Longhorns Football: Horns’ Attitude Changed When They Saw That the Process Was Working

Habe on the Horns – By Steve Habel/Associate Editor

There were plenty of times during the first two-thirds of the 2014 season when Texas coach Charlie Strong said his Longhorns football team was better than its record, even when it was 3-5 and in danger of missing out on the postseason.

The past month has proven [s2If current_user_can(access_s2member_level2)]Strong right, as Texas has reeled off three straight wins and assured itself of a bowl game. The surge is more of a result of the Longhorns’ leaders understanding what Strong and his staff were demanding from them.

Part of the string of success can be attributed to the confidence built by winning and seeing real tangible evidence that the process is actually working.

“We played well early on in games we lost to UCLA and Oklahoma but winning games the way we have the past three weeks has given us a sense of confidence and belief in what we are doing,” Strong said.

Things are just more upbeat around the Texas coaches and players now than they were when the Horns were working to find a way to win.

“You can tell that the players are having more fun by their overall attitude,” Strong explained. “In the Oklahoma State game [which Texas dominated from start to finish] there was a different feeling on the sidelines. The guys were loose and playing with confidence and having fun – that’s what football should be all about.”

If the Horns are having fun now, just think of the party they would throw if they find a way to beat fifth-ranked TCU on Thanksgiving night. The Horned Frogs – who have been in and then out of the foursome that will play for the first-ever College Football Playoff – are a high-powered offense that utilizes the flashy management skills of quarterback Trevone Boykin in their spread attack.

Texas’s defense has been really good against spread offense teams and Strong said Monday at his media availability for the Turkey Day game that the key to success against the attack is variety.

“We have to line up and show (the opponent’s offense) something new on every snap – to make them adjust to what we are doing,” Strong explained. “It’s about our ability to dictate what we are going to allow and to where they can go with the football.”

Asked how TCU’s attack compares with that of Baylor or UCLA, Strong stuck to the party line.

“It’s not about TCU and what they bring into the game – it’s about us and how we prepare and execute our plan,” he said. “We aren’t thinking about being an underdog or spoiling any of their plans to be in the playoff; we are thinking about doing the things we need to do win and be the better team on the field on Thursday night.”

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