Texas - OU Postgame React, Part 2: Dancin' Again
by Peter Bean on Oct 12, 2008 3:54 AM CDT
in Texas Longhorns Football
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PrintThere was just too much today to confine the postgame reaction piece to the usual format. To the bullet points we go:
Awards? Nu-uh. Not today. How could we fairly decide who was more valuable to the offense among Chris Ogbonnaya, Colt McCoy, Jordan Shipley, and Quan Cosby? Could we reasonably say Earl Thomas was more valuable than Roddrick Muckelroy? What about Roy Miller and Blake Gideon? Forget all that: This was the definition of a team effort, and every guy mentioned below (and those not covered) deserve to share in the glory. No way Texas wins this game unless this Team, capital T, isn't as cohesive and selflessly committed to excellence as it has proven itself to be.
3 out of 4... Wins in this series often come in bunches, and Texas has now won three of the last four. Though Mack Brown and his staff really need to corral this year's win into a Big XII Title Game appearance (at the least) to hammer the success home, Oklahoma remains the Longhorns' lone true rival. For any and all shortcomings that may accompany any given year, the Red River Shootout is the one game that can provide for fans the satisfaction normally reserved for accomplishing long term goals.
The legend of Colt McCoy grows... He's now 2-1 in the RRS, Texas is 6-0 in a year when the Longhorns were supposed to be rebuilding for '09, and based on what I heard watching 12 hours of football coverage today, a--if not the--Heisman front runner. Though neither he nor I could care less about any individual awards, the recognition he's receiving is deserved. And Barking Carnival's EOT is right: No QB in college football is playing better than McCoy right now.
Chris Ogbonnaya is not 40, but he's a man. C-O! [clap-clap] C-O! [clap-clap] C-O! [clap-clap] One of my absolute favorite Longhorns had himself a(nother!) game for the ages, finishing with 130 yards rushing on 15 carries, and another 27 receiving yards on 4 catches. That's impressive enough in its own right, but where he (and Greg Davis) deserve credit is for how much of it came in the second half, when lesser analysts (me) were calling for a wholesale abandonment of the rushing game. Not counting the three kill-the-clock rushes when Texas was up by 10, Ogbonnaya's rush chart by half looks like this:
| 1st Half | 1 | 3 | 3 | -1 | -1 | 3 | Total: 8 yards, 1.3 ypc |
| 2nd Half | 6 | 30 | 3 | 12 | 3 | 62 |
Total: 116 yards, 19.3 ypc |
That's a big reason why today perhaps was both Ogbonnaya's and Greg Davis's finest game at Texas: The bulk of the success came after it looked like there was little hope to run the ball. Ryan Reynolds' injury had something to do with it, but the bulk of the credit goes to Davis, OG, and the Longhorns' offensive line, which battled hard the OU front seven.
Muschamp bein' Muschamp. That Oklahoma offense was really good, and they had more than a little success against a damn fine Texas defense. But Will Muschamp has this year blown me away with his second half adjustments and today was no exception. After Oklahoma scored on their first drive of the second half to take a 28-20 lead, Muschamp's charges forced OU into a turnover or punt on five straight drives to close the game:
| Score | Plays | Yards | Drive Result |
| 28-27, OU | 5 | 26 | Fake punt fail |
| 30-28, TX | 6 | 22 |
"Roughing" punter extends drive, |
| 38-35, TX | 3 | 8 | Punt |
| 45-35, TX | 5 | 21 | Turnover on downs |
| 45-35, TX | 6 | 36 | INT |
| TOTALS | 25 | 113 | 4.5 yards per play |
Winner-winner. Even adding in the 6 plays for 49 yards after the faux penalty on the punter, the Sooners managed a mere 162 yards on 31 plays (7 points) over the game's final five drives. This, after averaging 7.6 yards over their first 36 offensive plays (28 points). Will Muschamp wins football games.
