Gators set to upend Sooner Schooner. As much as I become a fan of the Big 12 during bowl season, there is, of course, a line to be drawn. Just like my defensive coordinator, that line etched in the sand keeps me from ever becoming a Sooner fan. That being said, I'm not here to fellate Tim Tebow, as most of the national media spends an inordinate amount of time doing. No, the point here is to break down the match up a little bit.

• Put pressure on Bradford. Any of the teams that have faced Oklahoma this season will tell that you that if you let Sam Bradford stand in the pocket untouched, he will absolutely pick you apart. Since it was so long ago, I only have faint recollections of it, but I do believe that the Longhorns and Brian Orakpo were able to pressure Bradford, causing uncharacteristically off-target throws and exposed Bradford's relative lack of mobility. Carlos Dunlap and Jermaine Cunningham are the type of elite rushers who can give massive Phil Loadholt problems, especially since the officiating crew won't be from the Big 12 and likely won't allow the rampant holding condoned in the nation's most offensively prolific conference.
• Evolution of the spread linebacker. There might be any better example in the country of the evolution at the linebacker position forced by the proliferation of spread offenses than Oklahoma's Travis Lewis. The high school running back and converted safety has clocked 40 times in the mid-4.3 range--certainly fast enough to go stride for stride with the self-proclaimed fastest team in the country. Longhorn fans will remember the 19 tackles registered by Lewis at the Cotton Bowl, no fluke considering his 137 stops on the season. Lewis ranged from sideline to sideline that game and the Longhorns only achieved success in the running game when they got lineman to the second level. Without the size or disposition to take on offensive lineman and disengage to make plays, look for Florida to try to put a hat on Lewis to keep him from ranging free.
  
• Ain't seen no one like Gresham. Not only was the Big 12 the conference of the quarterback, but it also sported the three finalists for best receiver and the three finalists for the best tight end in the country. Suffice it to say that Florida has not faced a tight end with the ability of Gresham on the year. Watching Gresham, it is flat out unfair that someone with that size can move so quickly and with such fluidity. Stiff he is not.
  
• As if they need any more motivation. If the continued questioning of the "Big Game" Stoops moniker wasn't enough, Florida linebacker Brandon Spikes had to go and pull a Martellus Bennett this week, calling the Sooner defense "a joke." True, perhaps, but having seen the damage done by Michael Jordan to teams daring to slight him in the least, I'm a believer in providing as little bulletin board material as possible. Unfortunately for OU, playing with a chip on their shoulder may be not enough.

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Context

The Buckeyes had just marched on an 11-play drive that ended in a field goal to take a 6-3 with 5:39 left in the second quarter. While the Longhorn defense, as it had done for most of the year, had held near the goal line, momentum remained firmly in the favor of the Buckeyes after controlling the ball for another six minutes, bringing their advantage in time of possession to roughly 17 minutes to eight minutes for the Longhorns. Since the defense had held Ohio State to two field goals, the situation was not desperate, but a sustained drive was at the forefront of every Longhorn fans' mind.

This time, a scary beginning

On the kickoff return by Jordan Shipley, Ohio State senior cornerback Shaun Lane made the tackle, hitting Shipley hard with his shoulder, injuring himself in the process. After a lengthy delay, Lane was immobilized and carted off the field, the type of delay that leaves both teams slightly shaken and away of their football mortality, but mostly out of rhythm.

1st and 10 on Texas 25

Texas starts the drive in 0 personnel, with five wide receivers. The Buckeyes show blitz, but drop into coverage. Unable to get to McCoy, Nader Abdullah reads McCoy and bats down the pass intended for Quan Cosby coming late across the middle of the field. Nice play by the senior defensive lineman.

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Context

By deferring to the second half, the Buckeyes received the ball to start the game and the Longhorns found themselves struggling to possess the football after a three and out to start the game, followed by a stalled seven play drive on their next possessions. Down 6-3 at the start of the second half, a sustained drive became imperative, if only to keep the ball away from the Ohio State offense and give the Texas defense a rest.

