Larry Carlson
Back to the classroom now after a long, luxuriant Christmas break.
The remarkable college football season is over and Texas certainly graded out with an "A" for its superlative season. But with the Sugar Bowl fresh in the minds of everybody in Longhorn nation, now's the time to review some of the lowest grades in the bigger moments of UT football history. Here then, are my selections for the three biggest Texas passes that failed.
The Horns, too, are back in the classroom, the film room and the weight room, aiming to take another giant leap forward next fall. But if August 31st seems far away, know this. It's already time to look forward to the Orange-White game set for April 20.
Number 3: THE LAST SECOND LETDOWN
The Setting: Sugar Bowl, CFP Semi-final, Jan. 8, 2024, New Orleans, LA
Texas, 12-1 and seeded third, was slightly favored against the undefeated, second-seeded Washington Huskies.
At Stake: A spot in the national championship game In Houston.
The Situation: The Longhorns, with some quirky good luck to accompany the grit they showed all season, suddenly had a chance to overcome what had been a seemingly insurmountable nine-point deficit a moment earlier. Texas, trailing 37-31, reached the UW 13 yardline with only seconds to go. After failure to score on three pass plays and with one tick remaining on fourth down, it was all or nothing at all for the Horns.
The Pass That Failed: Quarterback Quinn Ewers targeted Adonai Mitchell in the end zone. Mitchell appeared to have walled off CB Elijah Jackson. The pass was thrown high, seemingly intended to be a jump ball that the 6-4 Georgia transfer with great leaping ability would haul in. But Jackson went high while Mitchell, as if expecting a gut shot pass for an easy TD, did not sky. The pass was tipped away.
The Fallout: Armchair QBs moaned, claiming Ewers threw the ball the only place it would not become a sure touchdown for Mitchell. Many Longhorn fans also scrutinized the replays and wailed about what they saw as pass interference.
Alas, it was all over but the cryin'. Washington 37, Texas 31
The Footnote: One week later, Michigan would be crowned as national champs. after downing Washington, 34-13. Less than 100 hours later, the Huskies' head coach, second-year boss Kalen DeBoer, would accept the biggest job in college football, succeeding Nick Saban as head coach at Alabama after Saban's surprise resignation.
Texas now heads to the SEC.
# 2 - THE COLD SHOULDER
The Setting: Rose Bowl, National Championship, Jan.7, 2010, Pasadena, CA
It was the first title game featuring two 13-0 teams. Top-ranked Bama was a
four-point favorite over second-ranked Texas.
The Situation: Texas, with touted but untested freshman Garrett Gilbert at QB, was trailing 17-6 after a Tide FG with 29 seconds left in the first half. Colt McCoy, out with a shoulder injury on the fifth play from scrimmage, was sorely missed. Texas had to settle for two short-range field goals for an early 6-0 lead and Bama countered with 17 unanswered points. It appeared though, that Gilbert and the Horns might utilize halftime to re-calibrate and rally.
The Pass That Failed: Rather than take a knee and beeline it for the locker room, Texas elected to try to move the ball in the final seconds of ther first half. A hurried shovel pass from Gilbert bounced off the hands of DJ Monroe into the welcoming arms of 300-pound Bama DT Marcell Dareus, the man who had delivered the hit that crunched McCoy's shoulder. Dareus steamed in for a TD from 28 yards out and Alabama suddenly had a daunting 24-6 halftime lead.
The Fallout: What the .... hell? What was Texas doing? Or trying to do? Greg Davis, the long-time Longhorn offensive coordinator who frequently served as a pinata for accusatory UT fans, was blamed by many. Gilbert looked tentative on the play, which most observers felt was all risk with very little potential reward, the Horns being 45 yards from even field goal range with just seconds left.
