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 Texas’ matchup with West Virginia.

Pregame WTH Helmet?! Again, I am fan of the alternative uniforms and helmets. I would like for the Longhorns to offer up an alternative. The WVU helmet looked horrible. The Mountaineers came out to warm up wearing their normal helmets then went back into the locker room and pulled out some white looking mess. It looked like there was an oil stain on it.

1st Quarter (13:45) WTH Daje?! The biggest play of the game was the touch that did not happen. Daje Johnson had a brain freeze and almost touched the punt that would have given the Mountaineers the ball in the red zone. The 58,570 moonshine fans would have wrecked the stadium if they who have gotten the ball.

1st Quarter (12:11) WTH Up Men?! You are big. You are placed in the middle of the formation to keep rushers from getting to the kicker. The kicker is backed up in the end zone. You may want to block the defender that is going right between both of you. Safety for WVU… Sheesh!

1st Quarter (2:31) WTH Big D?! The defense sacked WVU quarterbacks six times which included 2 fumbles. Crazy as it seems but the WVU backup QB Millard was better than the starting QB that they knocked silly on this play. Defense stepped it up in the first half while the offense took over in the second.

Halftime (:00) WTH Luck?! The Mountaineers had the mojo going into halftime with a field goal to put them up by 6 points. Wondering if WVU AD Oliver Luck was feeling a little better at this time since he didn’t impress the UT Regents as much on his interview? How weird would it have been if Luck was the UT AD and he would’ve been walking around the stadium at his alma mater as the enemy?

3rd Quarter (11:34) WTH Spark?! I have been critical of UT senior safety Adrian Phillips. I need to give him a shout out for an interception that helped kick start the frantic scoring that would occur in the second half. Seven out of the next 8 offensive drives for both teams would result in scores.

4th Quarter (:59) WTH Horseshoe?! You have to admit that this nickname for Case McCoy fits perfectly. Facing a fourth and seven at midfield Case hits his buddy Jaxon Shipley for a first down. The drive results in a tying field goal by the real hero of the game which is the consistent Anthony Fera (4 for 4 on FG).

OT WTH Brown?! This was the first overtime for a Mack Brown led team. Mack gets credit for hiring the play caller and recruiting the player. The play call by Major Applewhite to hit De La Torre out of the back field was something that made all UT fans smile. Great call Major! Then to have the recruit Steve Edmond that has been criticized most of the season come up not only on a third down tip, but to come through again with a pick to seal the win on fourth down!

Next up for the Longhorns are the Cowboys from Stillwater in Austin on November 16th.

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 Texas’ Thursday night game against Iowa State.

1st Quarter (15:00) WTH Electric?! That is what Mack Brown called the 52,762 fans that attended the tussle in Ames. And to top it off, the game was played on a Thursday?! Are we playing in the MEAC conference?

1st Quarter (2:27) WTH Rose?! The baton twirler from the Cyclone band caught the booming kickoff instead of a Cyclone kick returner. Most of Nick Rose’s kickoffs were sailing far into the end zone for touchbacks all night.

2nd Quarter (:00) WTH Horseshoe?! If this is the first time you seen this word on one of my posts, it refers to a certain QB. Horseshoe refers to Case McCoy who has a golden horseshoe up inside of him due to his lucky ways (A&M, Kansas, etc.). How in the hell did that Hail Mary pass to the end zone end up in John Harris hands? Amazing that the TD pass to end the half was bigger than you thought at the time.

3rd Quarter (6:34) WTH Cleats?! The defense looked like it was stepping up to the challenge. Then Adrian Phillips decided to slip (get some longer cleats… dude) and let the Cyclones receiver score on a 97 yard pass play.

3rd Quarter (4:30) WTH Magic?! Mike Davis has lost his right to be called Magic. He clearly took a cheap shot by going low at the defensive back on the goal line. Amazing how Mack Brown said that his player was just battling and competing. Is really that out of touch?

