Texas Rugby Week 3: Highs and Lows
One eighty-minute session of full-on contact at a dead run is plenty for most normal, sensible people, especially when that eighty minutes is against one of the top 25 teams in the country, but it wasn't enough for the Longhorns this weekend. With a disappointing start against #21 Sam Houston State, Texas could have thrown in the towel, but instead, they found it in themselves to keep driving, rucking, mauling and hitting long after their bodies told them to quit, and the Longhorns made sure that the aches and pains they were in for Monday morning wouldn't be for nothing...
Texas 28 - #21 Sam Houston State 31
With time ticking down, Texas finally crossed the line after another brutal drive to go up 28-26 on a Sam Houston club that had befuddled their defense for most of the game. With the two point margin and four... three... two minutes to play with the wind at their backs, Texas was feeling confident that they had finally climbed the down-escalator that was this game.
Neither side had had much success stopping the other on the day, with Sam dangling a three or four point carrot in front of the 'Horns for much of the contest, starting with a try after the first twelve minutes, most of which Sam spent inches from the Texas goal line. Texas answered with their own try, but Sam stormed right back and crossed the line for their second try of the half. The Longhorns managed to work themselves into good position towards the end of the period, though, and took advantage of fullback Craig Ferguson's big leg to put in a long penalty into a stiff wind before the half, making the score 14-10 at the break.
When the teams returned for the second half, it was more trading. Texas' offense, spurred on by 8-man and Man of the Match Stephen Mahoney's hat trick on the day, would score, Sam would match, and on and on. It looked as if Texas wouldn't be able to catch up until they scored the try at the five minute mark, and then it looked like they had the game in hand.
But that's why they play the full eighty. It may take several minutes and a lot of luck to orchestrate a proper scoring drive, from which UT was likely safe at that point, but it only takes a few seconds for a breakaway to change a game irreversibly. Sam got an overload on their right side and one of their backs went charging down the field before being dragged down with just meters to goal. Sam had been in the same position earlier in the year against LSU, stalled on the goal line down a try, and had their game winner stolen from them by bad luck. Bad luck would not strike twice this season for Sam, though, and they quickly supported at the tackle and plowed through for the winning try, putting Sam up for good, 31-28.
While the loss was a huge disappointment, especially the way the match slipped through their fingers, Texas had no time to wonder what-if, as A&M had just handed Tech a 31-17 defeat, and were waiting in College Station knowing that beating Texas was a must if they were to have a chance at making the playoffs.
Second Side: Texas 22 - Sam Houston 5
Once again, Texas' second side followed the pattern it set in its first two matches: A slow, closely contested first half, followed by a dominant second half punctuated with strong forward play throughout. Texas scrum-half Hank Morris was awarded with the Man of the Match title for his leadership and tenacity, defensively he was everywhere, and offensively you could usually find him ten meters down the field with the rest of the team hustling up to support him. Another great win for the second side, who look to be ready to make an impact on first side when their number comes up.
You read that correctly. Texas went home after a disappointing match that they could have won, decided that it wasn't up to standard, woke up early for an 8 o'clock departure time to College Station, then proceeded to play the game of their collective lives against one of the top ten teams in the country to secure a signature victory for the program.
While the finish was pretty, the beginning was far from it. Texas ceded two quick tries to the Aggies and seemed to be in for another long day, but then the 'Horns got their nerves in check and settled in for a 70 minute work week after spotting the Aggies 14 quick points. Usually, one mistake, not to mention two easy tries, is all it takes to lose a game against a top-flight opponent, but the way the team wore the Burnt Orange and White today, it was A&M that needed to watch their backs.
Texas put on a hitting clinic for the game, eliminating many opportunities for the much bigger and deeper Aggie team as they clawed their way back into the game one yard at a time. When A&M did find a small overload or gap to exploit, Texas' pressure on the trigger man was too much, causing multiple errant passes and mistakes. Thanks to the wind at their back in the first half, Texas' fly half Craig Ferguson, who switched from fullback on Saturday, was able to put on a kicking clinic as well - Giving the ball thorough crushings at each opportunity and setting up Texas with great field position for their big prop, Carlos Hernandez, to smash the ball across the line for two tries, one converted, to tighten the score to 14-12 A&M at the half.
