Not good enough.
There's a lot to say about a night that proved that the Texas football program isn't remotely ready for prime time, but the overall moral of this story is fairly simple.
The offense wasn't good enough. The defense wasn't good enough. The special teams weren't good enough. The coaching wasn't good enough. The physicality wasn't good enough. The effort wasn't good enough.
That pretty much covers it all and yet it still doesn't feel like it.
Suddenly, the honeymoon is over for new Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian and we all probably need to recalibrate where things truly stand for the program heading into the final 10 games of this season.
While I'm not sure Texas will play many more teams that can fully expose its problems the way that the Hawgs were able to on Saturday night, the reality is that this is a team with an offensive line that is a problem area that lacks a lot of important components, a starting quarterback that is still growing up on the fly and a defense that lacks playmakers.
That doesn't even begin to capture all of the areas of concerns from tonight, but it's certainly a glance at some of the areas that will probably pop up in future games as problem areas.
I don't know what to think of this game tonight. As someone that predicted a 9-3 record going into the season, I'm not sure that I'm ready to back off of that at this point, but it might have more to do with the quality of the Big 12 than any confidence that exists after tonight. If Texas played Arkansas nine more times, how many times would this Texas team win?
Nothing about tonight was an accident.
Sarkisian was hired because he was supposed to represent an upgrade over Tom Herman, but Herman had the program in a position where ass-kickings like this weren't happening any more.
Make no mistake, the program took a step back tonight in every area and it will leave a mark all over the place, including recruiting.
Woof.
(Other thoughts on the game...)
... I feel like a damn idiot for giving this program any kind of benefit of the doubt. I truly deserve my Charlie Brown avatar because I fell for Lucy's tricks all over again. Apologies.
... What in the world do we say about Hudson Card's performance tonight, which was literally 100 ratings points worse than last week? While this loss certainly wasn't his fault, there's no getting around the fact that he missed throws, failed to move the offense and played poorly enough that it felt like he was hooked perhaps a quarter than he should have been? Momma always said there would be days like this, but I'm not sure I believed it could be this bad.
... Sarkisian waited too long to put Casey Thompson into the game. Full stop.
... What are we supposed to make of Thompson's play when so much of it came after Arkansas had put the game away? It just wasn't the same Arkansas defense from most of the first three quarters of the game and this team needed to see what Thompson had in him when it was still apples to apples. Did this do anything to change the quarterback outlook going into game three? I know this... Thompson played better and with more fearlessness. I just don't know what it means when he's doing with the team down by 26 points and the Arkansas defense isn't quite as dialed in as it was when the game hadn't been settled.
... Bijan Robinson and DeMarvion Overshown played their butts off. They deserved better fates.
... I hated the play call on 4th and one in the third quarter behind the really shaky left side of the offensive line, even if I liked the call to go for it.
... What positive impact is Kyle Flood making right now as the offensive line coach? The line felt better at the end of last year with virtually the same players than it does right now.
... How was targeting not called on that play? That was one of the most blatant targeting hits of the season and it was missed on a critical down.
... I'm still not sure how Tyson Morris was so wide open with D'Shawn Jamison in coverage, but what an awful moment to have one of the best game reps of your entire career.
... Joshua Moore didn't receive his first passing game target until the 7:56 mark in the third quarter.
... That was one hell of a play by B.J. Foster in briefly changing the game with his interception in the third quarter. I'm talking about the best play of his career type of stuff. Thank goodness, Tom Herman didn't throw him off the team last season.
... Texas went three and out in five of its first seven offensive possessions of the game and didn't convert a third down in either of the two drives that didn't end in a three and out.
... I don't understand what Steve Sarkisian was trying to do in the first half. Are there no screens to Xavier Worthy or Jordan Whittington in the playbook? Was there ever a real thought to doing something easy for his quarterback just to settle him and the offense down?
... The stat that ESPN showed in the third quarter that Sarkisian was 0-18 in his career when trailing by 10+ was quite a jinx attempt. Make that 0-19. I have a feeling we're all going to remember that stat for pretty much forever.
... Card posting a 91 rating in the first half can't happen, even if you're a second-year player. That would get you beat by Arkansas State in Guam, let alone Arkansas in Fayetteville.
... I don't even know what to say about the Cameron Dicker moment of disaster in the second quarter when he dropped a snap through his hands and then had the punt blocked. That's when everyone had to have known this team was in real trouble.
... Card left points on the field by missing a wide open Jordan Whittington in the end zone in the second quarter. He has to be better than that,
... Whittington dropping the ball in the second quarter when the team desperately needed someone to pick-up the entire team was a bad moment. That ball has to be caught.
... I don't know how on earth that officiating crew let an Arkansas player hit Card below the knees about three seconds after it blew a whistle for a delay of game and didn't so much as consider protecting a defenseless player against a dirty tackle.
... What a break for Arkansas to get out of Dodge on a muffed punt inside the five-yard line because Titan Crawford has too big of a foot by about an inch.
