Texas Longhorns Football | Five Questions – UTEP

By Steve Habel, Senior Editor

AUSTIN, Texas (Sept. 11, 2016) – Some expected Texas to experience a bit of a letdown against UTEP on Saturday after its huge win over Notre Dame just six days ago.[s2If current_user_can(access_s2member_level2)]

And there’s no doubt that the 11th-ranked Longhorns were handicapped with injuries, keeping three of their starting offensive linemen (and five in the two-deep rotation), as well as their top ground-gainer on the sideline.

Given those parameters, Texas’ 41-7 win over a much-improved Miners team before a crowd of 92,863 at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium was solid, if not spectacular.

Yes, it took a while to become the runaway victory that most expected but the easy win showcased the Longhorns’ overall talent and depth — aspects that were major question marks when Texas endured back-to-back losing seasons in 2014 and 2015.

Freshman quarterback Shane Buechele threw for 244 yards and four touchdowns and completed passes to eight different receivers for the Longhorns (2-0). He was 22-of-27 passing, didn’t throw an interception and hit three different Longhorns receivers for touchdowns.

Buechele’s start last Sunday against Notre Dame was just the second time a true freshman started the season opener at quarterback for Texas, and the first since Bobby Layne in 1944. With 280 yards through the air, Buechele is the second true freshman in school history to pass for more than 200 yards in a game (Rick McIvor vs. Baylor, 1979).

Through his first two collegiate games, Buechele has shown a propensity for getting the ball down field and spreading the wealth, with six connections of 20-plus yards and six total touchdowns to five different receivers.

Chris Warren III, normally the Longhorns’ co-featured back with D’Onta Foreman, ran for 95 yards and a touchdown on 20 carries. Texas outgained UTEP 416-208 and won its first two games in a season for the first time since 2012 when the Longhorns started 4-0.

“I was concerned about how we would play after last week and how we would respond with our short week of preparation.” Texas head coach Charlie Strong said. “I always felt like we were a day behind. It was a good win but we didn’t play as consistent as I would’ve liked. We had a chance to put the game away in the first half and didn’t.”

UTEP starting quarterback Kavika Johnson managed just 42 passing yards on nine completions. He replaced Zack Greenlee, who started for the Miners on Sept. 3 against New Mexico State, but missed the Texas game with a MCL injury.

UTEP coach Sean Kugler said it obviously hurt not to have Greenlee in the game.

“You work with a guy [Greenlee] that takes almost all the reps during fall camp and then you get a week preparing a new guy [Johnson] and trying to change some things to fit what he does best,” Kugler explained. “But we don’t make any excuses for anything — Texas whipped us handily.”

The Miners (1-1) got 123 rushing yards and their only touchdown from Aaron Jones. UTEP has never defeated Texas in the five games between the two teams, four of those in Austin.

Texas moved the ball at will in the early going. Its first drive ended poorly when Jacorey Warrick was stripped of the ball as he crossed the goal line on a potential 11-yard touchdown pass from Buechele. The loose ball bounced out of bounds for a touchback.

But the Longhorns got on the board on its next drive when Jerrod Heard, who started 10 games at quarterback for Texas in 2015, hauled in a 29-yard touchdown strike from Buechele to give the Longhorns a 7-0 lead.

Trent Domingue pushed the Texas advantage to 10-0 with a 22-yard field goal three plays after the Longhorns’ Brandon Jones blocked a punt that rolled out of bounds at the UTEP 6-yard line.

Aaron Jones’ 51-yard touchdown run cut the Texas lead to 10-7 at the 8:28 mark of the second quarter. Jones entered the game as the nation’s leading rusher after amassing 249 yards on a career-high 31 carries on Sept. 3 against New Mexico State. His rushing total was also a career-high and the third-most in Miners’ history.

That scoring run stunned the Longhorns out of a mini-funk. They responded with a 49-yard drive that netted a second Domingue field goal — this one from 43 yards out — and a 13-7 Texas lead with 4:42 left in the second quarter.

The Longhorns completed its final possession of the first half with a nifty 60-yard drive and an 8-yard touchdown pass from Buechele to Warrick, who just got his left foot down in the end zone before going out of bounds.

“It took about a quarter for our whole team to get settled in that game in all three phases, and then in the second quarter they settled in and played extremely hard,” Kugler said. “The game was in the balance at halftime, and then we gave Texas short-field opportunities. There were just too many. I thought the defense played well but the final score doesn’t indicate that.”

Warren III expanded the Longhorns’ lead to 27-7 with a 1-yard run at the 8:09 mark of the third quarter as the culmination of a 12-play, 52-yard march. Then Buechele struck for his third touchdown of the night, hitting Dorian Leonard for a 46-yard bomb that put the game on ice.

Buechele hit Heard again for a 7-yard touchdown with 9:30 to play, the first time this season he connected on a score with the same receiver twice.

 

What was the most gratifying aspect of the Texas win?

At this time last season, Strong was lamenting about his lack of quality depth. But in the months between spring drills and this year’s season opener against Notre Dame, Texas has suddenly developed enough players to field 22 capable contributors on both sides of the ball.

Never was that more in evident than against UTEP, when the Longhorns’ starters at left tackle (Connor Williams), right guard (Kent Perkins) and tight end (Caleb Bluiett) were ruled out of the game before the opening kickoff, and when starting center Zach Shackelford left early on with the effects of a lingering ankle injury.

