The Reheat: In Return to Form, Texas Cooks the Florida Gators

Welcome to The Reheat, a weekly recap of the previous day’s game, just popped out of the microwave.

Well, that sure felt good.

And since I took my five-year-old to the Florida game, feelings and memories are all I have to focus on during this edition of The Reheat. I was able to take in the result of each play, but analyze it for a deeper narrative while cleaning up spills, answering a barrage of questions, or heading to the concession stand for the next round of snacks? No chance. So, we have vibes today only.

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First, Billy Napier’s squad might have had an injury list almost as long as one of Urban Meyer’s Florida team’s rap sheets, and this sure wasn’t Tim Tebow’s Gators, but it was still nice to watch Texas bludgeon an opponent whose name, logo, and colors you associate with the allure of the Longhorns’ new conference. Sorry, Vanderbilt and Mississippi State, but they’re not exactly what I think of as SEC bluebloods.

Second, because of DJ Lagway’s injury and the Texas defense’s enormously high floor, the result of this game was decided before it even started. But what type of game it ended up being hinged on the offense’s performance.

The first drive of the game sputtered after two negative plays and a Bert Auburn missed field goal. The second drive looked rough when Quinn Ewers missed Isaiah Bond for a touchdown on first down and nearly threw an interception on second down. But, a Ewers scramble on third down gave Texas a fourth and short from its own 24. Riverboat Steve Sarkisian left the offense on the field and trusted his players, as Joe Cook excellently wrote about for Inside Texas.

If Texas doesn’t convert, then it might have been one of those games under Sark. You know the type, where the Longhorns win, but you still want to scream into your pillow that night before you fall asleep. The Wyoming game in 2023 became a frustrating affair because Texas didn’t pick up an early fourth down. But when Jerrick Gibson and the offensive line got a push and Texas did convert, it opened the floodgates for it to be a different game, one that unleashed hell on Florida and reminded Longhorn fans of who this team really is. Instead of resembling those frustrating outings that still resulted in wins like Wyoming, yesterday reminded me of the Texas Tech whipping in 2021, where a Bijan Robinson touchdown on fourth down paved the road to a 70-point shellacking of the Red Raiders.

The rest of the day was textbook complementary football again, finally. The fourth-down conversion was followed by the explosive Isaiah Bond reverse and Matthew Golden touchdown, which led to the Anthony Hill forced fumble that Trey Moore picked up followed by easy conversion to Gunnar Helm who skipped into the end zone. Then there was the 28-point flurry of offense set up by the defense and special teams to end the second quarter and start the third. It was Texas’ best game of the season, because Sark’s decision to go for it on fourth down early proved he wasn’t willing to accept anything less.

Fire The Cannon for: Quinn Ewers and his five-touchdown performance. Ewers looked comfortable and confident. He stepped up into the pocket multiple times and delivered dimes. He threw different types of balls: short passes that gave receivers room to run, intermediate lasers, and deep shots (even if they weren’t always caught). He wasn’t wide-eyed and happy footed like against Georgia, he was deliberate and cocky like he showed against Michigan, equipped with A+ celebrations to boot. He looked like early-season Quinn, like someone who was believed in and in turn was determined to fight off the haters and curses that Dr. Pepper might try and bring.

Horns Up on Offense for: Isaiah Bond and Matthew Golden. The Alabama and Houston transfers are incredible difference-makers.

Horns Up on Defense for: Trey Moore. The touted UTSA transfer has had a quiet season but had a huge game and made plays all over the field as he consistently abused Florida’s right tackle. Though Moore was robbed of his first sack because quarterback Aiden Warner fell forward for a gain of about an inch, yesterday still showed he is primed for a big stretch run.

Bevo’s Bucket for: Drops.

Schadenfreude of the Week: I’m not going to say anything about the Sooners other than go watch the end of their game against Missouri and then spend some time on OU message boards if you want a good laugh. But how about ten-year coaching contracts? Jimbo Fisher is out to pasture already, and Lincoln Riley in Los Angeles is looking more overcooked than his charred Easter brisket. But what about LSU’s southern belle Brian Kelly? My word, he’s looking like the cheese has done fallen off his cracker.

This Piping Hot Take Burned the Roof of My Mouth: Okay I will say something about those in crimson to the north. Speaking of the Sooners — they will take a page out of A&M’s book and fire Venables after a huge extension when he’s owed a massive buyout. They’ll make a run at Indiana’s Curt Cignetti and fail, they’ll make a run at South Carolina’s Shane Beamer and fail, they’ll make a run at Ole Miss’s Lane Kiffin and fail, then they’ll settle on our old friend Matt Campbell in Ames, who will fit as well into the SEC as I would’ve at BYU.

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Hype Train Level: Outside of the Georgia game and sloppiness against Vanderbilt, this team has beat every team they’ve played like it stole something from them. This is who this team is and it might take “the committee” and the pundits of the world some time to realize that again, but once they do it will be too late. The train will have left the damn station.