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Three Thoughts - Horns Survive Arizona St By the slimmest of margins and a little bit of good luck, Texas advances to Final Four.
Three Thoughts is our signature way to summarize a noteworthy game we want to cover during the 2024 college football seasonat #Sturmstack. We grab one game most weekends – featuring Texas or Texas A&M – and bringing our notebook to see what jumps out at us in a brief recap that we do in memory of the man who did this first before his untimely demise, the late Grant Wahl… Presented without an editor, so please forgive the grammar. === The great thing about sports is that our expectations are never correct. We think this game will be a close game and it ends up 34-0 at the half. We think this other game is a clear mismatch and we see a game that is so back-and-forth and filled with so much drama – thrill of victory and agony of defeat – that we want to declare it one of the best games we have ever seen. Clearly, this was the case in Atlanta on New Year’s Day as the Peach Bowl provided something we will not soon forget. Texas had won the game, lost the game, then won it, only to lose it, and finally to win it. Arizona State was sure they were dead, then pretty sure they just pulled the biggest upset of the playoffs, and then staggered off the field in such dismay that they will never get over this one. They were this close. Football provides moments that we talk about for decades and I dare say that we will be talking about this amazing national quarterfinal for a long time. There is no question that what makes a battle worth remembering are two teams that refuse to give in to the other. And we definitely happened upon that today – even though many of us (me!) thought there was no chance that this game would hold much drama. It was delightful to be so wrong. Texas survives and advances, 39-31, and will live to fight another day a week from Friday in Arlington against Ohio State and may be just two wins from the national title they so desire. And These are My Three Thoughts: – Overtime, Down 7, 4th and 13. He is playing what could be his final snap at the school where he has accomplished so much and yet still his own fanbase seems extremely torn on his level of greatness. That is what Quinn Ewers had to deal with everything hanging in the balance. It isn’t often that with those odds stacked that a guy can come through and deliver a touchdown pass that saves the day. Then, a little later, you hit another touchdown and played the final hour of the game in almost full perfection. Ewers saved the Longhorns hopes and that should probably be acknowledged by all who are rooting for that school. The Ewers perception is fascinating and I have talked about it a couple dozen times. He isn’t be compared fairly because he is being compared against the concept of what Arch Manning might be. Imagine. You aren’t even competing with a person, you are competing with an idea. Texas is 21-4 over the last two years when Ewers is the QB1 and the losses are to Oklahoma, Washington, Georgia, and Georgia. In other words, he hasn’t lost a single game that would be considered a major upset or an embarrassing QB performance that suggests they have a failure playing the most important position. I spent a lot of time on this a month ago and I encourage you to read it if you want to see more about one of the most complex studies we have seen. But, whether it is email, social media, or just conversations with friends, Ewers gets that full Dak Prescott treatment from the media where some have concluded he is holding them back. From what? Perfection. And the concept of Arch is perfect, for now. I say for now because we know Arch will take over next August and will have a three interception game at some point (because everyone does) and then people will see that he is a human and not a football god. But, for now? He is Arch and he is perfect. So, yes, during this game the anxiety was pointed right at Ewers and it peaked when he threw his lone interception with 5:45 left to play and Texas leading, 24-16. This was a stretch where Arizona State went Touchdown, 2-point conversion, Touchdown, 2-point conversion in the span of 91 seconds to go from down 24-8 to tied at 24-24 in the blink of an eye. At that point in time, Ewers is 9-16-162 yards, 1 TD and 1 INT for a passer rating of 85.9 and he was about to take a heap of blame on his way out of the program. If he had an answer, now was the time. He would get the ball back with a tie game, 24-24 with 5:00 to go to decide his legacy.
