40 Acres Sports

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 the Lobos.

Mike Davis had a big touchdown just before the half against New Mexico. (AP Photo)

Pre-Game (15:00) WTH Coin Toss?! It was tough to watch Earl Campbell with his cane slowly walking to midfield. I do still love watching highlights of the Tyler Rose running over and past people. I am glad that DKR did a better sales job than the Bootlegger Boy.

1st Quarter (8:50) WTH VY?! I know that Vince Young has moved on, so who was running 49 yards for a TD from the quarterback position. David Ash had another solid game (16-22 for 221 yards) with no turnovers. I hope he continues to avoid the oskies.

1st Quarter (:00) WTH TOP?! I understand the concept of bending but not breaking when you describe a defense, but these Horns were T-O-P to death to start the game. The Lobos held the time of possession for 12 minutes and picked up 7 of its 16 first downs in the first quarter.

2nd Quarter (15:00) WTH Wendy?! Wendy’s restaurant brought back former UT kicker Ryan Bailey to kick a 40 yard field goal for everyone to win a frosty. I guess the Nebraska game in 2006 was nothing compared to the pressure of feeding 100,990 fans. He missed.

2nd Quarter (9:55) WTH Fans?! I know the UT players would like the fans to be louder. You can see the kids waving their towels to get the crowd going. The home crowd did cause a delay of game for the Lobos when the Godzillatron screamed for NOISE.

2nd Quarter (5:54) WTH Error?! I guess I have a new nickname for Nick Jordan. The kicker missed another 40+ yard field goal. I think the frosty giveaway also affected Error Jordan. Fera where are you?!

3rd Quarter (12:12) WTH Daje?! Wow. Pure speed. Daje Johnson took a shovel pass for 45 yards to pay dirt to take control of the game. Glad he did not choose his first love which was basketball.

4th Quarter (:00) WTH Critics?! I have heard a lot of critics say how this team is not dominating. Granted it does take this team takes a while to get going, but isn’t a shutout a pretty good start to the season. There is no preseason for these boys to tune up, so next week’s road game will probably show us what type of team we can expect.

Next up for the Longhorns is their first road game against the Ole Miss Rebels on September 15th.

Thanks for following my WTH articles throughout the 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!!

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 the Cowboys.

DJ Monroe showed speed AND strength on his TD run against Wyoming. (AP Photo)

Pre-Game (15:00) WTH WHY-O?! Not exactly a uniform statement like Oregon. The Cowboys had the letters WYO on the front of the jerseys. Way to step out on the cool side. While on the subject of uniforms I hate the Longhorns practice jerseys. Never replace the Storm Trooper White uniforms when we go on the road.

1st Quarter (4:02) WTH LHN?! The LHN camera crew had a rough night. The Godzillatron went pink, then fuzzy, then out for a few minutes. The camera crew kept missing highlights of the plays for the video board. The LHN group must have been partying the night before after AT&T U-Verse decided to pony up for the network.

2nd Quarter (15:00) WTH Putters?! It was great to recognize the UT Golf Team for their accomplishment of winning a National Title. Glad we can beat Alabama at something.

2nd Quarter (9:40) WTH Vaccaro?! Kenny Vaccaro was all over the place, and he picked off his first of many footballs this season when he jumped the route to get the momentum back for the Horns.

2nd Quarter (4:48) WTH Statue?! The play that keeps OU fans up at night. Nice execution by David Ash to Malcolm Brown. It was great to see Joe Bergeron and Malcolm Brown each post 100 yard games.

2nd Quarter (3:44) WTH Tightrope?! It was nice to see the Wild Formation which Bergeron gave the ball to a streaking DJ Monroe for a touchdown. Are we going to call it the Wild Joe?

4th Quarter (14:50) WTH Ash?! The only turnover of the game put a little scare into most of the 101,142 fans in attendance. David Ash did have a solid game 20-27 for 156. If only one of his long distance connections to Mike Davis would have made the state line look a lot better

4th Quarter (4:28) WTH Jordan?! We are going to have a lot of sleepless nights if the field goal kicking does not get better. Nick Rose can definitely handle the kickoff duties, but so far Nick Jordan leaves something to be desired when trying to split the up rights. Misses of 46 and 44 plus a botched extra point is not the legacy of kicking on the 40 acres.

Thanks for following my WTH articles throughout the 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!!

