Texas Wins If

The Longhorns will take on TCU Friday in a battle for bowl-eligibility. Both teams are coming off losses and have seen their fair share of struggles over the month.

TCU is 1-3 over its past four games, and its struggles have stemmed from its inability to find consistency on offense.  Two weeks ago, the Horned Frogs exploded for 62 points in a blowout win over Baylor. However, in its three losses, TCU has averaged a paltry 16 points per game.

In all three of the losses, junior quarterback Kenny Hill failed to pass for over 200 hundred yards, and threw only two touchdowns to four interceptions during the span.

And when Hill has struggled, the Horned Frogs have failed to get the production out their running game that is needed to compensate for the air attack. They had only one rusher eclipse the 100-yard mark during those three losses, and even in that instance, junior running back Kyle Hicks managed only 103 yards. 

The Longhorns win if they follow that blueprint. If they can put pressure on Hill, the quarterback has shown that he’s turnover prone. Texas needs to key in on Hill and let other Horned Frogs step up and beat them.  TCU has shown it doesn’t have the playmakers to do that. 

Texas Loses If

Like TCU, Texas puts their offense on the back of one player, in this case, junior running back D’Onta Foreman. Foreman has been on a historic run this year and has carried the Longhorns all season. The back is looking to pass the 2,000-yard mark this Friday, and possibly even break the Texas’ single season record for rushing yards. 

Texas loses if Foreman fails to run as dominantly as he has all season. Like TCU, the Longhorns have failed to show they can compensate offensively when their star player isn’t rolling.

In back-to-back losses freshman quarterback Shane Buechele has looked unimpressive, and it is clear the signal-caller has not yet progressed to a player that can take over a game.

The receiving corps for Texas has also been exceptionally ordinary. The Longhorns top three receivers have combined for only 1137 yards this season. That combined total is less than two individual receivers in the Big 12.

It’s clear that Texas desperately needs Foreman to power its offense. And against a TCU defense that has been one of the better units in the conference, the Longhorns will need another vintage performance on the ground. If they don’t get one, they could be looking at a third straight loss to end the season.