Is Texas back? Longhorns’ rise is no longer a laughing matter-ZoomTech News

For a piece of the final decade, “Texas is again” has been faculty soccer’s favourite joke.

And whereas it has been principally warranted given this system’s struggles, there have been a handful of moments when followers believed the Longhorns had been lastly getting again on monitor to wanting just like the glory days of Vince Younger and Colt McCoy.

There was the time when former quarterback Sam Ehlinger led Texas to a Sugar Bowl win over Georgia to cap the 2018 season, the crew’s first 10-win season since 2009. After the convincing victory, Ehlinger acquired on stage, grabbed the microphone and proudly mentioned, “Longhorn Nation: We’re baaaaaack.” 

Seems they weren’t, going 15-8 over the subsequent two years, leading to Tom Herman dropping his job.

In 2022, the Horns practically beat Alabama at dwelling in Steve Sarkisian’s second yr as head coach. Quarterback Quinn Ewers was injured early and watched from the sideline as his crew misplaced by some extent. However due to the spectacular efficiency towards the mighty Crimson Tide, it was cheap to imagine Texas may be “again” then, too. However then it completed 8-5, dropping three of its final six video games.

There was a whole lot of hype surrounding the Horns this offseason. Ewers minimize off his well-known mullet, misplaced weight and grew right into a vocal locker room chief. The protection was stacked with future NFL expertise. There was cohesion on the employees for the primary time in years. The Longhorns had been even picked to win the Huge 12.

Then the season started and in Week 2, Texas made an emphatic assertion by marching into Tuscaloosa and beating up Alabama, 34-24. Since then, it is clobbered opponents Wyoming, Baylor, and most not too long ago No. 24 Kansas, and has held agency because the No. 3-ranked crew within the nation. In numerous midseason media polls, Texas has been a well-liked choose to make the four-team School Soccer Playoff among the many likes of Georgia, Michigan and Florida State.

Now comes the subsequent take a look at: No. 12 Oklahoma within the Crimson River Rivalry on Saturday on the Cotton Bowl in Dallas. Each groups, who’re leaving the Huge 12 for the SEC subsequent season, enter the showdown with 5-0 data for the primary time since 2008. That yr, Texas received 45-35 in a dramatic back-and-forth conflict. It is also the primary time since 2011 that each groups are undefeated. That point, OU received, 55-17.

Saturday’s winner will rightly be seen as the brand new convention favourite and a legit CFP contender. In different phrases, the stakes are excessive, as they at all times are, on this heated rivalry recreation.

Final yr, Texas publicly embarrassed OU in a historic 49-0 romp. It was the Longhorns’ greatest win ever over the Sooners, who had been present process a rebuilding yr in coach Brent Venables’ rookie season.

This yr’s final result probably will not be as lopsided. OU quarterback Dillon Gabriel “is enjoying at a really excessive stage,” Sarkisian mentioned this week, and leads an explosive offense ranked third nationally averaging 47.4 factors per recreation.=

“He distributes the ball superbly,” Sarkisian mentioned of Gabriel, who has handed for 1,593 yards by means of 5 video games, with 15 touchdowns and simply two interceptions. 

Defensively, OU acquired a pleasant improve by way of the switch portal and might be in search of revenge after permitting 49 factors and 585 yards of offense towards Texas a yr in the past.

“We’re gonna get an emotional crew coming into the Cotton Bowl that we will should compete towards, we simply have to acknowledge that,” Sarkisian mentioned. “On the finish of the day, we have now to play good soccer. Emotion is nice. It solely runs for therefore lengthy. Ultimately you may exhaust your self, and it may come right down to execution. So we simply acquired to verify we’re dialed in.”

Texas is coming off a dominant win over beforehand unbeaten Kansas. The offense was balanced, dashing for a exceptional 336 yards and passing for 325. The protection held the Jayhawks to 0-for-8 on third down and 0-for-2 on fourth. In the meantime, the UT offense was in a position to prolong drives, going 9-for-15 on third down and 2-for-2 on fourth. Like when Ewers scrambled for a 30-yard run on third-and-9 to attain the opening landing within the first quarter.

“We’re not a operating quarterback crew, we do not run designed QB runs,” Sarkisian mentioned. “However we do depend on the quarterback to make use of his legs at opportune instances. Quinn is absolutely beginning to excel at that. He is used his newfound conditioning and pace to be a bonus for him and for us, in order that’s an actual optimistic.”

Working again Jonathon Brooks, who has been a more-than-stellar successor to Bijan Robinson, ran for 218 yards towards Kansas, whereas receiver Adonai Mitchell, who transferred from Georgia, had 10 catches for 141 yards.

And for the primary time in a very long time, Texas is not making errors that value them video games. There have not been blown coverages. The pocket has been clear. The safety has been stalwart. And Sarkisian has been eager on operating the ball extra.

“We aren’t unbiased contractors,” Sarkisian mentioned. “We work collectively and collectively when we have now belief, which I feel we have earned over time by the consistency of which we go about our enterprise. That places our belief at a excessive that makes us really feel good.”

In fact, there is a checklist of issues to work on. For instance, kicker Bert Auburn missed two area objectives final week that left factors on the desk, and tight finish Ja’Tavion Sanders suffered an ankle damage (although has not been dominated out for Saturday).

After this recreation, the coast appears to be like fairly clear for Texas with no different ranked opponents remaining on the schedule — the Longhorns and Sooners are the convention’s solely ranked groups proper now.

So if the Horns can hold this factor rolling and beat OU on Saturday, it’s totally a lot on the desk that they might win the Huge 12, make the CFP, and play for and even win the nationwide championship. 

After which possibly “Texas is again” will not be a joke anymore.

Laken Litman covers faculty soccer, faculty basketball and soccer for FOX Sports activities. She beforehand wrote for Sports activities Illustrated, USA Immediately and The Indianapolis Star. She is the creator of “Sturdy Like a Lady,” revealed in spring 2022 to mark the fiftieth anniversary of Title IX. Observe her on Twitter @LakenLitman.

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