Bohls, Golden: Is Texas a team of destiny (to have yet another close call)?
Texas seems stuck at No. 7, but the Longhorns certainly haven't been helping themselves with their recent nail-biters over Houston, Kansas State and TCU. Should anything different be expected Saturday night in Ames, Iowa? The state of this team is on our mind this week:
Enough with these close escapes, Texas
1. How would you instill a killer instinct for close games with this Texas team?
Bohls: Wind sprints? More NIL money? OK, Steve Sarkisian constantly brags about his team’s depth, right? Threaten playing time and tell players he’s going to take a more critical eye to performance in the fourth quarter. Actually, Sark should thank Jarrod Hufford for making his incendiary, demeaning comments and providing all the killer instinct Texas should need for a 31-27 win over Iowa State.
Golden: It’s not something you can manufacture as a head coach. It has to be player driven. The fear of blowing a possible CFP chance of a lifetime should be motivation enough for them to keep their collective foot on the gas Saturday night if they get out in front. The Cyclones are good, but Texas is better, even without Jonathon Brooks. It won’t be easy, but the Horns will come away with a 31-24 win.
No Jonathon Brooks. So now what?
2. Post-Jonathon Brooks, how should Texas' running backs workload be distributed?
Bohls: CJ Baxter, who is very explosive, should get the lion’s share of the carries with two-thirds of the rushing attempts. Let Jaydon Blue and Keilan Robinson divvy up the other third.
Golden: CJ Baxter has had some injury problems in his early career, but he has to be ready to carry the pill 15 to 20 times the rest of the way. Robinson, if healthy, should give up one of his special teams gigs for five to eight carries, about the same workload I expect from Blue. And let’s not forget Savion Red, who might be in line for more wildcat duty in short yardage, though I think Sarkisian should guard against overusing something that hasn’t really dazzled lately.
Is it too early to think about the Big 12 title game?
3. If you're Texas, whom would you least want to have to play in Arlington?
Bohls: Kansas State. The Wildcats are the toughest mentally and physically and the most balanced team outside of Texas. I wouldn’t mind playing Oklahoma State if I were Sarkisian because Mike Gundy has a run-centric team with Ollie Gordon II, which plays into Texas’ defensive strength. Oklahoma would be OK as an opponent because the Longhorns could right a wrong and eliminate their earlier loss to the Sooners as a negative in front of the CFP selection committee, but rivalry games are screwy.
Golden: Oklahoma. The team that beat Texas in October hasn't been as impressive lately, but the Sooners present some matchup problems for Texas. That includes the maneuverability of quarterback Dillon Gabriel, who put up nearly 400 yards of offense, including 113 rushing. It would be Big 12 Commissioner Brett Yormark’s greatest nightmare come to life, but it’s the one conference matchup I’d pay to see. Sorry, Brett.
Is the NFL an option for Steve Sarkisian?
4. Could you ever see Steve Sarkisian bolt for the NFL?
Bohls: Sure. He’s been there before for three seasons with the then-Oakland Raiders and Atlanta Falcons. He is very organized and professional in his approach, and that personality would have a lot of appeal to NFL owners, especially Arthur Blanks in Atlanta, where he was an offensive coordinator for two seasons.
Golden: He’s great with these college kids, but Sarkisian has the jaw set of an NFL head coach. With the number of NFL offenses that have started to adopt certain college concepts such as zone reads and run-pass options, Sarkisian has a good chance of being successful at that level — that is, if he decides to leave Texas.
College Station remains a coaching, recruiting hotspot
5. Just how good is the Texas A&M job, anyway, and whom would you hire as head coach?
Bohls: It’s as good as they come with apparently unlimited money, among the best facilities in college football and getting even better, excellent proximity to the recruiting hotbeds in Houston and Dallas, and a roster already chock full of talent with most of the 18 ESPN top 100 players from the 2022 recruiting class alone. I’d ask Dabo Swinney and Dan Campbell, then hire former Aggies defensive coordinator and Duke head coach Mike Elko or Jeff Traylor, who could be the second coming of R.C. Slocum.
Golden: There is talent in College Station. Quarterback Conner Weigman can get it done when healthy, and wideout Evan Stewart is a star in the making. Jimbo Fisher recruited well, so there are good players for the next coach. I like Elko, who had it rolling at Duke until his quarterback got hurt. He knows those College Station streets and wouldn’t command a monster salary.
Maybe the Aggies need to look west
6. Why would a Dan Lanning or a Kalen DeBoer be interested in the Aggies?
Bohls: See above. Both work in the Pacific Northwest and can’t attract the elite talent from the South. That would be the primary appeal for the Texas A&M job. I think both will stay put until they leave for even more high-profile jobs. I could see either succeeding Nick Saban at Alabama someday.
Golden: Do-re-mi money for starters. The Aggies gave Jimbo Fort Knox, plus the state has blue-chip athletes falling from the sky. Oregon and Washington will be venturing to the Big Ten next season, and if anything, any A&M interest in those two will add up to a massive raise. I don’t see either taking this job, though.
Watch out this weekend, Huskies and Wildcats
7. Pick your upset of the week.
Bohls: Behind Damien Martinez’s tough running and the Huskies’ 122nd-ranked pass defense, Oregon State bops Washington 35-32.
Golden: Utah takes out No. 17 Arizona on the road.
A team the nation can get behind?
8. Is Michigan "America's Team," as Jim Harbaugh said?
Bohls: Uh, no. It’s not even South America’s or Central America’s Team. I assume it’s Michigan’s team, if the majority of Michiganders are blind to the Wolverines’ excesses. Coach Haughty is out of control and deserved worse than a three-game suspension.
Golden: Sure, if America is a country full of dishonest con men disguised as head coaches. The fact that Michigan went from vociferous denials of cheating to accepting the Big Ten’s three-game suspension in just two days points to Harbaugh’s guilt. The sloths at the NCAA won’t act on this, Michigan will get away with it, and Harbaugh will leave for an NFL job one step ahead of the posse. It’s the Pete Carroll playbook all over again.
Throwing in college, eyeing the pros
9. Which current starting college quarterback will have the best NFL career?
Bohls: I’d go with LSU’s Jayden Daniels. He’s by far the most explosive runner in the game, with the rapidly emerging Jalen Milroe second. But Daniels is the better passer by a mile and has made 27 “big-time throws” this season, the most of any quarterback, according to Pro Football Focus.
Golden: Southern Cal’s Caleb Williams is a better passing version of Baltimore’s Lamar Jackson. He makes all the throws and moves around great. While I enjoy Oregon’s Bo Nix and Washington’s Michael Penix Jr., Williams has the most complete bag.
The proper punishment for those who cannot finish
10. What would your punishment be for a player who absent-mindedly dropped the ball on the 1-yard line before scoring?
Bohls: Make him carry the football everywhere he goes, from the cafeteria to the movies to the showers, to reinforce the importance of ball security and, well, common sense. I’d also have him write on the blackboard 1,000 times, “I will not drop the ball before I reach the end zone.” Such mistakes are unacceptable.
Golden: I would make him run 20 gassers from the back of one end zone to the back of the other end zone with a football under his arm right after practice, when he’s exhausted. Something tells me that would eliminate any chance of him ever prematurely celebrating again. It’s happened far too often. The SportsCenter Top 10 thirst is real with these players.
This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Texas football team hurting itself with inability to hold onto leads