Ignominious beginning

The Ohio State kicker put the ball well into the endzone on his kickoff, as Jordan Shipley stumbled backing up and found himself laying on his back with the ball in his hands, leaving Colt McCoy and the Longhorn offense 80 yards from paydirt.

1st and 10 on Texas 20

Longhorns come out in their base 11 personnel, with Fozzy Whittaker earning the starting nod for the second half. McCoy hands the ball off to Whittaker on the counter play with the guard pulling. Adam Ulatoski retreats, faking the pass block, but doesn't draw the defender far enough upfield to take him out of the play. Very strange. Whittaker gains two yards.

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Too small and not fast enough. Putting aside the infamous dropped interception in a certain West Texas town, true freshman safety Blake Gideon came out of nowhere (or Leander, whichever you prefer) to earn a starting safety position this season. Cerebral, and the coaches son, Gideon generally covered his physical deficiencies by understanding the scheme and putting himself in a position to make plays. What Gideon isn't, though, is physically gifted enough to start at safety for Texas over the next three years. With undersized Earl Thomas lining up alongside Gideon in the secondary, the Longhorns lack the size and the ability to lay any serious wood on receivers wanting to catch the ball over the middle. In other words, the Longhorns need a Craig Loston or a Kevin Brent, both big, fast, physical safeties who escaped the Lone Star State.

Ohio State exposed Gideon's lateral quickness and explosiveness, of which he seems to possess neither. Basically, Gideon is fine reading and reacting downhill, but has absolutely no ability to change direction. The greatest attribute for a safety is range, not just in one direction but also laterally. The play against Pryor in the end zone was just an unacceptable effort. Lacking time to turn and find the ball, Gideon should have relied on Pryor's eyes to see when the ball was coming and attempt to get a hand or two up in his face. Didn't happen and Gideon looked pathetic.

Christian Scott needs to learn the scheme this offseason and overcome whatever mental obstacles have kept him off the field because the Longhorns will need him next year as a physical presence in the secondary to complement Earl Thomas. In a concession to inexperience, the defensive coaches simplified their schemes to left and right safety, instead of the usual strong and free definitions--expect that to change and for Scott to find his way onto the field.

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There and back again, a hobbit's tale of Lubbock. I think she meant it as some type of compliment. At the least, a simple observation unworthy of deep analysis. "You look like a hobbit," said the fellow partygoer, celebrating the graduation from Texas Tech of my girlfriend's godbrother. Perhaps it's my curly hair, coupled with a slightly oversized version of Elijah Wood's nose. Regardless, it was my first experience of Lubbock, one my girlfriend worked hard to convince me to experience.

Ultimately, since I have engaged in derogatory comments about the landscape of the South Plains, I felt that at some point I had to visit to see for myself. That, and not having traveled farther west in Texas than Fredericksburg and Johnson City. There is an untamable beauty in the country of the Llano Estacado, the Palisaded Plains, in the escarpments and mesas. Untamable, yes, and also unyielding, the type of place that forces perspective, the marginalization that humans seek to avoid with their endless manipulation of their environment.

While not as overwhelmingly strange as some places I have been, like Spanish Fork, Utah, the ultra-conservative stronghold of the Mormons, Lubbock still struck me as a slightly odd place. In cursory travel around the city, it appeared mostly semi-industrial, a collection of slightly run down and worn buildings, with few apparent neighborhoods in the areas through which we drove. It's also a town still in development around campus, with new apartment buildings and shopping area still under construction. In that sense, Lubbock feels like it is still striving to find it's place, seeking a slightly more sophisticated reputation.

