Watching Every Texas Red Zone(ish) Play Against Georgia
The Red Zone is a problem area again for Texas. What went wrong against Georgia?
Over the first six weeks of the season Texas ranked seventh in the country with 5.08 points per opportunity. Since then, the Longhorns offense is 97th in the country averaging 3.48 points per opportunity. Texas was one of the worst teams in the country in 2023 when it came to turning quality possessions into points and it has been a problem the second half of this season.
Texas’ only touchdown in the SEC Championship Game against Georgia came on a 41-yard pass to DeAndre Moore. So why did Texas struggle deep in Georgia territory? There are a lot of reasons. I have the time on my hands and the SkyCam feed still lives on ESPN+ (mostly, the first five minutes of the second quarter are gone) so I watched the whole game again to take a look.
1st quarter, 0-0, 1st & 10, Georgia 21
This is the rare case where window dressing worked for Steve Sarkisian. The fake screen drew a defender and Gunnar Helm gets open cutting outside Isaiah Bond. The throw from Quinn Ewers isn’t great. It needs to be more inside and less towards the sideline, but it’s still catchable. Thankfully Helm drops the ball because if you watch it again, Bond gets flagged for an obvious offensive pass interference. He has to sell that as a route instead of just crashing into the defenders. That set up a 1st and 25 and Texas would end up setting for a field goal.
2nd quarter, 3-0 Texas, 4th & 1, Georgia 28
Sark is a mad genius for this one. He brings in Arch Manning. They fake the sneak and Jake Majors snaps the ball through Manning’s legs to Jaydon Blue who gets three yards and a first down. Sark has issues with play calling in big games, but this one was diabolical.
Next play, 1st & 10
(I hate not having Sky Cam). Texas goes heavy to the boundary side with right tackle Cam Williams moving to the left side of the line next to left tackle Trevor Goosby. Juan Davis goes in motion and DJ Campbell pulls, but #13 crashes inside of Williams creating some havoc and blowing up the design. Tre Wisner does a good job making something out of nothing, but Bond gets called for an obvious holding. Bond has been struggling for Texas since getting hurt and it’s a problem.
Because I don’t have SkyCam I don’t want to go into too much detail on the next play because I can’t see the routes, but Campbell gets beat inside for a sack and Texas would eventually settle for another field goal.
Next drive, 6-3 Texas, 1st & 10, Georgia 24
Texas’ struggles in the run game against Georgia this year have been talked about a lot. Texas was able to have some productive runs in this game, but not many. When they were, it was football 101 concepts like this. The right tackle and guard block down, the left guard pulls around, the tight end blocks a linebacker and Wisner gets five yards.
Next play
One of my nitpicks with Sark in this game is that he never really tried to string run plays together after a good run play. Like I said, the good run plays weren’t numerous, but Georgia has struggled against direct run games this year. Instead, Sark dials up the wheel route here, but there are problems.
First off, Georgia is totally prepared for it. I’m not sure if there was a tell in the motion, formation or what, but they crash the right side of the offensive line and the DB isn’t fooled by the wheel route at all. Another thing that Sark really needs to think about are these slow developing pass plays that require Quinn Ewers to do a full 360 before he throws. Ewers’ footwork is wildly inconsistent and plays like this only compound that. Also, slow developing plays against a defense as talented and athletic as Georgia’s are death.
Next play
Every week is a referendum on Quinn Ewers and honestly the tape is so conflicting week in and week out. His stats were good in this game and his wide receivers hung him out to dry with six drops, but there were also things that Ewers struggles with that keep popping up and this is one of the biggest frustrations with him.
One of my biggest pet peeves with Quinn Ewers is how he has to make his life harder instead of just taking easy completions. Moore goes in motion creating a bunch formation to the boundary side. Matthew Golden, who has been Texas’ best receiver this year, comes across the field on a crossing route. If Ewers is patient it’s an easy pitch and catch for a first down. Instead he throws into double coverage and it should’ve been intercepted. Bert Auburn missed the ensuing field goal so Texas didn’t end up getting lucky on the drop.
