Can Ehlinger’s shoulder shoulder a blow?
All eyes will be on injured quarterback when he takes a hit
STILLWATER, Okla. — At some point during Saturday’s game between sixth-ranked Texas and Oklahoma State, Sam Ehlinger will take a hit.
Maybe it will be a glancing blow, maybe a slam to the turf at Boone Pickens Stadium. Whenever it happens, however it happens, Ehlinger’s coaches and teammates will train their eyes on the fallen quarterback and hold their breath until he bounces back up.
Even after that, they’ll keep a watchful eye on his movements, his demeanor, his expressions. It might take a covertly administered truth serum to get the willful sophomore to admit pain and ask out of the game, so the team will do what it can, within reason, to protect him two weeks after he suffered a first-degree shoulder sprain against Baylor.
“You always like to protect him if you can, but he’s going to scramble,” UT coach Tom Herman said. “If they cover all our guys, he’s not just going to sit down on the field, he’s going to run around a little bit.
“If you have to win the game, we’re going to do what we do, and he’s pretty good at it.”
Ehlinger was a full participant in all three practices this week. He progressed to about 50 throws on Thursday, a fivefold increase from Sunday, and experienced only a mild soreness that typically accompanies a return to activity.
Shane Buechele would again relieve Ehlinger should the starter experience any setbacks. Buechele played all but 10 snaps in UT’s 23-17 victory over Baylor.
In his first game action since the 2017 Texas Bowl, Buechele completed 20 of 34 passes for 184 yards with one touchdown and one interception.
“We know we have got great one in Shane ready to go, and we’ve got a ton of confidence in him as well,” Herman said.
Three players to sit early
Ehlinger will, for at least one drive, be without leading receiver Lil’Jordan Humphrey. The junior was one of three, along with starting cornerbacks Davante Davis and Kris Boyd, who were disciplined for arriving late to a team function. Herman said the violators will miss at least the first series.
“We’ve got standards around here of being on time and they understand that,” Herman said. “But I want to make sure nobody thinks they’ve done anything too egregious.
“But it is a standard around here that is unwavering and they understand it, they’re apologetic and all three had really good weeks of practice and are champing at the bit for their chance to get in.”
Anthony Cook and Kobe Boyce are expected to fill in until Davis and Boyd are granted a return to the field. Jerrod Heard and D’Shawn Jamison should earn increased reps until Humphrey returns.
As good as Texas has been during its six-game winning streak, and as unreliable as Oklahoma State has been since conference play began, there’s no given the Longhorns escape Stillwater with an unblemished Big 12 record.
Cowboys quarterback Taylor Cornelius has struggled of late, but among FBS teams they still rank 13th in total offense and 18th in scoring offense. The key is Justice Hill, a one-cut-and-gone type of tailback prone to breaking off huge chunks of yards with every touch.
‘This guy’s a stud’
Hill rushed for a touchdown in 12 straight games before his streak was snapped in a loss to Kansas State two weeks ago. The junior has averaged just a shade under 100 rushing yards per game over three seasons. UT defensive end Charles Omenihu said Hill “can make anybody miss.”
Texas has allowed 347 yards and four touchdowns on the ground over its last two games.
“I mean this guy’s a stud,” Herman said of Hill. “He’s as good as there is in our conference. He was last year and continues to be this year. He was preseason first-team all-conference for a reason. So I would imagine they’re going to lean on him.”
Next week, 13th-ranked West Virginia, fresh off a merciless 44point rout of Baylor, travels to Austin for a game with massive Big 12 championship game implications.
With that clash awaiting, there might be a natural tendency for the Longhorns to look past struggling Oklahoma State. Not so, said Omenihu, who proclaimed to not even know the meaning of the term “trap game.”
“In the Big 12, there’s no such thing,” he said. “Everybody is good, everybody comes to play.”
Ehlinger and Texas will come to play, just as they have every week since dropping the season opener to Maryland. How long Ehlinger is able to play might just determine whether UT’s record takes another hit.