Posted April 30th, 2014 by Ross
Filed under: Football, Spring Football

Here are my thoughts after watching the Longhorns at the Spring Game under Coach Strong, Clint Eastwood style.

The Good

The defense as expected was the shining star after the first drive by the offense resulted in an early touchdown. The defense line led by Caleb Bluiett (8 tackles & 2 sacks) ran roughshod over the offense line. The real test is to see if this group can excel against better offenses.

The defense backs had its share of interceptions lead by Mykkele Thompson who returned one back for a score. The QB play did not give much of an indication if this group will be up to task, but they gained a measure of confidence in the way they played.

Malcolm Brown and Jalen Overstreet showed promise in their running styles (Thunder & Lightning) in the way they attacked the defense. It was good to see these two step up as the passing game will start with a big question mark.

I liked that Coach Strong put the offense and defense on opposite sides of the field. It gave the fans the experience that one group was going against the other in a game. Charlie Strong strode across both ends of the field during the game to watch the coaches and the players actions.

The Bad

We knew that the QB play would be the most scrutinized position on the field. It was evident that Tyrone Swoopes needs more time to develop as a passer. The athleticism is evident but the decision making and the timing of his release leaves room for doubt. If the incoming Max Wittek and Jerrod Heard can take the reins, it might be better to have Swoopes be the tight end that would remind us of Jermichael Finley. I will trust this coaching staff that they will put the kids in a position where they will succeed.

The offense line needs to come together quickly. There were some key absences on the line, but the boys in the trenches need to step up. The moving pocket allowed the line some success, but ultimately these road graders need to help this stable of running backs.
The audio coming from the Godzillatron was horrible. The timing and the placement of the music was bad. The big video board will be replaced because the company that created this monster is no longer around to feed the beast or get replacement parts. I hope the Athletic Department revamps the way they use this tool for the upcoming season.

The Ugly

The practice uniforms that the kids are wearing are hideous. I am going to the give the coaching staff a break because they have been preoccupied with establishing their culture and attitude with the team. I have been an advocate of providing the players an alternate game day jersey that will energize the players and help with new recruits.

As Clint said in the famous movie, “You see, in this world there’s two kinds of people, my friend: Those with loaded guns and those who dig.” Will the Longhorns have the loaded gun on the field or will they be the team digging?

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Posted January 18th, 2014 by Brian
Filed under: Football, Spring Football

Longhorn fans got great news Saturday night as Texas Head Athletic Trainer Kenny Boyd announced that quarterback David Ash was cleared to train and practice with the team:

Ash has been out due to concussion symptoms since September 21 against Kansas State. He and freshman Tyrone Swoopes are the only two scholarship QBs Texas has so getting Ash back is huge news. Obviously it’s also great news for Ash as he can finally get back playing football. Hopefully for the sake of his career and his life after football he can stay healthy from here on out.

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Posted September 26th, 2013 by Ross
Filed under: Feature, 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 Kansas State.

1st Quarter (15:00) WTH Ash?! What a way to start off the game?! If there was ever a game that the Horns needed to start fast this was it. Instead on the very first snap the team gets a delay of game penalty. Ash played brilliantly but he did not return in the 2nd half. Prayers going out to David Ash.

1st Quarter (7:01) WTH Espinosa?! Are you allergic to the red zone? Last week you false started when the offense was on the 1 foot line and now you fumbled the snap that Ash has to fall on when you are at the 8 yard line. Both miscues ended up with the Horns kicking a field goal. Dominic please take a chill pill. Wondering if the time on the clock would have been better if it was at 4:20?

Kendall Sanders

WR Kendall Sanders hauled in 3 passes for 80 yards, including this 63 yard TD.

1st Quarter (2:16) WTH Colonel?! OK. Not a good nickname, I agree. But Kendall Sanders was good lookin’ on his way to a touchdown that covered 63 yards to put the Horns up 10 to zilch.

2nd Quarter (3:54) WTH Gutsy?! Both fourth down conversions during the game were huge. The completion to Jaxon Shipley by Ash for 10 yards so close to the end of the half was a statement of confidence and clutch by the offense. No trickery on this conversion.

3rd Quarter (12:22) WTH Back Breaker?! The KSU John Hubert fumble that went right into the arms of UT Desmond Jackson was a huge momentum swing because the Cats were driving on their first possession of the half. Another back… butt breaker was coming later!

