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The Power Five => Big XII => Topic started by: Thumper on September 25, 2017, 01:48:17 PM

Title: Week 5
Post by: Thumper on September 25, 2017, 01:48:17 PM
Thursday Night - Texas @ Iowa State.  This could be a good one.  
The stats for both teams are very similar.   Pretty close to a must win for Texas with KSU, OU and OSU coming up next.  Texas is about a 6 point favorite but I think ISU gets it done at home.

Saturday 
Baylor @ KSU  Can Baylor keep up the momentum?  I'm picking KSU in this one.
OSU @ TT   Can the Raiders stay undefeated?  I think the Pokes bounce back.
Title: Re: Week 5
Post by: BrownCounty on September 25, 2017, 02:49:39 PM
Thursday Night - Texas @ Iowa State.  This could be a good one.  
The stats for both teams are very similar.   Pretty close to a must win for Texas with KSU, OU and OSU coming up next.  Texas is about a 6 point favorite but I think ISU gets it done at home.
I'm not going to argue with your pick - you could well be right.
This next Texas game is big for Herman, if he wants to leverage the moral victory at USC.  If we lose to Iowa St, here come the naysayers in a big way.  If Texas pulls out a win in this one, then a few of the upcoming losses will be more palatable.
The problem is that entitled Texas fans have no respect for Iowa St, so the fallout could be ugly.
Title: Re: Week 5
Post by: utee94 on September 25, 2017, 03:20:29 PM
Iowa State's a decent team and could certainly beat this Texas squad.

I agree that Texas fans are entitled, but losing to Iowa State and Kansas is never going to be okay at Texas, any more than Alabama fans would accept losing to Vanderbilt or Ohio State fans would accept losing to Northwestern.

Iowa State, Kansas, those are the teams that Texas MUST beat if Texas is ever going to get back to being a good program.  A loss to Iowa State this year would be a pretty strong indicator that nothing has changed and we're in for another 5-7 type season, and that's something that Texas fans won't accept, nor should they.
Title: Re: Week 5
Post by: longhorn320 on September 25, 2017, 04:06:06 PM
we grew up a little bit two weeks ago

if we dont win this Thursday it will surprise me very much

The current line favors UT by 6

I think final score will be UT 35 Iowa St 20
Title: Re: Week 5
Post by: BrownCounty on September 25, 2017, 04:27:24 PM
I watched Iowa St play Iowa earlier in the season, and they ain't no slouch.  I will be pleased with a win.

Methinks nothing's going to come easy these first few years for Herman, but that's what the $5MM is for.
Title: Re: Week 5
Post by: longhorn320 on September 25, 2017, 05:18:03 PM
It appears that Buechele will start against the Iowa St this Thursday

I find that very interesting

Title: Re: Week 5
Post by: BrownCounty on September 25, 2017, 05:32:44 PM
It appears that Buechele will start against the Iowa St this Thursday

I find that very interesting
Well, here's the bottom line - Texas defense had a stellar outing against USC, and Texas lost.
Yes, Ehlinger made some nice plays, and he fought hard down the home stretch.  But again, Texas D was stellar, and Texas lost.
You can't yank Buchelle based on anything yet.  Boo may have generated more points in the early stages of the USC game when our D was suffocating them.  We could have used more points then.
Sam throws hard.  Sam looks tough.  Sam looks rugged.  Sam looks confident.  But Texas lost.
Title: Re: Week 5
Post by: longhorn320 on September 25, 2017, 05:55:00 PM
I like starting Buechele over Sam

Buechele is quicker, has more experience at reading defenses and I think is a more accurate

passer

Sam on the other hand is a decent QB so overall Im pleased that both are Horns

Iowa St is a passing team and I expect them to score

I just think we have the ability to out score them plus ability to pressure their QB

 
Title: Re: Week 5
Post by: CharleyHorse46 on September 26, 2017, 09:35:24 AM
If Beck can start the game off by letting Buechele throw several quick release timing routes to his talented receivers, it should make the safeties play back off the line and maybe even force the Cyclones to put in an extra DB or two.  Then the Horns could start mixing in a healthy dose of Warren.

'Course if they refuse to give Warren the ball and they expect Buechele to dance around in the backfield until the porous line gets beat and the pocket collapses, or worse yet - expect Buechele to carry the ball like he's VY, Tebow or even Ehlinger then we're doomed.

