A mixed night for the Cowboys. A solid 43-13 win against UTSA, but a couple areas of concern.
PLAYCALLING: C
The mix was baffling. Sometimes, it was solid with a good balance between the run and the pass. But much of the night, Mike Yurcich seemed to get hung up on the repeat button. He dialed up a bunch of runs or a bunch of passes — and that often led to three-and-out possessions. A perfect example was the Cowboys’ last possession of the third quarter. UTSA had pulled to within three scores, but after the OSU defense got a stop and forced a punt, the offense went with three straight Desmond Roland runs up the middle. Maybe Yurcich was trying to burn some clock, but instead, the Cowboys ran three plays and punted after only 1:42. Much of the night, the playcalling was unimaginative and frustrating, if the rumbles from the Boone Pickens Stadium faithful were any indication. It’s possible that Cowboy coaches decided not to show much of anything in a warm-up for Big 12 play, but you have to hope there’s more variety moving forward.
DEFENSIVE PURSUIT: A
The Cowboys’ defensive speed is obvious. These guys can flat fly. And it’s not just that they have the ability; they have the desire. They hustle to get to ballcarriers. Saturday night, there just weren’t offensive players running free very often.
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