Five Questions – BYU

Five Questions – BYU

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By Steve Habel/Associate Editor

Coming into the 2014 season, many perceived that the Texas defense would act as a strong suit of the team and that that side of the ball might have the ability to win games on its own. This notion seemed fortified after the Longhorns’ dominating performance in their season opening win against North Texas.

Then BYU rolled into town.

In a seven-minute stretch of the third quarter, the Cougars scored 28 points against the Longhorns. The offensive explosion led to a 41-7 dismantling of Texas before a stunned crowd of 93,463 fans.

BYU jettisoned any preseason notions about the Longhorns’ defense faster than the rocket man who performs a 30-second flying stint over Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium before each home game.

With all the emphasis placed on avoiding a repeat of 2013 — when the Cougars swamped Texas 40-21 in Provo — many thought it was impossible for the Longhorns to play even worse.

Head coach Charlie Strong said he recognized before the game that his team didn’t seem fully focused or ready to give its best effort.

“It’s an embarrassment —to this program, to this university — and I knew it and I didn’t do anything about it,” Strong said. “I take responsibility and all the blame for this loss. I knew during warm-ups we weren’t ready to play. I told the team we weren’t ready to play. Our focus wasn’t there.”

On a positive note, Texas was able to limit BYU dual-threat quarterback Taysom Hill to just [s2If current_user_can(access_s2member_level1)] 280 all-purpose yards this time around (he had 259 yards rushing alone in 2013).

But the Longhorns couldn’t stop Hill from making the plays he needed when they counted the most. Hill ended up with three touchdowns that included a scintillating 30-yard scoring scramble where he jumped over Texas safety Dylan Haines on the way into the end zone.

A heavy load rested on the shoulders of sophomore quarterback Tyrone Swoopes as he started for the first time after David Ash remained absent from the game due to continuing symptoms from a concussion. Swoopes played well at times, taking what the Cougars’ defense gave him while using the limited playbook he was allowed by the Texas coaching staff.

Swoopes threw for 176 yards and the Longhorns’ lone touchdown. Swoopes connected with John Harris on a 13-yard pass with 29 seconds to play in the third quarter, long after the game had been decided by BYU’s four-touchdown rush to victory. In the first half, Swoopes completed 11 of 15 passes for 100 yards after hitting on his first eight throws.

“Tyrone did a great job in his first start,” assistant head coach for offense and quarterbacks coach Shawn Watson said. “I saw a lot of things that we can build on. I’m encouraged by what I saw in his play.”

BYU (2-0) managed just two Trevor Samson field goals in the first half — one from 21 yards with 3:30 to play in the first quarter and the other from 29 yards at the 6:34 mark of the second period — despite outgaining the Longhorns 197-136 over the first 30 minutes of play.

In the first half the Texas defense held BYU to just 46 yards on the ground and an even 100 yards through the air — a huge improvement over its performance in 2013.

The Longhorns sacked Hill four times for minus-25 yards in the first half. Texas got lucky when the referees called back Hill’s touchdown after the shifty signalcaller broke loose for a 66-yard run. The Cougars were called on a silly holding penalty that took place 20 yards behind the play.

All the good work disappeared like a flash in the third quarter. BYU scored on its first possession after halftime when Hall engineered a nine-play, 75-yard march that culminated in his highlight-reel 30-yard touchdown run. The Cougars added to their lead on the next drive, moving 55 yards to an Adam Hine 16-yard touchdown run that expanded the BYU lead to 20-0.

The Cougars were far from finished. A quick three-and-out by the Longhorns and an 18-yard punt return by BYU’s Mitch Juergens set the table for a seven-play drive that ended in Hill’s 2-yard touchdown run and a 27-0 lead. Marcus Johnson then fumbled the ensuing kickoff return and handed BYU a short field at the Texas 24; it took the Cougars just four plays to score on Hill’s 1-yard plunge.

By that time, most Texas fans were heading for the exits.

“If I was in the stands, I would’ve left too,” defensive coordinator Vance Bedford said. “I said all week that Hill was a great quarterback — he reminds me of Tim Tebow — and the way we played tonight turned him into a Heisman Trophy contender. When you give up 28 points in one quarter, you’re not ready to play.”

Swoopes’ touchdown pass to Harris (who had eight catches for a team-high 77 yards) prevented a shutout. BYU added a late score on Hine’s eight-yard run but by then, it really didn’t matter.

Texas (1-1) has to get its wits about itself in a rush. Three of the Longhorns’ next four games — beginning with UCLA Sept. 13 in the AT&T Stadium in Arlington — are against teams in the Associated Press top 10. The following weeks will serve as a make-or-break stretch for Texas.

First, the Longhorns have to lick their wounds from the thrashing inflicted by BYU for the second straight season.

“We’ve still got a ways to go,” Strong said. “We still have games left to play. We’re going to come together and learn from this. We’ll grow from it, see if we can fight back through adversity and put this team back together and continue on.”

 

1. What went wrong on the defense?

BYU played liked it wanted the game more while the Texas defenders just didn’t tackle and finish plays. The third quarter seemed like lowlights from last year’s defeat in Provo, a situation Strong all but guaranteed wouldn’t happen again.