Dooomed.
Title: Re: Week 5
Post by: BrownCounty on September 26, 2017, 09:43:25 AM
or worse yet - expect Buechele to carry the ball like he's VY, Tebow or even Ehlinger then we're doomed.
Maybe this is Herman's sly way to get Ehlinger the #1 spot.  Something tells me Herman leans Ehlinger, but that Buchelle has done nothing to lose the job.
At some point, Herman wants to run his offense - not tweak it around Buchelle's fragility.
Title: Re: Week 5
Post by: longhorn320 on September 26, 2017, 10:00:10 AM
Maybe this is Herman's sly way to get Ehlinger the #1 spot.  Something tells me Herman leans Ehlinger, but that Buchelle has done nothing to lose the job.
At some point, Herman wants to run his offense - not tweak it around Buchelle's fragility.
or maybe TH is just trying to play the best player at each position
I think what Buechele lacks in being a running back he will more then make up for in passing
yardage
Title: Re: Week 5
Post by: BrownCounty on September 26, 2017, 11:13:01 AM
I think what Buechele lacks in being a running back he will more then make up for in passing
yardage
I'm pulling for Buchelle because I like his attitude.  OTOH, I'm sick of Texas having these tiny QB's.  I desperately wanted David Ash to work out because he had some beef.
Buchelle will likely get banged up again if we can't protect for him.
Title: Re: Week 5
Post by: CharleyHorse46 on September 26, 2017, 11:34:31 AM
I liked the way Greg Davis was bringing John Chiles along.   We were on track back then.  

Then for some strange damn reason Garrett Gilbert was anointed coming out of high school without ever having to compete for the job or earn the job, Chiles graciously or begrudgingly moved to WR and Gilbert was a scarcely-used unprepared heir-apparent.

Texas has been in a tailspin like a crashing airplane ever since - going through OCs and QBs like somebody with an ragweed allergy goes through a box of Kleenex.

Meanwhile every iconic QB in college football confidentially confided he really wanted to play for Texas.  He just didn't want to play safety.

It's been a hard pill to swallow.

Sometimes I look at Buechele and Ehlinger and ask myself if they're really good or if I just imagine they're good because I've been accustomed to Squinty Gilbert, Hicks Wing Man Case, Concussion Ash, Slow Step Swoops, and Scrambling and Slinging Heard for so long.
Title: Re: Week 5
Post by: longhorn320 on September 26, 2017, 11:44:44 AM
I think both our QBs are pretty good 

The main problem is our OL

They better get better in a hurry or we wont win 5 games this year
Title: Re: Week 5
Post by: CharleyHorse46 on September 26, 2017, 11:54:36 AM
Ever seen the old Gary Cooper movie, "Distant Drums"?

It's like this little known late '40s or early '50s "western" shown by networks on sleepy Saturday afternoons when you're flipping channels to avoid painfully long reverse-mortgage ads.

I put western in parentheses because the setting is like the swamps of 1840s Florida and a 19th Century equivalent of a PT boat crew is trying to rescue a chesty broad in a damp sweaty piece of a shirt.

Meanwhile there's this ever-present sound of distant war drums foretelling their doom.

It's kind of like the ongoing prediction that Texas will be lucky to win seven, five or even three games this year.   You want to believe the Horns will rescue the girl and there will be nip slip or six, but there are always those drums of doom beating in the background.
Title: Re: Week 5
Post by: longhorn320 on September 26, 2017, 12:01:17 PM
ever see the movie "Necessary Roughness"

maybe its time for the Horns to get crazy
Title: Re: Week 5
Post by: CharleyHorse46 on September 26, 2017, 12:07:41 PM
I remember Kathy Ireland as the placekicker....

I remember they were Texas State before there was a Texas State and they played Southwest Texas State who became Texas State.  

I wonder if the regents of Southwest Texas State watched the movie religiously to bask in their university's 15 minutes of fame and over time began to think the name Texas State sounded more sophisticated.

Could that movie be behind Texas State's name change?
Title: Re: Week 5
Post by: MikeDeTiger on September 26, 2017, 12:17:39 PM
The combination of Tom Herman and Iowa State is a sore spot.  

