Know Your Enemy: Texas

Site manager Micah Allen chatter with Gerald Goodridge of Burnt Orange Nation ahead of Saturday’s game.

CRFF: Xavier Worthy had a bit of a coming-out party against Oklahoma. What do you think led to him having such a stellar game and do you expect his momentum to continue?

Xavier Worthy is honestly the prototype receiver for the Sarkisian offense with incredible top-end speed, runs incredible routes and the ability to high-point the ball. Steve Sarkisian has made a concerted effort to involve him in the offense early and often, which was on display against Oklahoma. A lot of his production came on two big chunk plays, a 75-yard TD pass on the opening play where he broke one tackle and then was just faster than everyone else on the field, followed a 31-yard reception where he ran a tight route and beat the defender for the ball.

CRFF: This is going to be a game of stopping running backs. Oklahoma State is going to have to figure out how to stop Bijan Robinson, while the Texas defense is going to have to find an answer for Jaylen Warren. Which defense do you expect to do a better job stopping the run and why? O/U on how many rushing yards the teams have combined.

This is a tough question because the Texas defense has given me zero confidence that they can stop the run consistently, but the Oklahoma State defense hasn’t played a running back of Bijan Robinson’s caliber yet. The Oklahoma State defense has the ability to get some stops and create some havoc in the backfield, which could be a problem, but against OU, 126 of Robinson’s 137 yards came after contact, so he is used to dealing with havoc. Based on the evidence presented, I think the Oklahoma State defense is likely to have a better outing stopping the run. With the running ability of both quarterbacks, I wouldn’t be shocked to see 375 yards on Saturday.

CRFF: Do you think Texas will come out swinging after a heartbreaker? Or do you think they’ll be a bit of a hangover Saturday morning?

At the start of the season, Steve Sarkisian has said his biggest job is to get this team to hate losing more than they love to win. Based on everything I have heard, the team is angry that they let the OU game slip in such an embarrassing way and want to take another shot at them. I wouldn’t be shocked to see them come out with their hair on fire on Saturday.

CRFF: Who do you think is gonna be the player of the game for Texas?

I think Xavier Worthy is set for another big game. The best winning proposition for Texas is to turn this game into a shootout, so expect them to come out and try to get Worthy in more open-field opportunities to show off his speed.

CRFF: Alright so you’re an Oklahoma State fan coming to Austin? What spots are you hitting up?

There are a ton of great options. Matt’s El Rancho is good TexMex. Franklin BBQ is one of those spots where everyone considers it a “must-go” so I honestly try to avoid it because I am impatient. Black’s is also incredible BBQ. JewBoy Burgers is a relatively new spot with incredible burgers. For breakfast - or late night after the bars - pancakes at Kerby Lane is always a great choice. Also, if you’re into Latin food, the arepas at Four Brothers are INCREDIBLE.

CRFF: Score prediction?

I think it’s going to be relatively tight, but as a Texas fan I have to go 35-31 in favor of the Longhorns.