly bad call on an easy penalty. Terrible.
- Bad officiating gives Baylor another first down.
- Oh they don’t notice obvious real penalties but the refs sure can call a meaningless sideline warning even when no one actually got in the ref’s way.
- [tag]Sam Acho[/tag] on the sack, true freshman just has a knack for finding the quarterback in his limited chances. Why is Baylor calling a timeout? It’s 4th and 20.
- Baylor goes for it on 4th and long and comes way too close to completing that for a first down. Jared Norton did a good job getting depth and finding the football but has to be careful and avoid making contact with the receiver. Texas football with less than a minute remaining.
- Good decision to kick with only seven seconds left. Not really time to do anything other than pick up 5 or 6 very risky yards. Of course the Versus announcers are morons. You don’t have time in 7 seconds to throw the ball for a 30 yard touchdown and then still get off a field goal.
Third Quarter
- Colt McCoy is looking a little like the pre-Oklahoma McCoy. He’s not sharp today. Underthrew the first pass of the half badly and just laid oone right into the Baylor linebacker’s hands for an interception.
- These refs are terrible. [tag]Sergio Kindle[/tag] takes about two steps before hitting the wide receiver and yet they call him for a personal foul. Weak call, I had no idea it was against the rules to play football.
- Texas could really use a nice long touchdown drive here. Get the offense in some rhythm and then get rolling.
- McGee fumbles the football. Son of a *****. Offensive lineman covers up the ball for the Horns. Announcers again show they haven’t watched a single Texas game when they call for Jamaal Charles because they think he provides better ball security.
- McCoy puts that ball in there a little higher and Shipley is able to get the first down to convert the 3rd and 17.
- Fake punt to [tag]Rashad Bobino[/tag] and the Horns convert the 4th and 2 and keep the drive going. Gutsy call as Baylor would have had terrific field position if we don’t get it.
- Another great scramble by Colt McCoy. He’s been doing that a lot lately and this time he made the smart decision to hit the ground after he had the first.
- Why do our wide receivers block so poorly on those quick screens? All they have to do is hold their guy for one count to let the receiver by and we can’t do it. Shipley whiffs on this one.
- Firs tand goal for the Horns. We desperately need 6.
- Dallas Griffin looks lost on the play (mainly because there’s no Baylor guys around to block) and [tag]Chris Ogbonnaya[/tag] has a nifty little touchdown run. Important series and the Horns finish it. Nice job guys.
Texas 17, Baylor 7
- Oklahoma just scored to take their first lead of the game against Iowa State with 14 minutes left in the fourth.
- [tag]Ishie Oduegwu[/tag] getting some playing time at safety. Looks like he’s in there for Jackson but I couldn’t tell. Nice tackle to force the Bears to punt.
- I’m sorry but that hit on McCoy was much later and cheaper than the play Kindle was flagged for earlier. The Baylor defender took three steps after seeing McCoy had clearly handed the ball off before unloading on him. If you’re going to call that crap on Kindle then you have to flag that play.
Fourth Quarter
- Dear Dan Beebe, please think about getting a less sucky TV contract so we don’t have to watch games on FSN or the even more crappy Versus.
- Nice that the Big 12 commish is more focused on the game than the Versus announcers.
- Terrible job tackling by [tag]Robert Killebrew[/tag] lets Baylor receiver escape for a big play.
- Texas isn’t getting any pressure on the QB, even when we bring extra men on blitzes.
- Another uncalled and obvious late hit by Baylor. Way downfield, way after the play, and in the back.
- I powerlifted in high school too, probably a different weight class than Roy Miller though.
Texas 17, Baylor 10
- This is no fun.
- More Ishie. Looks like he might be much better in coverage than Jackson. Nice coverage on a deep pass attempt.
- Terrible return by [tag]Deon Beasley[/tag] but heck of an interception. Jumps the stop route quickly and he steps in to pick off the pass. Big play in a big situation.
- The defender has to actually stop the ball carrier to “stand up” a guy. Jamaal Charles got about 4 yards after contact, the exact opposite of being stood up.
- Great catch by Charles for a big gain. Not sure he was really open but McCoy threaded it in there and Charles pulls it down. Looks like he’s just barely in bounds but Baylor is challenging the catch.
- On the replay Charles gets both feet in bounds but announcer despite not being able to see the ball decides he’s bobbling it. Jackass. Great catch.
- Announcer again exclaims how great Charles is at ball security.
- Touchdown Vondrell McGee. Nice power run from about about the 4-yard line. Great job by the line, leadblocker [tag]Derek Lokey[/tag], and McGee to hit the hole hard and finish the run.
Texas 24, Baylor 10
- OU just kicked a field goal to likely seal the game against Iowa State.
- Not sure I’d call that pass interference. It was a jump ball and Beasley has every right to try to get the football. Pretty ticky tack call there.
- Texas defensive line finally gets a little pressure on the Baylor quarterback and [tag]Marcus Griffin[/tag] is able to run under the overthrown ball, pick it off, and return it 91 yards for a touchdown. Sam Acho was in there on the QB again but couldn’t wrap him up.
Texas 31, Baylor 10
- Watching replay of the pick, defensive tackle was again dropping back in pass coverage. I’ve noticed him doing that a ton today. I wonder if because they’re double and triple teaming him Akina has decided to bring rushers off the edge and drop him in the short middle zone.
- Please don’t talk Roger Clemens into coming back for another season. I’m tired of the drama.
- “He’s growing like a weed” Come on, how can they not make that pun? Boo.
- Why aren’t we playing more young guys on defense at this point? Need to get the young defensive backs some experience and now is as good a time as any.
- Marcus Griffin picks off the awful lob pass to close the game with his second interception of the game.
reply to #1
Game Ball Award
October 20th, 2007 at 2:31 pm
You know what’s awesome? I dont get the Versus channel. If you are keeping score, that is 2 games not televised on a normal channel.
reply to #2
Matt
October 20th, 2007 at 2:54 pm
At least you don’t have to listen to these announcers.
reply to #3
Brian
October 20th, 2007 at 3:08 pm
Hey at least they seemed as ignorant talking baseball with Roger Clemens as they are with football. At least they’re consistently with their stupidity.
reply to #4
dwaine
October 21st, 2007 at 12:07 am
Great win by Texas. Obvious win though and at the end of the game I asked Nate Jones for a glove and he gave me both of his gloves!!! Sure made my day better. Texas win and a pair of game worn Nike reciever gloves worn by Nate Jones (only reciever who got a touchdown)