I won't root for the meteor per se, but maybe for some small hail that conks people on the noggin and makes them uncomfortable.  
Title: Re: Week 5
Post by: BrownCounty on September 26, 2017, 12:21:23 PM
Could that movie be behind Texas State's name change?
Might be, but Texas A&M had first dibs on the name "Texas State" and turned it down.
Title: Re: Week 5
Post by: longhorn320 on September 26, 2017, 12:38:33 PM
Might be, but Texas A&M had first dibs on the name "Texas State" and turned it down.
only an aggie would know that
caught ya
Title: Re: Week 5
Post by: utee94 on September 26, 2017, 12:58:06 PM
I thought everybody knew that?

When other ag schools started shedding their A&M surnames and replacing it with State, the Aggies had the chance to do so as well.  They chose not to, so when SWT decided it wanted to dump the "directional" school name and associated image, the state legislature made a final check with the Ags, and then let them do it.

I liked Necessary Roughness.  Welcome to foot, ball.

Title: Re: Week 5
Post by: Mr Tulip on September 26, 2017, 04:45:17 PM
There's no real Texas fan out there who would take the blender-birds lightly. They're a consistently above average team that loves to take it to Texas. Given all the intangibles in the atmosphere (read: playing on the road on Thursday), Texas is sure to be in for a fight.

If you would have told me that Texas was going to have 4 turnovers against USC, I'd have braced for a 55-7 laugher. The Texas defense played violent, assignment football where everyone did the job they were recruited to do. I love Sam, and he has a wide open future. However, if he's more careful with the ball, Texas wins that game. 

If the offense is not going to feature the QB run (or threat thereof), then Shane is by far the more accurate passer. If he's healed, he's the guy.
Title: Re: Week 5
Post by: BrownCounty on September 26, 2017, 04:56:59 PM
There's no real Texas fan out there who would take the blender-birds lightly.
Any Texas fan who understands football would not take this game lightly.  But if you just survey Texas fans walking down the street, 3 out of 4 couldn't tell you the Iowa State mascot (team name), and that same 3 out of 4 would not consider Iowa St to be a worthy opponent.

But you used the word "real" fan, which to me is someone who understands football, and not just Longhorn apparel.

Still yet, it's going to be rocky for CTH if Texas loses this game.

(Disclaimer: there is something in the above post that is intended to provoke)
Title: Re: Week 5
Post by: utee94 on September 26, 2017, 06:41:51 PM
Any Texas fan who understands football would not take this game lightly.  But if you just survey Texas fans walking down the street, 3 out of 4 couldn't tell you the Iowa State mascot (team name), and that same 3 out of 4 would not consider Iowa St to be a worthy opponent.

But you used the word "real" fan, which to me is someone who understands football, and not just Longhorn apparel.

Still yet, it's going to be rocky for CTH if Texas loses this game.

(Disclaimer: there is something in the above post that is intended to provoke)
I think there's an important distinction between the idea of a "worthy opponent" and the thought of "someone I'm excited to see my team play."  

Beyond that, as decent or worthy as Iowa State might be, they're still a team that Texas must beat, in order to return to being the kind of football team that competes for conference and national championships.  Texas fans are going to use this game as a litmus test, and if Texas doesn't win it, they're going to believe that nothing (or at least, not enough) has changed from last year to this year.  This coaching staff already failed their first such test against Maryland, in miserable fashion.  Texas fans aren't going to, and shouldn't, accept bad coaching decisions and bad player development.

So although I understand what you're saying, I actually don't agree.  Nobody should take Iowa State lightly.  And yet Texas absolutely must win the game, for many fans-- including me-- to believe this coaching staff has any hope of moving in the required direction.

You can lump me in with the t-shirts if you like, but you'd be absolutely wrong in doing so.
Title: Re: Week 5
Post by: MikeDeTiger on September 26, 2017, 11:40:37 PM
Definitely not.  Much more of a polo guy...maybe a nice button-up shirt.

I'd say way too wine and cheese to be a t-shirt, but it's more like brisket and beer.  
Title: Re: Week 5
Post by: CharleyHorse46 on September 27, 2017, 09:05:23 AM
I'm going through a wardrobe crisis.  

For the last 30 years or so, I wore loose fitting comfortable solid color soft knit cotton polos to work with khakis and loafers, while wearing cargo shorts and a t-shirt at home evenings and weekends.  

Nowadays, I'm wearing slim-fit dark colored dress shirts and slacks with more upscale loafers.  Meanwhile at home I'm wearing more fitted shorts and less random, more dignified t-shirts.

