Texas clawed back to .500 with an upset win over Baylor last week. What did that win do to Charlie Strong's job status, if anything? Is D'Onta Foreman playing his way into Heisman contention?
We take a look at three things we learned over the last week, two questions that are on our mind and one prediction.
It's time for The 3-2-1 ...
THREE THINGS WE LEARNED
1. Charlie Strong's UT career isn't dead yet and he may not need eight wins
For the past few weeks, everyone has been focused on whether or not Charlie Strong will be at Texas in 2017, and just about everyone has an opinion on what the target number is to bring Strong back for a fourth year. The consensus - and word from high-level sources - has consistently been that Strong needs to get to eight wins to save his job.
With Texas sitting at 3-4 heading into last week, most laughed at the possibility of the Longhorns winning out to get to eight wins and the tone of a large portion of fans was that a change was needed, and it was probably best to make a move before the end of the season.
I've never bought into that theory, and Saturday's game is a perfect example why. It's still much too early to make any final decisions on Strong's future and there's still way too much football to be played. Opinions can sway dramatically from week to week, as we've seen in the past few days, and the UT decision makers need to let things play out for a few more weeks before even considering putting the wheels in motion on a replacement.
I know the number of wins Strong needs has been pretty firmly stated to be eight, but I'm not sure I buy that either. Let's say the Longhorns get a win this week, lose a close game to West Virginia and then look good in beating Kansas and TCU to end the regular season (or flip the outcomes of the Tech and West Virginia games). That scenario gives Texas seven regular-season wins and victories in four of its last five games, including one over a ranked opponents in Baylor or possibly two if Texas beats WVU. Throw in the fact that the team would clearly be making strides with a bunch of young players leading the way, not to mention the recent improved play by the defense, and I think it would be difficult to justify getting rid of Strong. If the Longhorns finish 7-5 and aren't blown out by anyone left on the schedule, Texas officials better be prepared for a lot of backlash from the national media if Strong is let go.
Again, perceptions can change in a hurry and the world of college football is more about "what have you don for me lately?" than it ever has been before. This team could be riding a lot of momentum to end the season even if there is one more loss, and the successful finish to the season would be what most people remember, rather than the slow start. Bottom line ... I'm not convinced Strong has to get to eight, regardless of what has been said over the past few weeks.
2. This will be the game where the defense can convince me it's made strides
For the most part, the Longhorns have played better on defense the past few weeks, but there's still a ton of room for improvement. Kansas State and Baylor both moved the ball pretty easily at times and you can't pat the UT defense on the back too much after giving up 34 points to the Bears, especially since it felt like Baylor could have had more success than it did if not for some horrible coaching decisions by the Baylor staff and some key mistakes by the Baylor players. Holding the Bears to 34 points isn't anything to write home about, but it was a better showing than most thought the Horns would turn in so we'll call that a bit of progress.
Tech will be the first team since OU that will really mix things up in the passing game and put maximum pressure on the Texas secondary. The Longhorn DBs have struggled for most of the year and the guess here is that Tech is going to put up a ton of yards against a still-suspect UT defense. Texas is going to have trouble keeping Tech from driving the field, so for Texas to win, I think it will come down to eliminating big scoring plays and limiting Tech to some field goals when the Red Raiders make trips to the red zone, which could be often.
3. Breckyn Hager's comments are blowing up more than they should
Consider me a little surprised that Texas defensive end Breckyn Hager's comments about hurting Texas Tech passer Patrick Mahomes picked up so much attention. Hager, in case you missed it, responded that the best way to slow down Mahomes and the high-flying Tech offense was to "injure that quarterback" and "take him out."
Those comments spread like wildfire as soon as they were made and were even one of the lead stories on ESPN.com after Hager issued a statement apologizing for what he called "a poor choice of words."
While Hager's choice of words was regrettable and his thoughts were certainly better left unsaid (especially in light of the fact that Texas did injure Mahomes two years ago in Lubbock), I'm not sure they're worth all the headlines.
Hager should not have said what he said, but he was only stating what every defensive football player in college football is thinking on every play. Nobody wants to go out and seriously injure an opponent, but if you can rattle a guy's cage a little bit, especially a player as important to the outcome as Mahomes, any college athlete is going to take his best shot. Texas Tech players will do the same if they get some shots at Shane Buechele or D'Onta Foreman, as they should. They just won't talk about it publicly, which is really the only mistake Hager made.
(Side note: I do get why the media jumped at the quotes ... players nowadays are so coached up on how to talk to reporters that there's rarely anything remotely exciting said in press conference settings, so when a player says something stimulating or controversial it's going to dominate the coverage.)
