Longhorns growing up fast
After a rough start to season, program heads in right direction
AUSTIN — A smirk creased Tom Herman’s face for a moment as he pondered the question.
“This is me growing up right here,” he said. “Not saying some things that are going through my head right now.”
Some Baker Mayfield-approved language certainly crossed Herman’s mind as he thought back to the targeting penalty officials assessed to defensive end Breckyn Hager in the fourth quarter of UT’s 28-14 win over West Virginia.
Hager was ejected following a helmet-to-helmet collision with WVU quarterback Chris Chugunov. It appeared offensive lineman Yodny Cajuste tugged on Hager’s facemask as he neared Chugunov, leaving the shaggy pass rusher little time to lift his crown before the emphatic impact. Still, Hager was the one penalized and punished, and he trudged off Milan Puskar Stadium field proudly flashing the “Hook’em horns” sign.
Per NCAA rules, Hager will not be allowed to play in the first half of Texas’ regular-season finale against Texas Tech on Friday.
Finding their groove
The bad news of Hager’s suspension aside, Texas itself has done a fair amount of growing this year, too. Mental maturation is difficult to gauge, but it’s fairly simple to see this team is not the one that got embarrassed by Maryland in its home and season opener on September 2.
The defense in particular seemed to use that performance as kindling. Since that 51-41 defeat, UT’s defense has allowed 17.5 points and 348.6 yards per game, numbers that would rank 13th and 31st nationally, respectively.
“I think a lot of it has to do with the egg that they laid in the first game,” Herman said. “As much as we would have wanted to win that game, I think that the silver lining in the way that we played in losing that game was how it affected our defensive players. The next 10 weeks that they’ve had, I think, is exemplary of how much they changed after that game.”
The offense, too, seemed to finally find something of a groove against the
Mountaineers with Sam Ehlinger at quarterback and Connor Williams back at left tackle.
Williams immediately injected Texas’ battered and beleaguered offensive line with some sorely needed “nastiness,” as Ehlinger excitedly put it. The All-American used every ounce of his 315-pound frame to drive West Virginia defensive lineman Reese Donahue into the ground on Texas’ first offensive play.
Despite the loss of left guard Patrick Vahe (sprained knee), Texas averaged 5.5 yards per carry and finished 233 yards on the ground. And according to Pro Football Focus, Williams did not allow a single quarterback pressure in 31 pass block snaps.
“I told Connor, ‘(you’re) the heart and soul of that O-line, and you can tell the difference when you’re out there,’ ” linebacker Malik Jefferson said. “‘You can tell those guys were battling with you, and you were taking on guys like always.’ It was very impressive how he came out and competed today.”
Herman was happy to let his guys bask in their newly gained bowl eligibility following Saturday’s win, the team’s first over an Associated Press ranked opponent in five attempts. But, in his grand design for Texas football, this is merely a passing grade, a C grade at best. And no one is pinning a C to the fridge.
8-win season possible
A win over Texas Tech followed by a bowl triumph could truly help accelerate this program’s growth.
“I think that’s the minimum expectation around here, and we’ve met that,” Herman said. “There’s a lot at stake for this football game. There’s a lot still left to be played for, not just a better bowl position. We talked yesterday about having a winning record at home, about finishing the regular season with a winning record — which hasn’t happened here since 2013, winning the last four out of the last five games, winning the last three games of the season for the first game since 2009, and making sure that we send these seniors off the right way.”