“We didn’t tackle like we needed to tackle,” Bedford said. “We’d reach in and grab but we have to finish. Finishing means you take one more step instead of reaching and grabbing.

“We’re not where we need to be,” he added. “We have a long way to go. It’s one ballgame — a very disappointing ballgame. But you know what? It’s over with and we can’t get it back. We have to get ready for the next game.”

The defense had some game highlights. Defensive tackle Malcom Brown had the best game of his career, recording 11 tackles, three sacks and five overall tackles for a loss. Linebacker Jordan Hicks also had 11 tackles and shared in a sack amongst his two tackles behind the line.

“We were after them the whole game but the second half, BYU just started finding those gaps and they were hitting them hard,” Brown said. “We were missing a lot of tackles. It’s real frustrating but you can’t really do anything about it. This game’s over and we need to focus on UCLA.”

 

2. Can the Longhorns win with Swoopes as their quarterback?

Yes, but give him time. Swoopes managed the game as well as could be expected but in order for the team to succeed with him behind center, the coaches need to turn him loose. And he needs to be ready for that.

First things first — Swoopes has to better understand the Texas offense and feel comfortable running the whole playbook, not just a few plays.

“Our stuff was going to be a challenge [for Swoopes and the remade offensive line to run well], to be honest with you,” Watson said. “We wanted to make sure we protected Ty and helped the line out as much as we could. We took calculated shots is the best way to put it.”

Swoopes ended up 20 of 31 passing for 176 yards, with his longest completion going for 22 yards to freshman Lorenzo Joe on the Longhorns’ only scoring drive. Swoopes ran for just seven yards on seven carries.

He said he wasn’t overwhelmed by the situation.

“I knew I had to get ready because the team is relying on me to be the quarterback and to step up,” Swoopes said. “In the future I think we’ll be fine. I was confident in our preparation and the team looked good in practice all week.”

Swoopes is strong enough to gain some yardage with his legs as well as his arm, but don’t expect Strong and Watson to cut him loose until backup Jerrod Heard has more time to get reps as the backup.

 

3. What was the biggest difference between Texas and BYU?

The Longhorns couldn’t run the ball and BYU could. When two teams are trying to play power football and limit mistakes, running the ball makes a huge difference.

Johnathan Gray (47 yards on 14 carries) and Malcolm Brown (14 totes for 28 yards) combined for just 75 yards. Texas rushed for only 82 yards. Conversely, BYU ran for 248 yards and had two players (Hill and Jamaal Williams, who had 89 yards) run for more than Texas did as a team.

“There’s no question it makes it difficult when you can’t run the ball,” Swoopes said. “So you try and do different things to get the ball moving.”

In order to have any chance to win in the coming weeks, Texas has to find a way to get back to the downhill running team that the staff envisioned coming out of fall camp.

The Longhorns were impacted on the offensive line as well, as three starters did not play against BYU. Center Dominic Espinosa is lost for the year with a broken right ankle and tackles Desmond Harrison and Kennedy Estelle are in Strong’s doghouse after being suspended before the game. Reports on the Internet during the game state that those two will miss six contests, but Strong said he hasn’t determined the length of the suspensions.

Watson said that there’s no easy fix for what ailed the Texas running game.

“Really, it’s a process,” he said. “College football isn’t like pro football. We can’t go to a waiver wire. We’ve got what we have got and we’ve got to work with it and find our way through it.”

 

4. Did the Longhorns have any standouts?

As poorly as the defense felt about itself afterward, Brown, Hicks and linebacker Steve Edmond (10 tackles, a shared sack and two stops behind the line) had strong games.

Cornerback Quandre Diggs made a circus catch interception to deny BYU a touchdown in the second quarter and had Texas’ only pass breakup.

“This loss is very disappointing,” Diggs said. “We didn’t come out and play the way we should’ve played against a team like BYU, who’s going to continue to grind the ball all game.  You just have to continue to bounce back. We failed to do that tonight. We just have to watch film, correct our mistakes and get ready for next week. We have another big one.”

On offense, Harris continues to amaze, though he did fumble after a reception in the second quarter. He looks to be a weapon all season and his confidence is building with each game.

 

5. Is the glass half full or half empty after this loss?

Strong was quick to the podium to address the press after the defeat and was angry — with himself, his coaches and his players.

“The reality is that we need to come prepared and play great defense,” Strong said. “This will be a great game to see how we’re going to grow. We’re going to learn from it and see how well the leadership will step up. It’s the second ballgame. We still have 10 to play.”

There’s no acquiescence in him, and the Longhorns will improve practice by practice, drill by drill and game by game.

“How wounded is the pride? For one day,” Bedford said. “You know what? If your pride gets in your way, then you’re going to have some problems. It makes for a long year. We have to be ready to play.”

But with Texas’ schedule and the team’s learning curve being slowed even more with its suspensions and injuries, things are likely to get worse before they get better. It’s likely to be a bumpy ride across the 40 Acres for a while.

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