I'm not as comfortable as I used to be, but I get a lot more compliments from a lot younger women, so I've got that going for me - because as I'm sure all of you men understand, we are hardwired to preserve the species.  One always has to make oneself presentable and appealing to young women of child-bearing age so that in the event of a nuclear holocaust we will be able to hook up in the aftermath.

It's a solemn duty that should always be in the back of our subconscious mind.  

Still... I kind of miss the big ass pockets of my old cargo pants where I could spend my weekends with the contents of my tackle box in my right pocket and a complete socket set and six wrenches in my left pocket.
Title: Re: Week 5
Post by: BrownCounty on September 27, 2017, 09:06:26 AM
You can lump me in with the t-shirts if you like, but you'd be absolutely wrong in doing so.
I'd love to lump you in, but you'd have to give up microbrews.
Title: Re: Week 5
Post by: BrownCounty on September 27, 2017, 09:11:08 AM
we are hardwired to preserve the species.  One always has to make oneself presentable and appealing to young women of child-bearing age so that in the event of a nuclear holocaust we will be able to hook up in the aftermath.

It's a solemn duty that should always be in the back of our subconscious mind.  
And here I was torturing myself wondering if I would ever grow out of my horndog tendencies.  Alas, there is nothing wrong with me after all.
Title: Re: Week 5
Post by: utee94 on September 27, 2017, 09:24:39 AM
Well, now that we have Slick's permission...

Title: Re: Week 5
Post by: CharleyHorse46 on September 27, 2017, 09:25:42 AM
Hey BC.  Ever walk into a room and instinctively pick out the best-looking woman?

Every heterosexual male does that but may not have ever stopped to realize why.   We're not being horndogs.  We are subconsciously assessing genetics to determine who we are instinctively obligated to save and protect in the event of a horrible calamity.

We're not perverts.  We're noble creatures.  We're the last hope for humanity.
Title: Re: Week 5
Post by: BrownCounty on September 27, 2017, 10:55:54 AM
Hey BC.  Ever walk into a room and instinctively pick out the best-looking woman?
Consistently, without fail.
Title: Re: Week 5
Post by: CharleyHorse46 on September 27, 2017, 11:15:27 AM
Then you're doing your part and our species has hope.
Title: Re: Week 5
Post by: BrownCounty on September 27, 2017, 12:47:57 PM
Then you're doing your part and our species has hope.
My wife needs to understand this.
Title: Re: Week 5
Post by: Mr Tulip on September 27, 2017, 12:51:11 PM
I think there's an important distinction between the idea of a "worthy opponent" and the thought of "someone I'm excited to see my team play."  

Beyond that, as decent or worthy as Iowa State might be, they're still a team that Texas must beat, in order to return to being the kind of football team that competes for conference and national championships.  Texas fans are going to use this game as a litmus test, and if Texas doesn't win it, they're going to believe that nothing (or at least, not enough) has changed from last year to this year.  This coaching staff already failed their first such test against Maryland, in miserable fashion.  Texas fans aren't going to, and shouldn't, accept bad coaching decisions and bad player development.

So although I understand what you're saying, I actually don't agree.  Nobody should take Iowa State lightly.  And yet Texas absolutely must win the game, for many fans-- including me-- to believe this coaching staff has any hope of moving in the required direction.

You can lump me in with the t-shirts if you like, but you'd be absolutely wrong in doing so.
I believe that the Maryland game needed to happen. 
After all the spring practice and summer bonding, the players knew what their coaches had been saying. They heard the words and went through the motions, but when it came time to fight, they forgot it all and reverted to what they did last season - and got last season's results. 
I believe the coaching staff reviewed that tape with the players and then showed them practice. Two totally different tapes. Against SJSU, they trusted their coaching and their training, but it was SJSU. 
Watch the USC tape. You see a defense that fits all gaps, then a streaking 46 rockets through and just kills the ball carrier. That's not a man who's thinking. That's a man that knows his role and uses his athletic talent to execute it violently. I was gratified that, even when USC hit a couple of big plays, the defense didn't lose composure. They kept playing their roles.
One game of fierce defense is unique. Two can be chalked up to a "name" opponent. A third such performance would a habit. 
All this to say yeah, you're right. The ISU game is important to demonstrate that Texas didn't just overachieve in a loss to USC, and things really are different.
Title: Re: Week 5
Post by: CousinFreddie on September 27, 2017, 01:12:00 PM
My wife needs to understand this.
My wife always is the best looking woman in the room, so the only time where it gets a bit tricky is ...
when she's not in the room.
Title: Re: Week 5
Post by: CharleyHorse46 on September 27, 2017, 02:12:28 PM
My wife always is the best looking woman in the room, so the only time where it gets a bit tricky is ...
when she's not in the room.
Ah.  
Title: Re: Week 5
Post by: CharleyHorse46 on September 27, 2017, 02:29:09 PM
My irrepressibly, sweet, cute and adorable wife is most often the prettiest woman in the room too, but alas... she's also the one who's most pissed off at me.