Cody Johnson scores touchdowns. With his 3 touchdown runs today, true freshman Cody Johnson has 9 on the season and has become a key ingredient for the Longhorns in the red zone. Don't sniffle: For a team that has struggled the past two years to convert red zone opportunities into touchdowns with enough consistency (38 of 56, 67% in 2006 / 35 of 52, 67% in 2007), Johnson has been a godsend--an important reason 27 of the Longhorns' 33 red zone trips have ended in touchdown (82%).
His role firmly established, the big fella needs a nickname... The Freshman Finisher? I'm open to suggestions.
86-2. With Texas' win today behind 438 total yards on offensive, Mack Brown moves to 86-2 when reaching the 400 yards mark. And that, really, is why it's okay for fans to start dreaming big about this season: The tempered expectations this year were founded on the thesis that an offense with so few proven weapons wouldn't be able to keep pace in the Big XII while this young defense grew up.
Colt McCoy, Quan Cosby, Jordan Shipley, and Chris Ogbonnaya have in just six games turned all that on its head. And best yet...
We're not peaking yet...Though it would be hard to ask much more from this group than we've gotten already, the truth is Texas is thriving with, I'd argue, as much room to grow offensively as anyone in the country. The offensive line is good and can be better as younger contributors become more conistent; Brandon Collins and James Kirkendoll are slowly but surely getting their feet underneath them; the slim-n-trim version of Chris Ogbonnaya is finding himself as a football player; a healthy Fozzy Whittaker would add a lot to this offense; and this Oklahoma game forced Apple-Davis to expand our offensive capacity beyond what we might have had we not needed to outgun a damn good OU team today.
And that's before we even get to the defense, which it's becoming easy to forget is still anchored by as many underclassmen as veterans. And as I keep saying every week I'm asked about it on the radio, the most impressive quality of Will Muschamp's defenses is not that the unit improves game to game... It's that they improve quarter to quarter. The schedule remains daunting, but if I've said it once, I've said it a million times: Texas is going to become a progressively harder team to beat with each successive week.
Texas two-step. I've been hesitant to endorse the idea that Texas could continue to thrive in the passing game just on the backs of Quan Cosby and Jordan Shipley, but man do those two deserve game balls once again.
| CATCHES | YARDS | YPC | REC TD | MONSTER BLOCKS | RETURN TDs | |
| Shipley | 11 | 112 | 10.5 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Cosby | 9 | 122 | 13.6 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
Defensive excellence... The 'Horns got defensive contributions from a host of players Saturday, but seven stood out as the most important playmakers of the day.
| PLAYER | Solo | Asst | Tackles | TFL / Yds | FF | INT |
| Muckelroy | 12 | 2 | 14 | -- | -- | -- |
| Gideon | 7 | 1 | 8 | -- | -- | -- |
| Orakpo | 3 | 2 | 5 | 4 / -19 | 1 | -- |
| Houston | 3 | 2 | 5 | -- | -- | -- |
| Miller | -- | 3 | 3 | -- | -- | -- |
| Kindle | 3 | 1 | 4 | 1 / -5 | -- | -- |
| Thomas | 2 | 1 | 3 | -- | 1 | 2 |
A brief word on each:
- Roddrick Muckelroy: With the exception of two bad reads on pass plays that hurt Texas, he was amazing. Just... unbelievable. It was truly astonishing to see a tackle made and squint in at the TV to wonder, "What that Muck again?"
- Brian Orakpo: He finished with two sacks and might have had five if Phil Loadholt hadn't blatantly held him the entire game. He's playing every bit as well as his reputation right now.
- Lamarr Houston / Roy Miller: Not counting sacks, Oklahoma rushed 23 times for 68 yards. Thanks in large part to these two.
- Blake Gideon and Earl Thomas: Texas' freshmen safeties are growing up fast. Gideon looks like a fifth year senior, while Thomas--still raw--is just scratching the surface of his capabilities. If Gideon's the steady hand, Thomas is the rainmaker.