4th Quarter (3:40) WTH Kill Shot?! I am disappointed with the tenacity of the ISU team to slam the door. The Cyclones were 2nd down and 1 on the Horns 4 yard line. The next two plays were miss steps that opened the door. Did anyone think the Horns were going to pull this out? Here comes Horseshoe.

4th Quarter (:51) WTH Gray?! Johnathan Gray fumbled not once but twice on the goal line. Maybe Joe Bergeron should have been the choice in a late game situation… oh wait… OSU Cowboy late game fumble. Oh well.

Next up for the Longhorns is the Red River Rivalry against the Sooners in Dallas on October 12th.

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 TCU Horned Frogs.

Pregame WTH Handshake?! Shouldn’t Texas have something more for the seniors on their final home game? A handshake or a hug from Mack Brown and then you run to a cluster of people in the end zone that you hope is your family. How about making the moment a little more memorable in front of the home crowd?

1st Quarter (15:00) WTH Tryptophan?! Texas wants to have the exclusivity of having every Thanksgiving Day game at home. The attendance was announced at 99,950, but the lack of students and exuberant fans may make our home town network ESPN look for other options.

1st Quarter (12:39) WTH Ash Part 1?! The offense moved right down the field to open the game. David Ash did not lead Mike Davis enough which resulted in a costly red zone interception.

2nd Quarter (15:00) WTH 96?! It was the 96th anniversary of Bevo attending a Thanksgiving Day game. Are we reaching here to celebrate something? How about waiting for 100?

2nd Quarter (10:48) WTH Wedge?! Heard of the term chip shot? Well, TCU kicker Jaden Oberkrom decided to take it literally and clubbed the field goal which was clearly short.

2nd Quarter (5:34) WTH Ash Part 2?! Another trip to the red zone and another costly interception thrown by David Ash. The thinking was that Ash had turned the corner and was improving every week. Obviously this game he took a few steps back.

2nd Quarter (2:45) WTH Ash Part 3?! Third time is a charm and David provided the dubious moment of the night when the ball slipped out of his hands when he was attempting a pass. The Horns defense up to this point was playing well. TCU recovered the fumble and needed only 3 plays to go up 14-3.

Halftime WTH Purple?! Saw a lot of TCU fans on the 40 acres. One purple shirt said “We are Horny Too.” One female fan had red makeup streaming from her eyes to represent the blood that supposedly comes from that awe inspiring Horny Toad.

3rd Quarter (13:54) WTH Shoelaces?! Gary Patterson has a few idiosyncrasies. Hitching up his pants and most notably tie and retying his tennis shoes. He was frantically making adjustments when Adrian Phillips intercepted the Horned Frogs to swing the mojo back the Horns way.

3rd Quarter (8:47) WTH Forrest?! “Stupid is as stupid does.” Jesse “Gump” Palmer got ESPN hot under the collar when he did the Horns down signal. He apologized which made it even worse. Longhorn fans are not thin skinned about the Horns down except for Mack Brown.

3rd Quarter (3:35) WTH Nets?! The teams traded field goals to close out the third quarter. Just wondering? Are we the only school that does not use a net to stop the kick from going into the stands? You think we could afford one.

4th Quarter (1:20) WTH Horseshoe?! Case McCoy finally sparked the offense to bring the Horns back to within a score. Unfortunately, brain lock got the best of him when he threw into triple coverage to end the game. No Thanksgiving Day miracles this time around.

Next up for the Longhorns is a trip to Manhattan to take on Kansas State on December 1st.

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.

Pre-Game (15:00) WTH Weapons?! Where was the ATF when you needed them? Pistol Pete was shooting off guns, there were more frat paddles in the stands than the entire UT Greek system, and most of the 56,709 were wearing orange hunting gear. I bet Boone Pickens was even packing heat.

1st Quarter (14:21) WTH Randle?! The Big XII leading rusher took the second play of the game to the house for OSU. Joseph Randle racked up 199 yards and two touchdowns to gouge the Longhorns defense.

