Texas has now found itself on the ropes, with zero room for error left in order to ensure survival. Back-to-back losses to unranked teams are much more than an unfortunate turn of events right before the Longhorns get into the heat of their schedule. Week after week, this offense has failed to deliver on what it has promised.
To me, it smells suspiciously of complacency.
I could spend my word count on talking about the offensive inconsistencies that have plagued this team from the beginning, but it wouldn’t be anything that I — or anyone else, for that matter — haven’t said before. Just go take a look back at my column following the Ohio State win.
Unless something dramatically changes overnight against Ole Miss, which doesn’t exactly feature the best defense in the Southeastern Conference, I won’t waste more time talking about the offense. One more half like the second against Florida, with literally just eight minutes of Texas possession, will tell me all that I need to know.
At the moment, the main question is whether Texas’ defense will be able to weather this storm against Ole Miss.
Signs do not point too favorably in that direction, and that’s through no fault of the unit itself or defensive coordinator Will Muschamp. It was only a matter of time before carrying the offense’s weight game after game would result in some wear and tear, and the Longhorns’ injury report is now beginning to give that theory proof.
Let’s start with the obvious: Texas’ edge room, without junior Colin Simmons or freshman Richard Wesley, will be barely hanging on by a thread in its effort to stifle Ole Miss fifth-year quarterback Trinidad Chambliss and junior running back Kewan Lacy.
The Rebels are averaging 444.5 yards and 37.5 points per game this season, and if the Longhorns’ interior cannot put enough pressure on Chambliss or stifle Lacy from slipping through for a checkdown that runs hot, they will be in massive trouble. That’s especially true if the offense can’t find some kind of rhythm and manage to outscore Ole Miss.
Then there’s the issue of the secondary. Although the Longhorns have a fully healthy room, the kind of coverage that they will need to employ against the Rebels isn’t something that they have excelled in. Ole Miss’ veer-and-shoot offense, installed when former coach Lane Kiffin was still in town, will require Texas’ downfield defenders to read the field, shift accordingly and communicate at their highest level — all factors that are perfected with experience.
Aside from senior defensive backs Jelani McDonald and Bo Mascoe, the Longhorns’ young secondary group consistently has made errors when attempting to make these kinds of reads. We’ve seen this in both losses, particularly in some poorly defended run-pass options against Oklahoma and Florida’s two touchdowns to wide-open senior tight end Lacota Dippre over the middle.
I’m not saying it’s guaranteed that Texas will struggle against Ole Miss. This defense is extremely competitive, no matter how young, and is filled with depth. Head coach Steve Sarkisian still has a chance to turn around his offense, especially against a Rebels defense that can be perfectly exploited by his scheme if it actually runs smoothly.
What I am saying is: Buckle up. If this Saturday somehow does result in a win, it will be gritty, ugly and hard-fought. This is just one domino needed to fall in the Longhorns’ direction for a chance to turn their season around.
But, hey, what else is new?