- Sergio Kindle: His athleticism allows Muschamp to do so many different things with this defense. Linemen have no choice but to hold him.
The little things... Briefly, a giant hat tip to Curtis Brown, who exemplified the Can't Quit attitude of this defense when he derailed Oklahoma's fake punt doubling back eight yards to make the first down-saving tackle.
Wrong futbol. Mike Knall may take home an Oscar, but he should have to forfeit his jockstrap for his flopping today.
Beyond the flops... Even setting aside that atrocious roughing the punter penalty, the officiating on Saturday was horrendous. Both sides had ample opportunity to complain about the officiating, though I personally think Texas got the worst of it when you consider how badly the Longhorns' ends were being held on play after play after play--most of the time flagrantly.
Dancin' again... Did anyone else notice that the Texas Longhorns football team is dancing again? They were. And they are. The glorious Vince Young era is officially an era of the past. The 2008 Texas Longhorns are forging an identity of their own--just as loose, confident, and determined to win.
Hook 'Em Horns. OU Sucks.
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wow
so much to read and contemplate here. i feel like you could have written about twice as much as you did about the game and it still wouldnt have been enough.
at some point, someone needs to do a detailed breakdown of our gameplan for this game and discuss just how exactly it was that our offense was able to exploit the OU weaknesses. I feel like all week, all everyone was saying was the only way we had a chance to beat OU was if we spread them out 4 and 5 wide….id love to go back and see just how many 4 and 5 wide sets we saw GD pull out in that game. Id venture to say it may have been more than we’ve seen in the entire Mack era.
Unreal gameplan. Unreal execution. And the best part, to top it off, we’re not even suppose to be this good this year. This is suppose to be the walkthrough for next year. How anyone could not be completely stoked about where this program is right now is beyond me.
schemes, dreams, and unsung heroes
Much has already been made about attacking OU in the middle of the field with Cosby as a “loose” TE or “tight” slotback. OU blitzed one or both LB’s constantly in the first half, much as many teams have done to Texas in the past two years. It was working at first, until Shipley and Collins started adjusting their routes after the snap of the ball to run to the open area behind the LB’s for 5-10 yard passes. Having watched several other top-ranked teams and their WR’s, Texas fans shouldn’t take for granted how few balls our receivers drop.
There are some comments below about how Texas was better prepared to play a 4 quarter game, but I think that Texas’ advantage in conditioning and depth, particularly on defense, started the comeback even in the second quarter. UT was rotating LB’s in the 4-2-5 defense, with Bobino and Ben Alexander coming in a lot in the second and third quarters to keep things fresh.
Much is made about Sam Bradford, but the majority of OU’s touchdown’s were set up by imaginative plays, like the fake reverse roll out screen pass to Murray, or the double WR screen to the middle of the field to Manny Johnson, or the pass to Gresham which was simply a blown coverage. These were all learning experiences for the young secondary. Bradford had few slants, posts, or deep outs open on any kind of regular basis, which is why their offense stalled in the second half, and was why OU never really seemed in control of the game.
Impressions:
By the fourth quarter Orakpo had single-handedly cost OU tackle Phil Loadholt about 3 million dollars come draft time next April. They call holding in the NFL.
Aaron Williams and Curtis and Chykie Brown will be the starting corners by the end of the season and the secondary will not be a problem. Curtis Brown, in particular, did more than make the tackle to stop the fake punt. He had the interception that allowed Texas to stop OU’s momentum, made several critical tackles on Gresham in the second half, and had a beautiful pass breakup in the fourth quarter to force a punt.
OU had some big pass plays, but they were plays that were designed to be tough to recognize, such as WR screens, three-receiver screen plays. Plus, it took the Horns about a half to figure out how to cover Gresham (double team with Muckelroy underneath and either C. Brown or Earl Thomas over the top). OU had only one play where the WR just simply beat his man, a far cry from last year’s game and season. Muschamp schemed well, but the secondary is making the necessary physical plays it takes to win.
