I'll be posting every Ewers pass play when the video comes available but just quick thoughts after sleeping on what we all watched last night.
Felt like the decision by Sark to roll with K-Rob as the every down back was made in an effort to keep him on the roster next season. Maybe it's because of K-Rob's loyalty or maybe it's because he knows the full playbook better. I don't really know what all went into that thought process, but I thought it definitely hurt us in the first half. If I was Brooks, who had 100 yards against Kansas in the second half, I'd be contemplating my options if I wasn't the premier back starting out in Spring ball. No Bijan effect. It was a massive drop off.
The O-line - They got dominated in the first half, especially in the interior. Did we see Hutson's last start at RG? I always feel like when you watch a televised broadcast, that you don't want to notice the O-line. The camera follows the ball so essentially, if the O-line is playing well, you don't have much to say about them. Unfortunately, G, C, G, was a mess early. Seemed to get better after half time adjustments.
Ewers - If he plays like he did last night during the back half of the season, we might be talking about who we are playing on Saturday and not a loss to Washington. He had some bad throws in the first half. Got rattled by pressure early, but he was dealing in the second half. There's more to playing QB than just the throws. His pocket presence was much better, his footwork while a little shaky at times was much better, knowing where to escape and doing something with the ball was also much better. B- in the first half, A in the second half. What kind of monster game are we talking about if the best WR on the team showed up big?
On the WR's - When you are heralded as the best player on the team, the hardest worker, etc... you simply can't play the way Worthy played last night. You certainly don't have to be perfect but last night was shocking to me. I've been hard on his effort at times this year. Chalked it up to frustration with being missed when opportunities were there. And while Quinn missed him twice, you really can't have a sour ass attitude and body language when you drop balls like that. NIL, the portal, the body language, the effort, all contribute to the vitriol that X gets. He really is a very talented young man but for some reason it just doesn't feel like he plays for Texas. I have no doubt he's the most talented WR on the team but that's also part of the problem. If Worthy is the best and all these issues exist, what does that say about the WR room and the WR coach? At what point do we seriously consider the job Marion has done with the WR room? He may be a great coach? I don't know. But something is wrong with that room. I don't want Worthy to portal out but at this point, I don't think I'd be that bothered by it if he does. Maybe it's a maturity thing and maybe another year the mental development turns in to physical development. It's quite perplexing. Cain quietly led the team in receiving. What in the world of who saw that coming?
The Defense - They simply got beat. Had a great first half. Made it so that Ewers was out playing a guy who should have been in New York. But at the end of the day, they couldn't get off the field which is an issue that they seemed to get rid of towards the end of the season. In a lot of ways, this was a Texas Tech style performance where they could not get off the field on 3rd and 4th down in the second half. Credit to Washington, they are a very good offensive team. But it was not a good night for PK & the defense either.
Wrap it all up to a total team failure. Coaching, offense, defense, and special teams. They all took their turns last night killing momentum.
Turning the page. I don't think this loss is that big. It would have been nice to end the season beating a 10-2 team. But the Alamo Bowl has no bearing on 2023 and it doesn't paint a picture of the future either. It's one game. On to the portal where I would expect things to be pretty active. 2023 is a very big deal regarding the trajectory of the program. Time to put it all together. Anything less than 10 wins and playing for the conference title will be a disappointment.
Felt like the decision by Sark to roll with K-Rob as the every down back was made in an effort to keep him on the roster next season. Maybe it's because of K-Rob's loyalty or maybe it's because he knows the full playbook better. I don't really know what all went into that thought process, but I thought it definitely hurt us in the first half. If I was Brooks, who had 100 yards against Kansas in the second half, I'd be contemplating my options if I wasn't the premier back starting out in Spring ball. No Bijan effect. It was a massive drop off.
The O-line - They got dominated in the first half, especially in the interior. Did we see Hutson's last start at RG? I always feel like when you watch a televised broadcast, that you don't want to notice the O-line. The camera follows the ball so essentially, if the O-line is playing well, you don't have much to say about them. Unfortunately, G, C, G, was a mess early. Seemed to get better after half time adjustments.
Ewers - If he plays like he did last night during the back half of the season, we might be talking about who we are playing on Saturday and not a loss to Washington. He had some bad throws in the first half. Got rattled by pressure early, but he was dealing in the second half. There's more to playing QB than just the throws. His pocket presence was much better, his footwork while a little shaky at times was much better, knowing where to escape and doing something with the ball was also much better. B- in the first half, A in the second half. What kind of monster game are we talking about if the best WR on the team showed up big?
On the WR's - When you are heralded as the best player on the team, the hardest worker, etc... you simply can't play the way Worthy played last night. You certainly don't have to be perfect but last night was shocking to me. I've been hard on his effort at times this year. Chalked it up to frustration with being missed when opportunities were there. And while Quinn missed him twice, you really can't have a sour ass attitude and body language when you drop balls like that. NIL, the portal, the body language, the effort, all contribute to the vitriol that X gets. He really is a very talented young man but for some reason it just doesn't feel like he plays for Texas. I have no doubt he's the most talented WR on the team but that's also part of the problem. If Worthy is the best and all these issues exist, what does that say about the WR room and the WR coach? At what point do we seriously consider the job Marion has done with the WR room? He may be a great coach? I don't know. But something is wrong with that room. I don't want Worthy to portal out but at this point, I don't think I'd be that bothered by it if he does. Maybe it's a maturity thing and maybe another year the mental development turns in to physical development. It's quite perplexing. Cain quietly led the team in receiving. What in the world of who saw that coming?
The Defense - They simply got beat. Had a great first half. Made it so that Ewers was out playing a guy who should have been in New York. But at the end of the day, they couldn't get off the field which is an issue that they seemed to get rid of towards the end of the season. In a lot of ways, this was a Texas Tech style performance where they could not get off the field on 3rd and 4th down in the second half. Credit to Washington, they are a very good offensive team. But it was not a good night for PK & the defense either.
Wrap it all up to a total team failure. Coaching, offense, defense, and special teams. They all took their turns last night killing momentum.
Turning the page. I don't think this loss is that big. It would have been nice to end the season beating a 10-2 team. But the Alamo Bowl has no bearing on 2023 and it doesn't paint a picture of the future either. It's one game. On to the portal where I would expect things to be pretty active. 2023 is a very big deal regarding the trajectory of the program. Time to put it all together. Anything less than 10 wins and playing for the conference title will be a disappointment.