1st Quarter (8:51) WTH Parable?! Much is asked to whom much is given. With the lack of experience at the LB position, safety Kenny Vaccaro is asked to do a lot. He made up for his missed tackle on Randle by picking off QB J.W. Walsh for the only takeaway for the Horns defense.

1st Quarter (2:00) WTH Thud?! When a RB fumbles the ball a lot, coaches make the player carry a football to class. Coach Akina needs to have the secondary carry a four foot teddy bear to class to teach them how to wrap up. Adrian Phillip’s shoulder shot on an OSU receiver lead to another Cowboy score.

1st Quarter (1:47) WTH Monroe?! The career leading kickoff returner for the Horns was crowned on this play. D.J. Monroe flew down the field for an electric 100 yard TD return to give the Horns the lead until the fourth quarter. Monroe averaged 8 yards a carry on 3 touches. Get him the ball more?!

2nd Quarter (6:10) WTH Dos XX?! The most interesting man in the world was on the Horns sidelines. The goofy signage that is used to relay in plays was evident when the beer character was shown.

3rd Quarter (6:09) WTH #8?! Get ready for the #8 jersey to be one of the top 5 jerseys sold of all time on the 40 Acres. Jaxon Shipley led all receivers with 82 yards and 3 touchdowns for a spectacular night.

4th Quarter (5:48) WTH Video Ref?! Understand the overturned call to benefit the Cowboys back in the third quarter that resulted in a receiving TD. You cannot be serious that one of the Oklahoma State players did not touch the ball on the kickoff which allowed the Cowboys to start at the 35 yard line. Not enough evidence to turn the call over… you say. Hold that thought for the end of the game.

4th Quarter (2:34) WTH Red Zone?! With the type of offenses that are in the Big XII, field goals over touchdowns are a win for the defense. The much maligned Longhorn defense held the Cowboys on three different times in the red zone to come away with only a field goal. This fourth quarter stop allowed the Horns offense the comfort in knowing that all they needed was a field goal to win. Yikes!!

4th Quarter (1:30) WTH Ice Man?! A frozen rope was thrown by David Ash to tight end D.J. Grant on fourth down to keep the drive alive. He would continue his excellent night with a 32 yard pass to Magic Davis that set up the game winning TD run. David completed 30 of 37 passes for 304 yards and three touchdowns. This year he has completed 78% of his passes and has only thrown one interception. Dare we say a star has been born?

Next up for the Longhorns is a trip home to play West Virginia in Austin on October 6th.

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 Bruins.

1st Quarter (15:00) WTH Bruin Fans?! I have never seen so many empty seats at the Rose Bowl (54,583 in attendance). The Rose Bowl is a beautiful venue, but it was an eye sore with the overhead shots of the stadium where there were plenty of seats to be had.

1st Quarter (12:35) WTH Prince?! UCLA QB Kevin Prince was in a royal mood by supplying the greatest of all gifts which were three interceptions all in the first quarter. The prince became a pauper and sat the bench for the rest of the game.

2nd Quarter (11:36) WTH Malcolm?! We have to call out the freshmen’s first touchdown run of his career as a Longhorn. Malcolm Brown had a spectacular day finishing with 110 yards while running for his first touchdown with only one shoe on. Wonder what he will do to top that feet on his next TD run?

2nd Quarter (:58) WTH Flag Football?! It is amazing to see how Marquise Goodwin has set the tone for this team with his speed and blocking. The hit that laid out the UCLA defender was a thing of beauty to spring Mike Davis for a nice reception. The referee thought that they played two hand touch in California when he threw the flag for the personal foul.

2nd Quarter (:21) WTH Horseshoe 1?! Shout out to Beau Edge from 104.9 The Horn to give the ultimate description for Case McCoy. Not a great practice player and not the measurable you would see from a top ranked prospect but the kid has a golden horseshoe up his butt and he just makes plays. Case scrambles around and makes something out of nothing by hitting Mike Davis for a 25 yard play that eventually leads to another touchdown before the half.

