Texas Longhorns

STILLWATER, Okla. -- Texas coach Mack Brown was curious to see how his team reacted against a solid Big 12 team. In the first half, the answers were mixed. Offensively Texas was solid. Defensively the struggles from Ole Miss continued.

Stat of the half: After scoring a combined 35 points in the first quarter, all these two teams could only manage three points in the second quarter. Oklahoma State clearly struggles in second quarters. The Cowboys failed to score against Arizona in that loss and only scored three against Texas. This was the first time that Texas has failed to score in the second quarter.

Player of the half: Oklahoma State running back Joseph Randle has devastated Texas in the run game. The junior took his first handoff and went 69 yards for a touchdown. Randle had 103 yards in the first quarter and continued to carve up Texas in the second, finishing with 147 yards and a touchdown. Oklahoma State had 168 rushing yards in the first half.

What's working for Texas: David Ash has continued to play with poise. The sophomore has directed two scoring drives and been accurate on most of his downfield passes. Ash, who has two touchdown passes, should have had another, but a 40-yard toss was dropped by Mike Davis in the end zone.

What's not working for Texas: The Longhorns are once again failing to tackle. Both of Oklahoma State's first half touchdowns came as a result of missed tackles by safety Adrian Phillips. The first was the 69-yard run by Randle. Phillips had Randle wrapped up at the 48, released hum and watch him run the next 52 yards. On the next touchdown, Phillips hit receiver Josh Stewart at the 23 but bounced off, getting injured on the play. Stewart scooted into the end zone from there.

What Texas needs to do to stay ahead: Continue to get a rotation of fresh players in on defense. The Longhorns are down four potential starters on that side of the ball. Defensive tackle Brandon Moore (virus) and linebacker Jordan Hicks (hip) did not make the trip. Phillips was hurt in the game. Defensive tackle Desmond Jackson also was hurt. Texas has had to use true freshman Malcom Brown at defensive tackle and little-used junior Kyle Kreigel.

AUSTIN, Texas -- Justin Blackmon isn’t walking through that door. Dez Bryant isn’t walking through that door. But that doesn’t mean Oklahoma State’s receiving corps is lacking the kind of talent necessary to test Texas’ touted secondary.

After a week of evaluating what the Cowboys' passing attack has to offer in the face of losing Blackmon and quarterback Brandon Weeden, Texas secondary coach Duane Akina sees plenty of challenges.

“There’s not a Dez or a Blackmon, but the staff has done a great job, I think, of utilizing their weapons and their running backs,” Akina said. “It’s still a well-conceived system. Without Dez or Blackmon, it has not hurt their offensive numbers.”

The Cowboys’ top two wideouts this season are inside receivers. Blake Jackson, a junior college transfer, leads the team with 217 yards and a touchdown on 12 catches. At 6-foot-3 and 235 pounds, he provides some matchup challenges.

Then there’s the receiver who will likely be J.W. Walsh’s favorite target. Josh Stewart, Walsh’s go-to receiver during their high school days at Denton (Texas) Guyer, leads OSU in receptions with 19, good for 208 yards and two scores.

And don't forget the big guy on the outside who takes Blackmon’s place, Tracy Moore. The senior has 1,195 career receiving yards and 12 career touchdowns.

(Read full post)

David Ubben says Baylor QB Nick Florence, OSU WR Josh Stewart and Texas RB Joe Bergeron are three players to watch in the Big 12 this year

Everybody, the Kentucky Derby is tomorrow!

Sorry, I can't do it. I really can't stand horse racing. Alas, our boys on the Big Ten blog handicapped the league title race, and for those of you who do like horse racing, here's how I'd slot the Big 12 if all 10 teams were making the nervous walk to the track right now.

We'll take it from the top.

Oklahoma: 8-to-1 odds

As I've written before, this thing is wide open, and nobody's going to walk into the 2012 season feeling too confident about their chances. That said, Oklahoma has the closest thing to a truly complete team. The Sooners have an experienced quarterback with lots of weapons around him at the skill positions, along with a solid offensive line. OU's defense should be one of the league's best, and the Sooners have been in this position plenty of times. They are a narrow favorite in a loaded Big 12, but the Sooners have enough upside to sneak into the national title game, too.

Kansas State: 10-to-1

Deep down, I don't think I truly believe Kansas State is the Big 12's second-best team (WVU), but I do believe in Bill Snyder, and the Wildcats have very, very few variables. That's a far cry from the two new teams in the league, who both have huge questions on defense and bigger questions about their ability to handle a more difficult schedule. That considered, there's no doubt in my mind Kansas State has the second-best chance to take home the league title. Kansas State is the little engine that could -- that keeps on chugging, seemingly oblivious to the spread offenses all around it.

West Virginia: 12-to-1

Speaking of high-powered offenses, West Virginia might well have the best in the entire Big 12. It's loaded at receiver and running back, and Geno Smith might be the best quarterback in the league. He'll get a chance to prove it this fall. In the meantime, WVU's got to make sure its defense is ready to give its offense a chance to outscore folks across the Big 12.

TCU: 15-to-1

TCU has plenty of question marks on a depleted defense without projected starters, but its offense will be as good as any in the Big 12. The Horned Frogs still can't answer their biggest question -- How will they handle the jump from non-AQ to a major conference? -- until they actually do it. TCU's floor seems pretty high, but can it actually win the Big 12 in its first season?

