Habe on the Horns: A win is welcome, but plenty of work to be done

By Steve Habel/Senior Editor

No one associated with the Texas football team is ready to return the 42-28 victory it produced against Rice Sept. 12, but all involved understand that the Longhorns are going to have to play much better to have a chance to beat California this Saturday.

Texas defense was battered by the Owls for 462 yards and 96 plays, mainly because Rice was able to convert 14 of its 21 third-down opportunities.

The problem, said Texas coach Charlie Strong at his Monday press conference, was that the Longhorns allowed Rice to remain two-dimensional and that Texas was weaker than it needs to be up the middle.

“It’s been an adjustment for us [s2If current_user_can(access_s2member_level2)]as we work in a 3-3-5 defense, but we need to get pressure on the quarterback and stop the runs right up the middle,” Strong said. “Part of the problem is that Tank [defensive tackle Desmond Jackson] is still not at 100 percent and (defensive tackle) Hassan (Ridgeway) is still rounding into form.”

Rice, a good, solid team but nowhere near as talented as at least eight of the 10 teams that remain on the Longhorns’ regular-season schedule, rushed for 228 yards and controlled the clock throughout.

Part of that equation is that Texas (1-1) scored on a punt return and a fumble return and had another punt return that set up the Longhorns for a short TD drive. Those quick turnarounds put the defense right back on the field, and contributed to the fatigue factor and the continued success of the Owls’ attack.

“We have to find a way to get off the field,” Strong said. “We had eight missed sacks and way too many missed tackles. We loaded the box to stop the run, but still didn’t keep Rice from getting yards up the middle.”

In addition, while excitement abounds about the play of redshirt freshman Jerrod Heard in his first start at quarterback, the sample provided is too limited to make any real judgements about how good Heard will be against the stronger teams Texas will face.

“We have to be make sure we give Heard the right scheme to allow him to be successful, and to play to his strengths, which is making things happen if the play breaks down,” Strong said. “We have to make sure he continues to get better and keep him moving forward.”

Worth noting:

• The Big 12 Conference announced that the Longhorns’ Sept. 26 home game against Oklahoma State will kickoff at 2:30 p.m. The game will be televised by ABC, ESPN or ESPN2.

• Texas’ Daje Johnson, thanks in large part to his 85-yard punt return for a touchdown in the Longhorns’ win over Rice, was been named Big 12 Special Teams Player of the Week. Johnson tallied 119 yards on punt returns and an average of 43.8 per return. His touchdown was the first score by a Longhorn on a punt return since he pulled off the same feat Oct. 12, 2013, against Oklahoma. The Longhorns set a school record for team punt return yards in a single game against Rice with 175. Duke Thomas also had a return of 56 yards.

• The Longhorns had nine plays of at least 20 yards in Saturday’s win, including four that went for touchdowns.

• Through his first two collegiate games (both starts), true freshman linebacker Malik Jefferson leads the team and ranks second in the Big 12 Conference in total tackles with 18 (team-high 11 solo).

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