3rd Quarter (9:45) WTH Horseshoe 2?! Case McCoy delivers another crazy play when he throws up a prayer that is tipped by the UCLA defender right into the waiting arms of Mike Davis for 45 yards. Case will make more mistakes as he is growing into the leader of this team. But it does seem that he has the IT factor that we all want from the position.

3rd Quarter (1:40) WTH Harsin?! Coach Harsin is demonstrating how to operate an offense when he uses the wildcat formation to spring Fozzy Whitaker in for a back braking touchdown to put the Horns up by 22 points. Hope that Coach Applewhite is learning the play calling skills because Harsin will be head coach sooner than the Horn fans want to think about it.

4th Quarter (12:29) WTH DB’s?! What a coming out party for this young secondary. Adrian Phillips, Kenny Vaccaro, and Carrington Byndom all had interceptions. But Adrian needs to be singled out for the ferocious hit he delivered to force the ball out from the UCLA receiver which was recovered by Blake Gideon. Great job by the defense to switch momentum after the Horns suffered a fumble deep in their own territory.

Next up for the Longhorns are the Cyclones as they travel to Ames for the game on Oct. 1st.

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!!

Tonight’s Texas game against BYU will be the first time the LHN deprived Longhorn fanbase will be able to watch their team this season. We’ll be active here and on Twitter and would love to have you join in on the conversation.

Follow along live with @40AcresSports on Twitter and below for our coverage. We’ll be live right around kickoff so join us to discuss the game at 6pm Saturday.

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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Probably my favorite press conference every year, Texas head coach [tag]Mack Brown[/tag] is finally able to talk about the incoming recruits and sits down and goes over film of each one of them. Great to hear him talk about the entire incoming class and about the strengths of each player. Definitely worth your time to watch the entire thing:

Some great photos of the future Longhorns making their college choice official yesterday. The photos of Taylor Bible from Inside Texas are awesome. His choice of a Texas fishing/hunting choice is perfect if you heard how country he is during Under Armour game interviews. Check out a selection of the photos below:

Be sure to head over to Inside Texas, Statesman.com, and DallasNews.com for more photos of these recruits and all the future Horns.

The first Wednesday of every February is the big one for recruitniks. [tag]National Signing Day[/tag] is the first day high school seniors can sign their National Letter of Intent to play college football. A Letter of Intent is a binding agreement between a player and a school so more changing their mind or flip flopping after their name is on the paper.

The Texas Longhorns don’t expect any big news, they got their big fish last Friday, but this is the day when the members of the Horns’ fantastic 2010 recruiting class can make it truly official. Three players are already enrolled and on campus, so 25 22 young men will be faxing in their letters today.

We’ll have updates throughout the day as the letters come in on Twitter at @40AcresSports and here on this page. Most of the action should take place in the morning so stay tuned.

Confirmed* Letters of Intent

• [tag]Taylor Bible[/tag]
• [tag]DeAires Cotton[/tag]
• [tag]Ashton Dorsey[/tag]
• [tag]Dominic Espinosa[/tag]
• [tag]Jordan Hicks[/tag] (first one in at 6am)
• [tag]Chris Jones[/tag]
• [tag]William Russ[/tag]
• [tag]Reggie Wilson[/tag]
• [tag]Aaron Benson[/tag]
• [tag]Greg Daniels[/tag] (this one had me a little nervous after weekend rumors)
• [tag]Tevin Jackson[/tag]
• [tag]Adrian Phillips[/tag]
• [tag]Traylon Shead[/tag]
• [tag]Darius White[/tag] (after how long it took to bring him in over OU, glad he was in early)
• [tag]John Harris[/tag]
• [tag]Trey Hopkins[/tag]
• [tag]Darius Terrell[/tag]
• [tag]Bryant Jackson[/tag]
• [tag]Mike Davis[/tag]
• [tag]Carrington Byndom[/tag]
• [tag]Jackson Jeffcoat[/tag]
• [tag]Demarco Cobbs[/tag] (last one is in!)

