Recently, another poster in this forum compared the Horns' football program to Britney Spears.
Some of us don't keep up with the shenanigans of Ms. Spears, but my impression (from the headlines) is that the point could be this -- the Horns' football progam obviously hit an apex in the the 2005 season (not only did we win the MNC, but we arguably fielded the best major-college football team of all time), and since then we have seen a slow, but increasingly evident, decline in our football fortunes at The University of Texas.
Whatever, here are three "indicators" that the future for the Horns' football program (like Ms. Spears) may be looking less than pristine.
(1) Three-year pattern since Vince - it seems to be going the wrong direction.
In the 2006 football season, the Horns were supposed to "drop off" (how could we not from 2005?), but only to No. 2 in the Country in the preseason polls. Instead, we lost three games -- arguably making a mess of our QB depth in the process -- and finished the season ranked No. 13 in the national polls.
In the 2007 football season, the Horns were supposed to "drop off" a little more than the preseason predictions of the year before, but only to No. 4 in Country. Instead, we again lost three games -- arguably again limiting our opportunities to use our QB depth, at least until the 2007 Holiday Bowl -- and finished the season ranked No. 10 in the national polls (which clearly represents another decline from the preseason projections -- which had listed Texas not only at No. 4 in the Country, but also as the consensus choice to win the Big-12 Conference football title).
In the 2008 football season, we have yet to see the outcome, but the earliest preseason projections have the Horns ranked in the neighborhood of the second-ten (e.g., No. 14) nationally, and as low as fifth in the preseason Big-12 Conference rankings -- behind Missouri, Oklahoma, Kansas and even Tech.
(2) Running Game - the Horns' running game often does not work vs. quality opponents, and there is no indication we intend to fix the problem.
Since the day that Mack & Greg arrived in Austin, the Horns' soft and predictable "one-man" running game (when we use a "passing QB" who does not give Texas a second viable running threat on designed running plays) has failed vs. quality opponents in title games ... in the Horns' 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2006 and 2007 football seasons. It happened again in the past season (2007), when the Texas running game went belly-up -- as Colt McCoy averaged .6 (six-tenths) of a yard-per-carry on the few occasions that he ran with the football -- in our losses to Kansas State, Oklahoma and A&M.
No Mack-coached Texas team, or Stoops-coached Oklahoma team, ever has won the RRS when being out-rushed by its opponent. In the 2007 RRS, some folks in our own camp thought that the Horns "played well" (even though we lost the game) because Texas "out-passed" the Sooners; however, Oklahoma out-rushed the Horns in the game by more than 100 yards.
Texas was back in its predictable "one-man" running-game mode in the 2007 RRS ... and that hasn't worked for us. As Selvin Young put it: "We won (in the Horns' 2005 MNC season) because opposing defenses could not stop two running threats."
There is no indication, with the hiring of Major Applewhite as the Horns' new "Running Backs" coach, that anything will change to make the Horns' one-man running game (with a "passing QB") any more creative or effective than it has been in the past under Greg Davis ... to the contrary, Major reportedly is a "disciple" of GD, despite the fact that when Major was a "passing QB" for Texas, the Horns' running game consistently was wiped out in our key losses ... and we failed to win any Conference football titles (or participate in any BCS-level postseason games) in those days.
Traditionally, The University of Texas football program has experienced its most successful football seasons (in terms of winning Conference titles and participating in BCS-level postseason games) when the Horns can run the football effectively ... usually with a dual-threat QB (e.g., Bobby Layne, Duke Carlisle, James Street, Eddie Phillips, James Brown and Vince Young).
(3) Recruiting - our recent recruiting efforts, since Vince left the premises, arguably have eroded the player-talent advantage that the Horns previously enjoyed during Mack's coaching tenure at Texas.
Since Vince left, Texas has missed (sometimes intentionally - but the negative effect on our player talent is the same) on a number of key blue-chip football recruits in the State of Texas -- e.g., Michael Goodson, Adron Tennell, Emmanuel Moody, Terrance Toliver, Dez Bryant, Lennon Creer, R. J. Washington, Jermie Calhoun, Darryl Stonum and, apparently, Russell Shepard and Craig Loston, if not Jamarkus McFarland.
Meanwhile, some of the top blue-chip players the Horns have signed (since Vince) have been more conspicuous, so far, by their lack of presence (than any accomplishments) on the football field at Texas -- e.g., Henry Melton, Jermichael Finley, Sergio Kindle, Eddie Jones, Jevan Snead, J'Marcus Webb, Andre Jones, Chykie Brown, Malcolm Williams and John Chiles.
The net result since the departure of Vince Young [when you combine the lost blue-chip player talent with the seeming evaporation (so far) of the signed blue-chip player talent] is that Texas arguably is no longer fielding football teams that can out-talent most, if not all, of its opponents ...
... which may be leaving us in a position where Will Muschamp is coaching less-than-great player talent (e.g., at DT and in the secondary), while our offense is utilizing a "passing QB" in an offensive scheme that guts our running game (vs. quality opponents) ... and that offensive scheme (with a "passing QB") never has worked for GD to win a Conference title or participate in a BCS-level postseason game in his entire intercollegiate coaching career spanning three decades.
To top it off, we apparently decided not to recruit Russell Shepard as a QB candidate (at least on the same basis as Garrett Gilbert) -- and let both prospects compete on the merits for playing time at QB for The University of Texas -- and, instead, we seem to have put all of our eggs for the future in another "passing QB" basket ... this one coming off shoulder surgery and apparently no more effective a runner than Colt, and with similar passing-arm strength (or lack thereof) as McCoy.
It will be interesting to see what happens with the Horns' football program down the road.