I was joking, by the way, on the other other thread when I said I might call her voluminous.  Voluminous is a lovely world and it sounds deceptively enough like luminous that I might could impishly slip it by a tired or distracted woman, but my wife is not large.

All of her girl friends who I once found so attractive are now big as cattle and grotesquely they are even more coquettish than they were when they weighed in at a third of their current heft.  So I praise the good Lord every day that I never had the opportunity to flirt seriously with any of them when they were younger because if I had they would sure be a hell of a lot baggage now.  I'm talking baggage heavy enough to bring down a plan.
Title: Re: Week 5
Post by: BrownCounty on September 27, 2017, 03:53:01 PM
All of her girl friends who I once found so attractive are now big as cattle
I could count over 2 dozen beauties that I was insanely hot for at one time in my life that now have ballooned into human livestock.
The only thing I struggle with however, is that I still want to hammer them home.
Title: Re: Week 5
Post by: BrownCounty on September 28, 2017, 10:20:06 PM
on a handoff to Kyle Porter, if the defense ran completely off the field, I wonder how many yards Porter would gain.
Title: Re: Week 5
Post by: CharleyHorse46 on September 29, 2017, 12:29:39 AM
I feel like Fred Akers is our coach once again.
Title: Re: Week 5
Post by: utee94 on September 29, 2017, 07:32:32 AM
on a handoff to Kyle Porter, if the defense ran completely off the field, I wonder how many yards Porter would gain.
Still, zero.

I feel like Fred Akers is our coach once again.
That, or Lynn Amedee is our OC.
Title: Re: Week 5
Post by: CharleyHorse46 on September 29, 2017, 09:36:03 AM
I'm grateful for the win.   Road win.  Conference win.  Thursday night trap game.  Defense played lights out.  I love Orlando.  He has the D playing the best I've seen a Texas defense play in several years.

I'm grateful we have a placekicker who can make field goals and make kickoffs unreturnable.

I'm glad they put an experienced player at punt return but pissed that apparently it has never occurred to Naivar that an automatic touchback to the 20 is better starting position that fielding a ball inside the five.  We thought that happened the last three years because Strong was careless or inattentive to details.  How can Herman be so attentive to the color of people's urine and so absent on returns?

We all know Herman famously refused to watch any tape on his team.  So obviously he has no idea that Burt and Duvernay have been deep threats in the past or that Warren once gained 277 yards rushing on 25 attempts in a game where he started off with 21 yards on 7 carries.  

But did he not watch any tape on Iowa State either?  He seemed to have no idea that Iowa State was actually effective at loading the box and stopping the run.  How could he not know that?  It's what they did against their first three opponents and what they did to Texas the last two years.

Why won't Beck use Buechele and our plethora of receivers to take deep shots down the field on 1st or 2nd down?  You're in the damn shotgun.  It's not like you have to count on the line to protect a pocket for more than a second or two.  All you need is for one of your receivers to get off the line.

I understand the desire to establish the run.  Set it up with the pass.   It's what Mackovic did when he had Ricky, Priest and Shon.
Title: Re: Week 5
Post by: utee94 on September 29, 2017, 10:07:48 AM
Beck's playcalling is just baffling.  I know that lots of folks say that about their OC, but man, I just don't understand what he's trying to do.  At all.
Title: Re: Week 5
Post by: BrownCounty on September 29, 2017, 10:21:26 AM
Go ahead and start bagging on me now, but trust me I say this in light of a thought process that runs a little deeper than your standard, knee-jerk t-shirt fan.