It was rumored on Orangebloods and Hookem.com earlier this week but early this morning the Longhorn Network went live for AT&T U-verse customers across the country. Longhorn fans everywhere are dancing in the streets over the news that they’ll get the chance to watch the season kickoff tomorrow against Wyoming live on LHN.

There wasn’t an official press release until late this morning, but LHN started showing up as channel 1609 (standard def 609) sometime overnight and by the 8am Twitter was blowing up with fans and former Horns fired up about getting access to the network.

Adding U-verse probably triples the number of people in the state of Texas that now have access to the network and gives them a second large national carrier (along with Verizon FiOS.) This is great news for Texas fans and could help nudge Time Warner, Comcast, DirecTV, et. al. into adding the network as well.

More: Official release from Texas

When I first heard that the team motto was going to be RISE, I was wondering if they were using this to mean rising up from the ashes or even the dead. Next I thought of a boxing analogy about rising up from the canvas where many of your opponents knocked you out. This year’s motto means: Relentless, Intensity, Sacrifice, Emotion (Check out the 2012 Longhorn Football RISE 2012)

It has been a wild roller coaster ride when just a little over two years ago the Longhorns were playing for a National Championship. The Longhorns are a few years away from even been mentioned as title contenders. So, I am going to set the record straight and tell you what the Horns record is going to be game by game. I am even going to give you the record of the opponent when they play Texas. Here goes… nothing.

Wyoming (0-0) at Texas (0-0) Sept. 1st

This will be the easiest prediction of the season. I got both teams record correct going into this game. Texas is at home so the Horns have to win this one. Or the rest of this article is bunk. Horns WIN

New Mexico (1-0) at Texas (1-0) Sept. 8th

I have friends that went to New Mexico. They are just looking to come into Austin to have a good time. Not even the Lobos expect to win this one. Horns WIN

Texas (2-0) at Mississippi (2-0) Sept. 15th

Yes it’s a team from the big bad SEC. You know that they were the worst team in the SEC last year. They have a head coach that sounds like a character from a Spiderman movie, Hugh Freeze. New coach and wild expectations by the fan base will make this a tight game, but eventually the Horns wear down Ole Miss with their running game. Horns WIN

Texas (3-0) at Oklahoma State (3-0) Sept. 29th

Both teams have bye weeks before they face off which is a plus for the offensive sides of the ball. The Cowboys have a new quarterback, but OSU has a ton of confidence as well as playing this game at home. Will the Texas quarterback shuffle be settled by the fourth game of the season? This one is a toss-up. Let me get out a quarter. Tails Texas – Heads Cowboys. Horns WIN

West Virginia (4-0) at Texas (4-0) October 6th

The Mountaineers have four straight home games to start the season before their first road test in Austin. It’s still hot in October…right?! The West Virginia defense is horrible which should allow for a lot of UT running yards. The UT defense, lead by coach Manny Diaz, needs to keep the explosive Geno Smith in check. I hope everyone realizes that Manny will be a head coach next year somewhere else if Mack does not step down. Horns WIN

Texas (5-0) at OU (4-0) October 13th

I would like to think that sweet revenge will be the elixir that every Longhorn will enjoy after this game. But the better quarterback play and the team that doesn’t turn the ball over wins this game. Texas will come up short again. Horns LOSE

Baylor (3-2) at Texas (5-1) October 20th

Baylor will be coming off two straight losses to WVU and TCU. There is going to be a hangover effect after losing arguably the greatest Baylor athlete of all time. OK…I will give you Michael Johnson. Baylor fans will day dream of last year’s trouncing of the Horns while Texas fans will want to lay the hammer down with defense and a strong running game. Horns WIN

Texas (6-1) at Kansas (2-5) October 27th

I do not see a lot of waving the wheat at this game. The Jayhawk fans will be looking forward to the start of the basketball season when they will face Emporia State just three days after having to host Texas at a football game. Horns WIN

Texas (7-1) at Texas Tech (4-4) November 3rd

Yes. You guessed it. Here is my trap game. It will be at night. TBS loves the Red Raiders and Craig Sager will be wearing an electric red blazer. You know this team beat the Sooners last year. In the Mack Brown era, the Horns have lost only three times to Tech. All three losses were on the road and in November. Horns LOSE

