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NEBRASKA FOOTBALL: Lone Star Letdown
Commentary: NU-UT may have less national appeal after Saturday, but the Huskers' task just got harder
by Samuel McKewon
October 02, 2010
If you’re a Nebraska fan, Saturday’s Oklahoma-Texas game couldn’t have played out any worse than it did. In the span of fours hours, the Longhorns shifted from a marquee, fat-on-its reputation foe on Oct. 16 to a ticked-off, wronged animal caught in a hunter’s trap. And that’s after facing meat-and-potatoes Kansas State.
UT lost ugly to the Sooners. And by that, I don’t mean the 28-20 margin. Texas - with some help from the zeebs, who always seem to put their two cents into the Red River Rivalry - beat itself with dumb penalties, an initial lack of aggression and basic defensive communication errors that made OU look better on offense than it actually played.
And then, when Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops reopened the door with one of his risky fake field goal tries, Texas slammed it back shut with Aaron Williams‘ fumble on a punt. Not this Saturday for the burnt orange. But Husker fans better be ready in two weeks for a team that just may have flushed every stupid thing it could do out of its system.
Oklahoma grabbed a 14-0 lead thanks to two cheap flags and Texas’ sheer inability to line up its defense. The Sooners did nothing fancy, folks. Bubble screens and outside zone plays are basic staples of any team not named Air Force, Navy or Georgia Tech. I think they come with the “You Too Can Be A College Coach!” manual that LSU’s Les Miles still needs to buy. :lol: :lol:
But the Horns steadied themselves, and I was impressed. OU is terrific frontrunner. Get down two touchdowns to the Sooners, and get ready for the reaper. Yet early in the fourth quarter, Texas trailed just 21-10 and carried momentum.
So, naturally, UT freshman defensive end Jackson Jeffcoat came through with a freshman error: A pointless personal foul on a 3rd-and-long that extended OU’s final touchdown drive.
OU led 28-10, and still managed to almost blow it, giving up 10 points over the final five minutes. What was Stoops doing calling a fake field goal with an 11-point lead? Punt the football! Why was Oklahoma quarterback Landry Jones skipping about in the open field on a broken play, carrying the ball like a loaf of bread? Jones fumbled inside his own 20 and just was lucky enough to bat the ball out of bounds before Texas recovered it.
The Longhorns will smart over this one. Between the two teams, Texas might have been better Saturday. Key flags gave OU the advantage. It was as if UT’s football team had to pay some penance for the behavior of its administration over the summer. A two-game losing streak in Austin is not necessarily a cause for panic among Longhorn faithful. It’s a cause of apathy. Austin is too cool of a city, and Texas fans are too rich, to care that much about football.
So Nebraska’s about to receive an angrier opponent than it expected. With potentially more to prove, quite surprisingly, than the Huskers, who will be a favorite in a game that will receive less publicity than we presumed. Missouri is likely to have a better record when it visits Lincoln. Oklahoma State suddenly looms as the higher-ranked foe.
But what I saw of Texas Saturday should worry NU fans considerably. Its defensive line is excellent, and it did its job when it lined up correctly - and since Nebraska doesn’t run a no-huddle attack, I don’t think alignment will be a concern. Oklahoma ran the ball 52 times - for 124 yards. And that was on a day when the Horns didn’t tackle particularly well.
UT’s offense is a stinker, but it’s also on the upswing after head coach Mack Brown gave up the fantasy of developing a running game. The Longhorns are back, for the most part, in the Colt McCoy offense. The Brothers Pelini did a number on it last season, of course. But Texas is no longer trying to pound squares into smaller circles.
Quarterback Garrett Gilbert isn’t great - yet. But he’s closer than his numbers suggest. UT found its rhythm Saturday, returning to familiar patterns, attacking open spots on the field. Texas took baby steps that I suspect will be a full gait by the end of the year.
Since its last undefeated October in 2001, NU is 17-16 during the month. That’s three different head coaches and about five different offenses. The month doesn’t gauge total improvement - that’s November - or even necessarily overall talent, which often reveals itself best in September, before injuries.
October gauges survival instincts and concentration.
As I look at NU’s October slate - KSU, UT, OSU and Mizzou - I see four teams Nebraska should beat. Yes, even with UT’s ample motivation after Saturday. But it’s going to take every phase of the Huskers’ team and the best coaching job of Bo Pelini and Shawn Watson’s tenure in Lincoln.
Nebraska is the frontrunner now. We take our shots at Texas and Oklahoma for a sloppy, inconsistent game on Saturday. But let’s see how the Huskers handle life at the top.
