State of the Program – Longhorns’ journey to near the top has been like climbing a mountain
On the latest video episode of On Texas Football’s State of the Program, Inside Texas’s Bobby Burton and Eric Nahlin discuss the Longhorns’ win over Iowa State, the struggle that Texas has faced to get to the cusp of the Big 12 Championship game and the College Football Playoff and this week’s key game against Texas Tech on Black Friday.
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Nahlin, the publisher of InsideTexas.com, likens Texas’ journey to near the top of the Big 12 heap to that of a mountain climber, who has battles and setbacks along the way.
“The season has been a lot like these mountain climbers, you know, it’s always a struggle,” Nahlin said. “The whole thing is a struggle. There’s no easy the approach. There are 21 days of hiking, and then climatizing at 17,000 feet is tough. Then you’re up at 24,000 feet and then you’re in the death zone at the very end, the last 1,000 feet or so. It’s always a struggle, but then you get to the top and it’s all worth it.
“So this season has not been easy, it hasn’t been a nice little leisurely hike at all. So I think so far Texas is surviving. They might be dumping oxygen canisters left and right, and they might have lost a couple of toes along the way but so far they’re doing they’ve doing well to hold on.”
Nahlin said Texas has to be ready for anything against Texas Tech, with the two teams playing for the final time as members of the Big 12 Conference.
“It’s unfathomable to me that Texas can lose this game just with everything that’s on the line and I think the taste left in their mouth after the game last year,” Nahlin said. “They’ve got to be ready for [Texas Tech coach] Joey McGuire to really let it all hang out.
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“You know Joey is going to be going for it on fourth down every chance he gets. He’s gonna be going up-tempo and he’s gonna throw the ball around. Texas has to be ready for that, but you know, the Longhorns have to take the game to him and score early and push the pace.”
Part of the reason the Longhorns are where they are is the continued consistency of quarterback Quinn Ewers, who has rediscovered his footing after missing two games with a shoulder injury.
“Ewers has looked good and I think that’s just part of the maturation process for him,” Nahlin said. “He doesn’t look like a guy that should be heading off to the NFL yet to me, despite the traits, but I think it is starting to slow down for him and we’ve seen a lot of progress for throughout this year.”
Ewers has been at his best at the end of games, completing 80 percent of his passes in the fourth quarter and not being intercepted in the second half this year.
Go check out the video in its entirety for more information.
