No panic after defeat for Herman, Horns
AUSTIN — Tom Herman made his weekly Zoom appearance Monday and said all the things Texas’ coach should two days removed from the sort of letdown that can alter a season.
For starters, the Longhorns’ first practice following a 33-31 loss to TCU at Royal-Memorial Stadium was, according to Herman, incredible and encouraging.
“Unbelievable Sunday. Unbelievable,” Herman said. “Maybe the best Sunday we’ve had around here. And I know I’m prone to hyperbole, but I tell you how I feel, too. And that is certainly how I feel.
“If it makes you feel any better, when I got home late last night, I told my wife the same thing. So it’s definitely a different feel around here.”
There’s no denying Texas took this loss hard.
Senior quarterback Sam Ehlinger appeared dazed in the aftermath. Sophomore nose tackle Ke-
ondre Coburn said he was “heartbroken” and looked it. Senior center Derek Kerstetter peppered some variation of the word “fix” throughout his postgame interview.
But Herman hasn’t punched the panic button yet. One conference loss doesn’t spell certain doom for the Longhorns (2-1, 1-1 Big 12), just like a pair of them didn’t in the past.
Herman flashed back a couple years to illustrate that point.
The Longhorns lost consecutive conference games to unranked Oklahoma State and No. 12 West Virginia in 2018 before they recovered to win three straight, earned a bid to the Big 12 Championship Game and upset No. 5 Georgia in the Sugar Bowl.
“So we’re not going to panic after three games; we’re not going to panic after a two-point conference loss,” Herman said. “We know we’ve got a ton of improvement that we need to make.
“I think sometimes the only way with 18-to-22-year-olds is to have that awful taste in your mouth in order to learn some very difficult lessons.”
Herman stretched a bit when comparing those Texas Longhorns to this year’s version.
Two seasons ago, UT dropped its first game to Maryland, then won six straight, beating No. 22 USC, No. 17 TCU and No. 7 Oklahoma along the way before that twogame hiccup. The 2020 Longhorns demolished UTEP 59-3 and survived Texas Tech 63-56 in over
time before slamming into a giant purple roadblock constructed by TCU coach Gary Patterson.
Plenty of problems abounded, from the rickety defense to the suspect special teams. But after last week’s flag fest, the biggest concern right now might be getting Texas to play with more discipline.
The Longhorns had107 yards of offense wiped out thanks to three drive-killing penalties. Junior linebacker Juwan Mitchell went helmet-to-helmet on TCU quarter
back Max Duggan in the second quarter and was disqualified. Junior running back Keaontay Ingram tried a Superman leap into the end zone for a game-winning score, despite knowing the risks, and fumbled it — the ball and the game — away.
Herman saw all that and winced. He also saw a team working through the growing pains of adjusting to seven new assistant coaches following an unnatural offseason with limited contact between players and staff.
Ingram’s deciding to tuck the ball tight rather than extend for a touchdown might have changed the outcome, but it wouldn’t have been a magical panacea.
“If we cross the goal line and score a touchdown at the end of the game and win, does that erase all of the issues? It doesn’t,” Herman said. “You’ve got the same issues, win or lose. So we understand that. We’re not panicked. We’re focused on the here and now and worried about making the necessary improvements in
order to play better this Saturday.”
Injury updates
Herman announced that thirdyear linebacker Ayodele Adeoye dislocated his shoulder and will require surgery.
“Thought we could get him through the season without surgery, but the thing popped out again,” Herman said.
Adeoye started 10 games last season and appeared in UT’s first two games this year, recording five tackles.
Junior jack Reese Leitao (shoulder strain) and sophomore defensive back Tyler Owens (knee/hamstring) are “probably doubtful” for Saturday’s game against Oklahoma (1-2, 0-2) at the Cotton Bowl.
Redshirt sophomore wide receiver Joshua Moore sustained a femoral contusion against TCU but is probable. Shut out against the Horned Frogs while battling injury, Moore remains the Longhorns’ leader in receptions (11), receiving yards (200) and receiving touchdowns (four).
Texas might also get some additional help Saturday in the formof redshirt freshman receiver Jordan Whittington. The former Cuero star required surgery to repair a small tear in his lateral meniscus and sat out against TexasTech and TCU, but he returned to practice Sunday.
“It went well, and we expect him to practice this Tuesday,” Herman said. “If he makes it through practice this week, he’ll available to us for the game on Saturday.”