4th Quarter (7:22) WTH Target?! I agree on the interpretation of the new rule that went against Steve Edmond. I believe the KSU linebacker Tre Walker that called this team soft at Big XII media day may want to change his words to dirty. I will take dirty over soft any day. Just ask Sergio Kindle.

4th Quarter (2:46) WTH Sanchez?! KSU Jake Walters channeled his inner Mark Sanchez and butt fumbled a crucial touchdown run at the five yard line. Wonder if Jake said “Oh Crap!”

4th Quarter (1:26) WTH Sports Clips?! I saw the new marketing campaign for this chain of sports barber shops. Show the three clips that KSU players had on the Longhorn special teams to spring Tramaine Thompson. I enjoyed the sheer magnitude of venom that most of the 95,248 fans displayed that fired up the UT defense to put the clamps on any more scoring!

Next up for the Longhorns is a road game against the Cyclones of Iowa State on October 3rd.

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!!

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Posted September 4th, 2013 by Ross
Filed under: Feature, 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 the New Mexico State.

Daje Johnson was electric against New Mexico St.

Daje Johnson was electric with the ball in his hands against New Mexico St. (Photo: Getty)

1st Quarter (11:38) WTH Crash Davis?! We’ve heard about this quick strike offense. Nothing would have been better than to have Mike “Magic” Davis get the team into the red zone. He ended up fumbling the ball to end any hope of a first score. He would more than make up for it later.

1st Quarter (3:29) WTH Punter?! What a letdown when your team cannot make a first down. Well, looks like punter Anthony Fera puts a little more excitement into 4th down with a booming 68 yard punt that is downed at the 1 inch line!

2nd Quarter (15:00) WTH Godzillatron?! A lot of us are happy that LHN is on Time Warner Cable. Too bad the University forgot to pay their cable bill for the stadium’s television set which was on the blink and out for a good portion of the quarter.

2nd Quarter (8:45) WTH Head Games?! Never seen that one before. The NMSU backup quarterback signaled for the snap just as his wide receiver was coming in motion. The ball bounced off the receivers head and rolled around as a fumble. At least the receiver, Bergstrom, used his head and recovered it.

2nd Quarter (1:48 & 1:08) WTH Wonder Twin Powers?! This duo did not transform into an animal and water, but it did electrify the dormant UT crowd (99,623) before halftime. The explosive TD catch and run by John Harris (54 yards) and Daje Johnson (66 yards) made the walk into the locker room a little less uncomfortable.

3rd Quarter (15:00) WTH Gutsy?! The coaching staff for NMSU decided to try an onside kick. No risk it… no biscuit. Did not work, but you gotta give them credit for trying.

3rd Quarter (10:27) WTH Ash?! David Ash galloped 55 yards for a touchdown to pad his rushing stats for the night. (91 yds. rushing + 343 yards passing) He had a tremendous second half. Let’s hope he wakes up earlier for the next game versus BYU.

4th Quarter (15:00) WTH House of Pain?! As the kids say “Epic Fail.” The crowd did not respond when the loud speakers starting playing “Jump.” Time to kill any thoughts of making this a tradition. I been to a few Badger football games… this is not a Wisconsin type fan base.

4th Quarter (2:34) WTH Magic?! Mike Davis redeemed is nickname with a spectacular one foot in bound catch in the end zone. Too bad the refs missed it when they did not signal touchdown but decided to call pass interference. Luckily the replay booth got it right and awarded the TD to Davis.

4th Quarter (:00) WTH Major?! 715 yards! The most yards EVER recorded by a Longhorn football team. Guess the Applewhite offense is up tempo. Greg Davis must have been smiling after this one.

Next up for the Longhorns is a trip to Utah to play the Cougars of BYU on September 7th.

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!!

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Posted February 7th, 2013 by J
Filed under: Football

David Ash

Texas needs a big 2013 from David Ash.

Big things are coming for Texas in 2013: Especially for Junior quarterback David Ash. I’m not calling for an improvement over his sophomore campaign. I’m calling for a transformative season. A season in which each and every one of us has to applaud and give credit where it is due. A season that will require Ash to be mentioned in the same conversation as (gasp!) Layne, Street, Applewhite, Young, and the McCoy (the good one, not the amateur film maker).

Yes. You’re correct — you just read that.