Hook 'em.
Some of us don't keep up with the shenanigans of Ms. Spears, but my impression (from the headlines) is that the point could be this -- the Horns' football progam obviously hit an apex in the the 2005 season (not only did we win the MNC, but we arguably fielded the best major-college football team of all time), and since then we have seen a slow, but increasingly evident, decline in our football fortunes at The University of Texas.
Whatever, here are three "indicators" that the future for the Horns' football program (like Ms. Spears) may be looking less than pristine.
(1) Three-year pattern since Vince - it seems to be going the wrong direction.
In the 2006 football season, the Horns were supposed to "drop off" (how could we not from 2005?), but only to No. 2 in the Country in the preseason polls. Instead, we lost three games -- arguably making a mess of our QB depth in the process -- and finished the season ranked No. 13 in the national polls.
In the 2007 football season, the Horns were supposed to "drop off" a little more than the preseason predictions of the year before, but only to No. 4 in Country. Instead, we again lost three games -- arguably again limiting our opportunities to use our QB depth, at least until the 2007 Holiday Bowl -- and finished the season ranked No. 10 in the national polls (which clearly represents another decline from the preseason projections -- which had listed Texas not only at No. 4 in the Country, but also as the consensus choice to win the Big-12 Conference football title).
In the 2008 football season, we have yet to see the outcome, but the earliest preseason projections have the Horns ranked in the neighborhood of the second-ten (e.g., No. 14) nationally, and as low as fifth in the preseason Big-12 Conference rankings -- behind Missouri, Oklahoma, Kansas and even Tech.
(2) Running Game - the Horns' running game often does not work vs. quality opponents, and there is no indication we intend to fix the problem.
Since the day that Mack & Greg arrived in Austin, the Horns' soft and predictable "one-man" running game (when we use a "passing QB" who does not give Texas a second viable running threat on designed running plays) has failed vs. quality opponents in title games ... in the Horns' 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2006 and 2007 football seasons. It happened again in the past season (2007), when the Texas running game went belly-up -- as Colt McCoy averaged .6 (six-tenths) of a yard-per-carry on the few occasions that he ran with the football -- in our losses to Kansas State, Oklahoma and A&M.
No Mack-coached Texas team, or Stoops-coached Oklahoma team, ever has won the RRS when being out-rushed by its opponent. In the 2007 RRS, some folks in our own camp thought that the Horns "played well" (even though we lost the game) because Texas "out-passed" the Sooners; however, Oklahoma out-rushed the Horns in the game by more than 100 yards.
Texas was back in its predictable "one-man" running-game mode in the 2007 RRS ... and that hasn't worked for us. As Selvin Young put it: "We won (in the Horns' 2005 MNC season) because opposing defenses could not stop two running threats."
There is no indication, with the hiring of Major Applewhite as the Horns' new "Running Backs" coach, that anything will change to make the Horns' one-man running game (with a "passing QB") any more creative or effective than it has been in the past under Greg Davis ... to the contrary, Major reportedly is a "disciple" of GD, despite the fact that when Major was a "passing QB" for Texas, the Horns' running game consistently was wiped out in our key losses ... and we failed to win any Conference football titles (or participate in any BCS-level postseason games) in those days.
Traditionally, The University of Texas football program has experienced its most successful football seasons (in terms of winning Conference titles and participating in BCS-level postseason games) when the Horns can run the football effectively ... usually with a dual-threat QB (e.g., Bobby Layne, Duke Carlisle, James Street, Eddie Phillips, James Brown and Vince Young).
(3) Recruiting - our recent recruiting efforts, since Vince left the premises, arguably have eroded the player-talent advantage that the Horns previously enjoyed during Mack's coaching tenure at Texas.
Since Vince left, Texas has missed (sometimes intentionally - but the negative effect on our player talent is the same) on a number of key blue-chip football recruits in the State of Texas -- e.g., Michael Goodson, Adron Tennell, Emmanuel Moody, Terrance Toliver, Dez Bryant, Lennon Creer, R. J. Washington, Jermie Calhoun, Darryl Stonum and, apparently, Russell Shepard and Craig Loston, if not Jamarkus McFarland.
Meanwhile, some of the top blue-chip players the Horns have signed (since Vince) have been more conspicuous, so far, by their lack of presence (than any accomplishments) on the football field at Texas -- e.g., Henry Melton, Jermichael Finley, Sergio Kindle, Eddie Jones, Jevan Snead, J'Marcus Webb, Andre Jones, Chykie Brown, Malcolm Williams and John Chiles.
The net result since the departure of Vince Young [when you combine the lost blue-chip player talent with the seeming evaporation (so far) of the signed blue-chip player talent] is that Texas arguably is no longer fielding football teams that can out-talent most, if not all, of its opponents ...
... which may be leaving us in a position where Will Muschamp is coaching less-than-great player talent (e.g., at DT and in the secondary), while our offense is utilizing a "passing QB" in an offensive scheme that guts our running game (vs. quality opponents) ... and that offensive scheme (with a "passing QB") never has worked for GD to win a Conference title or participate in a BCS-level postseason game in his entire intercollegiate coaching career spanning three decades.
To top it off, we apparently decided not to recruit Russell Shepard as a QB candidate (at least on the same basis as Garrett Gilbert) -- and let both prospects compete on the merits for playing time at QB for The University of Texas -- and, instead, we seem to have put all of our eggs for the future in another "passing QB" basket ... this one coming off shoulder surgery and apparently no more effective a runner than Colt, and with similar passing-arm strength (or lack thereof) as McCoy.
It will be interesting to see what happens with the Horns' football program down the road.
Hook 'em.
