On Texas Football’s Lunch with the Coach: Short-yardage issues have to be fixed, Whittington has to get his touches
On the latest video edition of the season of On Texas Football’s Lunch with the Coach, Inside Texas’ Bobby Burton and former state championship-winning coach Bryan Erwin discuss the Longhorns’ win over TCU last week, how Texas can avoid its recent close calls and who the Longhorns need to touch the ball more.
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Lunch with the Coach is sponsored by Laura Baker.
Erwin, who coached La Marque to two titles after being a graduate assistant for Texas in the 1980s, said Texas’ struggles in third- and fourth-down-and-short situations is what’s allowing opponents to stay in games.
“It is a mix of all things because it’s a team sport,” Erwin said. “And it’s all three phases. If the offense doesn’t get it done then we expect the defense to come out and get the stop and get it done. But the main root cause is our lack of ability and production on third and fourth down. Our short yardage offense is on the verge of atrocious.
“When you’re kicking field goals, the opponent’s gonna have a chance to make a comeback. And when you’re punting the opponent is gonna have a chance. It’s the little bitty things that the championship ballclubs do… if it’s third and nine inches, you’re getting it.”
Both experts agree that Jordan Whittington’s effort play to run down and force a fumble from a TCU defensive back who intercepted a Quinn Ewers pass is indicative of how the wide receivers are leading the offense, and the team.
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“I wrote on Sunday that I thought that was part of what is leading this team right now,” Burton opined. “The defensive line on the defense are the leaders of the team and the wide receiver group are the leaders of the team on offense.”
Erwin said that Whittington needs to touch the ball more.
“I believe Whittington needs to touch the ball six to eight times a game,” Erwin said. “He’s not getting it right now. We’ve got to get the ball in his hands somehow, whether it’s a bubble screen or a hitch screen, out wide, give him the ball in the backfield, hand it off to him. Or put him in the backfield releasing for some choice or option routes. Just think the guy can do things with the ball in his hands.
“Whittington is a captain. He is a leader. He’s the heartbeat of what we’re all about in this transition and in the culture that Sark’s building. I mean, he’s the No. 1 guy in line as far as being a guy that we’re gonna think one day was responsible for turning this thing around.”
Go check out the rest of the video for plenty of additional insights from Bobby and the coach.
