The Longhorns hold off the Cowboys to begin conference play
Big 12 Report: Texas takes step in right direction
Sep 26, 2019, 8:52 am
The Longhorns hold off the Cowboys to begin conference play
š¤@TexasFootball put a stop to Oklahoma State's 4-game winning streak agains the Longhorns with a 36-30 win.
ā FOX Sports (@FOXSports) September 22, 2019
Catch all the highlights in our 60' in 60" špic.twitter.com/3fUVfjIpEC
Texas 36 Oklahoma State 30
The Longhorns held off the Oklahoma State Cowboys for their first Big 12 win of the season. The Cowboys held a slight lead for a while but Sam Ehlinger and company were way too much for the Cowboys defense. This is a really solid win for the Longhorns as Oklahoma State has one of the best offenses they will face outside of Oklahoma. It was really important for Ehlinger after the disappointing performances against the Cowboys in the past.
SMU 41 TCU 38
Not the best showing for TCU as they drop a pseudo-rivalry game. They got smoked in the first half and had to play catch up but it wasn't enough. Nobody is sure if TCU is going to figure it out on offense and their defense isn't near as good as it has been on occasion. This is a bad loss for Gary Patterson's bunch.
Sam Ehlinger last night against Oklahoma State was dealing āĀ
ā Cam Mellor (@PFF_Cam) September 22, 2019
On throws outside the numbers:
6-of-8
117 yards
3 TD
0 INT
Even when blitzed:
6-of-8 (also)
49 yards
1 TD
0 INT
Big game from a big player.
Texas QB Sam Ehlinger
Ehlinger balled out against the Cowboys. He was amazing after failing more than a few times against the Cowboys in the past. He looked every bit the leader and playmaker the Horns need him to be.
Iowa State QB Brock Purdy
Finally some offensive excellence from Purdy, even if it was against ULM. He finished with 435 through the air and four touchdowns. The Cyclones have had a disappointing start but what they want to accomplish in the Big 12 is still in front of them. If they get this Brock Purdy they will be a tough out for a lot of teams.
It's Monday, and that means we š to next weekend at @BUFootball's next opponent: Iowa State
ā Baylor Athletics (@BaylorAthletics) September 23, 2019
š» vs. šŖļø
šļø Saturday, September 28
ā° 2:30 P.M.
š McLane Stadium
šŗ ESPN
šļø https://t.co/IpzhY8akpoĀ pic.twitter.com/VVw3KH1Kgk
Iowa State at Baylor
This wouldn't have been the matchup if Texas Tech had a healthy QB. They don't so a refreshed Brock Purdy takes on fellow gunslinger Charlie Brewer in Waco. This has shootout potential and the winner could have the inside track on a top four finish in the conference. We could see Brock and Brewer combine for a ton of yards and touchdowns.
BREAKING: Texas Tech QB Alan Bowman went to the locker room after suffering an injury on the first Red Raider offensive possession of the third quarter. pic.twitter.com/U8Z5S5kqdF
ā Eric Kelly (@EricKellyTV) September 15, 2019
Texas Tech's Quarterback
Alan Bowman is down and whoever starts for Texas Tech has a tall task. Head coach Matt Wells better have them ready to play or the Red Raiders will get embarrassed in Norman. The Sooners can score at will, even with Tech playing slightly better on defense than recent memory. If the Texas Tech chosen starter doesn't play well it will be a long trip back home.
1. Oklahoma
2. Texas
3. Oklahoma State
4. Baylor
5. Kansas State
6. Iowa State
7. West Virginia
8. TCU
9. Kansas
10. Texas Tech
Major League Baseballās regular season is 162 games long. You can think of 18 games as the first inning of the season, 18 times nine equaling 162. While the Astros 8-10 record is not good, itās far from disastrous. Think of it as them being behind 1-0 after the first inning. It is pretty remarkable that they have yet to win consecutive games. Even during last yearās 7-19 stink bomb of a start the Astros twice managed to win two in a row.