In case you missed it, here are the comments by Hager and Strong clarifying the team's stance on trying to injure an opponent:
Hager: “I want to apologize for what I said earlier today at our press conference. I play hard and it’s our team’s goal to get pressure on the quarterback, hit him and disrupt the offense. When I go out there I want to play my most aggressive game, but I’m not trying to do anything to physically injure someone. I have too much respect for Patrick Mahomes and every quarterback I play against to ever do that. That’s not what I’m about, not the way I was raised and not the way we play football at Texas. Our coaches don’t teach us that or coach us to injure other players in any way. It was a really poor choice of words, and I truly regret it. My point should have been that it’s our job as defensive linemen to make our presence known and affect the quarterback. Life is bigger than a game, and I’m still learning how to be a better player on and off the field. I hope everyone will accept my apology for what I said.”
Strong: “I know Breckyn regrets what he said earlier, and we just had a long talk about it. I want to make one thing clear – we never walk into a game wanting to injure someone. We would never coach that way and that’s not how our team plays. We respect the game too much, we respect other players, we respect how hard they’ve worked to get in the position they’re in, so that’s not our character. Breckyn knows we want to get pressure on the quarterback, we want to get around him, we want him to feel our presence. That’s what he’s talking about, but you never walk into a game saying we're coming in to injure you. Breckyn knows that. Patrick Mahomes is the nation’s leading passer and we have a ton of respect for him.”
TWO QUESTIONS
1. Can D'Onta Foreman go for 250 yards or more for the second consecutive game?
Foreman, who is second nationally with a 158 rushing yards per game average, went for exactly 250 yards last week in the win over Baylor. This week he'll face a Texas Tech defense that is 104th nationally in rushing defense, giving up 214 yards per game. The Red Raiders are 120th nationally in yards per carry given up at 5.4.
Everyone remembers Chris Warren running through the Texas Tech defense last year to the tune of 276 yards and four touchdowns. Could Foreman be in for a similar game?
The numbers would certainly point to the Longhorns' standout back going for 250+, but the guess here is that he'll come a little short of that mark. As bad as Texas Tech's defense is, I expect the Red Raiders will sell out to stop Foreman and force the Longhorns to throw the ball quite a bit, which Texas will do with success. Call it 200+ for Foreman but not quite 250.
2. Will Foreman wind up being a Heisman finalist?
The fact that Foreman is even receiving mention as a possible Heisman candidate is pretty telling just how dominant he's been this year.
Louisville's Lamar Jackson pretty much has the award locked up, but Foreman has certainly earned the right to be in the discussion. And he should be able to help his cause even more over the next four games with some pretty porous defenses on the schedule.
The most likely finalists as of today would be Jackson, Washington QB Jake Browning and Clemson QB Deshaun Watson. San Diego State RB Donnel Pumphrey is also getting a lot of recognition, as are Michigan LB Jabrill Peppers and Florida State RB Dalvin Cook. Surprisingly, Foreman isn't yet listed in the top-10 of ESPN's Heisman Watch poll.
Even with a strong finish, Foreman probably won't make his way to the party since he missed the UTEP game and because he plays on a pretty mediocre team, but that's a mistake on the part of the Heisman committee. You'll have a hard time getting me to believe there's a better running back in college football this year.
ONE PREDICTION - Texas misses out on Marvin Wilson and he goes out of state
It seemed early in the process that five-star defensive tackle Marvin Wilson was almost looking for a reason to go to Texas. Wilson, out of Houston Episcopal, really likes the UT coaches, as does his family. Wilson is very close to his family and all things being equal, would probably prefer to stay close to home. Unfortunately for Texas, he's never really been able to get over the hump (or mountain?) that has been UT's on-field struggles over the past three years, and that's kept Texas from being able to take advantage of all the other factors weighing in the Longhorns' favor.
Maybe I'm making too much out of Wilson's comments coming out of his Florida State visit, but the guess here is that Wilson winds up at either FSU or Ohio State. Schools like Texas, Texas A&M and Oklahoma are still in the mix, as are LSU and Southern Cal, but Wilson values playing for a winning program more than most other recruits, which could push FSU and Ohio State out in front.
A lot of people haven't bought in that FSU was much of a threat before last weekend, but I keep going back to something I was told back in the summer by someone close to the Florida State team - those inside the program felt they were going to land Wilson way back in June. If FSU head coach Jimbo Fisher winds up leaving for LSU, that could certainly mix things up, but as it stands right now, this one doesn't at all feel like it's going to go UT's way.