There's a lot to say about a night that proved that the Texas football program isn't remotely ready for prime time, but the overall moral of this story is fairly simple.
The offense wasn't good enough. The defense wasn't good enough. The special teams weren't good enough. The coaching wasn't good enough. The physicality wasn't good enough. The effort wasn't good enough.
That pretty much covers it all and yet it still doesn't feel like it.
Suddenly, the honeymoon is over for new Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian and we all probably need to recalibrate where things truly stand for the program heading into the final 10 games of this season.
While I'm not sure Texas will play many more teams that can fully expose its problems the way that the Hawgs were able to on Saturday night, the reality is that this is a team with an offensive line that is a problem area that lacks a lot of important components, a starting quarterback that is still growing up on the fly and a defense that lacks playmakers.
That doesn't even begin to capture all of the areas of concerns from tonight, but it's certainly a glance at some of the areas that will probably pop up in future games as problem areas.
I don't know what to think of this game tonight. As someone that predicted a 9-3 record going into the season, I'm not sure that I'm ready to back off of that at this point, but it might have more to do with the quality of the Big 12 than any confidence that exists after tonight. If Texas played Arkansas nine more times, how many times would this Texas team win?
Nothing about tonight was an accident.
Sarkisian was hired because he was supposed to represent an upgrade over Tom Herman, but Herman had the program in a position where ass-kickings like this weren't happening any more.
Make no mistake, the program took a step back tonight in every area and it will leave a mark all over the place, including recruiting.
Woof.
(Other thoughts on the game...)
... I feel like a damn idiot for giving this program any kind of benefit of the doubt. I truly deserve my Charlie Brown avatar because I fell for Lucy's tricks all over again. Apologies.
... What in the world do we say about Hudson Card's performance tonight, which was literally 100 ratings points worse than last week? While this loss certainly wasn't his fault, there's no getting around the fact that he missed throws, failed to move the offense and played poorly enough that it felt like he was hooked perhaps a quarter than he should have been? Momma always said there would be days like this, but I'm not sure I believed it could be this bad.
... Sarkisian waited too long to put Casey Thompson into the game. Full stop.
... What are we supposed to make of Thompson's play when so much of it came after Arkansas had put the game away? It just wasn't the same Arkansas defense from most of the first three quarters of the game and this team needed to see what Thompson had in him when it was still apples to apples. Did this do anything to change the quarterback outlook going into game three? I know this... Thompson played better and with more fearlessness. I just don't know what it means when he's doing with the team down by 26 points and the Arkansas defense isn't quite as dialed in as it was when the game hadn't been settled.
... Bijan Robinson and DeMarvion Overshown played their butts off. They deserved better fates.
... I hated the play call on 4th and one in the third quarter behind the really shaky left side of the offensive line, even if I liked the call to go for it.
... What positive impact is Kyle Flood making right now as the offensive line coach? The line felt better at the end of last year with virtually the same players than it does right now.
... How was targeting not called on that play? That was one of the most blatant targeting hits of the season and it was missed on a critical down.
... I'm still not sure how Tyson Morris was so wide open with D'Shawn Jamison in coverage, but what an awful moment to have one of the best game reps of your entire career.
... Joshua Moore didn't receive his first passing game target until the 7:56 mark in the third quarter.
... That was one hell of a play by B.J. Foster in briefly changing the game with his interception in the third quarter. I'm talking about the best play of his career type of stuff. Thank goodness, Tom Herman didn't throw him off the team last season.
... Texas went three and out in five of its first seven offensive possessions of the game and didn't convert a third down in either of the two drives that didn't end in a three and out.
... I don't understand what Steve Sarkisian was trying to do in the first half. Are there no screens to Xavier Worthy or Jordan Whittington in the playbook? Was there ever a real thought to doing something easy for his quarterback just to settle him and the offense down?
... The stat that ESPN showed in the third quarter that Sarkisian was 0-18 in his career when trailing by 10+ was quite a jinx attempt. Make that 0-19. I have a feeling we're all going to remember that stat for pretty much forever.
... Card posting a 91 rating in the first half can't happen, even if you're a second-year player. That would get you beat by Arkansas State in Guam, let alone Arkansas in Fayetteville.
... I don't even know what to say about the Cameron Dicker moment of disaster in the second quarter when he dropped a snap through his hands and then had the punt blocked. That's when everyone had to have known this team was in real trouble.
... Card left points on the field by missing a wide open Jordan Whittington in the end zone in the second quarter. He has to be better than that,
... Whittington dropping the ball in the second quarter when the team desperately needed someone to pick-up the entire team was a bad moment. That ball has to be caught.
... I don't know how on earth that officiating crew let an Arkansas player hit Card below the knees about three seconds after it blew a whistle for a delay of game and didn't so much as consider protecting a defenseless player against a dirty tackle.
... What a break for Arkansas to get out of Dodge on a muffed punt inside the five-yard line because Titan Crawford has too big of a foot by about an inch.
