For Texas, production is not leading to enough points...yet
Texas played cleanly during non-conference when it mattered most, on the road against Alabama. That win has proven significant as it keeps Texas relevant to the national discussion after the recent loss to Oklahoma.
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Despite the Alabama win, the Texas offense was too inconsistent versus both Rice and Wyoming. First the offensive line struggled against the Owls, then the passing game was grounded versus Wyoming as Quinn Ewers was limited to 132 yards on just 11 completions.
But, since conference play began the offense has hit its stride, especially between the 20’s. In the three conference games, opponents haven’t stopped Texas as much as Texas has stopped Texas inside the 20.*
*I of course give credit to OU on its massive goal-line stand.
Baylor
Texas scored 38
503 total yards
8.5 yards per play
Quinn Ewers: 18/23, 293, 1 TD
Jonathon Brooks: 18 carries, 106 yards, 2 TD
Ja’Tavion Sanders: 5 receptions, 110 yards (only 1 touchdown on the year)
Kansas
Texas scored 40
661 total yards (no punts)
7.7 yards per play
Quinn Ewers: 25/35, 325 yards, 1 TD/1INT
Jonathon Brooks: 28 carries, 218 yards, 2 TD
Adonai Mitchell: 10 receptions, 141 yards, 2TD
Xavier Worthy: 7 receptions, 93 yards (only three touchdowns on the year)
Oklahoma
Texas scored 30 (one punt blocked for a TD)
527 total yards
6.8 yards per play
Quinn Ewers: 31/37, 346 yards, 1TD/2INT
Jonathon Brooks: 22 carries, 129 yards, 1 TD
Jordan Whittington: 10 receptions, 115 yards
Xavier Worthy: 8 receptions, 108 yards
You can glean some of the current team themes from these statistics, especially when you realize Texas has only punted once in the last two weeks. Points aren’t quite adding up with the yardage and Ewers has been a little bit careless with the ball despite demonstrating increasingly better accuracy.
One thing that stands out besides the yards per play is Texas has shown the ability to have four different receivers lead the team. Ewers is finding the open player and feeding him. If a defense corrects, Ewers simply finds somebody else. One week someone might have a quiet game; the next he might be the go-to.
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It’s no surprise the passing game is getting hot at the same time Jonathon Brooks is becoming a household name. For the first time in his three-year tenure Steve Sarkisian has a balanced offense that’s moving the ball from quarter to quarter and week to week with Brooks’ breakout and Ewers’ improvement serving as the driving force.
The problem of course remains Texas settling for too many field goals and not enough points. Based on the current trend that is not likely to hold. If anything, Sark has proven himself to be quite the problem solver while at Texas. Having a bye week not only affords him the time to troubleshoot but also for key figures like Jake Majors, Ja’Tavion Sanders, and Cole Hutson to get healthy.
We can quibble over individual play-calls inside the 20-yard line but the main culprit has likely been interior O-line play, especially with the recency of the RRS on our minds. I anticipate as the O-line returns to health we’ll start to see Texas convert touchdowns inside the 20 at a much higher rate.
If Texas improves in that one regard, the scoreboard will start lighting up in accordance with yardage production while myriad skill players start finding success inside the 20 and beyond.