I'm ready to turn this over to Sam.
Title: Re: Week 5
Post by: BrownCounty on September 29, 2017, 10:43:09 AM
And I'm with CH.  I do not take any win for granted right now.  I've never been this pleased with a win over Iowa St.  I have selectively memory block, but didn't they blank us last year?  <shudder>  There was a 24-0 debacle somewhere in Charlie's tenure, although the file has been mentally deleted, my hard drive hasn't completely overwritten the bits.

We are not what I would call a talented football team.  There is Malik, but those kind are few and far between.  For now.

I give the new staff a B+ on the whole, and certainly an A to Orlando.  We were slow out of the gate (maryland), but I can accept that as long as we appear to have a plan.  Too bad D'onte did not hang around, we could have used him.  We are starting to get pretty scrappy with what we have, but it really ain't all that much (for a Texas team).

We have some tough games coming up, but I anticipate at least a respectful showing.
Title: Re: Week 5
Post by: MikeDeTiger on September 29, 2017, 11:08:54 AM
Herman said after the game that ISU's defense was showing different alignments than anything they'd seen in film going back two years.  I don't watch much Iowa State football, so I don't know.  

I did like the drive at the end.  Defense playing well, got the lead....run the ball, 1st down, run it some more, another first down.  Manball the opponent and watch the life go out of his eyes.  That's a scene I can get behind.  
Title: Re: Week 5
Post by: CharleyHorse46 on September 29, 2017, 12:05:51 PM
...Too bad D'onte did not hang around, we could have used him...
I'm not sure this offensive staff could have been counted on to use him.
These geniuses would probably put Ricky Williams at tightend, Earl Campbell at right guard, and bury VY on the depth chart at receiver.
Title: Re: Week 5
Post by: CharleyHorse46 on September 29, 2017, 12:14:07 PM
I'll tell you something else that irks me.  

You're up 14-0.  Your defense is playing well but your offense has stymied with three and outs and INTs and you're losing the field position battle because your punt returner is an idiot and your drives keep starting at the 5 and the 7.

Why not just run out the back of the endzone, take a safety, kickoff from the 20 and flip the field.  You'd still be up by 12, but your back wouldn't be up against the wall and any mistakes could help you instead of hurt you.

But I guess I'm not a damn genius.
Title: Re: Week 5
Post by: MikeDeTiger on September 29, 2017, 12:42:31 PM
I feel like Fred Akers is our coach once again.
I don't know what you mean by that, but judging by his win % it's.....a good thing?
Title: Re: Week 5
Post by: utee94 on September 29, 2017, 12:45:03 PM
I
Herman said after the game that ISU's defense was showing different alignments than anything they'd seen in film going back two years.  I don't watch much Iowa State football, so I don't know.  

I did like the drive at the end.  Defense playing well, got the lead....run the ball, 1st down, run it some more, another first down.  Manball the opponent and watch the life go out of his eyes.  That's a scene I can get behind.  
Agree, that was probably the brightest point for me for the offense in that game.  If the Horns had done that a bit more against USC, it might have sealed the game earlier for Texas.


Not sure what "manballing" is, though.  Sounds like something a redneck Sooner might do to another guy in a drunken bar fight...
Title: Re: Week 5
Post by: BrownCounty on September 29, 2017, 12:47:37 PM
But I guess I'm not a damn genius.
Or maybe you are.  But no coach is going to gift the other team a deuce and the ball just to flip the field.

I would suggest conjuring up some offense.

And I'm not sure why you've implicitly described our offensive coaching as inept.  Good Lord look at the groceries.

Donte kept us from being a 2-3 win team last year.

Title: Re: Week 5
Post by: MikeDeTiger on September 29, 2017, 01:21:41 PM
I suspect USC's front dictated a different approach.  I doubt ISU has the same caliber of horses up front.  Additionally, running when they know you're gonna run it to salt the game away works best not only when you're better up front, but also if you've dominated the TOP.  By the time UT went into Closing-Time Mode, they had already wore out ISU in that category.  UT never possessed the ball enough in the SC game to win TOP or have the Trojan front wore out.  And that's in addition to the talent differential between the two opponents.  

That's my guess as to why we didn't see that vs. SC.  
Title: Re: Week 5
Post by: CharleyHorse46 on September 29, 2017, 02:59:21 PM
...And I'm not sure why you've implicitly described our offensive coaching as inept...