All told, final 5 minutes and OT, 11-14-160yards, 2 TD and 0 INT for a passer rating of 153.8 - which is slightly below perfect. Nails. He had to get it done and he did. Here is that 4th and 13. Imagine, everything on the line and here comes a blitz. Stand tall and deliver it to Matthew Golden for one of the most famous TD’s in Texas football history:  If you miss this throw, the game is over and your career at Texas ends in defeat. I cannot imagine the feeling that coming through in the clutch like that must mean to him. Hopefully his ocean full of critics who cheer for his team can get off his back for a minute, because that was money. Golden, for his part, was sensational today, as well, with 7 catches for 149. There is no doubt that his last five games have been what they were looking for when he transferred in from Houston with 27 catches for 519 yards. – I admit that I did not spend many afternoons this fall watching Arizona State football games and the idea that they are now in the Big 12 is yet another bizarre result of our wild college football times. But, the idea of watching Cam Skattebo and Sam Leavitt every week play football sounds like a very attractive idea in retrospect. Seldom can I remember a QB/RB combination from an underdog that put on a show at this level. Skattebo made a ton of money from this season and this game probably answered questions about competition levels and the big stage. He was sensational in a losing effort. On January 2, 1982, Kellen Winslow played a game that was so dominant in so many ways that I think about it 42 years later and the famous picture where he is being carried off the field by his mates because he has given every ounce of energy that he had left to give and basically collapsed at the end. If you every get a chance to see what singular performances look like, I would highly recommend checking it out here. Somehow, I was nine years old and remember it like it was yesterday. But, if you saw this game, you saw a modern version of it from Skattebo. He played about as impressive a game as I have ever seen from a guy who talked a lot before the game, was losing his temper on his own bench early, was vomiting on the sideline, and then went out and ran for 144, passed for 42, and caught 99 yards in an epic performance. Believe the hype. He is what they said he was. Heck, he is what he said he was. I loved it because he and his QB, Leavitt, were such a worthy opponent. There were times were Leavitt appeared to channel Vince Young where nobody could catch him as he ran around the backfield trying to buy time and avoid some of the most athletic pass rushers in the country. But, someone must lose. And Arizona State might have emptied most of their tank in their comeback. So, when the 4th and 13 was conceded and Leavitt had to force a throw that was picked off by the excellent Andrew Mukuba, Skattebo gave us an image to remember. Exhaustion in defeat.
–Many will think of the targeting call that wasn’t when they remember this game. It immediately brought on the familiar claims that Texas always gets the calls or that the refs want the SEC to succeed. In the end, it seemed like justice to this neutral, but it also was a pivotal call (or non-call) that probably helped decide who would advance and who would go home. Let’s get one thing straight: I cannot stand the NCAA targeting rule. I especially cannot stand the automatic ejection and if in the 2nd half, it must carry over until halftime of the next game. If it is in the final game, it must carry over until next season. The rule has no nuance and no room for logic or reason. I understand why it is so harsh, but it is way too harsh for many of the things that are called “targeting” and unlike the NFL, you are really not even allowed to debate it because of player safety. So, when Micahel Taaffe was hit for the facemask to facemask hit on Melquan Stovall, I could see that it was more of a case of a guy trying to make a tackle than some savage smash of an opponent. It just didn’t seem to be anything more than a collision of bodies in a collision sport. But, we know the rules, so not only did we expect the penalty, but also the ejection, and the 15 yards which would have walked the ball to the Texas 37 with a fresh set of downs and a little over one minute to play. In other words, Texas’ goose was pretty close to cooked (although assuming a field goal in college football is not something worth assuming).  Luckily for Texas, the review appeared to be just. The rulebook states the following: Officials use instant replay to determine whether the targeting call on the field was correct. Officials look to see:
A replay must confirm targeting. A targeting call is upheld if a player leads with the crown of their helmet regardless if a player is defenseless. There is no leaving of the feet and no crouching to create maximum force. The facemasks clash, but that feels more incidental than forcible. He does not lower his head and lead with the crown. I fully expected it to be upheld because it almost always is, but to be fair, I think they made the right call. Of course, Texas and the SEC are both always accused of special treatment and those accusations are not baseless. But, they are also not always the reason a call goes like it goes. The ball was tipped, the timing thrown off, and Taaffe is supposed to tackle the man somehow. But, how else was he supposed to execute that? He surely wasn’t trying to knock Stovall out or launch himself. I guess what I am saying is I think they got this right. Also, the no-call on the ASU player on the interception also felt like it was not targeting. My principle issue with that rule being bad is how many times it is over-extended for plays that are not vicious, savage, or intent to injure. So, in both cases, I thought the guys were playing football so I congratulate the officials on resisting the urge in both cases. I think college football errs on the side of absurd way too much and they need to dial back these “automatic ejections” for the purposes of common sense. What a game. The road for Texas is about to get much more difficult, but you wouldn’t want anything else from a National Semi-Final against Ohio State. I will give Steve Sarkisian the last word as I thought he summed it up pretty well after the game: "The one thing that I know about our group is when our backs are against the wall and when our best is needed, our best shows up time and time again, and the resiliency that these guys showed today was was something as a coach makes you really proud." Heck of a game and surely the game of the tournament to this point. 
Three Thoughts - Horns Survive Arizona StBy the slimmest of margins and a little bit of good luck, Texas advances to Final Four.
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