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Steve Sarkisian had high praise for Texas’ defense after the 37-10 win over Rice.
Texas opened the 2023 college football season with a 37-10 win over Rice. Continue reading “Everything Steve Sarkisian said to the media after Texas’ 37-10 win over Rice”
Texas took care of business in their season opener against Rice on Saturday.
No. 11 Texas got off to a slow start against Rice on Saturday, but eventually took off in the second half to defeat the Owls 37-10. Continue reading “LOOK: Best photos from Texas’ 37-10 win over Rice”
Postgame comments indicated the Rice defensive attack was “dramatically different than what was on tape.”
The Texas offensive line struggled mightily in its first game of the season. Much of that revolved around a defensive scheme that it couldn’t have been prepared to face.
Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian shared that the Rice Owls had a wholly different style of attacking in Week 1 than what they had done prior. He said the following of its effect on the Longhorns offensive line.
“I think from an O-line perspective, I thought it was fine. You know, we got a lot of different stuff today. That’s always one of the challenges in Week 1. You never really know. And when a team does something dramatically different than what’s on tape, you gotta make those adjustments. Not just as a staff, but the players need to.”
There’s reasonable justification for Texas’ offensive line struggles in the individual game, but Sarkisian is aware that those issues cannot continue to plague the team. He spoke to the improvement he wants to see from his offensive line.
“Do I want it to be better? Of course I do. Like that aspect, I’m always striving for it to be better. But I do understand where some of the mishaps might have come. And so, we’ve gotta get that cleaned up, because if not, some of the same things we saw today, we’ll continue to see.”
When asked about whether the matter can be fixed by next week, Sarkisian replied with certainty.
“Of course. … If I thought we just were inadequate then it’d be a problem. But I definitely don’t think we’re inadequate. I think we’re a good football team. That’s the life of a coach, is to find the things that we can improve and continue to emphasize the things that we do well.”
Texas will look to identify and correct its weak points as it heads into its major clash with the Alabama Crimson Tide on Sept. 9.
Quandre Diggs is not pleased with Quinn Ewers.
Quinn Ewers came to Texas as one of the highest ranked recruits ever.
His arm talent and ability to move in the pocket were skillets that many salivated over, but in Austin he has consistently struggled with one thing: the deep ball. He and star receiver Xavier Worthy have had plenty of opportunities to connect on them in their one season and one game into 2023 together, but there hasn’t been many successful outcomes.
Something that former Longhorn Quandre Diggs appears to be disgusted by, and sick of based on a social media post implying that Worthy could have had 200-yards receiving had Ewers been more accurate in their victory over Rice.
X should have 200 yards receiving already if the damn ball was thrown accurate!
— Nino (@qdiggs6) September 2, 2023
Texas ended up winning 37-10, and Ewers finished with 260 yards passing and three touchdowns. Worthy finished with seven catches for 90 yards, but was overthrown a few times. It could be rust or it could be a reoccurring issue.
Texas corrected its first half to finish strong and defeat the Rice Owls.
Texas struggled in the first half to put it mildly. Earlier this week we set the mark for a successful half at 28 points for the Longhorns. Texas finished the first half with a 16-3 lead.
Defensive coordinator Pete Kwiatkowski had his unit playing as well as you could have wanted them to play. Fair or not, the poor offensive output in the first overshadowed the defensive dominance. It wasn’t that the Longhorns offense couldn’t score. It was that they did not execute in the first half. That fact bore itself out in the second half. Ewers and company fired out of a cannon.
The team opened the half with a Xavier Worthy-dominant touchdown drive capped by an Adonai Mitchell touchdown. It was Mitchell’s third reception of the day in what was a quiet performance. The Texas offense continued its second half success.
One adjustment featured the Longhorns sending Ja’Tavion Sanders on a quick route down the seam and hitting him just over five yards downfield. Perhaps Sarkisian saw overzealous fronts leave Sanders uncovered heading upfield in the running game. The Texas tight end housed a 44-yard reception for six.
Xavier Worthy led all receivers with 7 receptions for 90 yards. Quinn Ewers finished the game with three touchdowns and 260 yards on 30 attempts.
The Longhorns will next take on the Alabama Crimson Tide on Sept. 9.
After an abysmal performance by the Longhorns offensive line, Texas leads 16-3 at halftime.
The Texas Longhorns have kicked off the season for 2023. The Texas offense was well below standard in the first half.
To start the game, Texas failed to secure a first down in the first series. Compounding the issue, Sarkisian went for it on fourth and two from his own 33-yard line only to fail to convert.
The Texas offensive line and overall pass protection was poor at best in early action. So, too, was blitz pickup from the Texas backfield. The running back unit will need to figure out how to put together a competent performance in its second game against Alabama.
Xavier Worthy, Jonathan Brooks and Jordan Whittington were seemingly the lone bright spots for the Longhorns on offense, but the defense did its job. Defensive coordinator Pete Kwiatkowski suffocated the Rice offense in the first quarter before the Owls got loose on a mesh crossing route. The fun stopped there for Rice.
Texas leads 16-3 at halftime. Here’s a look at how Texas faithful took in the game.
Texas’ depth chart reveals what the coaches are looking for stylistically in 2023.
The Texas Longhorns have released their first depth chart for the 2023 season. There are a handful of surprises although the main characters are about as expected.
Starting quarterback Quinn Ewers leads the offense with a loaded and fortified offensive line and wide receiver room. As expected, Xavier Worthy, Adonai Mitchell and Jordan Whittington are listed as starters with Ja’Tavion Sanders at tight end. Former five-star offensive lineman DJ Campbell is set to make his first start for the team in his second season in Austin.
Defensively there are reasonable personnel decisions with many of the expected starters where they should be slated. Albeit, we will note one glaring decision on the depth chart.
Let’s look at major takeaways from the Longhorns’ first depth chart of the 2023 season.
IT’S GAMEDAY! Texas fans are anxious to kick off the 2023 college football season.
No. 11 Texas is just hours away from kicking off the 2023 college football season. Continue reading “Pregame social media buzz ahead of No. 11 Texas vs. Rice”
“This is what all the hard work is for.”
We’re roughly 24 hours away from Texas opening the 2023 college football season against Rice. Continue reading “WATCH: Texas football releases hype video ahead of season opener”
Score predictions from various media networks for No. 11 Texas vs. Rice.
No. 11 Texas opens the 2023 college football season against the Rice Owls in Austin on Saturday, Sept. 2. Continue reading “Expert score predictions for No. 11 Texas vs. Rice in Week 1”