“We had a bunch of guys beat up [from the Notre Dame game],” Strong explained. “But what’s good is that we sat our guys out and [still] were able to go out and be effective. I told our guys that, ‘We’re in a position now for you to step up and help us and help this program.’ And they did.

“I preached to our coaches that we need to find 22 players on offense and 22 players on defense,” Strong added. “Look at [guard] Alex Anderson. I was teasing him and said, ‘I never thought you would be starting a game,’ and all the players started laughing just to loosen up. We’re beginning to build [the program to] where if a guy does have an injury, you feel comfortable with the next guy moving in.”

Offensive coordinator Sterlin Gilbert said the team has adopted a “battling mentality.”

“[The offensive line] has been fighting through adversity,” Gilbert said. “You know you have to play other guys and when you do, you’re in the process of creating depth. It’s a long football season and to be able to create depth — up front especially — and being in a situation to play some of those young guys in those skilled positions is beneficial.”

 

How has Buechele improved from the first game to the second?

Playing a game against an opponent like Notre Dame on pure adrenalin is different than going into a game where everyone pegs you as the man and teams are now gunning to stop you. Buechele made the transition from hopeful starter to erstwhile star in a flash, but he’s grounded enough not to let that status change affect him.

“One of the things Shane does well is his preparation,” Strong said. “He goes and works on it the whole week.”

Playing as well as Buechele did behind a patchwork offensive line has to give him confidence.

“I’m definitely impressed,” Heard said of Buechele. “As a young guy, just to keep his poise, shows everyone in the locker room who he is and what he stands for. We have total confidence in Shane when he’s back there, and we try to help him out as much as we can.”

Gilbert is sure to remind everyone that Buechele has a long way to go. He says the young quarterback’s calm demeanor has translated to the whole team.

“[Being calm] is natural for him,” Gilbert said. “You just continue to coach it and be aware of it.

“Buechele continues to do a great job of growing and,” Gilbert continued. “The guy’s just a two-game starter here at college football so he has room for growth and improvement. The thing about him is that he’s really honed in on it. He’s a student of the game and he’s motivated to be a good player.”

 

How big of a challenge was this game for the Texas defense?

The Longhorns’ defense allowed one big play — Jones’ 51-yard touchdown run — but limited the UTEP attack (an offense that amassed 518 yards of total offense against New Mexico State in its season-opener) to just 208 yards. Only 58 of those came in the second half.

Texas experimented with young defensive players, throwing a bit of everything at the Miners and was able to dominate — exactly the kind of performance the Longhorns needed to produce against an obviously overmatched opponent.

“Coach talked about how often teams look past an opponent like this after winning a huge game,” Texas safety Kevin Vaccaro said. “We started off slow, but we kept it together. It’s important to be consistent, and that’s what coach [Vance] Bedford told us — stay consistent and not be a one-night wonder. We’re on the right path. We just have to execute that better. We wanted to keep a score off the board, and we didn’t, but we’ll learn from that.”

Cal, which put up plenty of points in last year’s 45-44 win over the Longhorns in Austin, will be a whole different challenge for the defense.

“We’re more of a mature team and the guys are prepared,” linebacker Malik Jefferson said. “We study our routes because we don’t want to slip up. We’ll be ready. It just takes preparation like we do every week and we all have to be in our playbooks. We all have to be ready for this week because we’re going in as the big dogs.”

 

Outside Buechele, who has been the Longhorns’ most surprising player through the first two games?

That would have to be Heard, who’s become a real weapon for the Longhorns. He celebrated his 21st birthday on Saturday with a big game that included two touchdowns.

“It’s exciting,” Warren III said about Heard. “He’s always talking about how fast he is and how he can catch. He’s athletic and you saw that last year when he was quarterback. Just having Jerrod out there as a receiver is a real help because it gives us another weapon.”

Strong has repeatedly talked about Heard’s willingness to do whatever he can to help the team. What’s surprising is how quickly he’s made the adjustment from quarterback to wide receiver.

“The transition was fun,” Heard said. “It’s really easy. All you have to do is beat the defender down the field and catch the ball. It’s not that hard and I enjoy it.

“When I used to play quarterback, I knew where the receivers were going to be and I take that same mentality,” he added. “I know where Shane will want me to be, so it wasn’t hard to make that transition.”

 

What’s next for the Longhorns?

The trip to California (even after its 45-40 loss to San Diego State on Saturday) will be an arduous one, with a late (9:30 p.m. CDT) kickoff on the West Coast and the Golden Bears’ potent offense to deal with. With former Texas Tech signalcaller Davis Webb slinging the ball around the Bay Area in coach Sonny Dykes spread attack, the Longhorns’ depth and resilience will be tested.

After its journey to Berkeley, Texas gets an open week to prepare for the onslaught of Big 12 play — first Oklahoma State in Stillwater, then Oklahoma in Dallas.

“Since camp, we’ve become a team,” Texas linebacker Breckyn Hager said. “Whether it’s hanging out all day, we all love each other. We don’t want to let each other down. We’re playing for each other out there. The worst thing I can do is let my teammates down. Anything else is irrelevant.”[/s2If] [s2If !current_user_can(access_s2member_level2)] [article-offer] [/s2If]