When Malik Muhammad went down during regular practice with a lower leg injury before the Florida game, the outside narrative was “next man up.”
“Malik’s a really good player, one of my really good buddies, but I’m always a big advocate that who you’ve got is enough,” graduate safety Michael Taaffe said when Muhammad’s name showed up on the injury report that week. “Next guy up. The standard’s the standard, no matter who’s in the game.”
But Muhammad, who was just breaking out as one of the most talented and effective players in his third year on the Texas secondary, struggled to console the sense of disappointment — and of letting down his fellow teammates — he felt wearing street clothes instead of his uniform in The Swamp.“That was hard to watch,” Muhammad said this Monday. “To see the whole team go out there … that was the hardest part.”
As much as Muhammad was hurting watching the Florida game, the Texas defense was arguably hurting more. With 457 total yards allowed, 22 converted first downs given up and three touchdowns on the board, the defense overall looked miserable and outpaced by the Gators.
“(Florida) ran the ball enough to where we had to play run defense, and then when they were calling their passes, we weren’t really in straight pass rush mode,” head coach Steve Sarkisian said postgame. “We have to find a way to make opponents one-dimensional, and we weren’t able to do that tonight.”
Luckily, the next week against Oklahoma, Muhammad suited up, determined to make it up to his team. He put on a dazzling performance against the Sooners with two solo tackles and one pass breakup. However, it was his two interceptions in the first half that really changed the rhythm of the game.
“For (Muhammad) to get that pick in the end zone, I really felt like that was a momentum-changing play as we went into the second half,” Sarkisian said.
They were also his first two interceptions since his freshman year.
It was a beautiful comeback and well-deserved. Muhammad’s statistical breakout comes three years after he arrived on the Forty Acres, earning this week’s Southeastern Conference Defensive Player of the Week award.
But the work behind the scenes started when he set foot on campus. Muhammad has appeared in games since his freshman year, but when it comes to the statsheet and awards, he’s just now showing up.
To Muhammad, however, these do not tell the full story.
“When people get these different types of awards, it’s just off stats. It’s not breaking down the play. Phase two, phase three, how are you?” Muhammad said. “How are you playing for an entire game? Not just being a capable, great player — are you a consistently good player?”
Nonetheless, with Muhammad’s success against Oklahoma came Texas’.
The defense was stifling against No. 6 Oklahoma’s offense, keeping junior quarterback John Mateer to zero touchdowns and forcing three picks. With Muhammad covering downfield and cutting off Mateer’s vertical threat, the interior was able to put on 14 quarterback pressures and five sacks while holding the run game to just 48 yards.
Muhammad’s presence on the field is undeniable. Before the disastrous Florida game, Texas had the No. 1 defense in the country in stop rate. With Muhammad healthy and showing his value, the Longhorns have a good chance to climb those ranks again as they move forward into SEC play — starting against Kentucky at 6 p.m. this Saturday.