NEBRASKA FOOTBALL: Lone Star Letdown
Commentary: NU-UT may have less national appeal after Saturday, but the Huskers' task just got harder
by Samuel McKewon
October 02, 2010
If you’re a Nebraska fan, Saturday’s Oklahoma-Texas game couldn’t have played out any worse than it did. In the span of fours hours, the Longhorns shifted from a marquee, fat-on-its reputation foe on Oct. 16 to a ticked-off, wronged animal caught in a hunter’s trap. And that’s after facing meat-and-potatoes Kansas State.
UT lost ugly to the Sooners. And by that, I don’t mean the 28-20 margin. Texas - with some help from the zeebs, who always seem to put their two cents into the Red River Rivalry - beat itself with dumb penalties, an initial lack of aggression and basic defensive communication errors that made OU look better on offense than it actually played.
And then, when Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops reopened the door with one of his risky fake field goal tries, Texas slammed it back shut with Aaron Williams‘ fumble on a punt. Not this Saturday for the burnt orange. But Husker fans better be ready in two weeks for a team that just may have flushed every stupid thing it could do out of its system.
Oklahoma grabbed a 14-0 lead thanks to two cheap flags and Texas’ sheer inability to line up its defense. The Sooners did nothing fancy, folks. Bubble screens and outside zone plays are basic staples of any team not named Air Force, Navy or Georgia Tech. I think they come with the “You Too Can Be A College Coach!” manual that LSU’s Les Miles still needs to buy. :lol: :lol:
But the Horns steadied themselves, and I was impressed. OU is terrific frontrunner. Get down two touchdowns to the Sooners, and get ready for the reaper. Yet early in the fourth quarter, Texas trailed just 21-10 and carried momentum.
So, naturally, UT freshman defensive end Jackson Jeffcoat came through with a freshman error: A pointless personal foul on a 3rd-and-long that extended OU’s final touchdown drive.
OU led 28-10, and still managed to almost blow it, giving up 10 points over the final five minutes. What was Stoops doing calling a fake field goal with an 11-point lead? Punt the football! Why was Oklahoma quarterback Landry Jones skipping about in the open field on a broken play, carrying the ball like a loaf of bread? Jones fumbled inside his own 20 and just was lucky enough to bat the ball out of bounds before Texas recovered it.
The Longhorns will smart over this one. Between the two teams, Texas might have been better Saturday. Key flags gave OU the advantage. It was as if UT’s football team had to pay some penance for the behavior of its administration over the summer. A two-game losing streak in Austin is not necessarily a cause for panic among Longhorn faithful. It’s a cause of apathy. Austin is too cool of a city, and Texas fans are too rich, to care that much about football.
So Nebraska’s about to receive an angrier opponent than it expected. With potentially more to prove, quite surprisingly, than the Huskers, who will be a favorite in a game that will receive less publicity than we presumed. Missouri is likely to have a better record when it visits Lincoln. Oklahoma State suddenly looms as the higher-ranked foe.
But what I saw of Texas Saturday should worry NU fans considerably. Its defensive line is excellent, and it did its job when it lined up correctly - and since Nebraska doesn’t run a no-huddle attack, I don’t think alignment will be a concern. Oklahoma ran the ball 52 times - for 124 yards. And that was on a day when the Horns didn’t tackle particularly well.
UT’s offense is a stinker, but it’s also on the upswing after head coach Mack Brown gave up the fantasy of developing a running game. The Longhorns are back, for the most part, in the Colt McCoy offense. The Brothers Pelini did a number on it last season, of course. But Texas is no longer trying to pound squares into smaller circles.
Quarterback Garrett Gilbert isn’t great - yet. But he’s closer than his numbers suggest. UT found its rhythm Saturday, returning to familiar patterns, attacking open spots on the field. Texas took baby steps that I suspect will be a full gait by the end of the year.
Since its last undefeated October in 2001, NU is 17-16 during the month. That’s three different head coaches and about five different offenses. The month doesn’t gauge total improvement - that’s November - or even necessarily overall talent, which often reveals itself best in September, before injuries.
October gauges survival instincts and concentration.
As I look at NU’s October slate - KSU, UT, OSU and Mizzou - I see four teams Nebraska should beat. Yes, even with UT’s ample motivation after Saturday. But it’s going to take every phase of the Huskers’ team and the best coaching job of Bo Pelini and Shawn Watson’s tenure in Lincoln.
Nebraska is the frontrunner now. We take our shots at Texas and Oklahoma for a sloppy, inconsistent game on Saturday. But let’s see how the Huskers handle life at the top.
