Game 8 Snapshot: Texas travels to winless Baylor with bowl chances in the balance

By Steve Habel/Senior Editor

AUSTIN, Texas — Here are a few of the things to watch for as the Longhorns (3-4 overall, 2-2 in Big 12 play) hit the road to play winless Baylor Saturday in Waco. Kickoff is at 11 a.m. CDT.

NOTES, QUOTES, PLAYERS TO WATCH

• Freshman quarterback San Ehlinger had his most uneven game of the season (and college career) last Saturday in the loss to Oklahoma State, throwing [s2If current_user_can(access_s2member_level2)]for 241 yards — 90 of which came on one play — and rushing for minus-10 (a total skewed by a 34-yard loss on a sack on which he fumbled but hustled to recover the loose ball). He also tossed a nearly unforgivable interception in overtime that lost the game the Longhorns. Now we know why Ehlinger was a little off; the team announced Sunday that he had suffered a concussion sometime during the game. His availability for this week’s game at Baylor is up in the air.

• Junior punter Michael Dickson is a weapon at the position and is a leading candidate for the 2017 Ray Guy Award, a season after becoming UT’s first finalist ever for the prestigious award. Dickson has punted 38 times this season and leads the nation with an average of 49.0 yards per punt. The Longhorns’ net average of 45.68 is also the best in the country. Of his 38 punts, half of them have been more than 50 yards, while 14 have been downed inside the 20.

• Linebacker Malik Jefferson had a career-high 14 tackles Saturday against Oklahoma State and leads the team this year with 68 tackles, including 48 solo tackles. Jefferson also has gotten after the quarterback, with six tackles for a loss, 2.5 sacks and five quarterback hurries.

SERIES HISTORY: Texas and Baylor meet for the 107th time Saturday with the Longhorns holding a 76-26-4 edge in the series. Saturday’s contest will mark the 49th all-time meeting in Waco, where UT has a 30-16-2 record. Texas coach Tom Herman never has faced Baylor in his head coaching career, and Baylor coach Matt Rhule never has faced Texas in his. However, Herman is 1-0 head-to-head against Rhule, as Houston defeated Temple, 24-13, in the 2015 American Athletic Conference Championship Game.

QUOTE TO NOTE: “Did I absolutely know it was going to be difficult? Yes. Is it hard for me to lose? Yes, it is awful — awful. But the commitment to the place I love and the commitment that this place has shown in return supercedes any difficulties that we may face and makes it a little bit easier to come to work every day.” – Texas coach Tom Herman on how he is handling the losses for his team in his first year as head coach.

GAME BREAKDOWN

Scouting the running game: Texas still is getting next to nothing from its running backs in the run game. Chris Warren III (12 carries for 35 yards) and Toneil Carter (one carry for 3 yards) totaled just 38 yards against Oklahoma State with a long run of 15 yards (by Warren). Ehlinger leads the team in carries with 84, totes per game (17) and in yards per game (53). Yes, Texas is working behind a makeshift offensive line because of injuries, but finding a consistent running game from its backs is paramount.

Scouting the passing game: Ehlinger passed for 241 yards against Oklahoma State, but uncorked a needless interception in overtime that cost the Longhorns a chance to win. No receiver caught more than four passes in the game.

Scouting the run defense: Texas allowed Oklahoma State 146 yards in the ground but part of that was by design as the Longhorns usually dropped eight defenders into coverage to stop the Cowboys’ big plays. “We knew we were going to give up some yards on the ground,” Herman said. “But as long as we got them down we lived to play another down.”

Scouting the pass defense: The Longhorns had two sacks against Oklahoma State and now have 16 for the season. Texas focused on stopping the big play and was successful, save for a 66-yard pass in the fourth quarter when safety Brandon Jones tripped over his own feet in coverage.

Scouting the special teams: Texas junior kicker Joshua Rowland made his only field goal and improved to 6-of-11 on the year after four misses and a blocked kick in the Longhorns’ first five games. Dickson continues to be a weapon; against Oklahoma State, he punted 11 times and averaged 50.9 yards per punt. The 11 attempts were a new career high. Of Dickson’s four punts from OSU territory, he downed two inside the 10 and pinned the Cowboys at an average field position of the 11-yard line. Of his seven punts from UT territory, Dickson averaged 57.9 yards per punt (55.9 net) and flipped the field from an average of the Texas 23 to a starting field position for the Cowboys of the OSU 21.

DRAFT PROSPECTS

• Left tackle Connor Williams: There is no new news on Williams, who suffered a left knee injury late in the first half against USC, and is undergoing rehab of his sprained MCL, a torn meniscus and sprained PCL. It still appears that Williams could return at some point during conference play if his recovery goes well.

• Nose tackle Poona Ford: He dominated the middle of the defensive line for the seventh straight game, collecting four very strong tackles against Oklahoma State.

•  Linebacker Malik Jefferson: Jefferson led Texas with 14 tackles against Oklahoma State; he has paced the Longhorns in tackles in six of their seven games and his play is noteworthy for his ferocity and for his quickness to the ball. “Malik is playing with aggressiveness and the lack of hesitation,” Herman said. “I think that, when you combine those things with his physical abilities, it’s ‘look out.’ But he’s not perfect.”

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