We take a look at three things we learned over the last week, two questions that are on our mind and one prediction.
It's time for The 3-2-1 ...
THREE THINGS WE LEARNED
1. Charlie Strong's UT career isn't dead yet and he may not need eight wins
For the past few weeks, everyone has been focused on whether or not Charlie Strong will be at Texas in 2017, and just about everyone has an opinion on what the target number is to bring Strong back for a fourth year. The consensus - and word from high-level sources - has consistently been that Strong needs to get to eight wins to save his job.
With Texas sitting at 3-4 heading into last week, most laughed at the possibility of the Longhorns winning out to get to eight wins and the tone of a large portion of fans was that a change was needed, and it was probably best to make a move before the end of the season.
I've never bought into that theory, and Saturday's game is a perfect example why. It's still much too early to make any final decisions on Strong's future and there's still way too much football to be played. Opinions can sway dramatically from week to week, as we've seen in the past few days, and the UT decision makers need to let things play out for a few more weeks before even considering putting the wheels in motion on a replacement.
I know the number of wins Strong needs has been pretty firmly stated to be eight, but I'm not sure I buy that either. Let's say the Longhorns get a win this week, lose a close game to West Virginia and then look good in beating Kansas and TCU to end the regular season (or flip the outcomes of the Tech and West Virginia games). That scenario gives Texas seven regular-season wins and victories in four of its last five games, including one over a ranked opponents in Baylor or possibly two if Texas beats WVU. Throw in the fact that the team would clearly be making strides with a bunch of young players leading the way, not to mention the recent improved play by the defense, and I think it would be difficult to justify getting rid of Strong. If the Longhorns finish 7-5 and aren't blown out by anyone left on the schedule, Texas officials better be prepared for a lot of backlash from the national media if Strong is let go.
Again, perceptions can change in a hurry and the world of college football is more about "what have you don for me lately?" than it ever has been before. This team could be riding a lot of momentum to end the season even if there is one more loss, and the successful finish to the season would be what most people remember, rather than the slow start. Bottom line ... I'm not convinced Strong has to get to eight, regardless of what has been said over the past few weeks.
2. This will be the game where the defense can convince me it's made strides
For the most part, the Longhorns have played better on defense the past few weeks, but there's still a ton of room for improvement. Kansas State and Baylor both moved the ball pretty easily at times and you can't pat the UT defense on the back too much after giving up 34 points to the Bears, especially since it felt like Baylor could have had more success than it did if not for some horrible coaching decisions by the Baylor staff and some key mistakes by the Baylor players. Holding the Bears to 34 points isn't anything to write home about, but it was a better showing than most thought the Horns would turn in so we'll call that a bit of progress.
Tech will be the first team since OU that will really mix things up in the passing game and put maximum pressure on the Texas secondary. The Longhorn DBs have struggled for most of the year and the guess here is that Tech is going to put up a ton of yards against a still-suspect UT defense. Texas is going to have trouble keeping Tech from driving the field, so for Texas to win, I think it will come down to eliminating big scoring plays and limiting Tech to some field goals when the Red Raiders make trips to the red zone, which could be often.
3. Breckyn Hager's comments are blowing up more than they should
Consider me a little surprised that Texas defensive end Breckyn Hager's comments about hurting Texas Tech passer Patrick Mahomes picked up so much attention. Hager, in case you missed it, responded that the best way to slow down Mahomes and the high-flying Tech offense was to "injure that quarterback" and "take him out."
Those comments spread like wildfire as soon as they were made and were even one of the lead stories on ESPN.com after Hager issued a statement apologizing for what he called "a poor choice of words."
While Hager's choice of words was regrettable and his thoughts were certainly better left unsaid (especially in light of the fact that Texas did injure Mahomes two years ago in Lubbock), I'm not sure they're worth all the headlines.
Hager should not have said what he said, but he was only stating what every defensive football player in college football is thinking on every play. Nobody wants to go out and seriously injure an opponent, but if you can rattle a guy's cage a little bit, especially a player as important to the outcome as Mahomes, any college athlete is going to take his best shot. Texas Tech players will do the same if they get some shots at Shane Buechele or D'Onta Foreman, as they should. They just won't talk about it publicly, which is really the only mistake Hager made.
(Side note: I do get why the media jumped at the quotes ... players nowadays are so coached up on how to talk to reporters that there's rarely anything remotely exciting said in press conference settings, so when a player says something stimulating or controversial it's going to dominate the coverage.)
