For the second week in a row, Texas had over 400 yards rushing in their easy 52-20 win over Texas Tech today. Granted, the Longhorns’ last two games -- against Kansas a week ago and the Red Raiders today -- were against two of some of the worst defenses against the rush statistically speaking (Kansas is 118; TTU 110), but racking up over 400 yards on anybody is impressive.
And the Longhorns did it without freshman running back sensation Malcolm Brown. Fellow freshman Joe Bergeron, who had just 87 yards in four of the first six games this season, has been phenomenal the past two weeks with 327 yards and five touchdowns, including 191 yards today. Senior Fozzy Whittaker added 83 yards and two touchdowns.
Whether or not Texas will be able to even come close to those kind of numbers on the ground for the rest of the season -- their four remaining opponents in Mizzou, K-State, Texas A&M and Baylor are significantly better in run defense -- will be interesting to see, but for now, Texas has found their mojo pounding the rock.
That’s going to give this young offense a lot of confidence as they continue to learn Bryan Harsin‘s game plan. Freshman quarterback David Ash has been good-not-great, so being able to take the pressure off of him has really helped as he continues to develop.
And, hey, the Longhorns are a quiet 6-2, bowl eligible again and lookin’ purdy good. Texas Tech and Kansas aren’t exactly elite competition -- Kansas doesn’t have a conference win and Texas Tech is severely bipolar -- but Mack Brown will absolutely take the W’s as he continues to rebuild this team after the 2010 fiasco.
That’s started with a much-improved ground game.
