I am still trying to awaken myself from my corndog-induced stupor and put into words what I think I saw live at the Cotton Bowl for my 22nd straight Texas/Oklahoma contest at the State Fair. I think the biggest difference today offensively was that there was only one major brainfart, and that was when the game was pretty much past the competitive phase. Ball security was solid, penalties were kept to a bare-assed minimum, and the honest truth was that we were sitting there a few Case McCoy misfires away from it being a total blowout. The running performance was absolutely shocking and I tip my cap to the offensive line, Malcolm Brown, and Jonathan Gray. Applewhite was brilliant as a playcaller, and I just wish the grade sheet would reflect that but they came up just a bit short in so many areas. Defensively, I'm even more shocked. There's no more humble way to say this: Texas kicked Sooner *** when they had the ball. Bell looked lost half the time, and their running game was pretty much nonexistent sans the 4th quarter when no one was expecting them to run. Special Teams was the only thing that concerned me. Yeah they only had 3 misses, and they came from exactly 2 plays, but they could have been huge. It's absolutely inexcusable for there to be a blocked PAT, and it's equally inexcusable to give up that long of a KR when the kickoff lands at the goalline and hangs in the air for over 4 seconds. This week has been really special for us, even more so than a usual Texas/Oklahoma weekend. As I explained last year, pop999 attended his 50th straight RRS, a streak he actually began with witnessing an MNC team in the making in 1963. What some of you may not know was that on Friday morning, he and I (along with others) were on Headline News live once again commemorating his longevity. Not only was this pop999's 51st game today, it was his 25th victory as a Texas fan. Since I've been going every year since 1992, it also makes this my 10th win as a UT fan. Putting aside all the falderal that's going on with the athletic department, I just want to say I am happy as hell that Texas won and I'm especially happy for my pops. Happy 25th, Dad!
One of the real keys was the "No sacks allowed." The OL wasn't perfect, but they certainly blocked well to open holes for running backs and kept most of the pressure off Case so he wasn't forced into dumb throws or huge sack losses. HHD
I normally agree with your breakdown of the game, but I'm curious about the package of metrics concerning the success of the offense. What qualifies as "win the 4th quarter"? Is it strictly points? Most teams with a huge lead rarely "win the 4th quarter". I didn't see the whole game so what "foolish" penalty did the offense have? I typically think all penalty's are foolish so is this based on your judgment? One foolish offensive penalty rarely decides a game. How does 65% 4th down efficiency compute? Most teams only go for one or two fourth downs in a game which indicates 100% is the only acceptable number. I also agree above that 35+ points as a success factor shouldn't be limited to offense. Seems like the offense metrics are set up for a failing number by almost any teams standards.
I know HP will reply with an explanation, but I wanted to say that you should remember, these are not HPs metrics.
So much credit to go around between players and coaches. What sticks out is the way Texas started and finished the first half. Although I thought they totally wasted the momentum of the first drive with what IMO was a lousy 3rd down call by Applewhite. The final drive of the first half reminded me of '05, sent the message that Texas was going to be the aggressor. Great game all around, proud of the effort. Congratulations to your dad HP, the football gods wouldn't have had this game go any other way.
Congrats Hpslugga. Your Dad must have been a little feller when his Grandpa took him to the '63 game 'cause he looks in great shape. I listened to the '63 game on the radio and then watched a delayed broadcast after the 10 o'clock news that night. Man times have changed.
I'm proud of the effort and intensity our guys showed. And also it seemed we limited the number of stupid mistakes we have been seeing. Greater intensity, coupled with fewer brain cramps led to the type of performance we all kinda' hoped we would be seeing from week 1. Now if they can just bottle that and open it up every Saturday the rest of the season...
Thanks for the clarification, Hpslugga, on the offensive points. I had thought it meant total pts. Great job on the chart. It's the first post game post I look forward to.
It makes sense b/c it's an offense-specific grade. Those D/ST scores do take possessions away from the offense though (as does running up the middle a lot), so I'm ok with our 23 point offensive effort, but the grading sheet accurately reflects we still have a lot of room and fair amount of need for improvement.
What this chart shows me is that the defense showed up. With the offense we have had over this season (altough not great), had the defense played like it did at RRR we would be sitting here at 6 and 0.
I agree --- it was really about the defense holding ou to 13 freaking points. The offense was good not great. We rushed 60 times and passed (I think) 22 times, which is, what, 73% rush? Hell yes! And, honestly, I think we would have seen greater success if it had been even MORE run heavy. I want maybe 80% rush and 20% pass. We gave away an easy FG early and gifted them a pick 6. I love winning, and I dont care much about MOV, but we the fact is that we could have played smarter offensively. Still... great win. Congrats to all players, congrats to all coaches.
I think one of the biggest differences in the game was the tackling. OU got relatively few yards after catch. It was refreshing to see UT tackle so well.
I was so glad to see the defense creating turnovers - Whaley's pick six was a tremendous morale booster early in the game. When he scored, I sensed Texas would have a special day.