OFFENSE
The run game carried plenty of moments of frustration despite converting a number of key short yardage situations. It looked like McMillon struggled in relief of Zach Shackelford while Elijah Rodriguez was consistently ownt by whichever former 2* the Miners chose to line up across from him. Neither a recruiting ranking nor a jersey make a legitimate P5 athlete, and right now Rodriguez is not one. Get well soon, Connor.
Warren has some giddyup when he hits the open field, but those moments were few and far between. Even when you allow for the fact that he needs to be aligned and used differently, he had a few second-level moments where he needed to put a foot in the ground and make a guy miss and he couldn't manage it. There's a role for him to be a big part of this offense, but for right now...D’Onta, get well soon. It was nice to see some burstiness from Kyle Porter late in the game - if Foreman isn't back next week, we need to see a lot more of him at Cal.
It’s easier to analyze the pass game when you're at the game and have no replay, so here's the short version - we be good. There were a few hiccups when we tried to throw hitches into press coverage and we gave up our first sacks of the season, but Buechele was by and large dialed in and dropping it on the dot. We added a critical component of the O that was largely missing against Notre Dame, namely the willingness to punish dishonest numbers and alignments outside with the screen game. Jacorey Warrick and Jerrod Heard were the main beneficiaries, and it was very encouraging to see some robust blocking out wide (with special recognition going to Jake Oliver, who looked like Moose Johnston on more than one play out wide.)
I'll also call Jerrod Heard ‘a monster in the making’ after another slot showcase. I'd lavish more praise on him for his savvy position switch, but his NFL contract will be plenty of additional reward.
Texas will need to be more high-octane and mistake free to ensure a win on the California coast, but if they can line up with at least nine of the eleven guys that started against ND (and Connor Williams is one of those nine) then I'm not sweating that too much.
DEFENSE
Nervousness about the Longhorns handling a 31-point Vegas number largely centered around the prospects of some lackadaisical run D and press clipping placidity from the Longhorn defense.
So much for that.
Texas gave up over a hundred to a future NFL fourth-round steal in Aaron Jones, but 50 of that came about when Tim Cole drifted inside for zero reason or purpose and let Jones rocket through the gap when he should have slammed him as a totally free hitter. Aside from that the Longhorns kept Jones largely in check and were never remotely threatened by the passing threat of UTEP’s zone read-or-bust backup QB.
The 300-pounders on the DL did their jobs pretty well, even on an opponent adjusted basis - UTEP isn't sporting any Mike McGlincheys, but they're a big and senior-laden bunch who've been getting years of tutelage from former OL coach Sean Kugler. Paul Boyette and Chris Nelson both had plenty of solid stack-and-shed moments and didn't get washed out by the double team while The Poonatrator knifed into the backfield on multiple occasions. The young ‘uns got some late run as Elliott, Wilbon and Christmas all saw action and held up well.
The 260-70 pounders showed well, as Bryce Cottrell made a spry return to action to rotate with Charles Omenihu at SDE, and Omenihu himself showed some nice pass rush moments.
And the 250 pounder...good Lawd.
Malcolm Roach had some flashes against Notre Dame, but he enjoyed some megawatt moments tonight. 250+ pound true freshmen aren’t supposed to drop fluidly into space and then fly to the ball the way he did tonight - or if they do, they're supposed to have come in as highly fought over high four star dudes. If (and, let’s face it, when) he keeps growing, he could follow Cory Redding’s path to - and through - a lengthy NFL career.
Charlie might be able to evaluate a lil’ bit.
The backers had solid games as they got to play off of solid work up front. Malik is Malik, and Wheeler continues to show physicality and instincts that were totally absent as a frosh.
The secondary was hardly tested tonight, but they got a few moments to shine. Sheroid Evans had another nice pass breakup, and Davante got to atone for last week’s nightmare outing with a handy forced fumble.
SPECIAL TEAMS
Kris Boyd gaveth and tooketh away with some fly-down-the field moments and some mindless penalties, low lighted by an absurd tackle of the personal protector on a punt that negated a partial block. Brandon Jones showed what it looks like when one of the team’s top five athletes DOESN’T check his brain at the door, as he was all but unblockable on kick coverage. Domingue drilled a 40 yard field goal and Michael Dickson brought the Thunder From Down Under on punts.
Clean up the silly penalties, and Jeff Traylor may have a plus unit on his hands.
[BC]
