I don't know about the rest of you, but I enjoyed the hell out of the Texas bye this weekend.
Got to watch some college football. Ate some Interstellar BBQ. Watched some more college football. Got bored with college football by the time Ohio State scored 21 and decided to watch Kill Bill Vol. 2. Tried to watch Pac-12 football and gave up after about six minutes.
Through it all, I kept watching the football through the prism of this Texas Longhorns season and what awaits the team over the course of the next couple months.
The two thoughts that I had constantly over a 12-hour window?
a. Oklahoma is really freaking good.
b. The rest of the Big 12 is absolutely no match for both Texas and Oklahoma.
You'll forgive me for looking so far ahead, but it's almost impossible to see a scenario where the Longhorns and Sooners aren't playing each other twice this season.
Hell, the best looking Big 12 team not named Oklahoma on Saturday was Oklahoma State and the Longhorns just handled that assignment a week ago.
Kansas State? Scored three points in the first three quarters against Oklahoma State.
Iowa State? Lost to Baylor
Baylor? Beat Iowa State, but looks like the type of team that would finish second in the American Conference.
TCU? Can't be taken for granted, but was bested by Shane Buechele a week ago.
Texas Tech? Kansas? Am I forgetting anyone?
I'm not sure that any of these teams belong on the same field as the Longhorns and Sooners, which is why we're going to see a lot of butt-kickings this season that look a lot like what the Sooners did to the Red Raiders this weekend. Only a terrible day at the office, which would include turnovers, penalties, poor tackling and horrible game management, should stop either of these two teams on their respective paths to the Big 12 Championship Game.
It's somewhat cliché to state that an entire season comes down to the results of a single match-up, but it's hard to see the 2019 season going any other way, especially when you consider that both teams will likely have at least a mulligan or two it can count on along the way if it is needed.
By the time we get to December, we'll be looking at one program dying to prove that it's more than regionally elite after winning four straight Big 12 titles and another that is dying to prove that it won't be marginalized by a rival that can't seem to get beyond being regionally spectacular, yet nationally empty.
No. 2 - In the last 82 days ...
I don't know that I've really thought about the historical nature of what's happened since the middle of the summer when the Longhorns emphatically took control of the recruiting scene inside the Lone Star State, but take a look at the total number of commitments since July 9, especially when, compared to their biggest in-state rival.
(2020)
7/9 - Price Dorbah - Rivals Mid-Four Star
7/17 - Vernon Broughton - Rivals Mid-Four Star
7/18 - Van Fillinger - Rivals High Three-Star
7/24 - Andrej Karic- Rivals High Three-Star
8/2 - Bijan Robinson - Rivals Five-Star
8/6 - Ethan Pouncey - Rivals High Three Star
8/11 - Jerrin Thompson - Rivals Low Four-Star
8/12 - Princely Umanmielen - Rivals Low Four-Star
8/16 - Xavion Alford - Rivals Mid-Four Star
8/17 - Quentin Johnston - Rivals Mid-Four Star
8/23 - Joshua Eaton - Rivals Low-Four Star
9/15 - Ty Jordan - Rivals High Three Star
9/20 - Troy Omeire - Rivals Mid-Four Star
(2021)
7/9 - Lake McRee - Rivals High Three Star
7/21 Jalen Milroe - Rivals Mid-Four Star
7/23 - Hayden Conner - Rivals Mid-Four Star
7/26 - Juan Davis - Rivals High Three Stars
7/31 - Billy Bowman - Rivals Mid Four Star
8/3 - Derrick Harris - Rivals Low Four Star
9/8 - Ja'Tavion Sanders - Rivals Mid-Four Star
That's 20 total commitments over the course of a 71-day window, from the day that both Dorbah and McRee committed on July 9 to September 20 when Omeire flipped from A&M to Texas.
We're talking a 5-star, nine mid four-stars, four low-four-stars and six high-three stars.
Speaking of the Aggies, here's a look at their commitment list over the same window.
(2020)
7/17 - Haynes King - Rivals Mid-Four Star
7/27 - Devin Price - Rivals High Three Star
9/21 - Antonio Johnson - Rivals Mid-Four Star
(2021)
8/1 - Shadrach Banks - Rivals Mid-Four Star
Three thoughts...
a. This has to rank as one of the best three-month stretches in the modern history of Texas Longhorn recruiting history, especially if we exclude the good ol' days when commitments used to fly in exclusively in December and January.
b. UT's head to head wins over the Aggies: 11
c. A&M's head to head wins over the Longhorns: 1
In summary...
No. 3 - Speaking of Texas commitments ...
It kind of feels like this catch deserves its own section.
No. 4 - The feel-good story of 2019 in the state of Texas ...
I'll be 100-percent honest when I state the following ... I did not see the Shane Buechele of 2019 coming from a mile away.
Don't get me wrong, I thought it was absolutely possible that he would emerge as a very solid starting quarterback for the Mustangs.
