Texas 23, Baylor 17: Longhorns survives without Ehlinger at the helm

By Tom Sooter

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It was another ugly victory for Texas football in their first game ranked in the top 10 since 2010, as the Longhorns defeated Baylor 23-17 at home. Despite quarterback Sam Ehlinger’s first quarter injury, Texas grinded out the win over the Bears to move to 6-1.

Here are some of the biggest takeaways.

Red River Hangover

Throughout the year, this Texas squad has not been a first quarter team. In five of seven games this season, their opponents have scored on their first possession of the game. Baylor quarterback Charlie Brewer was surgical on his first drive, as the Bears jumped out to an early 7-3 lead.

For much of the game, however, the Longhorns just looked flat. It was almost an expectation as this game fit the “trap game” mentality to a T. Nonetheless, after being able to rack up a 13-point lead heading into halftime, there just was not much life in the Texas team. They were unable to put the game away in the second half, making a close game against two touchdown underdogs Baylor look ugly.

A look into life without Ehlinger

On Texas’ opening drive, Ehlinger was forced to come out of the game with blood coming out of his right hand. Later in the first half, he came out of the locker room with a bandage on his right hand, but it was announced that he was out for the game with a shoulder injury.

With junior quarterback Shane Buechele in, the Texas offense was sluggish to say the least. Without the running threat of Ehlinger, Baylor keyed on the running backs in the run game, forcing repeated 3rd-and-long situations. Buechele missed too many open receivers, leading to the Longhorns being shut out in the second half. As concerning as it is, it shows more about Ehlinger’s importance than about the Texas offense as a whole. Collin Johnson and Keaontay Ingram still had big days. The Longhorns’ inability to consistently score began and ended at the quarterback position.

Allowing a close finish

There’s a plethora of words that can be used to describe this Texas football season. “Boring” is not one of them. After Baylor pulled within six points late in the fourth quarter, Red River hero Cameron Dicker missed two field goals to make it a two score game. Sophomore quarterback Charlie Brewer and the Bears, down 23-17, had the ball and a chance to win with 1:32 remaining.

Texas nearly had yet another “here we go again” moment, as Brewer methodically led the offense down the field with no timeouts. Luckily for Texas, Baylor simply ran out of clock, and a last second end-zone heave fell incomplete. It was the second week in a row that the Longhorns looked as if they might lose late like they did repeatedly a year ago. But again, they found a way to pull out the victory.

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