OTF Premium Texas Will Smack ASU If...

[CJ Vogel]

There is a continued dominance on first down.

Having dug through stat after stat since the conclusion of the Clemson game on Saturday, this one remains one of my favorite that I keep returning to.

Texas was elite on first downs offensively in round one of the College Football Playoff. It was one of their more complete performances of the year on first downs and it helped sustain drive after drive. 

Here are the main numbers from Steve Sarkisian's offense on first downs vs. Clemson.

• 33 first down snaps
• 253 yards
• 7.7 yards per first down snap

Quinn Ewers was 10-12 passing on first downs for 124 yards or 10.2 yards per attempt, a really solid mark for him. 

There were two sacks on first down, one of which being Ewers taking a self sack on a busted play where linemen were downfield a throwaway would have resulted in a penalty.

In the run game, Texas gained 129 yards on 19 rush attempts. That is a 6.8 average clip. Talk about staying ahead of the chains, that is how you do it. 

Three first down plays went for touchdowns as well. Rushes of 3, 26 and 38 all found the end zone off of a first down snap.

Here is the big one for me. Of the 33 first down snaps, Texas gained two yards or more on 27 of them. There were three incompletions and a rush for loss, then a pass for -6 on the screen where Williams and Wisner were injured and a sack.

Other than that, a new first down was gained or Texas was playing ahead of the chains. A really positive mark for the Longhorns who constantly stubbed their toe and played behind the chains against Georgia.

***

One other note.

Texas had an average distance to gain of 11.6 against Georgia.

Against Clemson, that mark was down to 4.6. The run game certainly helped and the Longhorns benefitted greatly.

If Texas can duplicate this against Arizona State, I have a hard time seeing them stall many drives on New Year's Day. They will dominate if this first down success makes the trip to Atlanta.

[CJ Vogel]

I am sure there are other key moments that I will find in the research leading up to the game, but right now this one stands out to me.

Anything y'all can think of that Texas must have success with in order to guarantee a victory?

[CaseMcCoyTruther]

15 minutes ago, CJ Vogel said:

I am sure there are other key moments that I will find in the research leading up to the game, but right now this one stands out to me.

Anything y'all can think of that Texas must have success with in order to guarantee a victory?

Do what Saban does — take away the opposing team’s best weapon

[CJ Vogel]

3 minutes ago, CaseMcCoyTruther said:

Do what Saban does — take away the opposing team’s best weapon

If you are able to stall out Skattebo, Texas will be just fine. 

[Jarveaux]

Score early & score often . Have a penalty free game . No sacks , no fumbles. We should win 🤘

[Jordan91]

23 minutes ago, CJ Vogel said:

I am sure there are other key moments that I will find in the research leading up to the game, but right now this one stands out to me.

Anything y'all can think of that Texas must have success with in order to guarantee a victory?

It’s not a must because they have still been winning, but they have to figure out the third quarter. 

[LECHorns]

Flags. How they officiate this game, and any game really, could play a meaningful role. “Playoff football” will greatly benefit the larger, deeper, more physical team (ie, Horns).

Edited Tuesday at 04:36 PM by LECHorns

[CJ Vogel]

5 minutes ago, Jordan91 said:

It’s not a must because they have still been winning, but they have to figure out the third quarter. 

I agree, it wasn't terrible in round one, but it still was an issue.

[Hashtag]

We walk onto the field 

[texcoyote15]

Who would win if Clemson played Arizona State?

[Tuco Ramirez]

14 minutes ago, Jarveaux said:

Score early & score often . Have a penalty free game . No sacks , no fumbles. We should win 🤘

This. Unforced errors have killed us this year. We played relatively error free against Clemson and have to continue that. Also, don’t get overly cute with the play calling. The play that lost 6 yards, Williams, and Wisner was unnecessary. Stick with what’s working until they stop you.

[DanielOnorato]

3 minutes ago, texcoyote15 said:

Who would win if Clemson played Arizona State?

I think Clemson would be favored though I could be wrong 

[ArizonaLonghorn]

48 minutes ago, CJ Vogel said:

I am sure there are other key moments that I will find in the research leading up to the game, but right now this one stands out to me.

Anything y'all can think of that Texas must have success with in order to guarantee a victory?

Two penalties for 10 yards in the Clemson game jumped out at me. None of the holding calls or foolish pre-snap penalties that seemed to set us back on offense.  Weren't we one of the most penalized teams before this game? Keep it clean and we are hard to beat.

Edited Tuesday at 04:57 PM by ArizonaLonghorn

[JMarquette]

8 minutes ago, DanielOnorato said:

I think Clemson would be favored though I could be wrong 

Clemson would be favored, I think Vegas had them at -4.5 in the hypothetical 

[4thandFive]

1) Put up 7s early and bury them before half.

2) STOP leaving what works in the 3rd Q

[Atticus]

Texas must prevent ASU from getting extra possessions. No onside kick nonsense, fake punts, 3rd/4th down penalties for a first down, etc. 

Get ASU down early and take away their ball control game plan. They’ll get desperate early. 

[CJ Vogel]

13 minutes ago, ArizonaLonghorn said:

Two penalties for 10 yards in the Clemson game jumped out at me. None of the holding calls or foolish pre-snap penalties that seemed to set us back on offense.  Weren't we one of the most penalized teams before this game? Keep it clean and we are hard to beat.

You are absolutely right. What a job by the Longhorns to play disciplined football.

[Texas fan in Georgia]

Here’s my bold prediction: Texas finally makes a big play on special teams. Arizona st will probably punt A lot so hopefully bolden gets a chance. Doubt they have anybody that can catch him if he finds a hole

[CJ Vogel]

18 minutes ago, DanielOnorato said:

I think Clemson would be favored though I could be wrong 

I would bet Clemson beats Arizona State, line would probably be like 3 points or something like that.

[Hornito]

Texas needs to have someone bring this energy coming out at halftime. 3rd QT needs to flip to THE moment to end the game. 

https://imgflip.com/gif/1m5dwg

 

[CJ Vogel]

5 minutes ago, Texas fan in Georgia said:

Here’s my bold prediction: Texas finally makes a big play on special teams. Arizona st will probably punt A lot so hopefully bolden gets a chance. Doubt they have anybody that can catch him if he finds a hole

Man would that be nice. A return, a block, something.

[Orngblud05]

Hopefully this is a series of reasons bc I don’t think there is just one.  I posted a thread on it. Feels very ‘23 big 12 championship to me. You knew what Ok st was gonna do and it was shut down. Same with this game. 
 

if the 12 team field was based on the best 12, asu would not be playing.  

[rgvhorn80]

Only way Texas loses is if Texas beats themselves 

[CJ Vogel]

2 minutes ago, rgvhorn80 said:

Only way Texas loses is if Texas beats themselves 

They would really have to beat themselves, but it certainly is possible.

It isn't easy to win the Big 12, Texas knows that first hand. 

[Bobby_Batronic]

1 hour ago, CJ Vogel said:

If you are able to stall out Skattebo, Texas will be just fine. 

Kinda reminds me of the OSU RB in the BigXII title game Ollie something or other. I’ll be curious to see how good of a college QB Leavitt without a rushing attack. 

 

Or better yet, playing from behind where the run game is a constraint instead of a feature.