Iowa State (3-6) at Texas (7-2) November 10th

Texas will want to get the bad taste out of their mouths from losing on the Plains. Perfect timing since the Cyclones will be reeling when they come off a major loss to the Sooners the week before. Look for the Horns defense to have a fumble, interception and punt return for touchdowns. This one will get ugly. Horns WIN

TCU (9-1) at Texas (8-2) November 22nd (Thanksgiving Day)

This will be the battle for second place in the Big 12. WVU will have lost to OU the week before this game. This will not equal the hype of an A&M rivalry, but it sure will be close. Both teams should be clicking offensively and the magnitude of the night may be similar to an OU game, best quarterback and no turnovers. Texas will win with a last minute field goal by the PSU transfer to give the ESPN network a ratings bump. Horns WIN

Texas (9-2) at Kansas State (7-4) December 1st

Kryptonite. Bill Snyder. The Little Apple. Take your pick. We do not beat this team. Why? I don’t know. Last time the Horns won was when Steve Jobs came out with ITunes (2003). Horns LOSE

I am predicting a 9-3 year for the Horns. I was way off with my predictions in 2010 with 10 wins (5-7) but I nailed it in 2011 with 7 regular season wins. Anybody can predict the future; just make sure you do not write it down ahead of time.

Thanks for following my WTH articles throughout the 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 @40AcresSports or follow me @Horns1991. HOOK EM!!

Well, the rivalry is over…at least for some time. The tussle between the Aggies and the Horns ended this year which also put to rest the State Farm Lonestar Showdown between both Universities. The made for internet contest was 19 events across women’s and men’s sports where the teams competed head to head for a possible 19 points for a trophy as big as Texas (it was a gaudy trophy at that). If the schools tied at the end of the year (which happened twice), the team that won the series championship from the previous year would be awarded the trophy. Check out the complete history at lonestarshowdown.net.

The contest went from 2004 until 2012 (8 years) where the Horns won 6 of these series over the Aggies. The two years the Aggies won were 2007-08 and 2008-09. Here are a few stats from this contest.

The biggest margin for the Aggies was 2 points in 2007-08
The biggest margin for the Horns was 10 points in 2004-05

Here are the teams that dominate during this 8 year span:

Texas Volleyball 6-2
A&M Women’s Indoor Track 6-2
Texas Men’s Cross Country 6-2
Texas Women’s Swimming 6-2
Texas Men’s Swimming 8-0
Texas Women’s Tennis 6-2
Texas Baseball 7-1

A&M won the following head to head battles during the 8 year time frame.

Soccer – Women’s Basketball – Women’s Indoor Track – Men’s Golf – Women’s Golf – Women’s Outdoor Track – Men’s Outdoor Track

Texas won the head to head battle on the following sports.

Volleyball – Men’s Cross Country – Women’s Swimming – Men’s Swimming – Men’s Basketball – Men’s Indoor Track – Men’s Tennis – Women’s Tennis – Baseball – Football

The two teams tied with a 4-4 record in Softball and Women’s Cross Country

A&M should feel proud about their sports program during this period because the program collected 8 of their 12 national championships during this time. (1) Men’s Golf (3) Men’s Outdoor Track (3) Women’s Outdoor Track (1) Women’s Basketball

Compare that to the Longhorns who secured 5 of their 48 National Championships during this series. (1) Baseball (1) Football (1) Men’s Swimming (1) Women’s Outdoor Track (1) Women’s Indoor Track

The Aggies will be quick to point out to that their football program since 1975 finished with a record of 19-18 against the Horns. We all know how the final game of this series ended to help Texas establish a decisive 76-37-5 record. During the Lonestar Showdown timeframe the Horns held a 5-3 record over the Aggies.

Isn’t it when you really want something bad enough, aren’t you suppose to get it? Many Aggies may have said that I need it, I really want it and I have to have it. You can possibly say that the Aggies wanted it more this year than the Horns, but as it turned out THE UNIVERSITY of the state took home the state title. Just don’t tell Baylor.

As we have completed another college football season, some wonder if really the two best teams were represented in the BCS National Championship Game. Many college football fans would like to see a playoff to determine a champion on the field instead of the cocktail mixture of polls and computers. Fans would be able to deal with this elixir of data called the BCS formula if they felt that 4 teams would be chosen instead of just the top 2. I would like to see the college presidents adopt the PLUS ONE model to determine the championship. Here is how I would like to see the BCS Bowls take shape first.

