The Longhorn Republic

The Texas Longhorns stated that their goal for the year was to play for the Big 12 Championship.

After starting conference play 0-1, this weekend's game against the West Virginia Mountaineers is a pivotal test, not only for the season overall but for Steve Sarkisian as he tries to prove his direction for the program overall. WVU is trying to prove something of their own, that back-to-back losses won't define their season or their ability to achieve.

The Mountaineers come to Austin with a transfer quarterback, JT Daniels, who played Texas when he was on the team at USC. Daniels put up big numbers with the Trojans, but was unable to put one in the end zone and came away with a double-digit loss.

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Wescott Eberts and Cameron Parker look back at last week’s L against the Red Raiders with Wescott sharing his final takeaways from the Horns’ offensive struggles in the second half (1:30). Cameron asks who can step up at wide receiver with Xavier Worthy dealing with a lower leg injury and is considered day-to-day (8:30).

Plus, what went wrong for the Texas defense (12:30), what can Pete Kwiatkowski do to fix it, and finally previewing Graham Harrell and West Virginia’s offense (18:00) before Wescott and Cameron give up their predictions for Saturday’s game (32:00).

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The Texas Longhorns once again have questions to answer after a second-half letdown.

Texas held the lead heading into the fourth quarter, but aggressive playcalling and strategy from the Texas Tech Red Raiders and head coach Joey McGuire set the stage for the collapse. Fourth down conversions led to tired defenders and Texas Tech capitalized, forcing overtime and setting up Tech to win. Quarterback Donovan Smith played a career game for the Red Raiders, putting up a winning performance after throwing five interceptions in the previous two games.

For Texas, finding consistency offensively is a must, especially on the ground, after living and dying by Bijan Robinson and the run game. How did the Red Raiders find a way to neutralize that threat and what can Steve Sarkisian and his staff do to fix that fatal flaw?

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And people ask why this podcast is named Winning is Hard? Different season, same result. Or is it? Wescott Eberts and Cameron Parker dissect the Longhorns overtime loss to Texas Tech, the field-storming incident, and more!

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The Texas Longhorns went into Lubbock and in spite of building a halftime lead came away with a 37-34 overtime loss to the Texas Tech Red Raiders.

Texas managed to battle back in the first quarter, building a 10-point halftime lead, but the offense’s inability to extend a drive in the second half. Three of the final four drives of the game ended with punts, including a drive that gave Texas Tech the ball back with five minutes left in the game. The defense, who was on the field for nearly 100 plays, was unable to get a stop and the Red Raiders put a field goal through with 21 seconds left on the clock.

Texas drove down and tied the game as time expired, but Texas Bijan Robinson fumbled the ball in the first overtime and set Texas Tech up for the game-winning drive.

Now, at 2-2 on the year, Texas turns to West Virginia and tries to get back on track in conference play.

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For the first time this season, the Texas Longhorns are headed on the road, making their way to Lubbock to take on the Texas Tech Red Raiders to open conference play.

Texas Tech had a successful start to the season against Murray State but had to gut out an overtime win over the Houston Cougars and went on the road against North Carolina State and came back with a loss. So what will Texas Tech look like on Saturday and what can we expect from Texas in its first game away from DKR this year?

We also dive in on the women's golf team's big outing in College Station, staff moves across campus, and what we've been streaming this week.

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Intro and Outro: Earth, Wind, Fire ( Ryan Little / CC BY-SA 4.0)

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The latest Winning is Hard podcast touches on the last few Texas Tech/Texas games before actually talking about things they researched for including the Red Raiders’ disappointing offense under new offensive coordinator Zach Kittley, backup quarterback Donavan Smith, and the turnovers/sack issues under center in Lubbock (8:00).

Then Wescott and Cameron touch on the Red Raiders’ sneaky good defense under Tim DeRuyter (22:30) and if Texas Tech has the worst opposing fanbase in the Big 12 (27:30). More takeaways on Joey McGuire’s Red Raiders (32:20) before they offer their predictions for Saturday’s contest (35:00).

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The Texas Longhorns needed a convincing win over the UTSA Roadrunners to convince everyone that what happened against the Alabama Crimson Tide was not a one-game season. Thankfully, Texas got big performances from some of its biggest stars to help put the game away. What did Texas show us that we haven't seen in years past and what can we hope they take from it forward?

We also take a look at the Texas volleyball team, looking dominant in their last non-conference matchups, while the golf and tennis teams getting back into action for the 2022-23 academic year as Texas begins its march for a Director's Cup repeat. We close the show out with Down the Forty and Bang the Drum,

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Intro and Outro: Earth, Wind, Fire ( Ryan Little / CC BY-SA 4.0)

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Wescott Eberts and Cameron Parker recap the Longhorns victory with their thoughts, including the Roadrunners quarterback Frank Harris and his outstanding play (3:00), Jaylen Ford’s emergence over the past two weeks (6:45), the play of Texas quarterback Hudson Card (6:45), and the incredible show Bijan Robinson put on display (9:00).

Plus, notes and nuggets from Steve Sarkisian’s press conference including Quinn Ewers returning to practice and what it means for Saturday’s game against Texas Tech.

Wescott and Cameron also touch on the report of Demarvion Overshown’s marijuana citation, the targeting penalty, and more (16:00).

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The Texas Longhorns struggled with the UTSA Roadrunners early, falling behind 17-7 after an onside kick and a trick play that took advantage of a seeming lack of focus early. The Longhorns responded by scoring 17 unanswered points to take a 24-17 lead and never looked back.

Texas leaned on its star players in this matchup, with running back Bijan Robinson doing the bulk of the work on the ground for Texas — amassing 183 yards and three touchdowns on 20 carries. Roschon Johnson, who was a spark plug for Texas in the first half, did great work on his own, finishing with 81 yards on 11 carries.

Defensively, the Roadrunners found success early completing short passes under the Texas defense, with their receivers capitalizing on space created by the Texas blitzes. Second-half adjustments allowed Texas to clamp down on that, holding UTSA to just three points in the second half.

Now Texas turns its focus to conference play, hoping to take advantage of a tumultuous year in the Big 12.

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Intro and Outro: Earth, Wind, Fire ( Ryan Little / CC BY-SA 4.0)

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