Texas: 15-to-1

Texas has the most upside of any team in the Big 12, but 2012 seems more likely as a set up for a title run in 2013. It's hard to see Texas running the table or going 11-1, but if the top of the league gets muddled and 9-3 is good enough to win the league? These Longhorns will be physical mudders. Pray for losses raining down on everybody, UT fans. There's nobody in the Big 12 Texas can't beat, but does it have enough offense to beat them all?

Oklahoma State: 20-to-1

Oklahoma State's defense, an underrated unit in 2011, will be much better, and its running backs will be some of the best in the league. Emerging weapons like Josh Stewart, Blake Jackson and Charlie Moore will make names for themselves in 2012, but how far can OSU really get with a true freshman at quarterback? Look out for OSU and Texas in 2013, though.

Baylor: 45-to-1

Aaaaand here's your big drop-off from the legitimate Big 12 title contenders. Baylor's a good team. It might even be a borderline top 25 team. But the Big 12 is so, so stacked at the top. You don't win 10 games, lose a Heisman winner, the Big 12's leading rusher and receiver, and then go win the Big 12. I'd be pretty surprised if Baylor didn't make a bowl game, though.

Texas Tech: 55-to-1

Tech wants to prove it's back, but find me a spot where Tech is better than Baylor. The quarterbacks are close, and Seth Doege's been better when he's played, but Nick Florence is due for a big year at Baylor. Tech's focus for now needs to be staying healthy and getting back into bowl games, not fighting for a Big 12 title.

Iowa State: 75-to-1

Iowa State might sneak into a bowl game again, too. They're good enough. This is still a team that's come pretty close to maxing out its talent the past few seasons and won seven games twice. That's legitimately impressive, but not anything close to Big 12 title contention. This season's team should be solid, though. The battle between Baylor, Tech and Iowa State to grab the last bowl bid or two is going to be really heated.

Kansas: 125-to-1

Charlie Weis has made some nice moves to get KU moving in the right direction, but if the Jayhawks go from 2-10 to Big 12 champs, I'll get a three-foot tattoo of a Jayhawk on my chest. That's a promise.

The regular season is over, but with the end of any season, you can't help but look to the future. In college football, that means youth, i.e. freshmen.

There were plenty of big talents playing their first season in the Big 12 this year, and here were the best of the bunch.

It should come as no surprise that the bulk of the young talent plays offense, assuring that the Big 12's reputation as an offense-driven league looks like it'll remain a constant.

Malcolm Brown, RB, Texas: The Longhorns were tentative to let Brown start early in the season, but he emerged as the team's top back and into the starting slot, finishing the season as the team's leading rusher, at 707 yards and five touchdowns.

Tyler Lockett, WR/KR, Kansas State: Lockett became one of K-State's best playmakers late in the year, and the Big 12's best kick returner. He returned two kicks for scores and averaged over 35 yards per return, catching 18 passes for 246 yards and three scores. No small accomplishment in the Wildcats' run-heavy offense.

Jaxon Shipley, WR, Texas: Shipley was hampered by a knee injury for much of the season, but he was the Longhorns most reliable receiver, leading the team with three touchdown catches. He was narrowly edged for the team lead in catches (40) and receiving yards (593).

Jared Barnett, QB, Iowa State: Barnett's best known for playing an unbelievable game against Oklahoma State. He took over for Steele Jantz in midseason and led the Cyclones from 3-4 to 6-4 and a bowl berth, with a blowout win over Texas Tech and dramatic wins over OSU and Kansas. He threw for 376 yards and three scores against OSU and ran 84 more yards.

Quandre Diggs, CB, Texas: Diggs has star written all over him. Don't be surprised if he's the Big 12's best defensive back next year. He showed flashes in the spring game after enrolling early, and started nine games for Texas as a true freshman. A rare feat in most years, especially for the defense. He led the team with three interceptions forced two fumbles with 43 tackles and 13 pass breakups. Unbelievable freshman year for the Horn.

Darrian Miller, RB, Kansas: Miller's got some great wiggle to his running style as one of the league's most elusive backs, and ran for 559 yards and four scores on just 136 yards.

Blake Dees, LB, Texas Tech: Dees looked like a potential starter in spring practice and showed up once fall came for the Red Raiders. Despite an ankle injury that basically erased the second half of his season, he made 32 tackles with four tackles for loss and two forced fumbles.

Tony Pierson, RB, Kansas: Memo to Charlie Weis: You've got a heck of a backfield, better use it. Pierson, Miller and James Sims are all solid for the Jayhawks, and Pierson might have as much upside as any of them. He's an electrifying player like Miller, but with more size and averaged over 5.5 yards on his 71 carries, scoring three times. Here's guessing the scoring numbers and touches go up next year.

Josh Stewart, WR, Oklahoma State: Stewart was a nice piece of a powerful OSU offense and showed plenty of promise as a kick returner, too, averaging better than 20 yards on his 11 returns. He caught 19 balls for 291 yards and two scores.

Blake Bell, QB, Oklahoma: Bell redshirted before showing up midseason in the valuable BellDozer formation that OU came up with after Dominique Whaley went down with a fractured ankle. He scored an unbelievable 10 touchdowns on 34 carries, but the throwing thing could use some work. In four attempts, he completed as many passes to the other team (1) as his own.