College Football: Rewatching Week 1 of an exciting 2009 season
No. 2 Texas vs. ULM
Unfortunately for the Warhawks, this game was over the minute this ball hit the tee. ULM received the ball to start the first half, hoping to start on a positive note. On the second play of the game, the center flew the ball over the head of Warhawk quarterback Trey Revell. Texas scored a touchdown on the following drive to go up 7-0 and never looked back.
Despite the dominant win for the Longhorns, it was still a sloppy game that saw the offense turn the ball over three different times. The first came on a first-half fumble from Vondrell McGee while Texas was driving. The ball rolled all the way back into ULM territory and UT quarterback Colt McCoy tried to make a play to bring down the defender. Instead, he took a hard block into the shoulder. Hopefully, throughout the rest of the season, McCoy is able to protect his shoulder and not put himself in danger.
When the Texas offense was not turning it over though, they were nearly unstoppable. McCoy had an excellent day, once again showing off his accuracy. Going 21-29, the senior had 317 yards with two touchdowns and an interception. Per usual, his connection with best friend/wide receiver Jordan Shipley was on point, connecting eight times for 180 yards. The duo found each other on a beautiful touchdown down the right sideline, with McCoy hitting Shipley in stride for a 78-yard touchdown.
Running back Cody Johnson did most of the scoring for the Longhorns, having three different one-yard touchdown runs. Vondrell McGee led the way statistically with 70 yards, but he also coughed up the ball twice. Coming off a year where McCoy led the team in rushing, Texas was looking for a group of running backs to step up and take the pressure off the quarterback. A mix of the speed of McGee, the power of Johnson, and mixing in Tre’ Newton, and the Texas run game should be in better hands.
ULM struggled all day, never being able to keep any momentum they accumulated. Revell could not find his receivers, struggling to consistently complete passes. It got bad enough to where the Warhawks put wide receiver Darrell McNeil in a quarterback to run some option.
Texas looked like men among the boys, punishing ULM players all night. Despite a few flaws, the 56-20 win was a dominant win for the Longhorns. The No. 2 team in the country starts the season out with a victory, looking to make it all the way to the national championship.
Key Stat
Texas: Five forced fumbles, recovering two.
Key Play
On the second play of the game, ULM turned the ball over with Sam Acho snatching a fumble out of the hands of Trey Revell.