Colt McCoy left Texas as the winningest college quarterback of all time. His junior and senior seasons were two of the best ever by a Texas passer. Check out McCoy’s stats for a reminder of just how great he was in his career and his two Heisman finalist seasons:

Colt McCoy career stats

Here’s where I feel Ash will be for the upcoming season. Yes, his predicted passing total of 4,014 yards surpasses McCoy’s best year of 3,859 yards (2008). The 36 touchdown prediction also surpasses McCoy’s best year of 34 (2008). This is where I get crazy, the point where if you had yet to question my sanity-you begin to. I think Ash out rushes McCoy’s best year as well. I should be on medication and a strong dose of it, correct? Ash will come away with a grand total of 780 yards and 9 rushing touchdowns. That total surpasses McCoy’s best season on the ground (561 yards in 2008), but falls short in the number of touchdowns (11, in 2008). It also surpasses the best single-season passing yardage and touchdown totals of Vince Young in 2004 (3036 yards/26 touchdowns), Chris Simms in 2002 (3357 yards/ 21 touchdowns), and Major Applewhite in 1999 (3357 yards/21 touchdowns).

Check out my predictions for each game in 2013:

David Ash 2013 stats

This would be a monumental season for Ash and the Longhorns. An 11-1 record places them at the top of the heap come play-off time and poised to fight it out for a national championship. Quarterbacks over time have shown the most growth between their sophomore and junior seasons. It will be interesting to see how well Ash performs when he has an Offensive Coordinator that will make it imperative to get the ball to his best play makers in areas where they can maximize their abilities. No more multiple shifts and personnel groupings.

Yes, I am pumping sunshine. Bask in it. Soak it in.

I can’t wait to see the first time the Longhorns come out 4 wide with Jaxon Shipley, Mike Davis, Daje Johnson, and Cayleb Jones and either Jonathan Gray or Malcolm Brown in the backfield.

How do you cover that?

Whose the poor linebacker tasked with keeping up with Johnson or Gray/Brown?

Feel free to let me know just how crazy you think I am in the comments below. I’m sure many of you will have something witty to say. I will be more than happy to eat crow if I’m off base and rest assured I will say “I told you so!” if given the opportunity.

Here’s to hoping I get to do that a minimum of 12 times next year.

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Posted November 28th, 2012 by Ross
Filed under: Feature, 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 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.

Case McCoy is sacked by TCU

Case McCoy, David Ash, and the entire Texas offense sputtered against TCU. (AP Photo)

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!!

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Posted November 16th, 2012 by Ross
Filed under: Feature, 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 Iowa State.

1st Quarter (15:00) WTH Fans?! It was a very special day where the Longhorns honored our armed forces and remembered Darrell Royal. Just wish the 100,018 fans came early to be a part of the festivities.

Texas opened the game in the wishbone as a tribute to the late Darrell Royal.

Texas opened the game in the wishbone as a tribute to the late Darrell Royal. (AP Photo)

1st Quarter (10:51) WTH Wishbone?! Don’t think one fan in the stands thought the tribute formation for DKR would result in this type of trickery. But we should expect the unexpected when it comes to OC Bryan Harsin and this team.

1st Quarter (3:32) WTH Bomb?! This is starting to be a trend with David Ash hooking up with Mike Davis for a long touchdown. A 61 yard pitch and catch by this tandem is starting to be a work of art.

2nd Quarter (2:53) WTH Tony?! Anthony Fera may need to find out who stole his mojo. A 32 yard blocked field goal and a missed extra point will get you pulled from the game. Oh wait, it did since Nick “Error” Jordan took over and made everything he hit. Am I little too hard on kickers?

Halftime WTH Band?! What a great tribute to DKR with the band spelling out Royal on the field. Nice touch with the band forming a war ship, submarine and a plane to honor our military.

4th Quarter (7:46) WTH Brown?! We have a sighting confirmed that Malcolm Brown is on the field at running back. Malcolm was given a heavy dose of the rock to close out the game. The combination of all of the running backs netted the Longhorns over 222 yards for the game.

4th Quarter (5:14) WTH Turner?! Who is Josh Turner? The sophomore is the newest crop of defensive players that are stepping up like LB Steve Edmond. Josh’s interception late in the game put a capper to an excellent defensive performance.

Next up for the Longhorns is a Thanksgiving Day date with the TCU in Austin on November 22nd.

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!!

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Posted November 11th, 2012 by Brian
Filed under: Football

Watch Longhorn Network highlights of the Longhorns’ 33-7 win over Iowa State on Saturday:

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Posted November 9th, 2012 by Ross
Filed under: Feature, 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 the Texas Tech Red Raiders.