The OL was awesome. I repeat awesome. Colt ran outside the pocket and into most of his “sacks.” I watched the “film” on ESPN360, and Ulatoski absolutely owned All-Everything DE Auston English. Ogbonnaya picked up LB’s or either of the two DT’s that managed to escape Dockery and Hall. Tanner gave up nothing all day. The zone-blocking by the interior linemen on second half running plays was a thing of beauty, and that, in my opinion was what prompted Stoops to go for a fake punt WHEN HE HAD THE LEAD. On Oggy’s 30 yard run in the third quarter that set up UT’s first touchdown of the second half, Dockery completely sealed off the backside pursuit, Ulatoski buried English, and Chris Hall was 7 yards down the field, obliterating the OU LB. The 62 yarder was a play I don’t recall seeing very much (you can step in here Beergut) – It looked like a simple power sweep, but out of the gun. Hix and Peter Ullman sealed off the DE and LB, and Dockery and Hall pulled to the outside and annihilated the corner and safety. All Ogbonnaya had to do was run. As GD noted in the postgame, it was "a chalkboard play, meaning it ran just like we drew it up on the chalkboard.
This team can now dream because it has proven that it can run 10-15 successful 4+ yardage plays in a row through sheer execution rather than with explosive talent. They still get some explosive plays, but they don’t depend on them like last year’s team did. This team can dream, because they pass-rushed the nation’s best and most experienced offensive line without having to blitz very much. This team can dream because the defensive cornerstones of Orakpo, Miller, Kindle, Muckelroy, and Gideon give the offense no easy plays. You have to dig into the playbook, as OU did, and hope for some big plays. This team can dream, because there will be no heroic goal-line stands at the one yard line against this team – Cody Johnson is automatic from 3 yards or less. This team can dream because the coaching staff is free to improvise and to make adjustments, even in the first quarter.
So – dream on!
by burnt in ny on Oct 12, 2008 3:36 PM CDT up reply actions 1 recs
Here's a quote from the Dallas Morning News
The stats won’t tell you everything, starting with what much-maligned offensive coordinator Greg Davis did to give the Longhorns a chance. Davis told Brown last Sunday that, if they were going to have a shot, they’d have to put the game in Colt McCoy’s hands. And then McCoy would put it in Jordan Shipley’s.
Here’s what Davis was thinking: He figured Texas would have a difficult time running against OU, so the Longhorns came out in a “10 formation,” meaning “1” back and “0” tight ends. He put three receivers on one side with Shipley in the slot. The idea was that Shipley, excellent at finding soft spots in a zone, might create mismatches.
Result: Shipley, who won’t remind you of Roy Williams, catches 11 passes for 112 yards. And if he’d had 1 more yard, he’d have had a pair of TDs to go with his 96-yard kickoff return.
Brent Venables, OU’s defensive coordinator, had no idea it was coming because he said Texas hadn’t lined up in the formation all season. Try all decade.
“We haven’t done it,” Davis said, “in about eight years.”
"God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him." J.Piper
Cody
His realy name is Colton, so he could be Boltin’ Colton….
The team calls him “Fat Boy”, so if he and Fozzy ever get on the field together we could call them “Fat Man and Little Boy” and watch them wreak devastation together.
Life is an Occasion. Rise to it.
by patienthornsfan on Oct 12, 2008 5:55 AM CDT reply actions 2 recs
… or maybe “Fat Boy and Little Man”.
Life is an Occasion. Rise to it.
by patienthornsfan on Oct 12, 2008 6:12 AM CDT up reply actions
someone said it
in another thread. yes, it’s cheesy, and borderline tasteless, but I like it, doggonit!!