I spent the greatest part of the graduation ceremony entertaining myself by looking at the home towns of every graduating senior, wondering what draws people to Texas Tech. As a native Hoosier, I found myself at UT because of everything that Austin has to offer, attributes that were apparent to me from the moment I set foot in central Texas. For Lubbock, those reasons still remain mysterious to me. Why a native of Los Angeles would matriculate at Cal-Berkeley and Harvard, then gain a doctorate at Texas Tech. Why a child of Snoqualmie, Washington, the beautiful mountain pass in the Cascades through which I have passed when traveling from visiting my brother in Seattle back to Montana, exchanged a rich and lush environment for the semi-arid plains.

My trip failed to truly elucidate my quest, but I do know that I appreciate Austin all the more for my experience. The music. Places of incredible natural beauty like Barton Springs, Hamilton Pool, and Mount Bonnell. The murals covering nearly every blank wall around campus. Most of all, for being a Longhorn and everything it represents. So, after applauding the culmination of the journey of bright young minds at Texas Tech, I still felt obliged to remain seated during the Tech fight song, holding my horns proudly in the air.

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For Longhorn fans, it was a fitting farewell to Stephen McGee at DKR on Thanksgiving. Tormentor and Enemy of the Nation, McGee presided over a competitive and victorious period of two wins and a lost Heisman for the Aggies against their biggest rival. Yet, at the end, slowed by shoulder injuries and a relatively talentless group of teammates whose emotions couldn't overcome a Longhorn squad with revenge in their hearts and a BCS championship on their minds, McGee stood silent and alone on a despondent Aggie sideline. There would be no miracles on this evening.

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Another record for McCoy.  When pressed on the radio this summer to make season predictions, the answer I settled on was something like, "Texas will win 10 games once again--9 in the regular season and an impressive 10th in a bowl romp, setting up a great run in 2009." Though that prediction was meant to be a positive one, it obviously sold short greatly the 2008 Longhorns, assuming Vince Young's career wins record was out of reach until next year.

Wrong, wrong, wrong--and barring an unthinkable collapse to A&M in Austin on Thanksgiving, Colt McCoy will become UT's all-time wins leader before Texas even plays in its bowl.

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 The attrition continues. The Longhorn football team is a group of walking wounded. Mack Brown said Wednesday that Brian Orakpo will be a game-time decision. Chip Brown broke the story ($) that Colt McCoy spent as much time in the ice tubs as Quan Cosby did last week after leaving the Tech game with an injury. It led to McCoy hesitating to take the running lanes given to him by the Baylor defense. He also absorbed a couple big hits when blitzing defenders came free through the line. Lamarr Houston left the Baylor game after aggravating an ankle injury he has played through most of the year. Adam Ulatoski injured his elbow in the game, as well, leaving after the injury, although he remained atop the depth chart at left tackle. Chykie Brown has struggled to get back to speed, while recovering slowly from his ankle injury. Now, starting center Chris Hall injured his knee in practice this week, leaving him out of action for the Kansas game and thrusting true freshman David Snow into the starting role. After Buck Burnette's dismissal last week, that leaves tight end (if you can even call him that) Greg Smith as the backup center and the only player on the team who may need two jerseys this weekend. Talk about a team in desperate need of a bye week.

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Basketball tidbits. Just a reminder that the men's basketball season starts on Friday as the Longhorns host Stetson. That's right, it isn't just a hat. The news from the team is that Alexis Wangmene has returned from Cameroon and is practicing again. The young big man returned to his native country after the unexpected death of his mother.

After a scrimmage against Gonzaga, Rick Barnes reports that Dogus Balbay is still adjusting to his role on the team and attempting to find the proper mix of not being too agressive, but also not being passive. I believe John Wooden put it best, "Be quick, but don't hurry." Barnes says that Balbay is sometimes the Roadrunner, but spent the scrimmage being a turtle. Barnes wants something in between. One of the most important aspects of being a point guard is understanding the right tempo at which to operate. Players like Deron Wiliams and DJ Augustin are excellent at that part of the game, changing speeds, but also understanding when to press the advantage in transition and when to back it out and run the offense. Balbay's ability to do all of those things will factor greatly into how much he plays point guard, since Justin Mason and AJ Abrams are both probably better served operating off the ball.

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