Bolstered by the sturdy Texas defense in the second half, Gilbert (15 for 40 on the day, for 186 yards and 4 picks) found some rhythm. He hit the incomparable Jordan Shipley for two TD passes that pulled Texas into contention. With six minutes left UT
trailed 24-21. Around the three-minute mark, the Steers had the ball at their seven with hope and momentum. Crimson Tide defensive coordinator Kirby Smart dialed up an outside blitz and Gilbert got blindsided. He fumbled. Alabama went on to score two touchdowns in the last two minutes for a 37-21 triumph
The Footnote: It has been well documented. Texas began a long, dark swirl down the drain, starting with a 5-7 mark the next fall.. Alabama would ride the coaching genius of Nick Saban to dominate college football, earning six natties in a 12-season span.
And Texas fans will always wonder what might have unfolded – for one night at the Rose Bowl, then for what turned out to be 13 largely nightmarish years --had Colt McCoy
never been injured.
#1- What Might Have Been
The Setting: Memorial Stadium, Oct. 17, 1964, 7:30 pm kickoff, Austin
Arkansas (4-0) came south ranked number 8, and defending national champ Texas, also 4-0, held the number one ranking.
At Stake: The winner would have the inside track to the Southwest Conference title and a good shot at the national championship.
The Situation: Arkansas had broken a scoreless tie late in the second quarter with an electrifying 81-yard punt return by future Hog head coach Ken Hatfield.
Texas evened the score at 7-7 just before the fourth quarter but the visitors answered with a 75-yard drive to reclaim the lead, 14-7. Then it was the Horns' turn and they responded with an impressive 16-play drive. Workhorse tailback Ernie Koy, who had rushed for 120 yards, got the payoff TD from a yard out. Under 90 seconds remained and UT boss Darrell Royal took a timeout to mull the options. He decided that the champs would go for two points and the knockout.
The Pass That Failed: Quarterback Marvin Kristynik was looking for Hix Green in the right flat. "That's one memory I will always have," Green told me this week, acknowledging the weight of what would unfold. "What might have been..." Green said. "It was a quick decision by Coach Royal to send me back in for the pass play."
That call had succeeded just five plays earlier. But the Razorbacks got instant heavy heat from up the middle, forcing a hurried throw. The ball landed short of Green and behind him. Films show that had he caught it, Green might have been nailed shy of the goal line. "I still think I would have scored," Hix says now. "But it was not to be."
Following the failed two-point try, Arkansas covered the kickoff and ran the clock out.
The Fallout: Royal visited the jubilant Razorback locker room and congratulated the Hogs, reportedly urging the Hogs to help keep the national title in the SWC. But Royal warned the visitors that his Longhorns would be there to pick up after any failures.
Neither team would lose again. In fact, the Arkansas defense pitched five straight shutouts en route to a conference crown and a 10-0 record. Then the Hogs beat Nebraska, 10-7 in the Cotton Bowl. Alabama, however, was crowned national champs by the AP and the UPI a the conclusion of a similarly perfect regular season.
Perhaps Royal's most famous saying was "Dance with the one that brung ya." Those who dared second-guess DKR wondered why he went with the pass, having doubled Arkansas in total yardage, the great majority of it on the ground. Koy had 110 yards.
The Footnote: Texas (9-1) traveled to Miami to face the national champs in the Orange Bowl and upset the Crimson Tide, 21-17, in spite of the heroics of Bama QB Joe Namath, the game's MVP. Alabama's loss to UT resulted in the Football Writers Association of America (FWAA) awarding its national title to college football's lone unbeaten team,
Arkansas. But for the failed two-point conversion on a hot October night in Austin, the Horns, based on the rest of their season, would have been back-to-back
national champions in '63 and '64.
It's also worth noting that four Longhorn starters in the Orange Bowl (TE/LB Pete Lammons, QB/S Jim Hudson, WR George Sauer Jr and DL John Elliott would join Namath as starters for the New York Jets and win Super Bowl III in January 1969.
Hix Green played his final football game that night in Miami. He told me that in addition to the 21-17 defeat of number one, Texas beat Bama in a fishing tournament the next day. "Great game, great goal line stand, great season, great fun," Green summed it up.
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