BIG JOHNSON
JP in south Baltimore
i think..
it was Big Johnson that said it..lol
by vy til i die on Oct 13, 2008 10:54 AM CDT up reply actions
McCoy really is playing some great football, but when it comes to the Heisman race, I think he, Bradford, Daniel, and Harrell all stayed within very close range of each other. Colt and Harrell didn’t put up their usual monster stats, but came away with the wins, while Daniel and Bradford were amazing statistically in losses.
I think there’s a lesson in that. I’ll take the W, thank you very much.
by burntorangehorn on Oct 12, 2008 7:43 AM CDT reply actions
I disagree
I think Bradford and Daniel fell back some, due to Losses in games they were supposed to win both threw multiple interceptions. I do not think Harrell really has a chance, fair or not he is viewed as a system QB.
In light of reality meltdowns
…the financial meltdown, the presidential race “beat down”, housing market upside-down, my 401K “get out of town”, we all went to bed last night with “orange” blossoms dancing in our heads. Thank god for the emotional distraction of college football and our horns. Here’s hoping that the ride so far is bringing a little sunshine to horns faithful who have been most affected during this economic malaise. God bless us.
by TXStampede on Oct 12, 2008 8:27 AM CDT reply actions 1 recs
Flop
I honestly do not think the OU punter flopped. I think he actually lost his balance and fell. I am pretty sure he really hurt himself, as OU had already been working on him. Still it was not running into the kicker.
Are you kidding?
Texas didn’t even touch him on one of his flops, and they got a flag thrown on them. BS
by Longhorns84 on Oct 12, 2008 10:28 AM CDT up reply actions
I am not saying Texas touched him.
I am saying I think he lost his balance and fell, I do not think it was intentional on Knall’s part to attempt to draw a flag by either falling or staying down. In other words it was not premeditated. I do think his falling and staying down helped draw a flag. I do think it was a BS call.
He definitely looked hurt
When he was walking on the sideline with nary a grimace of pain 5 minutes later. If thats “roughing the kicker” or “running into the kicker,” I say Texas should never attempt a punt block again.
"Stats are for losers, I like winning games."
by SuperBentley on Oct 12, 2008 11:27 AM CDT up reply actions
"I say Texas should never attempt a punt block again."
This is dumb, this idea.
by Misterserious7 on Oct 12, 2008 12:38 PM CDT up reply actions
Didnt get the sarcasm I guess...
Texas shouldnt have been called for either of the running into the kicker penalties yesterday, just saying. The first one didnt matter, but the second one was a bit more significant. If Texas continues to have calls like that go the other way this season, maybe its time to re-evaluate the punt block strategy. Otherwise, I am all for the gunners going behind the line and drilling the punter to force a block.
"Stats are for losers, I like winning games."
by SuperBentley on Oct 12, 2008 2:16 PM CDT up reply actions
Apparently not...
then again, sarcasm is sometimes difficult to read.
by Misterserious7 on Oct 12, 2008 3:19 PM CDT up reply actions
Punter's Calf Cramp; Brent Musburger's Brain Cramp
Musburger’s commentary notwithstanding, the punter wasn’t injured by the Texas punt rush, nor was the punter “flopping” (brings to mind the flops by the Utah Jazz’s power forward Karl Malone). The punter simply had a leg cramp. In fact, he had one (same, left leg) minutes earlier that the o.u. trainers were stretching. And they continued to stretch the left calf after he returned to their sidelines. That said, so long as the defense has not touched the football, the punter is allowed room to land (after kicking) untouched by a defensive player. Twice we did not give him enough room, which is our own fault because we should be aiming for a spot barely in front of where the kicker is kicking. Coach Akina will fix that mental mistake before the next game.
