Posted January 18th, 2010 by Ross
Filed under: Football

WTH?! (What the Heck?) moments are attempts to find the memorable and the off-beat perspective on Longhorns sports. Here are some interesting moments from the Texas game against [tag]Alabama[/tag] in the Citi BCS National Championship.

I know that this post is over a week late. I needed at least that much time to get some perspective from attending this National Championship game.

Pre Game (Coin Toss) WTH Saban?! Nick Saban, your team wins the coin toss and you decide to take the ball first. The big bad SEC which claims that no one else plays defense but you guys are the ones that decide to go on offense first. Nick, either you’re tremendously cocky or you saw something that the Horns could take advantage of which you felt you needed to put points on the board first.

1st Quarter (13:01) WTH Saban #2?! OK, Nick. I am starting to think you were scared of the Horns offense. You go for a fake punt on your own 20 yard line. [tag]Blake Gideon[/tag] baited the punter PJ Fitzgerald to make the pass, but Nick you gave the green light for your players to execute this play. Hey Saban, looks to me your were a little concerned.

1st Quarter (10:54) WTH Moment of the Season?! The Tide’s Marcell Dareus hit was nowhere close to the shots that [tag]Colt McCoy[/tag] has taken while on the 40 acres. One of the most irritating stats of the game was this was Dareus’ only recorded tackle of the entire game. The tackle caused a pinched nerve that affected his throwing arm which ended Colt’s storied career. I hear some people complaining that Colt should have never been carrying the ball because he is too important to the team. These same people said leading up to this week that Colt was going to have to run to keep the Tide’s defense off balance. Isn’t hindsight a beautiful thing?

2nd Quarter (:03) WTH Hix?! To top his only tackle of the game Marcell Dareus recorded an interception just before the end of the half (he won the defensive MVP based on this play alone). The frustrating part of the [tag]Garrett Gilbert[/tag] shovel pass was not the drop by [tag]DJ Monroe[/tag]. It was the lack of a tackle by offensive lineman [tag]Kyle Hix[/tag] who could have held him up for at least a second or two instead of trying to barrel roll him down.

3rd Quarter (12:05) WTH Gold Streaker?! The gold masked man with a website on the back of his shirt wanted to interrupt the football game to protest… the BCS. I believe all universities need to be on look out for more masked streakers who want a playoff system.

3rd Quarter (:45) WTH Pass Catchers?! I have made this statement for a second consecutive game. This young group of receivers needed to come up big in this game even more so since Garrett Gilbert went in to replace Colt. Malcolm Williams’ finger tip touch of the football in the end zone would have brought UT within a single score before the start of the fourth quarter. Dan Buckner had a crucial drop early in the game until he made a solid catch in the endzone for a two point conversion. We need all the receivers including the newest recruits, Darius White and Demarco Cobbs, to help out a developing quarterback like Garrett next year. (Who knew these words would mean so much more with the dismissal of wide receivers Brandon Collins and Dan Buckner)

4th Quarter (3:14) WTH Mack Magic?! I thought of these words when Garrett took over the ball at the seven yard line. After the Longhorn faithful thought the game was over when Colt went down, the UT side of the Rose Bowl was stoked about a possible tie or go ahead score. Just a few seconds later, Alabama’s Eryck Anders recorded their only sack of the game which caused Garrett to fumble and end any momentum. I do need to point out that the OL protection got better towards the end of the game even after losing All-Big 12 center [tag]Chris Hall[/tag].

4th Quarter (1:48) WTH Saban #3?! With the score 31-21 in favor of Alabama, Nick Saban cemented himself as a red a** going in for a meaningless score. His own player, Javier Arenas, who intercepted the ball and fell to the ground instead of trying to score, showed more respect that Saban. Operating from the victory formation with only one timeout left on the Texas sideline would have ended the game. To use basketball terminology, instead of dribbling out the clock, Saban decided to dunk the ball over his opponent. I subscribe to the fact that the defense is the one responsible for stopping the other team from scoring. But when you can take a knee that will end the game with your team hoisting the ball in victory, that is the ultimate ending for a championship team.

Thanks for following my WTH articles throughout the football season. I appreciate the opportunity to rant about the greatest University sports program in the country. You can continue to follow comments on all of UT sports on Twitter at 40AcresSports or follow me at Horns1991. HOOK ‘EM!!

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2 Comments

  1. reply to  #1

    John Hampton

    As a Texas fan you will always wonder ,what if, and are correct in feeling so. The proof is not in what we did starting the game offensively but in what Alabama did.They came out throwing and were obviuosly concerned that we were going to pose a huge threat to them and were going to have to put points on the board. This was not going to be an SEC defensive struggle as they like to play.The plain fact is we have a 10 pt lead at bare minimum if Colt is in the game 10 minutes into the 1st qtr.That keeps the ground game from churning and forces Alabama to do what they couldnt do which was pass.As Don Meredith once said ,”if ifs and buts were candy and nuts we would all have a Merry Christmas”.What happened was terrible luck at the wrong time and certainly in the wrong place.It gave way to a valiant effort and hope for the future by Garret Gilbert. Texas may struggle next season but they will be back and next time maybe have a little luck on their side.

  2. reply to  #2

    Colonel Dave Lawrence

    I think that it’s always normal to look for excuses as to “why something happened”, or “why something didn’t happen”, and what could have been. Colt McCoy is a GREAT querterback, and one of the best ever, and Texas as a team was a great team, period. But, so was Alabama, and the fact that the Bama QB had broken ribs and couldn’t throw, and Rolando McLain, the Butkus Award Winner, had to have three intravenous fluid injections because of the stomach flu were never really mentioned–and they shouldn’t have been. Teams get thrown curveballs all the time, and you have to “dance with the girl you brought”. In this case, both teams were dealt some pretty tough circumstances, and the game was a great game, and both teams played the best they could under the plans & direction of their coaches, and the challenges that both teams created. Remember that this is the “first” time that the Tide has beaten Texas, and we’ve had some pretty good teams. Alabama had a fantastic team this year, and what we did to Florida was probably our “high point”, because Florida could have very easily been the National Champion again, especially with Tim Tebow! I guess the bottom line is that there are “no excuses”, you win or lose with what you bring to the table. In this case, the Tide was the better team. Texas and Alabama will hopefully continue to do great (I hope), so they may meet again, but the teams are different and the Fan base isn’t! LOL Alabamians, just like Texans, LOVE their college football, and especially their teams!!!! it was an honer to see the two schools that played on January 7, 2010, and if you remember the Nebraska game, that almost didn’t happen. And, according to my Nebraska friends, they were “robbed”! They won the Big 12 Championship, ha again! I just love College football and all that it stands for! My Bama friends had nothing but praise for the Texas fans they met–“all class'” was what they said! So Congrats on a great season last year, and thanks for the memories of two great teams! It could have gone many ways, but there is really no “asterisk” in that January 7th game, only the memories of two fighting teams who gave it “all they had”. Good luck this year! Roll Tide and Hook ’em Horns!!!!!!! DAL

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