• Rose Bowl affiliation: Pac 12 & Big 10
• Sugar Bowl affiliation: SEC
• Orange Bowl affiliation: ACC
• Cotton Bowl affiliation: Big XII
• Fiesta Bowl affiliation: Big East / non AQ schools

We will give the Rose Bowl special treatment to maintain their tradition of having two BCS conference affiliations. The Sugar and Orange can maintain their regional BCS counterparts to help with travel and tradition. The Fiesta Bowl is the one that gets screwed because of past transgressions. They will associate themselves with the Big East or whatever comes of the non AQ schools. Most of the non AQ schools come from the Mountain or West region anyway. The new kid on the block would be the Cotton Bowl with its affiliation with the Big XII. The reason that the Cotton Bowl gets invited to the party is the money that this stadium can generate. No other BCS bowl site can boast the suites, access and marketing power that Jerry has created. The five BCS bowls will also end the doubling up that goes on when trying to host their affiliated conference and next week the BCS championship game. The playoff scenario below tries to take into consideration the geographic locations of the bowls to accommodate travel.

• Cotton & Rose will host the playoffs & the Championship game will be at the Fiesta
• Fiesta & Sugar will host the playoffs & the Championship game will be at the Rose
• Orange & Cotton will host the playoffs & the Championship game will be at the Sugar
• Rose & Sugar will host the playoffs & the Championship game will be at the Orange
• Fiesta & Orange will host the playoffs & the Championship game will be at the Cotton

The use of five bowl sites allows 2 of the non-playoff venues to continue with their affiliations and a bowl site will participate in the PLUS ONE system 3 out of the 5 years. The championship game will be played on MLK Day which is a holiday for many people. One important factor is that the BCS can still keep their claim that states “every game matters.” Another proposal is to have the BCS computers come up with the two most deserving teams after the bowl season is over. Fans do not want to hear any more about BCS computers after the regular season. At least this solution has the debate between the 4th and 5th best team getting into a playoff and not getting wrapped up in what a computer spits out.

One thing needs to be said for those that get sick and tired of the SEC winning all of these BCS Championships. Moving to the PLUS ONE model will increase the likely hood that two of the playoff bound teams will come from the SEC. Three of the past six years the SEC has had two of its teams make the Final Four in the BCS rankings. Get ready fans for even more SEC money and bravado coming from this conference. Why do you think SEC commissioner Mike Slive is in favor of the PLUS ONE model?

I am hoping that we get to see this PLUS ONE model in college football soon. Let the play on the field determine the champion not the computers.

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 the Bears.

Pre-Game WTH Baylor?! This is the Big 12! This is the big boy league. I understand showing school pride to the 46,453 fans that attended the game. But having a tarp that says “This is Bear Country” in the end zone to cover up seats that should be watching RG3 versus the Horns. Come on Man!

1st Quarter (14:38) WTH RG3?! C’mon Bears give the opposing team a chance to get their head in the game. The Horns defense which includes Blake Gideon watched a perfect throw by Robert Griffin to a streaking Kendall Wright for a 59 yard touchdown on the SECOND play of the game.

1st Quarter (:33) WTH Irby?! Who does not love Blaine Irby? He made a helluva catch in the back of the end zone for the first touchdown of the night for the Horns. Do you think he might have any eligibility left?

2nd Quarter (10:53) WTH Fat Man?! I do not know what Coach Harsin called this play but this razzle dazzle play had two offensive linemen split out on either side of the formation. One lineman faked a catch on one side while Case McCoy threw a fade to Luke Poehlmann in the end zone. Love Luke’s touchdown celebration by grabbing his gut to identify him as the fat man scoring.

2nd Quarter (7:40) WTH Goodwin?! Longest touchdown pass play of the season saw Marquise Goodwin dash 80 yards for the touchdown. He added a signature triple jump step in the end zone. This was the last highlight of the regular season for the Horns.

2nd Quarter WTH McCoy?! I know everyone loves the “it” factor that Case McCoy has in his game. The read and throw he made was awful. He looked at his primary receiver the entire time and he does not have the arm strength to get it there. The interception took the Baylor to the Horns 2 where RG3 strolled in to the end zone to lead at halftime. Why were we not running the ball to secure the lead at the half?!

