Yes, Virginia, there is such thing as defense in the Big 12.
Texas showed that Saturday, holding the prolific Kansas offense to just seven points and sacking quarterback Todd Reesing four times for 37 yards. The Longhorns had three fourth-down stops.
If it wasn’t for an amazing circus catch by Dezmon Briscoe on fourth-and-11 in the third quarter, the Longhorns could have had a shutout.
“Our defense was physical,” said Texas coach Mack Brown. “They just knocked people down and were knocking balls loose. We had some great fourth-down stops.”
They did all this while resting Big 12 sack leader Brian Orakpo in the second half.
The Texas defense chased Austin native Reesing halfway back to Lake Travis on fourth-and-goal from the 2-yard line with two minutes left in the game. Orakpo’s backup, defensive end Sam Acho got the sack at the 18-yard line.
“That was our second team,” said junior linebacker Sergio Kindle. “We have this thing where we don’t want to let them down, and they don’t want to let us down. They did a great job.”
Defensive coordinator Will Muschamp pumped his fist and high-fived his players in excitement, capping off what could be the best game of the season for the Texas defense. Muschamp, the highest-paid defensive coordinator in the country, wanted the defense to put pressure on Reesing. The Longhorns blitzed all day. They blitzed the safety, they blitzed corners and would have blitzed the waterboy if they could.
Despite having a young secondary, Muschamp has gotten the job done this year. The defense played well enough to beat Texas Tech, because the Longhorns would have won the game if it wasn’t for the nine points the offense surrendered, which included an interception that was returned for a touchdown and a safety.
As they say, though, it’s not about the X’s and O’s — it’s about the Jimmys and Joes. The Texas defensive line dominated the line of scrimmage all day. The Jayhawks didn’t have anybody that could block Kindle, an outside linebacker who plays defensive end in pass rush situations. Kindle had one-and-a-half sacks and two tackles for a loss. Scouts who have been watching the Texas defense for Orakpo have taken notice of Kindle, who is the prototypical outside linebacker in an NFL 3-4 defense.
Defense wins championships, and Texas made the case Saturday that they have the best defense in the Big 12. But does defense impress voters, or is it still all about the style points? After all, Texas scored just 35 points against the Big 12’s worst pass defense.
The voters in the coaches’ poll moved Texas past Oklahoma this week, so that sends the message that it’s not just about how many points you put up.
That has to be music to this Texas defense’s ears.
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