I hurt the most and the least for Collin. He had the most to lose, and yet I know that he has the best perspective about it. His leadership in the next two weeks will stick with the underclassmen on this team for years to come. Daniel Sams - I hope you're taking notes.
The opening drive of the second half will tell you a lot about a Bill Snyder team. In 8 of 10 games this season, we had scored a touchdown on our opening drive. This time, it ended in an interception at midfield and I took my glasses off so that it was slightly harder to see what was happening. When Baylor scored again to make it 35-17, I leaned the recliner as far back as it would go, content to just listen. When Lache Seastrunk took off for an 80 yard run, I had my eyes shut tight, praying for the Baylor crowd to calm down again, to keep Floyd Casey Stadium as quiet as it was in the good ol days. I'd like to say I watched the fourth quarter but I didn't. I hid in a dark room and listened to Stanford beat Oregon in overtime. Brent Musberger delivered the news. It was all over. This wasn't our year after all.
It's the missed opportunities that really dig at me. The chance for our first national championship, for Gameday in Manhattan and a Heisman for Collin Klein. For an unbelievable movie ending for a coach who has done things the right way, with good people, in a good town. I like to think that ESPN has it wrong, that it doesn't have to be a money sport and that they over hype the SEC and their overpaid coaches and their storied programs. But last night, our bye week came a week too late. We had too many injuries and not enough depth. Snyder had taught too many people too many things, and in the end, that consistency gave our opponent the competitive advantage. Recaps are a little different after a loss. Fortunately, this is the first one I've had to write. The following are the four things I think happened last night.
He taught us to care and then gave us something to care about. I just hope we can give him the happy ending he deserves. Someday.
1. The defense sustained too many critical injuries. We have had more trouble stopping the run since Tre Walker got hurt. We were able to cover some gaps by overloading the box, and Jarell Childs benefited from the extra support from Arthur and Randall and Tuggle. However, when Ty Zimmerman went down too, we could no longer pull the secondary to stop the run, because then Baylor would throw it over the top and create big plays in the passing game. That left not enough people to stop the run, and inexperience at the safety position. Without Tre, Ty had his finger in the well, which he was able to do because he's a three year starter who trained with Tysyn Hartman. Without Ty, the whole thing fell apart. You could see it in Dante Barnett's eyes on Baylor's first score. Mentally, he never believed he could do it. He knew he was outmatched and he looked frustrated to even be put in that position. You've got to think that he shoulders more blame than anyone, justified or not. He could use a call from Adrian Hilburn today.
2. We abandoned our running game. For the past few weeks, we started to see Angelo Pease and John Hubert trading out possessions. No matter, most people said, because Collin has gotten so good at throwing the ball. As Hubert's stats started to slip, so did his blocking. As his blocking started to slip, Pease started to play more. As Pease started to play more, we started throwing even more, or running the wildcat. As our gametime running reps decreased, our O-Line lost traction and started to play less focused. That mental toughness slipped. They stopped creating holes, because they knew that Collin could just convert first downs with his arm. Hubert and Pease stopped getting enough carries to really see the field and read blocks. Without a balanced attack, there's only so much Collin and the receivers can do. Our receivers aren't the fastest or tallest guys around. Harper's never been an every down guy. The offense goes three and out and the exhausted defense has to get back on the field, stretched as thin as ever. This was supposed to be Hubert's happy homecoming. I can't imagine how terrible he feels today.
3. We forgot to account for Bennett. Everyone (myself included) looked at Baylor's defensive stats and said - no problem. This defense is terrible. Bennett's gone soft. Nothing to worry about. What everyone forgot is that Snyder's system is the same as it ever was, and Bennett would have the inside knowledge to overcome any statistical gap. Why do you think he played OU so well this year and last year? Again, insider knowledge. Why do you think they played us so tight last year? Insider knowledge. Bennett may not be great against his own offense, or the spread offenses of West Virginia and Texas Tech and OSU. But he can beat what he knows and we all forgot about that. You could tell Coach knew. When I saw him on the sideline in the first quarter, I swear he looked nervous, agitated, the way he looked against North Texas. Like a General in a futile battle - he knows when he's beat, and he knows it well before anyone else.
4. Collin is more hurt than we know. Collin had to rely on his arm in this one, and because there was no running game to respect, the receivers were double covered and couldn't bail him out on underthrown passes. He's been sacked a lot in the past three games and I'm sure his throwing arm is not 100%. But he's also a married man who probably suffered a concussion earlier in the season and has been advised not to take off and run every third down either. Without the variety in the offense, it becomes much simpler to defend. When it becomes much simpler to defend, Collin gets hurt more, our progress slows, we can't manage the clock and the defense gets more and more behind. I thought we tried to rush too much in the second half and tried to force the offensive tempo. We didn't need 3 scores at once. Five minute drives would've been fine. But how can you really do that, mentally, when you're #1 for the first time ever, on the road, down more than you've ever been, with half your leaders in street clothes on the sideline, and all that media talk about SI jinxes and pressure and national championships buzzing in your ears? No 22 year old kid can do that.
We owe our seniors a loud and supportive environment on December 1st. Let's end this season the right way.
There's a reason that recruiting classes matter. It's hard to get a team to stay healthy at the skill positions through November. Especially in the Big 12, where offenses are so potent and defenses are stretched thin every single game. We didn't have the depth we needed in the secondary, or the offensive line, or at receiver or quarterback and we knew that at the beginning of the season. Because of Snyder and his game plan, we were able to make it to the end of November before it became an issue. Sometimes we get lucky in November. Sometimes, we use up all our luck in September.
The Texas game is still a big one, and it will be senior night for these players that we love so much. Lucky for us, we still have great things to play for. Our first Big 12 championship since 2003, our first BCS bowl game since 2003, a chance to extend our winning streak over Texas and send Mack Brown out with a conference loss. A chance to go out on a win, even if it's not the win we thought it would be.
Chin up, Cats fans. Maybe it will feel better tomorrow.
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