Texas vs. Iowa State: Game Grades, Analysis for the Longhorns

Just when you think they've figured it out, the Texas Longhorns go and do this.

Watching Texas get shut out by the Iowa State Cyclones, you can't even believe the consecutive wins over Oklahoma and Kansas State even happened. The Horns were awful in their 24-0 loss to Iowa State, which is the first time they've been shut out by an unranked opponent since 1961.

Jerrod Heard's shining star burned out in Ames, as Texas' starting quarterback accounted for just 39 yards on the night. And even though he led the team with 58 rushing yards, Tyrone Swoopes wasn't much better.

In all, the Horns went three-and-out six times, were outgained 426 to 204 and failed to cross the Iowa State 45 until there was 1:17 left to play. It was a pitiful effort for that side of the ball, and the rest of the team isn't good enough to make up for a showing like that.

Positional Unit	1st Half	Final
Passing Offene	F	F
Rushing Offense	C	D
Passing Defense	B	C-
Rushing Offense	D	D
Special Teams	C	C+
Coaching	C	D-

Grade Analysis for the Longhorns

Passing Offense

Where do you even start with Texas' passing offense? Heard plays like he's completely lost confidence in himself, and his indecision has sapped his ability to scramble, as well. Swoopes isn't a better option, as we saw from his 6-of-13 showing.

Until Heard shows he can make plays downfield, teams are going rush three, play coverage and spy him. That strategy rendered him useless in Ames.

Rushing Offense

Swoopes' "18 Wheeler" package is the only thing this offense consistently gets right. Heard's scrambling was on that list until a team full-on dared him to beat coverage.

Johnathan Gray continues to play below-average football. His eight carries for 23 yards has become par for the course with him. He should never out-carry the combination of D'Onta Foreman and Chris Warren, which he did on Saturday.

Passing Defense

The Longhorns mostly did a good job when they could keep Joel Lanning in the pocket, but he picked them apart once he got on the move. The pass-rushers didn't finish several sacks and got burned for it.

Rushing Defense

Freshman Mike Warren gashed these guys for 157 yards on 32 carries. Then again, what can you expect from a group that was on the field for almost 40 minutes? The offense set these guys up for failure against one of the nation's best young backs.

Special Teams

Punter Michael Dickson was one of the few guys who came to play, averaging 45.8 yards on his nine punts. He even made a tackle on Trever Ryen to prevent a possible return touchdown. The Longhorns got basically nothing in the return game.

Coaching

Charlie Strong should be back next season, but he's made things dicey for himself after this one. A team can't be 3-4 and come out flat, no matter who it's beaten in the past three weeks. Losing is one thing, but getting shut out by Iowa State is inexcusable.

Meanwhile, Jay Norvell cost himself a shot at being named the long-term offensive coordinator. The Longhorns were too slow to adjust to what Iowa State was doing on defense and had no idea how to play from behind. Spread offense shouldn't look this difficult.