Five trends that Texas will need to change in the last four games

Texas enters the final stretch of games starting with Kansas State next week. For the Longhorns to climb back into the Big 12 race, multiple trends will need to change.

Football starts and ends with quarterback play, and Texas did not get enough from the position last week. Quinn Ewers was noticeably off target. Whether that continues is still to be seen. Texas quarterbacks will have to improve at the position for the Longhorns to win any of their remaining games.

The defense has a few issues to resolve after allowing 41 points and over 500 yards to the Oklahoma State Cowboys last week. Many of their struggles came from poor assignment discipline and execution.

Ultimately the Longhorns will need to be able to make stops defensively and get first downs offensively in the second half to keep a lead.

Here are a few trends that Texas will need to change.

Holding a lead

The Longhorns will likely trend positively in this area moving forward. It’s reasonable to give Sarkisian a mulligan for losing halftime leads last season. Given the roster improvements made in the offseason, losing big leads will reflect directly on Sarkisian as a coach moving forward.

Tackling

The above stat is a player issue that the players need to resolve. We’ve spent plenty of time picking apart Pete Kwiatkowski’s decision making, but at some point the players have to perform.

Eye discipline

The above play continues a trend of a defensive player not doing his job. Texas has been bitten on plays where edges refuse to contain runners from getting outside. Good defenses can’t afford to have players not fulfilling their responsibilities within a play.

Inaccuracy against Oklahoma State

I tend to believe external factors influenced Quinn Ewers’ ability to make accurate throws. I expect him to play more like the quarterback we saw in his first four games as starter. He will need to return to form for Texas to compete with its remaining schedule.

Adjusting to deep throws

The fact that Xavier Worthy was unable to catch this football makes me believe the wind did play a role in the game. Worthy is usually good at adjusting mid-throw to help his quarterback. He may need to do that more until Ewers’ confidence is restored.

Story originally appeared on Longhorns Wire