Texas Football: Longhorns offense moving backwards against Pokes (Video)

Texas football is locked in a defensive struggle with Oklahoma State. The Cowboys have the Longhorn offense literally moving backwards.

Tom Herman is still looking for his first statement win as the head coach at Texas. He’s had his chances against some big names, but fallen just short against USC and Oklahoma. In Week 8 the Longhorns square off with No. 10 Oklahoma State. While the Cowboys might not have a name as big as the Trojans or the Sooners, a top 10 victory would be a tremendous step forward for Herman and his staff.

If they’re going to pull off the upset they’re going to have to remember which way is up. Literally. The two teams combined for two touchdowns in a first half that featured nine punts and not much fireworks. For a conference that is well-known for its big plays and high scores, this one has turned into a defensive struggle.

It wasn’t defense, however, that forced the Longhorns into their biggest blunder of the day. That error was self-inflicted. On second-and-10 in the second quarter Oklahoma State 27-yard line Texas quarterback Sam Ehlinger was sacked by Trey Carter. Rather than take the sack on second down and live to fight another day, Ehlinger let the football slip out of his hands. He was able to chase it down and recover the ball, but not before it had bounced all the way back to the Texas 39-yard line.

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That set up a third-and-44 and unsurprisingly a punt. If Ehlinger hits the dirt and hangs on to the football the Longhorns can kick the go-ahead field goal. Instead they left points on the field, and that’s not something to be in the habit of doing against explosive offenses like Oklahoma State.