Mike Davis was big with the big plays again versus Texas Tech.

Mike Davis was big with the big plays again versus the Texas Tech Red Raiders. (AP photo)

1st Quarter (15:00) WTH Lonestar?! The largest crowd ever (60,879) came out to see the new Under Armor uniform which was a shout out to the Lonestar State. It might be a little early to claim the state title with that type of uniform while only beating Texas State and TCU. Maybe the Red Raiders want to replace the Aggies on the State Farm Lonestar Showdown.

2nd Quarter (15:00) WTH Zoro?! It looks like Zoro is going to have to find a new horse. The Masked Rider’s horse Midnight Matador was retired before the start of the 2nd quarter. Ten years as the mascot for the Red Raiders is a pretty good run. Enjoy your time as a stud!

2nd Quarter (13:46) WTH Six Shooter?! Magic Mike Davis may need some etiquette lessons on drawing your weapons. David Ash connected with Davis for a 75 yard bomb to take control of the game. Yosemite Sam may need to give Mike a gun safety course. Hey wait, if you cannot draw your guns, can opposing teams still do the Horns down?

2nd Quarter (5:03) WTH Dagnabbit?! Coach Tommy Tuberville and Coach Duane Akina had a fit with the officials when a phantom late hit call was not enforced. Akina and Tubbs both looked like they were going to have an aneurysm on the sidelines. Tubbs gets extra points for throwing down his plastic play card sheet twice.

2nd Quarter (1:14) WTH Ice Ice Baby?! The Horns did a great job of confusing the Red Raiders on defense. It spilled over on to their head coach. Dummerville decide to use a precious commodity by calling a timeout to ice Anthony Fera who ended up making the 42 yard kick.

4th Quarter (13:37) WTH Vortech?! The Vortech is a Texas Tech creation that simulates a tornado. The tornado that got away was Johnathan Gray whose Dad once wore the black and red. Gray started the fourth quarter with an impressive set of first down runs to finish with his second straight 100 yard game.

4th Quarter (5:14) WTH Hands?! Carrington Byndom had a tremendous day using his hands by swatting a crucial 2pt try by the Raiders and knocking down a field goal attempt that would have made it a one possession game. Great game turned in by the defense.

4th Quarter (:28) WTH Bear Hug?! Coach Brown saved his biggest hug for AD DeLoss Dodds who had just seen a tremendous effort and fight by the Longhorns to record its fourth straight win over the Raiders.

Next up for the Longhorns is a home date with the Cyclones in Austin on November 10th.

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!!

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Posted November 1st, 2012 by Ross
Filed under: Feature, 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 the Kansas Jayhawks.

Case McCoy did it again. Off the bench for the gamewinning drive.

Case McCoy did it again. Off the bench for the gamewinning drive. (Photo: The Daily Texan_

Pre-Game WTH Lawrence?! Some of the Longhorn players saw more fans at their high school playoff games than the 40,097 that were in attendance at this game. Interesting note that the 1983 television show “The Day After” was filmed here. Both of these programs had a lot of waste to bury after this one.

1st Quarter (12:37) WTH Gray?! Johnathan Gray first carry of the game went for 31 yards and the drive ended in a touchdown. Crazily that would be the only lead the Longhorns would have until the end of the game. Gray’s 111 yards should surely earn him the starting job for next week.

2nd Quarter (13:45) WTH Sims?! Is it me or does every UT opponent put up career highs in running yards? James Sims took the handoff for a 64 yard run which started KU toward their first touchdown of the day. Sims puts up 176 yards rushing on a UT defense that cannot stop a runny nose. Oh yeah, Kenny Vaccaro added a few more yards to this run with a personal foul.

Halftime WTH Zebras?! Since this game was lacking a lot to be desired let’s take an inside look at referee Scott Novak and his team that worked this game.

3rd Quarter (8:57) WTH SEC?! The team wants to be a SEC style running team. Getting stopped by the 90th ranked rushing defense in the country on fourth down was demoralizing. Until you see the stats that Texas has the 108th rushing defense in the country.

4th Quarter (13:04) WTH Horseshoe?! After multiple interceptions by David Ash, the coaches decide to put in the lucky charm. Case McCoy provided some sort of spark that ended up in two touchdown drives to win the game. I thought we would have settled the quarterback situation by now. Thank goodness for another McCoy comeback to stave off a loss.

Next up for the Longhorns is a road trip to Lubbock to take on the Red Raiders on November 3rd.

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!!

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