It was time for Charlie Strong to go.  He had his chance and only put a handful of BBs back in the box.   In some ways Herman's resume was so eerily similar to Strong's that he seemed like an odd choice but he was clearly the best option available at the time.
I want Herman to succeed.  
To his credit, Orlando is amazing, but offense and special teams antagonize me.  Texas has playmakers on offense who could make a difference if used effectively.  But instead of bothering to study their history, learn their strengths and weaknesses and put them in the right place to succeed - which is really what I thought Herman would do - it's like all of us Texas fans are stuck in this terrible groundhog day of having to watch Herman figure out his offensive personnel just like Strong's parade of OCs had to learn the personnel.
We've been here.  We've done that.  Any of us could tell him exactly what he has with the 30 or so offensive players he has who we've seen.
It's like watching your grandma play with an iPhone.  You just want to scream a profanity, slap it out of her hands and show her how it works.
And kick returns.
Stand at the 10.  If it comes down in front of you, field it and run.  If it goes over your head, pop the hell out of the first cover guy so he won't down it and hope it bounces into the end zone.  How hard is that?  Every coach in high school, middle school and youth football teaches it.
Honestly the inability to teach that was a very large reason why I finally got sick of Charlie Strong and was ready to see him leave.  And now it's the same damn thing.
It's like a punch to the nose.
I was told Herman was smart.  I haven't seen it yet.  Like I said, I want him to succeed.  I really do.
Title: Re: Week 5
Post by: utee94 on September 29, 2017, 03:48:09 PM
The kickoff and punt return mistakes are mind-numbingly horrifying.

Like you said, you're taught how to do that from Little League on, and anywhere other than The University of Texas, apparently, if you screw it up even once you're benched for months.
Title: Re: Week 5
Post by: Mr Tulip on September 29, 2017, 05:08:26 PM
Andrew Beck, Elijah Rodriguez, Patrick Hudson, Connor Williams. Most schools could become bowl eligible with the blockers that Texas has sent to the rehab room since May. Texas is still expected to play with the talent on the roster, but those are some big names to overcome.

Collin Johnson spent most of last night with 2-3 defenders escorting him everywhere. Now, I really want to see Buchele pick up his tempo (many times the relief valve RB was standing waiting on a pass), but in a game like last night, with the defense keeping the '0' on the board and the offense with a 2 TD lead, ball safety is paramount. Add to that the fact that the offense constantly found itself starting around its own 10 (see the aforementioned kick issues, plus the automatic holding penalty on 1st down), and it becomes prudent to check twice - and reserve the right to punt.
Title: Re: Week 5
Post by: BrownCounty on September 29, 2017, 10:49:20 PM
I want Herman to succeed.  

Like I said, I want him to succeed.  I really do.
We're the 4th game in Herman's first season and you feel the need to state what should be assumed not once but twice.
Hmm, ok.
Title: Re: Week 5
Post by: utee94 on September 29, 2017, 11:13:46 PM
Andrew Beck, Elijah Rodriguez, Patrick Hudson, Connor Williams. Most schools could become bowl eligible with the blockers that Texas has sent to the rehab room since May. Texas is still expected to play with the talent on the roster, but those are some big names to overcome.