The second half started slowly, with both defenses denying any movement beyond kicking for a large chunk of the period. In fact, the first score of the half would come on a mistake, rather than a play. While A&M had been having penalty trouble, especially at the tackle, they had managed to keep most of the trouble out of the range of Ferguson, or so they thought. After a Texas drive had seemingly stalled just short of midfield, Carlos Hernandez, who was chosen as Man of the Match for his powerful running and two earlier tries, made another bruising run to regain forward momentum, and Texas was rewarded with an Aggie penalty at around the 30 meters out. Despite the distance and a solid headwind, Texas' coaches wanted the lead and screamed for the tee. The strong-legged Ferguson didn't even stop for a second thought as he lined up another difficult kick into a stiff breeze that sailed through to give Texas a 15-14 advantage as the game entered its final stages.
Texas was hoping to expand their lead with ten minutes left to play after holding off several penetrations by the furiously-attacking Aggies with superior scrumming despite having no fresh subs in to counter A&M's injection of fresh legs, but A&M swiped a ball and made a great series of passes that kept the ball moving quickly deep into Texas territory before finally being slowed down in a tackle. The Aggies made quick work of resetting their back line, though, and slipped one tackle to grab a four-point lead.
This is when the Texas side dug deep and proved that they had learned from their last-minute miscues against Tech and Sam Houston. Tired as they were, with the Aggies subbing away from what seemed to be a limitless supply of fresh big men, Texas coach Randy Lott decided to roll the dice, betting the game that the starting fifteen would have enough in the tank to close out the match. The players responded beautifully, ignoring fatigue and maintaining excellent form in the scrums as they had all day, staying cool, and taking advantage of A&M penalties and Ferguson's leg to get a free-kick into touch at the Aggie five meter line with one minute to play.
Texas won the critical lineout with the same great execution that they had used throughout the game. There would be no sloppy, tired play from these Longhorns in any phase of the game as long as they could still will their legs to move, and hooker Justin Amato did just that off of the pick-and-pop, willing himself into the end-goal to put up the final points of the game with time nearly expired. The conversion failed, leaving Texas ahead by a single point, 20-19. Fingernails on both sides' benches did not appreciate the drama, but Texas could once again feel victory in the palm of their hands.
With almost a full minute to go, however, A&M was not done, and mounted an almost terrifyingly-successful final drive to the Texas 22 all too reminiscent of the Sam game, refusing to let the ball find touch even well after the eightieth minute had passed. A drop goal attempt by the Aggie fly half was charged down and blocked in a clutch move by Texas flanker Josh Burke, but the block was recovered by the Aggies and play continued as they drove deeper and deeper into Texas territory, eventually reaching the five meter line. Texas gutted out the goal line stand to end all stands, though, refusing to let another win slip through their fingers, forcing their spent bodies to pressure the ball, keeping it away from midfield and preventing another shot at a dropper, while also having the legs to keep the field spread wide, preventing the kind of last-minute overload they saw against Sam Houston. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity of withstanding the Aggie attack, Texas' strong play eventually forced a moment of panic on the A&M attack, sending an Aggie rucker in from the side to give Texas the ball on a penalty with time expired, fittingly allowing Ferguson to boot the ball well into touch and bring on the final whistle, a sigh of relief from the Texas bench, and a groan of defeat from the Aggie side.
The game couldn't have been any more exciting, nor could it have been any more nerve-racking in its final minutes. Texas overcame size and experience disadvantages with a tough-nosed team defense in which every man did their part, not to mention near-heroism from too many players to mention here. Texas walks away from this one with no second thoughts, and nothing to take away from a great victory over a tough opponent on their own field. This win is for the seniors, who will go out with a win over their arch-rivals and can say that they played in the game of their lives on their way out. Congratulations to both teams for an absolutely incredible effort and one of the best matches of the year in the Texas conference, but mostly here's to the fifteen men in Burnt Orange who put forth a heroic effort to secure the University Cup against all odds!
Second Side: Texas 5 - A&M 37
While the score shows a blowout, A&M didn't win this one going away. Since most of Texas' second side was unable to attend the hastily-scheduled Sunday match, the Longhorns were forced to recycle several first side players who had given more than all they had in the first side game, and also came up short in their usually strong pack, requiring uncontested scrums, which removed a big part of second side's game. The Aggies took out first-side's frustrations on the 'Horns early, taking advantage of the ragtag group to the tune of 37 unanswered points in the first thirty minutes. Credit Texas, though, that they simply did not give up, and once fatigue began to affect the A&M side as well, held the Aggies scoreless for the final fifty minutes. Texas' lone try came in the second half when the 'Horns began to ruck efficiently near the Aggie goal. Man of the Match Evan Wagner punched over for the score. A disappointing loss, to be sure, but second side can take pride in not giving up despite the early onslaught. Thanks is in order to the first side players who participated despite being completely bushed from their game.