The Astrosā offensive woes are plentiful. Oddly enough as impotent as theyāve been, the Astros have yet to be shutout. But in half their games they have scored exactly one or two runs. Basically, most of them stink thus far. Exemptions go to Jose Altuve and Isaac Paredes, but itās not like either of them has been outstanding. Itās still early enough that one big series can dramatically alter the numbers, but the Astros badly need Yordan Alvarez to pick up his production. Yordan enters the weekend batting just .224 with a .695 OPS and just four extra base hits. Yainer rhymes with minor. As in minor leagues, where Diaz belongs at his current level of performance. That is not saying Diaz should be sent down, just that any random AAA catcher called up couldnāt have done much worse to this point. Diaz isnāt hitting Altuveās weight, a woeful .130 with seven hits in 57 at bats. Diaz simply remains too undisciplined at the plate swinging at too many balls. Heās drawn three walks. And now to Christian Walker, who thus far has delivered return on investment for his three year 60 million dollar contract about as strong as the stock marketās performance in Tariff Time. Walkerās .154 batting average and .482 OPS are very Astro Jose Abreu-like. Walkerās23 strikeouts in 65 at bats jump off the page. He has often looked befuddled in the batter's box. Walker is definitely pressing and frustrated, wanting to perform better for his new team. Jeremy Pena goes into the weekend batting .215 and has one hit in 13 at bats with runners in scoring position. Brendan Rodgers, Jake Meyers, and Chas McCormick all have weak stat lines, with little reason to expect quality offensive output from any of them. Cam Smith is at .200 with a yucky .591 OPS but heās obviously a young stud work in progress thrown into the deep end of the pool.
All batting orders are top-heavy, the Astrosā on paper more so than many. As I set forth on one of our Stone Cold āStros podcasts this week, the first inning should be a teamās best offensive inning. Itās the only frame in which a team gets to dictate who comes up from the start with the batters lined up just as the manager slots them. Add to that, the first inning is a good time to get to a starting pitcher before he settles in. The Astros have scored a pitiful three first inning runs in 18 games, and in two of the games they pushed one across in the first, it turned out to be the only Astro run of the game. Improvement needs to come internally from the big league roster. Itās not as if the Astros have a meaningful prospect at AAA Sugar Land who looks ready to help. Entering play Thursday the Space Cowboysā team average was .186. Second base hopeful Brice Matthews is nowhere close, batting .180 and striking out left and right. Outfielder Jacob Melton opened three for 17 following the back injury-delayed start to his season.
As exasperating and boring as the offense has been for so many, grading needs to occur on a curve. So, while the Astrosā team batting average is a joke at .216, know that at close of business Wednesday the entire American League was batting just .232. The American League West-leading Texas Rangers scored eight fewer runs over their first 18 games than did the Astros, though that is skewed by the Astrosā one 14-run outburst against the Angels.
Familiar faces return
This weekend the Astros play host to the San Diego Padres at Daikin Park. The Friars are off to a fabulous start at 15-4. The Padres being here creates a mini reunion as both Martin Maldonado and Yuli Gurriel are on their roster. In a telling fact, Maldonado would have the third-highest batting average on the Astros if on the team with his current numbers. Maldonado is hitting .250 with seven hits in 28 at bats. The last season he finished above .200 was 2020. The only season in his career Maldonado topped .234 was his rookie season with a .266 mark in 2012.
Gurriel was last good in 2021 when he won the American League batting title at .319. He fell off a cliff from there, though perked up to have a fine postseason in the Astrosā 2022 run to World Series title number two. āLa Pinaā is batting .115 with just three hits in 26 at bats. Gurriel may be released soon, and approaching his 41st birthday June 9, that would probably be the end of the line. Short-timer Astro Jason Heyward is also on the Padres, and batting .190.
For Astro-centric conversation, join Brandon Strange, Josh Jordan, and me for the Stone Cold āStros podcast which drops each Monday afternoon, with an additional episode now on Thursday. Click here to catch!
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