STILLWATER – There are so many wives tales in college football and one I heard for the first time on Tuesday is the one that the majority of unbeaten teams that lose a game come back and lose at least one more before they win a game. I can guarantee that little time will be spent fretting about that “voo-doo” thinking this week in Oklahoma State’s Boone Pickens Stadium West End Zone. The time will be spent figuring out how to stop Texas running back Bijan Robinson and the rest of a talented Longhorns offense and then how to attack the Texas defense. Even more precise how to crank up the Oklahoma State rushing attack. Monday night there was a Deondre Jackson mention on the Mike Gundy Radio Show.
You see options are being considered.
There is no option with this. Oklahoma State played a light box and TCU took advantage rushing for over 150-yards in the second half and posting a total of 224-yards, the most by any Cowboys opponent this season by 76-yards. Not a great warm-up for welcoming Robinson, who his own coach Steve Sarkisian compared him to USC Heisman Trophy winner Reggie Bush on Monday.
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Robinson rushed for 135-yards on 21 carries last season vs. Oklahoma State.
"Five (Bijan Robinson) is a good player and the other back (Roschon Johnson) they put in there is a good player,” Oklahoma State head coach Mike Gundy said. “The quarterback obviously flips it around pretty good. Eight (Xavier Worthy) is dynamic, he is a threat wherever he is. Zero (Ja'Tavion Sanders) is a unique player for them, a hybrid tight end. They use him in the blocking game some and he runs and plays like a wide out, so they use him doing some different things. He's a good player."
Then the scouting report starts to get painful in a personal and recruiting way.
“You know, the left tackle they have, (Kelvin Banks Jr.), the one we had committed here for a long time, good news is he won’t be here but three years. He’ll be gone. But he’s a good player. So, they look kind of like what they have. They’re always going to have a couple wideouts that can burn 4.4 (40-yard dash). They’ve always had five-star running backs and this quarterback throws it around pretty good.”
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Texas defense gained momentum shutting out a weak Oklahoma offense.
Texas in conference play and that includes a 49-0 over a mortally wounded and inept Oklahoma team is right behind the Cowboys in scoring offense at 36.25 per game and total offense of 455.5-yards to lead the Big 12. They are running for 187-yards a game. Defensively, they lead the Big 12 giving up just 19.5 points a game and 347.75-yards a game.
"They're the same every year. They're big up front,” Gundy said, kind of sounding like a recording from years past. “They don't play with small guys, they don't play with undersized guys. All of their linebackers are thick and can run. They are in a challenging mode this year more than they were last year. They're playing more man than they were last year. They are playing with NFL guys on defense, it's the same thing they've always done."
Football Scoop
Seeing Gary Patterson in burnt orange instead of purple is more than a little strange.
One difference and this could be huge. Last week TCU used a heavy dose of man plus coverage and the Cowboys receivers struggled. Officials are letting them play in the secondary and the physicality is ramped up from both sides. Maybe seeing more zone would help. Texas had been balanced in coverage in the past, but with former TCU head coach Gary Patterson as the special assistant to the head coach and a senior defensive analyst, the Longhorns are playing a lot of 4-2-5, the scheme Patterson created and in the secondary a lot of quarters or cover four.
“Sure, he’s very involved,” Gundy said when asked about seeing Patterson’s influence on the Texas D. “I mean, I’m not in any of their meetings. I don’t know any of them, I just know that it looks that way to me.”
Me too. Oklahoma State, a week after playing TCU just might welcome playing against some old fashioned TCU defense.
