The Texas Tech loss gave Greg Davis the chance to say, “I told you so.” The offensive coordinator said quarterback Colt McCoy finally agrees with him about the importance of establishing the running game. But who could blame McCoy for not realizing it until now? Prior to Texas’ 39-33 loss to Texas Tech, the Longhorns haven’t really needed a rushing game.
Not only did last week’s loss to Texas Tech pack an emotional punch, it landed a few physical ones, too. Receiver Quan Cosby, defensive end Brian Orakpo and defensive tackle Roy Miller all suffered injuries against the Red Raiders. Cosby (back) and Orakpo (sprained left knee) are listed as day-to-day and will be game-time decisions.
Big receptions against Missouri, Tech has put light on Williams
There were times Saturday when it looked like the Longhorns had snuck Roy Williams into Malcolm Williams’ jersey. Covered by a face mask, who would notice? Both are tall, fast and they have the same last name. But unlike Roy, Malcolm hasn’t really been thrown into the spotlight as a freshman — until now.
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1. Graham Harrell, Texas Tech QB Harrell helped No. 2 Texas Tech upset the Longhorns with his last-minute passing surge that led the Red Raiders to a game-winning touchdown in the closing seconds of the game. By passing for 474 yards against Texas, Harrell proved his Heisman worthiness.
Freshman Griffin quickly turning heads in Waco with record career start
Last Saturday, Robert Griffin and the Baylor Bears were on the verge of doing the seemingly impossible: defeating a top-25 team. Trailing Missouri 31-28 with less than two minutes left, Griffin threw an interception, ending the Bears’ upset hopes.
The cure for any last-second, heartbreaking, national-title-hopes-busting loss is simple: a short memory. In a span of 1 minute, 29 seconds, Texas went from budgeting for a trip to Miami in early January to doing whatever it could to keep Blake Gideon and his slippery hands away from reporters.
How Baylor does Saturday against No. 4 Texas will depend largely on how the Longhorns react to Texas Tech’s 39-33 upset in Lubbock last weekend. The likely scenario has the Bears going down to Austin and walking into a newly renovated Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium packed to its capacity of more than 94,000 with angry, screaming Longhorn fans, irate from getting bumped from their No.
Is the SEC falling? At the beginning of the season, there were five SEC teams in the top 10. Now there are two. However, it’s not that this division is losing momentum or the caliber of their players is decreasing. They’re just losing games — to other teams in the same conference.
So what now for the Longhorns? Everyone wants to know what Texas has to do to get to the national championship — or even the Big 12 Championship and a BCS bowl. Texas Tech’s 39-33 victory over the No. 4 Longhorns last Saturday let loose a handful of possible scenarios that could put any of four Big 12 teams in the BCS title game.
Robert Griffin, No. 10 Despite its Big 12-worst 3-6 record, Baylor has had promising development with a core of underclassmen, beginning with the freshman quarterback Griffin. The 18-year-old from Copperas Cove, Texas, has thrown for more than 1,600 yards and 11 touchdowns while also rushing for nearly 600 yards and a team-leading 10 touchdowns.
1. The Red Raiders make their debut atop the rankings after dethroning the Longhorns. Quarterback Graham Harrell’s game-winning 28-yard touchdown strike to Michael Crabtree with one second remaining gave Texas Tech the 39-33 victory. Harrell finished with 474 yards and two touchdowns, while Crabtree had 10 catches for 127 yards.
Glued to the bottom of the Big 12 South for too long, the Baylor program tried to break free of its disappointing history and chart a new course a year ago. Guy Morriss, head coach for five years, was let go, and in his place came the man charged with putting the Bears back on the football map.
Henry Melton’s uncle, Denver Broncos cornerback Ray Crockett, always knew that his nephew would end up at defensive end. But at 6 feet 3 inches and 275 pounds, Melton’s dream was to knock over defensive ends. His freshman year, Melton scored 10 touchdowns as a running back during the Longhorns’ national championship season.
Texas Advantage Quarterbacks Last weekend was a nightmare for both quarterbacks. Colt McCoy threw his fifth interception of the season and saw his completion percentage dip below the 80 percent mark in a heartbreaking last-second loss. Baylor’s Robert Griffin threw an interception that sealed Missouri’s 31-28 victory in the final minutes.
No. 9 Oklahoma State at No. 2 Texas Tech Coming off the biggest win in school history against Texas last weekend, the Red Raiders now face the kind of gauntlet that proved the undoing of their more illustrious rivals. The Longhorns finally fell against Tech in what was their fourth consecutive game against a team ranked in the top 15.
Kansas State at No. 14 Missouri Kansas State head coach Ron Prince may be on his way out, but he will be on the sideline this weekend against Missouri. Kansas State athletic director Bob Kraus announced Wednesday Prince had resigned and will not return as head coach for the 2009 season.
