From erratic officiating to costly celebration penalties, Steve Sarkisian must sharpen discipline and special teams play to keep the top-ranked Horns on a national title trajectory.
We can all do better, right?
For me, it’s not just remembering to take the trash out … but also to bring the bins back in at night. For the Dallas Cowboys it’s not just getting to the 2-yard line in the final 23 seconds … it’s punching it in to win the game.
For the SEC, it’s having officials who … A) Know the rules; B) Properly enforce the rules. Just the opposite of what happened in Knoxville last Saturday, when Texas’ No. 1 ranking and undefeated season almost went up in smoke because of a drop-kicked onside-kick that never should have been.
Said the SEC in a statement admitting the play was “incorrectly officiated”:
A drop kick is permissible, but a free kick must be made from the kicking team’s restraining line which is the 35-yard line on a kickoff, unless relocated by a penalty. In addition, after the ball is ready for play the kicker may not change his lateral position between the hash marks. That spot can change only after a timeout or on a subsequent kick.
Fortunately for the Longhorns and the SEC, Tennessee’s Hail Mary into the end zone on the final play fell incomplete. But it also proved that Texas also has to improve during its bye week before the Oct. 10 showdown with Oklahoma.
The Horns are 4-0 and ranked No. 1, so they must be doing something right.
“It’s been a good start to the season,” says head coach Steve Sarkisian. “To be 4-0, we got a lot of meat left on our bone. As we go, we know what’s coming after the bye.”
Areas of concern on the way to what could be a national championship run? To fix the odds ... I've got four of 'em ...
1 - Quarterback Arch Manning simply has to be more accurate.
2 - The offense, in general, needs to be more consistent from protection to not dropping passes.
3 - Special teams last week allowed a punt-return touchdown and fumbled the onside kick to give Tennessee one last chance.
4 - And then there’s the discipline. Both stars defensive end Colin Simmons (5 sacks) and running back Raleek Brown (2 touchdowns) drew unsportsmanlike conduct penalties against the Volunteers for excessive celebrations. Simmons mimicked urinating on the field after one of his sacks.
“That’s not who we are as a team, and that behavior is unacceptable,” Sarkisian said. “I’ve met with the team about it. I’ve met with Colin individually. I’ve met with Raleek individually, so we’ll handle those things internally. I don’t want to take our stinger. I don’t want to take away the excitement of the game, but the moment you start to demean an opponent, the flags are going to come out.”
We all have to get better. The best team in college football included.
