It wasn't a thing of beauty, but by Gawd it counts
With a winning record and 2018 positive vibes somewhat on the line, the Texas Longhorns delivered one of its best performances of the season and won its bowl game by 17 points..
No moral victories. No spin. Just leading from start to finish, avoiding the Ketchum curse and winning the damn game in runaway fashion.
That the offense was borderline unwatchable for much of the game doesn't matter on this night because even that side of the ball contributed to the win, especially late in the game when it needed to put the game away.
Considering I wrongly thought the Longhorns would lose the game and I couldn't be happier to see it happen. Good for you guys. Good for the players on the team. Good for Tom Herman.
Nothing but smiles from me and only a few snarky comments.
(Here are some scattershots on the game).
* In his final game of his Texas career, Michael Dickson was nothing short of dominating, as he became the first punter in the nation this season to have 10 punts downed inside the 20-yard line in a single game. The one thing Texas had going for it during the entire game was an incredible field position edge and Dickson was the man behind it all.
Michael Dickson... you da real (Texas Bowl) MVP...
* I'm not sure what to make of what happened at quarterback tonight, but here are my thoughts...
a. After a month to get healthy, Shane Buechele didn't survive two quarters before suffering an injury.
b. Sam Ehlinger (11 for 15 for 112 yards, one touchdown and zero turnovers) got the call for the entire second half.
c. Buechele averaged 3.9 yards per attempt on 14 first-half passes.
This team doesn't have a definite answer heading into the off-season, but I don't know how anyone can suggest that these two are even coming into the spring. In two of the last three games of the season, Ehlinger was the chosen guy in wins when the staff had to make a decision.
* Players that played their best games of the season: Dickson, Davante Davis, Gary Johnson, Charles Omenihu and Daniel Young.
* MY Texas Bowl MVP rankings: 1) Dickson 2) Johnson 3) Young 4) Poona Ford
* Armanti Foreman scoring the final touchdown of the season on an end-around was damn funny. Oh, and that was a hell of a block by Ehlinger on the play near the goal line.
* Say what you want about Josh Rowland, but he came through with a big 41-yard kick when he was needed in the fourth quarter. Give that man his letter-jacket!
* Tom Herman dancing is a gif I expect to see quite a bit in the off-season. Orangebloods... make this happen.
* The Texas offensive line in a nutshell: On a screen to the running back in the third quarter, three Texas offensive linemen were in space against one Missouri player and none of them blocked him. Play blown up.
* That was less than an optimal start to the third quarter for the Longhorns and yet it never really mattered. Texas led from start to finish and was never seriously threatened.
* First half possessions for the Longhorns: :two touchdowns, seven punts and nine completions. As crazy as it might sound, that represented improvement, right?
* The Longhorns did not miss Malik Jefferson much in this game, thanks to the play of Gary Johnson, a player who will be Todd Orlando's next star.
* With Missouri threatening to get back in the game in the second quarter, Todd Orlando's defense forced a pick-six and a fumble on back to back drives. No Malik. No Hill. No Elliott. No problem.
* That touchdown return was the biggest play of Anthony Wheeler''s career. and made me consider whether or not he should be playing at tight end.
* Elijah Rodriguez is probably not an answer for this offensive line in 2018, at least not at left tackle. h
* I can't figure out what I understand less... Reggie Hemphill-Mapps' decreased role in the Texas offense or Kyle Porter getting touches.
* The field position for Missouri on its first five drives: own 18, own 3, own 9, own 20 and own 12. It was a nightmare that never ended for the Tigers.
* Drew Lock was just a guy tonight. Texas has seen great quarterbacks this season and he does not belong in that group.
* Many of you were right about this Tigers team. I was w-r-o-n-g.
* I found it really interesting that Texas went back to Ehlinger at quarterback for the fourth series of the game after a third series that was mostly a disaster. In retrospect, that was a great call by the staff that seemed questionable at the time.
* While Missouri was responsible for a lot of the yardage on UT's first drive, it was about as perfect of an opening drive as the Longhorns could have had, mixing in both the run and pass with success.
* DeShon Elliott not being with his teammates on Wednesday night was a move that I didn't liked. I have no issues with him going pro and I don't care if he hangs out with Charlie Strong for the next 10 days, but tonight he needed to be on the sideline with his team.
* I couldn't pull this off, but I absolutely dig this jacket.