3rd Quarter, 10-6 Georgia, 1st & 10 Georgia 27
So let’s set the scene. Carson Beck got hurt on the last play of the first half. Gunnar Stockton came in and led Georgia on a touchdown drive to give them the lead. After a four and out from Texas and a three and out from Georgia, Texas got the ball back. Ewers ripped a 12-yard completion to Golden on the first play to put Texas back deep into Bulldog territory.
Moore goes in motion, Ewers throws a screen, Georgia safety Dan Jackson reads it perfectly and stops it at the line of scrimmage because Cam Williams can’t get a block on him. Seeing how it was blocked by Helm and Golden, this is probably a touchdown saving tackle (although the way the game was officiated they would’ve found a way to call holding)
Next play
It’s plays like this where it’s hard to take Quinn Ewers seriously as an NFL prospect. The play design is great. Texas lines up in the Pistol with Moore next to Ewers. Moore runs a corner route and cooks Jackson. He’s wide open. The line gives him one of the cleanest pockets he had all day. And Ewers…doesn’t even put the ball in the same solar system as Moore. This isn’t the case of a throw just being slightly off target. This is the kind of throw a third year starting quarterback absolutely cannot miss on and he doesn’t come close.
Next play
3rd and long is just not a winning down against the Georgia defense. Left guard Hayden Connor had a rough game. He gets beat here which blows up the play. #10 twists inside and puts Ewers on the ground for a sack. Auburn missed his second field goal of the game and Texas has now left six points on the field in a game they lost by three in overtime.
4th quarter, Georgia 16-13, 1st & 10, Georgia 14, 29 seconds left
So a LOT happened. Go back and check it all out if you don’t remember, but the game got nutty. Texas got the ball back with a chance to drive for the win or to force overtime with 2:25 left in the game.
Ewers completed a pass to Moore on fourth down to keep the drive going and on a first down at the Georgia 29, Ewers took a shot in the endzone. Ryan Wingo got mugged by Daylen Everette for a pass interference setting Texas up on the Georgia 14 yard line.
When I talk about the window dressing, this is what I mean. There is way too goddamn much happening here. Ewers fakes the swing pass to Moore, does a 360, pumps to the running back screen and then gets sacked. You’re asking your offensive line, which has struggled with Georgia’s physicality all game, to hold their blocks for a long-ass time. Does the play design work? Kind of.
Look as Ewers is on the ground, there’s a receiver standing in the endzone wide open. It’s hard to say without looking at the All-22 (which I don’t have access to) how open he was, but watching it back, it does look like the deep safety commits to the running back screen once Ewers spins. I’m not sure what the corner on that of the field is doing because I can’t see him. If it’s a fake swing, spin and just throw to the corner of the endzone, maybe you have something cooking. But again, I mentioned earlier, Ewers struggles with his footwork in general and that’s asking to get set quickly with one of the most athletic defensive fronts barreling down on him.
Next play, 2nd & 15
I don’t like anything about this. Ewers hopes the deep safety to the left is going to read his eyes when Ewers looks right, but he doesn’t so Ewers takes the deep shot to Wingo. The safety doesn’t get over in time, but it’s a low percentage throw and it ends up incomplete.
There is really nothing going on with the other side of the field there. Without seeing a closer angle it does look like there’s a lot of contact with Moore, but I can’t say for certain there’s holding. You don’t want to put yourself in position to have to use your last timeout, but you do have it. You’re also 20 yards from the endzone so you can get a first down. Texas has run a concept where an inside receiver (in this case it’s Helm) runs off the safety and a receiver cuts inside across the middle of the field. If they run that here, it’s open, but Ewers throws the ball before Moore comes out of his break and it’s hard to know if that’s what he was supposed to do anything. This was just a low percentage play.