Collin Johnson spent most of last night with 2-3 defenders escorting him everywhere. Now, I really want to see Buchele pick up his tempo (many times the relief valve RB was standing waiting on a pass), but in a game like last night, with the defense keeping the '0' on the board and the offense with a 2 TD lead, ball safety is paramount. Add to that the fact that the offense constantly found itself starting around its own 10 (see the aforementioned kick issues, plus the automatic holding penalty on 1st down), and it becomes prudent to check twice - and reserve the right to punt.
In many of those cases ISU was dropping 8 into coverage and rushing only 3.  While still failing to cover the outlet.  Saying Shane needs to "pick up his tempo" is putting it mildly.  He often had all day to throw because there was zero pass rush, had an wide open safety valve RB, plus other options over the middle of the field, and still failed to unload the ball.  
He didn't have a bad day, he had a really really horrible day, and I wish I could solely blame it on the o-line.
Title: Re: Week 5
Post by: BrownCounty on September 30, 2017, 03:03:24 PM
He didn't have a bad day, he had a really really horrible day, and I wish I could solely blame it on the o-line.
You could be harder on Shane than I am.  I'll probably say he didn't have his best day.
But with all that said, my opinion is it's time to start working on the future.  Not sure if that's Sam, but pretty sure it's not Shane.  I would go to work with Sam.
I like Shane's attitude, I like his zeal, he's a great kid.  He could knock an apple off a fence post at 100 ft.  But the truth is he would be a Sooner if Stoops had seen anything.  We need to start looking at Sam.  Shane should go over to the baseball team.
Title: Re: Week 5
Post by: CharleyHorse46 on September 30, 2017, 03:49:48 PM
We're the 4th game in Herman's first season and you feel the need to state what should be assumed not once but twice.
Hmm, ok.
I have no doubt Herman will be successful someday but I don't want to wait.  I don't want to wait until he has his players who fit his philosophy.  I don't want to wait until he's been humbled enough to rethink his strategy.  I want him to play the cards he's been dealt now.  I don't want him to waste a year or two and squander talent he might have at his disposal right now.
Imagine what Swoopes might've been like with another year under Applewhite.  Imagine what Buechele might've been like with another year under Sterlin.
Shawn Watson was a terrible hire.  Tim Beck may well be a terrible hire.
It took Charlie Strong two years to figure out It might be a good idea to put Texas kids in an offensive system that fits their strengths.  By then it was too late.   How long is it going to take Herman?
They're too much alike.  This is 2015 all over again.  It's maddening for us to have to deal with coaches who are too arrogant to make themselves aware of context that's pretty obvious to everyone else.
Title: Re: Week 5
Post by: BrownCounty on October 01, 2017, 12:27:01 AM
CH - Saban would be 2-2 with this team.  I'm not sure why you demand or even expect immediate turnaround after the last 5+ years of dismal Longhorn football, but that's your cross to bear.  I can't even believe the defensive improvement I am seeing, given that we are coming off factually and statistically the WORST two years of Longhorn defense ever.

How quickly you forget 

Iowa St 24
Texas NOTHING
Title: Re: Week 5
Post by: CharleyHorse46 on October 01, 2017, 09:05:15 AM
You're right.  You're right.

There's improvement.  The defense could be the best since 2004. There's more organization.  Fewer false srart penalties.  Fewer special team fiascos.  We have a kicker.

I just want a little more.  Just a little more.

Kick returners who won't screw the pooch and an imaginative offensive strategy that caters to the talent we have today.

I honestly don't think that's too much to ask for.

Title: Re: Week 5
Post by: BrownCounty on October 02, 2017, 09:28:46 AM
an imaginative offensive strategy that caters to the talent we have today.
This one we may not get.  Idk if Herman wants to rewrite his M.O. based on the sparse talent at Texas, or if he just wants to fix it over time with recruiting.  He has emphasized the run game in his last presser, which assures me that he wants to run the ball, we just can't.  Hopefully Carter will turn into something.
I was pleased to see Carter getting reps - our offense is not good enough to stick with the known, better to explore the unknown.  And for me, that includes bringing on Sam.
Title: Re: Week 5
Post by: CharleyHorse46 on October 02, 2017, 01:15:20 PM
On the bright side, here are some cool stats.

Opponent's 3rd Down Conversions
#11 in the nation and #1 in the Big 12
Texas allowing 14 of 53 (26.4%)

Opponent's 4th Down Conversions
#1 in the nation and #1 in the Big 12
Texas allowing 0 of 7 

Red Zone Defense
#9 in the nation and #1 in the Big 12
Texas allowing 2 rushing TDs, 3 passing TDs and 2 FGs on 11 trips in the Red Zone (63.6%)

And, mysteriously, Time of Possession
#9 in the nation and #1 in the Big 12
Texas 34:15 per game
Title: Re: Week 5
Post by: BrownCounty on October 02, 2017, 03:15:27 PM
So with those numbers you gave above, even if we had a serviceable offense we would be in business.

I am not completely sold on this defense - it's just too good to be true.  I keep thinking we are merely playing over our head, and that reality will hit home soon.  We are coming off some awful years of defense, I don't see how it just turns around like that.

I can see how our offense would suck, and it does.  We've gotta roll some dice and take chances with some young players.

Going forward, I want to get the big beefy players like Ok State, Baylor and the SEC.  Ever noticed the size difference?  Did you see Ok State vs. Tech the other night?  Mason Rudolph was bigger than anyone on the Tech defense.  And Briles recruited monsters to Baylor, even though Rhule is clueless for sure.

Texas recruiting has suffered a whole lot worse than the gullible rankings have indicated.