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Baylor football: Texas injuries mount prior to Week 9 showdown

By Matthew Bartlett

AUSTIN, TX - OCTOBER 21: Trey Carter #99 of the Oklahoma State Cowboys sacks Sam Ehlinger #11 of the Texas Longhorns and forces a fumble in the second quarter at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium on October 21, 2017 in Austin, Texas. (Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images)
AUSTIN, TX - OCTOBER 21: Trey Carter #99 of the Oklahoma State Cowboys sacks Sam Ehlinger #11 of the Texas Longhorns and forces a fumble in the second quarter at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium on October 21, 2017 in Austin, Texas. (Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images) /
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Baylor football needs all the help they can get as they look for their first win of the season. Will a pair of Texas injuries be enough to give the Bears the edge?

Sam Kahn Jr. of ESPN reported Saturday morning that the Longhorns will be without two starters on their offense against Baylor on Saturday. Neither quarterback Sam Ehlinger or center Zack Shackelford made the trip from Austin to Waco for their Week 9 game against the Bears.

Ehlinger only recently took the starting job from sophomore quarterback Shane Buechele. While Ehlinger is the superior running threat, Buechele has proven himself to be a competent pocket passer. There won’t be much of a downgrade from Ehlinger to Buechele, but it will force the Texas offense to adapt once more.

Perhaps a bigger blow is the loss of  their starting center. Two new faces that aren’t familiar with each other touching the ball on every single play doesn’t bode well for a team that hasn’t been able to get into a rhythm on offense so far this season. The Longhorns have found much more success on the defensive side of the ball.

The Baylor defense has allowed a lot of points. No Big 12 team has scored fewer than 33 points against the Bears this season. Tom Herman‘s team didn’t have that great of an offense to begin with. That means there is a chance, however small, that Baylor will be able to limit the Texas offense and pull of their first win of the season.

Next: Latest 2018 NFL Mock Draft entering Week 9

At 0-7, it’s hard to have much confidence in the Bears at this point. But, playing a beat up Texas team at home is as good a time as ever to scratch across win number one.

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