At this point I’m saving the bandwidth. On third down, Sark called a receiver screen just so they could melt the clock down and kick the field goal as time expired. Wingo dropped it anyway, but it wasn’t a design to try and get a first down. It was a conservative, play-for-overtime call and that’s what happened. We go to overtime.
Overtime, 16-16, 1st & 10, Georgia 25
The biggest storyline for Texas the next two weeks is going to be about how much Sark will use Arch Manning as a running threat in the Playoff. It took until the first play of overtime for Texas to really use him here. Again, this is simple, elementary level football but sometimes this stuff just works. The left tackle and guard block down, the right guard and tackle pull to the left and Arch follows them for a productive gain.
Next play
You get five yards on first down running the ball with Arch Manning and then…you bring Ewers back in to throw it. Sigh. Anyway, It’s play action to the left, Helm runs a drag to the left, Golden clears out, but #24 for Georgia isn’t fooled at all. Blue isn’t open and Ewers just has to throw it away.
Next play
Sometimes KISS is the best way to attack the Georgia defense - keep it simple, stupid. Texas runs a double slant, Ewers puts the throw right on the money and Wingo catches it for a first down.
Next play, 1st & 10
Ewers decides this ball is going to Golden before it’s even snapped. He’s not open. It’s not a good throw. It’s a play that’s never working. Meanwhile, Wisner leaks out of the backfield and if Ewers just waits a beat he can dump the ball off and create a 1v1 situation for his running back in space.
Next play
This is just bad luck. It looks like Moore stumbles the tiniest bit coming out of his break and he just never finds the ball. The throw wasn’t bad. It just didn’t connect.
Final play
I’m just at a loss. What happens here? Is this 100 percent designed to go to the running back? Moore, Helm, and Golden all clear out the right side, and Wisner leaks out of the backfield, but the safety isn’t fooled at all and doesn’t give Wisner a chance to even put a move on him. It’s a 1v1 he wins. A lot of DBs might miss the tackle there, but again, this Georgia defense is good.
The reason I ask, is watch Ryan Wingo (#5). He runs a crossing route across the right side of the field. The DB who is supposed to cover him is lost in traffic and Wingo is WIDE open. If Ewers is patient, and in this case he has a clean pocket, he can wait a beat and throw it to Wingo who probably gets a first down. Instead, the play gets blown up, Texas settles for a field goal and that’s your ballgame.
Conclusion
So what do we make of all this? Every game is different. I clipped off 17 plays for this piece and only four of them were run plays. There were two five-yard runs on 1st & 10, the trick play to Blue on 4th & 1 and a short Wisner run that got wiped out for holding. Texas had a 75 percent success rate on runs inside the Georgia 30 and it just wasn’t something they were willing to try consistently. The passing game was wildly unsuccessful and the blame for that falls on just about everyone. Sark had some bad play calls, the offensive line had some mistakes, Isaiah Bond had two costly penalties and Quinn Ewers just made some bad decisions and throws.
The question for the next two weeks will be how much Arch Manning do we see in the College Football Playoff. The Texas offense was largely fine between the 20s against Georgia, it was at least good enough to win them the game. However, the redzone was a struggle and that has been a trend the second half of the season.
Arch likely isn’t a fix all (if he is, that’s a bad look for Sark not using him more), but at this point Texas needs to try something new. The only piece you can change on offense that can drastically alter things is quarterback and Arch brings a running ability to the team that Ewers just doesn’t. He doesn’t have to take every redzone snap, but they have to be willing to use him for more than gimmick fourth downs and a play or two here or there.
Sark has managed the quarterback room really well the last couple of years. I think the perfect plan would’ve been for Ewers to have a great 2023 and go pro and for Arch to be the quarterback this year. That didn’t happen, and yet it seems like things are harmonious. If it really is, Ewers would be showing great leadership by sharing the role to a small degree and putting his personal glory to the side in hopes it helps the team. It could be the difference in Texas winning a national championship or not.