With a winning record and 2018 positive vibes somewhat on the line, the Texas Longhorns delivered one of its best performances of the season and won its bowl game by 17 points..
No moral victories. No spin. Just leading from start to finish, avoiding the Ketchum curse and winning the damn game in runaway fashion.
That the offense was borderline unwatchable for much of the game doesn't matter on this night because even that side of the ball contributed to the win, especially late in the game when it needed to put the game away.
Considering I wrongly thought the Longhorns would lose the game and I couldn't be happier to see it happen. Good for you guys. Good for the players on the team. Good for Tom Herman.
Nothing but smiles from me and only a few snarky comments.
(Here are some scattershots on the game).
* In his final game of his Texas career, Michael Dickson was nothing short of dominating, as he became the first punter in the nation this season to have 10 punts downed inside the 20-yard line in a single game. The one thing Texas had going for it during the entire game was an incredible field position edge and Dickson was the man behind it all.
Michael Dickson... you da real (Texas Bowl) MVP...
* I'm not sure what to make of what happened at quarterback tonight, but here are my thoughts...
a. After a month to get healthy, Shane Buechele didn't survive two quarters before suffering an injury.
b. Sam Ehlinger (11 for 15 for 112 yards, one touchdown and zero turnovers) got the call for the entire second half.
c. Buechele averaged 3.9 yards per attempt on 14 first-half passes.
This team doesn't have a definite answer heading into the off-season, but I don't know how anyone can suggest that these two are even coming into the spring. In two of the last three games of the season, Ehlinger was the chosen guy in wins when the staff had to make a decision.
* Players that played their best games of the season: Dickson, Davante Davis, Gary Johnson, Charles Omenihu and Daniel Young.
* MY Texas Bowl MVP rankings: 1) Dickson 2) Johnson 3) Young 4) Poona Ford
* Armanti Foreman scoring the final touchdown of the season on an end-around was damn funny. Oh, and that was a hell of a block by Ehlinger on the play near the goal line.
* Say what you want about Josh Rowland, but he came through with a big 41-yard kick when he was needed in the fourth quarter. Give that man his letter-jacket!
* Tom Herman dancing is a gif I expect to see quite a bit in the off-season. Orangebloods... make this happen.
* The Texas offensive line in a nutshell: On a screen to the running back in the third quarter, three Texas offensive linemen were in space against one Missouri player and none of them blocked him. Play blown up.
* That was less than an optimal start to the third quarter for the Longhorns and yet it never really mattered. Texas led from start to finish and was never seriously threatened.
* First half possessions for the Longhorns: :two touchdowns, seven punts and nine completions. As crazy as it might sound, that represented improvement, right?
* The Longhorns did not miss Malik Jefferson much in this game, thanks to the play of Gary Johnson, a player who will be Todd Orlando's next star.
* With Missouri threatening to get back in the game in the second quarter, Todd Orlando's defense forced a pick-six and a fumble on back to back drives. No Malik. No Hill. No Elliott. No problem.
* That touchdown return was the biggest play of Anthony Wheeler''s career. and made me consider whether or not he should be playing at tight end.
* Elijah Rodriguez is probably not an answer for this offensive line in 2018, at least not at left tackle. h
* I can't figure out what I understand less... Reggie Hemphill-Mapps' decreased role in the Texas offense or Kyle Porter getting touches.
* The field position for Missouri on its first five drives: own 18, own 3, own 9, own 20 and own 12. It was a nightmare that never ended for the Tigers.
* Drew Lock was just a guy tonight. Texas has seen great quarterbacks this season and he does not belong in that group.
* Many of you were right about this Tigers team. I was w-r-o-n-g.
* I found it really interesting that Texas went back to Ehlinger at quarterback for the fourth series of the game after a third series that was mostly a disaster. In retrospect, that was a great call by the staff that seemed questionable at the time.
* While Missouri was responsible for a lot of the yardage on UT's first drive, it was about as perfect of an opening drive as the Longhorns could have had, mixing in both the run and pass with success.
* DeShon Elliott not being with his teammates on Wednesday night was a move that I didn't liked. I have no issues with him going pro and I don't care if he hangs out with Charlie Strong for the next 10 days, but tonight he needed to be on the sideline with his team.
* I couldn't pull this off, but I absolutely dig this jacket.