In case you missed it, here are the comments by Hager and Strong clarifying the team's stance on trying to injure an opponent:
Hager: “I want to apologize for what I said earlier today at our press conference. I play hard and it’s our team’s goal to get pressure on the quarterback, hit him and disrupt the offense. When I go out there I want to play my most aggressive game, but I’m not trying to do anything to physically injure someone. I have too much respect for Patrick Mahomes and every quarterback I play against to ever do that. That’s not what I’m about, not the way I was raised and not the way we play football at Texas. Our coaches don’t teach us that or coach us to injure other players in any way. It was a really poor choice of words, and I truly regret it. My point should have been that it’s our job as defensive linemen to make our presence known and affect the quarterback. Life is bigger than a game, and I’m still learning how to be a better player on and off the field. I hope everyone will accept my apology for what I said.”
Strong: “I know Breckyn regrets what he said earlier, and we just had a long talk about it. I want to make one thing clear – we never walk into a game wanting to injure someone. We would never coach that way and that’s not how our team plays. We respect the game too much, we respect other players, we respect how hard they’ve worked to get in the position they’re in, so that’s not our character. Breckyn knows we want to get pressure on the quarterback, we want to get around him, we want him to feel our presence. That’s what he’s talking about, but you never walk into a game saying we're coming in to injure you. Breckyn knows that. Patrick Mahomes is the nation’s leading passer and we have a ton of respect for him.”
TWO QUESTIONS
1. Can D'Onta Foreman go for 250 yards or more for the second consecutive game?
Foreman, who is second nationally with a 158 rushing yards per game average, went for exactly 250 yards last week in the win over Baylor. This week he'll face a Texas Tech defense that is 104th nationally in rushing defense, giving up 214 yards per game. The Red Raiders are 120th nationally in yards per carry given up at 5.4.
Everyone remembers Chris Warren running through the Texas Tech defense last year to the tune of 276 yards and four touchdowns. Could Foreman be in for a similar game?
The numbers would certainly point to the Longhorns' standout back going for 250+, but the guess here is that he'll come a little short of that mark. As bad as Texas Tech's defense is, I expect the Red Raiders will sell out to stop Foreman and force the Longhorns to throw the ball quite a bit, which Texas will do with success. Call it 200+ for Foreman but not quite 250.
2. Will Foreman wind up being a Heisman finalist?
The fact that Foreman is even receiving mention as a possible Heisman candidate is pretty telling just how dominant he's been this year.
Louisville's Lamar Jackson pretty much has the award locked up, but Foreman has certainly earned the right to be in the discussion. And he should be able to help his cause even more over the next four games with some pretty porous defenses on the schedule.
The most likely finalists as of today would be Jackson, Washington QB Jake Browning and Clemson QB Deshaun Watson. San Diego State RB Donnel Pumphrey is also getting a lot of recognition, as are Michigan LB Jabrill Peppers and Florida State RB Dalvin Cook. Surprisingly, Foreman isn't yet listed in the top-10 of ESPN's Heisman Watch poll.
Even with a strong finish, Foreman probably won't make his way to the party since he missed the UTEP game and because he plays on a pretty mediocre team, but that's a mistake on the part of the Heisman committee. You'll have a hard time getting me to believe there's a better running back in college football this year.
ONE PREDICTION - Texas misses out on Marvin Wilson and he goes out of state
It seemed early in the process that five-star defensive tackle Marvin Wilson was almost looking for a reason to go to Texas. Wilson, out of Houston Episcopal, really likes the UT coaches, as does his family. Wilson is very close to his family and all things being equal, would probably prefer to stay close to home. Unfortunately for Texas, he's never really been able to get over the hump (or mountain?) that has been UT's on-field struggles over the past three years, and that's kept Texas from being able to take advantage of all the other factors weighing in the Longhorns' favor.
Maybe I'm making too much out of Wilson's comments coming out of his Florida State visit, but the guess here is that Wilson winds up at either FSU or Ohio State. Schools like Texas, Texas A&M and Oklahoma are still in the mix, as are LSU and Southern Cal, but Wilson values playing for a winning program more than most other recruits, which could push FSU and Ohio State out in front.
A lot of people haven't bought in that FSU was much of a threat before last weekend, but I keep going back to something I was told back in the summer by someone close to the Florida State team - those inside the program felt they were going to land Wilson way back in June. If FSU head coach Jimbo Fisher winds up leaving for LSU, that could certainly mix things up, but as it stands right now, this one doesn't at all feel like it's going to go UT's way.
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