Before the Cannon Fires
Last minute thoughts before Texas kicks off against Tech, one last time.
I wrote in August that Texas fans could put down the proverbial Kool Aid. You didn’t need to talk yourself into this Longhorn team being special, because it was going to be great regardless of our collective belief. Why? Jordan Whittington summed it up perfectly last week after Texas registered its second-best win of the season, defeating Iowa State by 10 at night in Ames: “now we have five-star culture with five-star players.” Steve Sarkisian has finally combined culture with talent, the thing all other Longhorn coaches have struggled to do for the past thirteen years. Plus, Whittington and other Herman leftovers like T’Vondre Sweat, Jaylan Ford and Jahdae Barron epitomize the third layer that Sark and his staff have added to the mix in Austin: development. Despite being 10-1, the season hasn’t always been pretty, but watching the leaps the Texas veterans have taken has been a joy to behold as a fan.
On prettiness: Texas’ being ranked seventh in the College Football Playoff rankings shows that style points are being held against them. But the Longhorns should lead the country in toughness points, should that metric exist. This team is violent and has a long memory, you can bet they’ll remember Joey McGuire’s comments last year after the loss in Lubbock that he knew Texas “would break.” Texas still controls their own destiny and I’m still of the belief things will work out like they should. Essentially, Texas needs to keep winning and three of the following teams need to lose: Ohio State, Michigan (one will lose tomorrow), Georgia, Washington, Florida State and Oregon. But I can’t let myself go past tonight much less Arlington, because I’m terrified of myself if Texas does happen to get into the playoff and I might need someone to take my debit and credit cards away from me and change my airline passwords.
Before we get there and hopefully to Jerry World, Texas has one last steel cage match. Brett Yormark and Texas Tech’s comments in the offseason showed how this season of the Big 12 would be more like an episode of WWE Raw and it’s delivered. On cue, Yormark won’t even say what scenario causes Texas to miss out on the Big 12 championship game and has booked Kevin Mar, his most chickenshit heel referee to officiate UT’s final home game. Luckily, Texas has worn the Black Hat all season and embraced their role as the villain that’s plundering the rest of the Big 12 as they exit. But tonight, Texas has to face the most bitter of all their exes in Joey McGuire and the New Alabama. This season has gone nothing like what Red Raider fans hoped for over the summer. Many of them had Arlington on their minds in July and August as McGuire mobilized the Red Raiders legion of internet troll fans, but the second year coach oversold his roster and possibly himself. Injury luck didn’t help, but West Texans value honesty and he’s displayed little of it thus far. However, if he were to play spoiler in Austin, you can bet Tech will give him one of those lifetime contracts they like to draw up.
Two years ago, it looked like Texas and the Red Raiders would keep playing every year, continuing my parents’ tradition of not sleeping in the same room on the night of this game. That report was premature and too much vitriol has been spilled since, the relationship is too far gone now. Plus, it’s hard for divorced couples to keep spending holidays together. Now, Texas will continue to stick up their nose and act like Tech doesn’t exist, while the Red Raider fanbase will continue to be like a crazy ex that sneaks into their former lover’s house and lights their underwear on fire. Before Chris Beard and the move to the SEC, this game was different, as was the relationship between the two fanbases. There’s a lot of things I’ll remember fondly, as someone who grew up on both sides of the fence: there was the friendship of Spike Dykes and Mack Brown, the affinity for Mike Leach by most Texas fans and the fact that Tech owned A&M in the 2000s, which the Longhorns loved. I hate that it’s all gone, the long gone cordiality and the rage, even if you don’t. It’s still hilarious to me that the biggest fight of my parents marriage was over David McWilliams leaving Lubbock and they’ll fight about it again after they read this sentence, I’ll buy you a beer if they don’t. The pettiness that exists in a divided house makes college football the greatest sport on Earth. The relationship between the Longhorns and Red Raiders has devolved from petty to personal and now it’s over. Most of you won’t miss it, but I will.
Texas 31 Tech 20, Texas punches its ticket to Jerry World and lets the rest of the chips fall where they may.
See you the next time Red Raiders
Sorry for the tardiness in posting this week. Between traveling, wrapping up work, defrosting turkeys and sick kids it was a challenge to get it typed up. I want to thank you for reading all season. It’s been a blast and I hope we have three more games after tonight to get stressed out about together. Hook Em.
McGuire having a lack of honesty is a joke, especially coming from the biggest bunch of Judas’s of all time. I doubt the good guys prevail in Austin since UT is a terrible matchup; but I’d give anything to send the Horns packing with 2 straight Ls.
Your dad will never admit he’s completely dead wrong about the David McWilliams thing. He’ll take it to his grave.