Boy was it ugly, Colt McCoy and his team spared no one in the beatdown they served the Missouri Tigers on Saturday night. It was so ugly that in the third quarter ABC pulled the plug to switch over to their West Coast coverage of the USC and Oregon State game--where these two teams were trading punches.
It was the old McCoy (26/31 for 269 yards with 3 touchdowns and one interception) playing pitch and catch with his receivers against an overmatched Missouri team. The entire nation has been waiting for him to breakout this season, and he did against albeit a Missouri team whose quarterback Blaine Gabbert was playing with an injured ankle. Gabbert was unable to plant his feet and this cause a lot of his balls to have no velocity on them.
Do not misunderstand me, Missouri can put up points like Texas Tech, but these two offenses score too fast so their defenses get no time to rest and that is why they give up a lot of points, on defense. And also your team identity in college dictates the recruits you will attract: so an offensive team will get more kids on offensive side than the defensive side and vice versa. Not only that, but the Longhorn’s defense (#2 in total defense--which was held by Alabama who dropped to #4) have stepped up in a big way since the Oklahoma game.
It’s safe to say that Mack Brown’s team looked far more impressive last Saturday than Alabama and Florida (who both struggled to secure a definitive win). But on a whole, Alabama, Florida, and Texas do not look like the same teams from the 2008 season.
One thing for sure is that Texas should not get too excited by beating a Missouri team that is ranked 52nd in the nation in total offense (giving up an average of 345.86 yards per game) and a pass defense that is 65th in the nation (allowing on average of 218.0 yards per game through the air).
Looking at their schedule, the best defense they played was Oklahoma’s and they barely won that game, 16-13. Yes, they are in control of their own destiny, but what lies ahead is a trip to Boone Pickens Stadium to play Oklahoma State this upcoming Saturday. I know you are going to say that no Dez Bryant (lied to the NCAA) and Kendall Hunter (injured) will make it easier for the Longhorns. However, you never know: they still have Zac Robinson at quarterback (12 touchdowns and 3 interceptions) and Keith Toston (6 rushing touchdowns and 606 yards rushing so far). Last season, the Longhorns (at home) looked less than stellar in a tight game that they eked out, 28-24.
Texas is 3rd in the AP poll, USA Today poll, and BCS standings. If they win out, the winner of the December 5th SEC Championship game will be their opponent in the national title game. But if for some reason they lose a game along the way, all their national championship aspirations fly out the window. And that leaves the Men of Troy sitting perfectly in all this.
USC is sitting comfortably (on the 50th floor of the penthouse suite) at No.5 in the BCS standings, and all they have to do is win out, and for Texas to have one loss for them to be in the national title game. The Trojans have to beat Oregon in Autzen Stadium (one of the toughest places to play in the nation, if not the loudest) this upcoming Saturday and this will allow them to step over Iowa (4th in the BCS) and be seated at the No.4 spot in the BCS. But if they lose, they might be out of the BCS picture all together.
There is no doubt that silently and secretively USC is hoping for a Texas loss and for their offense to put up 42 points on Oregon like they did against Oregon State. But it has to be disheartening for Trojan fans (myself included) to witness their defense giving up 63 points in their last two games.
Last season, Texas’ hopes of the national title were taken away in a Cinderella moment by Michael Crabtree. And then the stupid Big 12 tiebreaker rule that kept them out of Big 12 Championship game, even though they beat Oklahoma head-to-head, 45-35. No one can deny Texas of their destiny, if they just win out. But for the Longhorns it’s all about consistency, this was the first game where their offense was firing on all cylinders, can they keep it up for the remainder of the season?
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Colt McCoy and the Texas Longhorns solve their offensive woes for now, beating Missouri 41-7
Boy was it ugly, Colt McCoy and his team spared no one in the beatdown they served the Missouri Tigers on Saturday night. It was so ugly that in the third quarter ABC pulled the plug to switch over to their West Coast coverage of the USC and Oregon State game--where these two teams were trading punches.
It was the old McCoy (26/31 for 269 yards with 3 touchdowns and one interception) playing pitch and catch with his receivers against an overmatched Missouri team. The entire nation has been waiting for him to breakout this season, and he did against albeit a Missouri team whose quarterback Blaine Gabbert was playing with an injured ankle. Gabbert was unable to plant his feet and this cause a lot of his balls to have no velocity on them.
Do not misunderstand me, Missouri can put up points like Texas Tech, but these two offenses score too fast so their defenses get no time to rest and that is why they give up a lot of points, on defense. And also your team identity in college dictates the recruits you will attract: so an offensive team will get more kids on offensive side than the defensive side and vice versa. Not only that, but the Longhorn’s defense (#2 in total defense--which was held by Alabama who dropped to #4) have stepped up in a big way since the Oklahoma game.
It’s safe to say that Mack Brown’s team looked far more impressive last Saturday than Alabama and Florida (who both struggled to secure a definitive win). But on a whole, Alabama, Florida, and Texas do not look like the same teams from the 2008 season.
One thing for sure is that Texas should not get too excited by beating a Missouri team that is ranked 52nd in the nation in total offense (giving up an average of 345.86 yards per game) and a pass defense that is 65th in the nation (allowing on average of 218.0 yards per game through the air).
Looking at their schedule, the best defense they played was Oklahoma’s and they barely won that game, 16-13. Yes, they are in control of their own destiny, but what lies ahead is a trip to Boone Pickens Stadium to play Oklahoma State this upcoming Saturday. I know you are going to say that no Dez Bryant (lied to the NCAA) and Kendall Hunter (injured) will make it easier for the Longhorns. However, you never know: they still have Zac Robinson at quarterback (12 touchdowns and 3 interceptions) and Keith Toston (6 rushing touchdowns and 606 yards rushing so far). Last season, the Longhorns (at home) looked less than stellar in a tight game that they eked out, 28-24.
Texas is 3rd in the AP poll, USA Today poll, and BCS standings. If they win out, the winner of the December 5th SEC Championship game will be their opponent in the national title game. But if for some reason they lose a game along the way, all their national championship aspirations fly out the window. And that leaves the Men of Troy sitting perfectly in all this.
USC is sitting comfortably (on the 50th floor of the penthouse suite) at No.5 in the BCS standings, and all they have to do is win out, and for Texas to have one loss for them to be in the national title game. The Trojans have to beat Oregon in Autzen Stadium (one of the toughest places to play in the nation, if not the loudest) this upcoming Saturday and this will allow them to step over Iowa (4th in the BCS) and be seated at the No.4 spot in the BCS. But if they lose, they might be out of the BCS picture all together.
There is no doubt that silently and secretively USC is hoping for a Texas loss and for their offense to put up 42 points on Oregon like they did against Oregon State. But it has to be disheartening for Trojan fans (myself included) to witness their defense giving up 63 points in their last two games.
Last season, Texas’ hopes of the national title were taken away in a Cinderella moment by Michael Crabtree. And then the stupid Big 12 tiebreaker rule that kept them out of Big 12 Championship game, even though they beat Oklahoma head-to-head, 45-35. No one can deny Texas of their destiny, if they just win out. But for the Longhorns it’s all about consistency, this was the first game where their offense was firing on all cylinders, can they keep it up for the remainder of the season?
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