Mack Brown usually tries to put a positive spin on most problems.
But this week, the Longhorns coach didn't even try when he was asked about the recent tail-off in production of his tailbacks.
According to Brown, the running game "stunk"
in a 39-33 loss to Texas Tech.
"We were poor,"
he said.
Texas takes on Baylor today at Royal-Memorial Stadium, and the Bears could be the perfect tonic for an ailing running game.
The Bears are 72nd nationally in rush defense, allowing 149 yards a game. Three Baylor opponents have gained more than 200 on the ground.
But will the Longhorn runners be able to perform at 100 percent against the Bears?
Brown, who rarely mentions injuries, revealed this week that starting running back Chris Ogbonnaya had sprained an ankle against Missouri and wasn't fully healed by the Texas Tech game, the Longhorns' lone loss.
Ogbonnaya didn't want to use his puffy left ankle as an excuse.
"I'm 100 percent, I think I'm fine,"
said Ogbonnaya, dismissing talk of an injury, although his left ankle still was swollen.
Ogbonnaya, who has been Texas starter at tailback for the past month, gained just 38 rushing yards on 17 carries the past two Saturdays. He'd also been averaging nearly six catches per game in Big 12 Conference play. Yet against Tech, Ogbonnaya caught three. In the team's first loss of the season, the Longhorns ground out only 80 yards. Of that total, 47 came on their final drive, when the Longhorns took a brief, 33-32 lead.
For the Longhorns' run game, the first play of the game — a safety off of a running play — set the tone.
Then, with no running game to help negate some of the pressure, quarterback Colt McCoy was sacked four times.
"The running game was a disappointment,"
said offensive coordinator Greg Davis.
How disappointing? It was only the fifth time in nearly six seasons that the Longhorns running game failed to crack 100 yards. Texas won only two of the five.
The performance of the Longhorn runners against Tech shouldn't have been that big of a surprise. The week before, Texas gained 113 in a 28-24 victory over Oklahoma State. But with McCoy completing more than 90 percent of his passes against the Cowboys, the lack of a running game was largely ignored.
By its final offensive drive in Lubbock, Texas was using Vondrell McGee and Fozzy Whittaker in place of Ogbonnaya. McGee scored the touchdown, while Whittaker reeled off a 21-yarder to put the Longhorns in Tech territory.
The coaches say Whittaker, a redshirt freshman who has appeared in just two games, is now healthy after suffering minor sprains to both knees in August and early September.
Davis said Whittaker also is as adept at catching and picking up the blitz as McGee and Ogbonnaya.
Davis also recalled a conversation he had with McCoy while the two were watching film of the Tech game. McCoy told Davis he finally understood how much of a symbiotic relationship the running game has on pass protection.
Saturday's game was the fourth time under McCoy that the rushing game failed to reach 100. Coincidentally, it also proved to be McCoy's worst game of the year. He completed 59 percent of his passes, including seven drops. He had been completing more than 80 percent pre-Tech.
"We have got to get the running game going better,"
said McCoy, whose 428 yards rushing leads the team. "Being able to run the ball is so important."