"God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him." J.Piper
I've never been a GD basher,
in fact I’ve erred on the side of being a GD apologist at times, but there was one thing that I found interesting. GD said that he dusted off the 4 wide formation that we hadn’t used in 8 years. Anybody remember who the QB was 8 years ago…
by ctex80 on Oct 12, 2008 10:13 AM CDT reply actions 2 recs
great observation
how much does major have his hand in decisions like this, scheming, playcalling, etc.? anyone know? wanna guess?
JP in south Baltimore
I think it's probably more than the program would ever admit
and less than most fans would like to believe. Major’s contribution might be just putting a bee in Davis’ bonnet, so to speak, and then GD runs with it. I base this on absolutely nothing, of course.
Cosby, and Shipley
I don’t know how good Texas is going to be next year without Cosby and Shipley. They are definitly going to be missed next year. Chris-O too.
Shipley will probably be back.
Everything I’ve heard indicates he will both apply for and receive a medical redshirt for one of his lost years.
Concerning ESPN.com & Ivan Maisel:
earlier this morning, the featured article on the game (not the normal recap/news) was by Maisel and the title and theme were something like TX SHOULD DEFINITELY NOT COUNT THEIR CHICKENS BEFORE THEY HATCH. and it went on to pretty much say that we’ve got more than we’ll be able to handle w/our upcoming sched. NOW, it’s changed, and the subheadline deal is: Texas’ must-see by any means victory over Oklahoma was a result of a balanced offense and great chemistry. He was totally hating, and now that article’s vanished and is replaced with one fluffing us. I can’t find the other one from early this AM anywhere…. anyone else see that?
JP in south Baltimore
Props to BZ
If OU’s better though, Texas at least has the advantage of having played full games this year (even if they’re using second stringers by the end), while OU plays 2.5 to 3 quarter games. This will in all likelihood be a 4 quarter game and it’s possible that some advantage in the second half will go to the team that’s used to playing the 4th quarter like its a real game.
No kidding
I was telling my dad about that quote before the game started, and sure enough that ended up being one of the prime factors. Cheers BZ.
"Stats are for losers, I like winning games."
by SuperBentley on Oct 12, 2008 11:29 AM CDT up reply actions
Mike Knall
Given his fragile physique, I hear that he will be playing SLJ’s role in the upcoming remake of M. Night. Shyamalan’s “Unbreakable”
My name is Mike Knall,
but when I was young the kids used to call me “Mr. Glass.”
"Stats are for losers, I like winning games."
Holy Shit
Someone else actually watched that movie!?!?
Absolutely
I have it on DVD. One of the last movies M. Night made before his entire “surprise twist” ending schtick wore off.
"Stats are for losers, I like winning games."
by SuperBentley on Oct 12, 2008 2:14 PM CDT up reply actions
Peter......
After Oklahoma scored on their first drive of the second half to take a 28-20 lead, Muschamp’s charges forced OU into a turnover or punt on five straight drives to close the game:
================
After the failed fake punt, on the very next possession, OU scored their 5th touchdown. Still, it was a very successful second half.
--- All roads to the Big-XII Championship lead through OU/RRS. It's not just another game! We're all about championships here. ---
You're right, but...
As I note in the post above, we did force them into a punt on that drive. We just got called for a mickey mouse penalty… and THEN they scored.
--PB--
What about a BS roughing penalty...
… means that OU didn’t have to punt on that possession? I’m pretty sure that if you don’t blame the officials, you blame the punt blocking unit (i.e. not Muschamp, whose defense forced a punt). Peter’s right. Lawyers always win semantics.
Cody Johnson nickname
I was wondering the same thing. Did he have a nick name in HS?
My personal nick for him is ‘Freight Train’. Doesnt exactly go with his with his real name per se, but I think the description is right on when it comes to his running style. Amazing that this guy is what we thought Melton was going to be 4yrs ago. I love it when #31 enters the game, I just know some defender is going to get blown up.
I hate to gripe but . . .
didn’t Henry Melton get called for most of the penalties against us? If so, that points out an area where we need more discipline or teaching or both.
"God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him." J.Piper
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