3rd Quarter (4:15) WTH Gilbert?! This third interception by Case McCoy was clearly a throw for Mike Davis to go after which neither one were on the same page. Case had a night in Waco like Garrett had in Manhattan. Case had 4 interceptions which Baylor turned into 17 points.

4th Quarter (7:43) WTH RG3?! The UT defense said that Robert Griffin was not going to have a Heisman type night on them. Well UT defense, RG3 is headed to New York. RG3 threw his second touchdown of the night to finish with 320 yards of passing and he ran in two scores. Looks like THE hardware is coming to Waco!

Next up for the Longhorns are the Cal Bears on December 28th in the Holiday Bowl.

Thanks for following my WTH articles throughout the 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!!

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 the Aggies.

Pre-Game WTH 118 years?! I agree that egos have caused this rivalry to end. The Aggies says “It’s time for Texas A&M”… to slug it out with the SEC. The Horns have their path to blaze (LHN). Divorce is tough. Let’s reunite for the kids’ sake.

1st Quarter (7:26) WTH Tucker?! The 31 yard punt by Justin Tucker was making every Longhorn fan pull out their hair. The only good outcome was that most of his punts were never returned. He definitely made up for his punting woes at the end.

2nd Quarter (12:13) WTH Refs 1?! Keenan Robinson was called for roughing the passer when the QB Ryan Tannehill landed on him? Keenan must have pissed off the entire officiating crew because he also got called for a horse collar penalty in the third quarter when he clearly just had the jersey.

2nd Quarter (9:31) WTH Shipley?! This is not for the pass play to Irby for the first score. Before that play and the muffed punt that caused all the electricity for the Horns, Jaxon Shipley I think had the play of the game. On third down his bad knee gave way and he barely got a hand on the ball to knock it down. An Aggie defender was there ready to make the interception and take it to the house. Close call!

2nd Quarter (1:47) WTH Harsin?! Coach Harsin I am going to blame you for this interception thrown by Miles Onyegbule. Your innovative play calling gets this Horn team so fired up that they will throw into triple coverage to please you.

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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 the Wildcats.

Pre-Game Respect. A great decision by the UT brass to have a moment of silence before the game for the Oklahoma State’s tragedy of losing two of their women’s basketball coaches in a plane crash. Nice touch with the OSU logo on the Godzillatron.

1st Quarter (11:03) WTH Ash?! David Ash needs to realize that you do not need to jump when you throw the football. He has a tremendous upside but the decision making is suspect. Wildcats put the first points of the game after the turnonver.

2nd Quarter (3:02) WTH Blue Chip?! Way to take the momentum right out of the stadium. Coach Brown decides to go for it on fourth down at their own 41 yard line. Tray Allen false starts which kills the drive and ends up leading to a punt and the turning point of the game.

2nd Quarter (2:51) WTH Refs?! I am getting sick of these judgment calls! The KSU punt returner, Tramaine Thompson, fumbles the ball and the Horns recover in great field position. The ref felt that the returner was scared of the oncoming pressure and decided to throw the flag. Best Mack Brown meltdown ever.

2nd Quarter (:57) WTH Mack?! KSU was trying to get into position for a score before the half. Wildcat Sheldon Smith did his best tight rope act along the sidelines with a 24 yard catch which the refs really enjoyed by deciding to make the judgment call that it was a catch. Mack you have got to challenge that call. You do not need the timeouts so why not get the booth to review it.

3rd Quarter (3:43) WTH McCoy?! I guess the golden horseshoe is back in place. Case McCoy steps in an orchestrated a 6 play – 79 yard touchdown drive. Great designed play by Coach Harsin for McCoy to hit senior Blaine Irby for his first touchdown of the year.

End of Game (:00) WTH UT Defense?! What an incredible display of domination by this unit. It was sad to see the effort was wasted with a loss. The Horns held the Wildcats to 121 yards of total offense. Collin Klein, aka Honey Badger (please), had 4 net yards of rushing on 26 carries. The other telling stat is that the Wildcats had 9 series which they had 3 plays and punt.

Next up for the Longhorns are the Aggies for the final time? at 7PM on Turkey Day.
Thanks for following my WTH articles throughout the 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!!

Well that sucked. I was hoping to wake up in a world where Texas didn’t outgain Kansas State 310 to 121 last night and still lose. Oh well.

Here’s a few “highlights” from the game if you want to watch: