Herman, Horns Happy With Win, Want That Feeling Again and Again

By Steve Habel, Senior Contributing Writer

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AUSTIN, Texas — The surging Texas football team has played quite well in toppling two ranked teams the past two weeks at home.

Those victories won’t give the Longhorns a leg up on anything when they travel to Manhattan, Kan., Saturday to square off against always-dangerous Kansas State.

The Longhorns, now 3-1 on the season and ranked 18th in the latest Associated Press poll, haven’t won in Manhattan since 2002.

“Since (Texas safety) Caden Sterns was 2 years old,” Tom Herman said Monday in his regular media availability.

Growing up by the game

The Longhorns’ head coach was happy and smiling following the recent run of success, but made sure to remind the media what he has told his team since the win over the Horned Frogs.

“I told our team yesterday, ‘they’re not going to spot us seven points in Manhattan because we beat TCU,’” Herman said. “What happened against TCU, what happened against USC — for that matter what happened against Maryland — is inconsequential to how we play and how Kansas State plays against us in Manhattan.”

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Herman said the team has progressed through its recent success streak and understands the benefit, and need, to move on to the next game each week. [place_ad_1]

“There’s a genuine belief [among the team] in the way that we do things,” he explained, “and now that we’ve had the added testimony to that with a couple double-digit wins here in the last couple of games against nationally ranked teams, I think, ‘how could you walk into this building and not want to do it that way again and again?’”

It seems the ‘Horns are hooked on a feeling, and want to keep winning and winning to see truly what type of Texas team this is.

“It seems counterintuitive to a degree now that you’ve seen and felt the rewards of doing it our way,” Herman said, “and so I don’t anticipate it being very difficult to motivate them moving forward.”

Texas’ Manhattan Project: win

Texas has won three games in a row for the first time since 2014, and beaten ranked team in back-to-back weeks for first time since 2008.

Winning in Manhattan is the next logical step in the progression, right?

“The hardest places to play are usually the places that have really good teams, and really good coaches,” Herman said of the challenge at Kansas State. “So obviously (K-State coach) Bill Snyder is a Hall of Famer. His name is on the dang stadium.

“They’ve got a well-coached team that plays hard, that plays smart and they’ve got a raucous fan base that shows up regardless of weather, regardless of record, regardless of any of that, and that makes for a difficult place to play.”

Other Texas football items addressed Monday:

Social media sites have been inundated with videos of the Longhorns’ victorious locker room celebrations in their past two games.

Texas Fight! #ThisIsTexas #HookEm pic.twitter.com/Kuvcy5Z3ga

— Texas Football (@TexasFootball) September 23, 2018

Herman said it’s a natural, based on the improvement of his team and the excitement surrounding it after seasons of mediocre, or worse, play.

“Winning is intoxicating, and it feels really, really good,” Herman said. “But the key that I’m proud of this group of guys, this team, is they understand that you don’t beat TCU on Saturday. You don’t. The three-and-a-half hours on Saturday is the reward for how hard you prepare and the sacrifices that you made before that game.”

Sterns was named Big 12 Conference Newcomer of the Week following his standout performance  Saturday against TCU. It is the first time in his young career that he has earned weekly honors.

A native of Cibolo, Texas, Sterns racked up five tackles and took two interceptions against the Horned Frogs in the Longhorns’ 31-16 victory. He is the first true freshman since DeShon Elliott in 2015 with two picks in a game, and just the third in school history (also Chris Carter vs. SMU in 1993).

Caden Sterns named Big 12 Newcomer of the Week for his performance against No. 17 TCU. pic.twitter.com/50J07DMBLh

— Longhorn Network (@LonghornNetwork) September 24, 2018

Sterns now has three interceptions through four games, tied with Kyle Richardson (1994) for the third-most by a true freshman in school history. Both Quandre Diggs (2011) and Chris Carter (1993) had four as true freshmen.

‘Shack’ Back

Three key players, including center Zach Shackelford, will be in action Tuesday for Texas and the Longhorns will be close to full strength as far as injuries go when they travel to K-State.

Herman said Monday that Shackelford, who has missed the past two games with a foot injury, will be at practice Tuesday, as will freshman linebacker/safety DeMarvion Overshown (knee), who has yet to play this year but is expected to make a big contribution once healthy.

Freshman running back Keaontay Ingram will practice Tuesday, as well, after suffering a hip pointer in UT’s 31-16 win over No. 17 TCU last Saturday and missing the Longhorns’ win the previous week against No. 22 USC.

As far as those out of the Kansas State game, linebacker Malcolm Roach (broken foot) had surgery last Wednesday and is still four to six weeks from seeing he field again. Defensive backs Jarmarquis Durst and Montrell Estell are both considered with a severe shoulder strain and a concussion, respectively.

Offensive lineman Patrick Hudson (who was hospitalized with heat-related conditions three weeks ago) also is considered doubtful. Hudson, who is back in classes after nearly a week in the hospital, goes to the doctor Monday to establish his return-to-play protocol.

“And then everyone else is pretty good,” Herman said. “(Offensive linemen) Calvin Anderson and Sam Cosmi did not practice Sunday — bumps and bruises — but they should be back ready to go, and (wide receiver) Brennan Eagles is going to go through practice Tuesday so we’ll know a lot more after practice.

“Does that mean all those guys will make it to the game? I don’t know. But we’re healing a little bit here at some key spots.”

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