What I did not expect to see was a light year's worth of improvement from a production standpoint and him taking SMU to the brink of being a ranked team in a month's worth of action.
In the last three seasons in Austin, Buechele's season efficiency ratings ranged from 126.8-136.0, but so far this season he's sporting 158.2 rating.
The last four games during the month of September? Try 176.0, which is Sam Ehlinger territory.
It's enough to make me ask if the Mustangs with Buechele are the second-best college team in the state of Texas?
No. 5 - Breaking down the Heisman Race through September ...
Once per month, I'm going to update the state of the Heisman Trophy race and along the way we'll laugh about the fluid nature of things, as players climb and fall from week to week as if indecisive wives (or husbands!) trying to decide on dinner are in control of the proceedings.
Here's how I believe things shape up through the first month of the season:
1. Jalen Hurts - QB - Oklahoma
He's having a better start to this season than Baker Mayfield had in 2017 and Kyler Murray had in 2018. Maybe they should just put Lincoln Riley's name on the damn trophy.
2. Tua Tagovailoa - QB - Alabama
As sensational as he was a year ago, he's been even better in 2019, raising his quarterback efficiency nearly 26 points through September.
3. Joe Burrow - QB - LSU
He'll have his chance to climb this list when the Tigers play the Crimson Tide on November 9.
4. Justin Fields - QB - Ohio State
Saturday night in Lincoln was a coming out party for the Georgia transfer and he has a schedule full of mega-platform showdowns in the coming weeks.
5. Jonathan Taylor - RB - Wisconsin
It'll take a monumental effort against Ohio State in a few weeks for Taylor to gain traction ahead of the running backs in front of him. The Badgers must make the playoffs or he doesn't have a chance.
6. Sam Ehlinger - QB - Texas
Ehlinger is a longshot to win the award, but if he plays at the level he's playing at all season, a win over Oklahoma in December will earn him an invite ... book it.
7. Trevor Lawrence - QB - Clemson
His play on the field doesn't warrant his inclusion on this list, but the reality is that he's viewed as a golden boy of the sport and if the Tigers run the table, he's going to be in the mix. Vegas has him with the fourth-best odds at this point, but if a vote was taken today, he wouldn't finish in the top five.
8. Jake Fromm - QB - Georgia
While his play has been as good as Ehlinger's from an efficiency standpoint, he doesn't have nearly the volume of throws, which is keeping him from putting up gaudy stats. It matters.
9. Justin Herbert - QB - Oregon
The numbers are terrific, but a Pac-12 quarterback isn't winning the Heisman this year.
No. 6 - If I had a vote that mattered ...
1. Alabama
2. Ohio State
3. LSU
4. Clemson
5. Oklahoma
6. Georgia
7. Wisconsin
8. Auburn
9. Texas
10. Notre Dame
No. 7 – BUY or SELL …
(Sell) I'll respond to a gif with another gif.We win the national championship after getting into the playoffs and crush Bama Wooooooooooooo
(Sell) Not really, at least not at this point.
(Sell) Will is a different word than should, but after this weekend, I'll say yes.
(Sell) I think Texas loses in October, wins in December.
(Buy) Yeah, probably. I'd say the Buckeyes or the Crimson Tide.
(Sell) I won't go quite that far, but it's close.
(Buy) Yup.
(Sell) I would probably take the 2005 running back rotation with Jamaal Charles, Ramonce Taylor, Selvin Young and Henry Melton.
No. 8 – Eternal Randomness of the Spotty Sports Mind …
... Maryland cancelled classes, closed campus and did everything it could to get the students into a rabid state going into Friday night's home game against Penn State ... only to lose 59-0.
... Clemson looks wobbly. I don't know who beats them before the end of the season, but North Carolina had them on the ropes, which feels somewhat ominous.
... Me watching Tua Tagovailoa every week...
... How does Houston allow Carolina to come into its crib with a back-up quarterback and do them like that? I'm not going to go on another Bill O'Brien rant, but you guys know what I'm thinking ...
... Apologies to DeShaun Watson for the jinx this week, but nothing could possibly be worse than this stat.
... Baker Mayfield was pretty damn good on Sunday. Somehow the Browns scored 40 points without needing more than 20 yards receiving from Odell Beckham Jr.
... What a season Justin Verlander just had.
... I don't even have words for this. Just watch.
No. 9 - The List: Top 10 2019 Movies To See Before the Year Ends ...
It's almost that time of the year when I begin my annual movie binge, as the best films get released with an eye on creating an Oscars buzz. Here are the Top 10 movies I most want to see in the coming months.
10. The Farewell
9. Harriet
8. Parasite
7. Ford vs. Ferrari
6. Marriage Story
5. Waves
4. A Hidden Life
3. A Beautiful Day In The Neighborhood
2. The Irishman
1. 1917
No. 10 – And Finally ...
Love doing what you do every day the way this kid loves doing what he does.