Spring Enrollees

• [tag]Case McCoy[/tag]
• [tag]Adrian White[/tag]
• [tag]Connor Wood[/tag]

Updates…

RT @InsideTexas: Aaron Benson has signed his Letter of Intent to play for Texas. 12 to go. #ut (8:25am)

DE Greg Daniels, LB Tevin Jackson & DB Adrian Phillips are in. Daniels came up in recent decommit rumors so good to see his LOI in. #ut (8:40am)

According to @InsideTexas, record setting Cayuga RB Traylon Shead has sent in his LOI. #ut (9:10am)

RT @gkketch: Breaking news in recruiting. Multiple outlets have Dallas Skyline LB Corey Nelson signing with OU instead of Texas A&M today (9:25am)

RT @gkketch: Just spoke with Fort Worth WR Darius White and he told me that he’s signing and faxing to Texas as I type. 19 of 25 confirmed. (9:30am)

Only a few guys left to sign. A little nervous that Jackson Jeffcoat and out of state ATH Demarco Cobbs are 2 of them. #UT (9:37am)

RT @gkketch: 24 of the 25 commitments for Texas have signed and faxed in their letters. We’re only waiting on DeMarco Cobbs, who signs a … (10:44am)

RT @jeff_howe: Just talked with Demarco Cobbs. He has signed and sent his LOI to #ut. Texas has now signed all 25 verbal commitments. #ut (11:20am)

*Information on confirmed LOI from Orangebloods.com and Inside Texas.

We’ll have a post up when the dust settles, but 2010 recruiting is underway and the Texas coaching staff has hit the ground running. The first 2010 [tag]Junior Day[/tag] was today and since last night six commits have pledged to play for the Longhorns. Make sure you’re following @40acressports and you’ll always be up to date on the latest Longhorn news including this huge recruiting weekend.

Here’s the breaking news and commits you might have missed in the last two days:

• Another 2 big defensive pickups confirmed today. Waco Midway S Ahmad Dixon and Cedar Hill LB Aaron Benson are commits 9 & 10. #UT 12:35 PM Feb 9th
• Two more commits from Garland (GHS this time) were confirmed last night. Athlete/safety Adrian Phillips and linebacker Tevin Jackson. #UT 8:02 AM Feb 9th
• Several other rumored #UT commits on Orangebloods, go check it out if you want the scoop: http://tr.im/fce6 ($) 8:26 PM Feb 8th
• DeSoto WR [tag]Darius Terrell[/tag] also committed to #UT last night. Another big (6’3″) WR like Harris, Terrell has impressive offer list. 6:31 PM Feb 8th
• Another top state DT has committed to #UT: Alief’s [tag]DeAires Cotton[/tag]. According to Orangebloods, Cotton and Bible are the state’s top guys. 6:06 PM Feb 8th
• Horns 4th commit of 2010 is a familiar name: QB [tag]Case McCoy[/tag]. Just like in his bro’s class, #UT likely looking to bring in 2 QBs this yr. 6:02 PM Feb 8th
• Denton Guyer DT [tag]Taylor Bible[/tag] is the Horns’ 3rd commit. He is Orangebloods’ top DT in the state. Big pickup. #UT 7:32 PM Feb 7th
• 2nd commit is WR [tag]John Harris[/tag] from Garland. Should be more to come and we’ll have a recap of what is sure to be a big haul tomorrow. #UT 6:30 PM Feb 7th
• Orangebloods was reporting 2 weeks ago #UT might not take any OL recruits this yr, instead [tag]Trey Hopkins[/tag] is the 1st commit of the 2010 class 6:24 PM Feb 7th