Baylor vs. Texas: Score and Twitter Reaction

Despite allowing 398 rushing yards, the Texas Longhorns handed the No. 8 Baylor Bears their first loss Saturday, 35-34, at DKR-Texas Memorial Stadium in Austin, Texas.

The Longhorns moved to 4-4 and may have earned a reprieve for head coach Charlie Strong, who entered the game on the hot seat.

Texas received a huge performance from junior running back D'Onta Foreman, who rushed for 250 yards and two touchdowns on 32 carries. His brother, junior wide receiver Armanti Foreman, added 142 receiving yards and one touchdown, including a huge grab on the Longhorns' game-winning field-goal drive.

Sophomore running back Terence Williams led the way for Baylor with 180 yards and one touchdown on 24 attempts, and senior quarterback Seth Russell added 138 yards and a score on the ground. However, settling for field goals in the second half cost the Bears.

Despite Texas' struggles in recent seasons, it has enjoyed success against top teams, according to ESPN Stats & Info:

Offensive fireworks were on display in the early going, as Baylor needed just over one minute to score the first points of the game. Russell ran 50 yards for a touchdown to help put the Bears on top 7-0.

As Wescott Eberts of Burnt Orange Nation pointed out, it was far from the first time that Texas' defense had gotten burned for a big play in 2016:

According to Anwar Richardson of Rivals.com, the Longhorns have had an especially difficult time stopping opponents on their opening drives:

It didn't take long for the Texas offense to pick up the defense, though, as the Longhorns marched 88 yards on eight plays in just two minutes, 35 seconds on their first possession, which ended in a 40-yard touchdown from freshman quarterback Shane Buechele to Armanti Foreman.

Per Cedric Golden of the Austin American-Statesman, Foreman atoned for a mistake he made on a similar play the previous week:

Baylor's second drive stood in stark contrast to its first, as sophomore safety P.J. Locke III intercepted Russell. That set up the Longhorns at the Bears' 37-yard line.

Texas needed just one play to cash in, as D'Onta Foreman burst up the middle for a 37-yard touchdown run to set up a 14-7 lead, as seen in this tweet, courtesy of Longhorn Network:

The points kept coming on the ensuing drive thanks to Baylor's five-play, 75-yard push that culminated in a 20-yard touchdown from Russell to sophomore wide receiver Ishmael Zamora to tie the score.

Danny Davis of the Austin American-Statesman questioned the the legality of the touchdown play, however:

According to Chuck Carlton of the Dallas Morning News, Texas and Baylor combined for some gaudy offensive numbers in less than six minutes of game time in the first quarter:

Much of Texas' success on offense in the first quarter came thanks to the hard running of D'Onta Foreman, who joined elite company in 2016 by rushing for over 100 yards in the opening frame, per ESPN Stats & Info:

Foreman also closed in on a record held by a Texas legend by recording his ninth consecutive 100-yard outing on the ground, according to Brian Davis of the Austin American-Statesman:

His brother nearly restored Texas' seven-point lead in the second quarter, when he picked up 51 yards on a pass from Buechele. Foreman was stripped of the ball before reaching the end zone, though, and Baylor recovered on its 2-yard line.

The Longhorns still put points on the board on the next play when Baylor was called for holding in the end zone, resulting in a safety to make it 16-14.

Texas then extended that lead to 23-14, when D'Onta Foreman punctuated a six-play, 66-yard drive with a nine-yard touchdown run.

Baylor appeared to be reeling until its final drive of the opening half. The Bears went 81 yards on 13 plays in just over four minutes, with Russell making a couple of key runs, including a 21-yard scamper on a 3rd-and-long play.

Bleacher Report's Matt Miller jokingly compared Russell to one of the best dual-threat quarterbacks in the history of football:

While Russell's running was key, his arm helped close the gap, as he executed a perfect back-shoulder throw to junior wide receiver KD Cannon from 15 yards out to help narrow the Texas advantage to 23-21 just prior to halftime.

Per Baylor Football, that touchdown made Cannon one of the most prolific pass-catchers in the program's history:

The Bears entered halftime with momentum, but D'Onta Foreman's dominance swung things back in Texas' favor. 

His 40-yard run on the second play from scrimmage in the second half put the Longhorns in field-goal range, and kicker Trent Domingue eventually made a 25-yard attempt to increase the lead to five.

With Texas imposing its will on the ground, Baylor answered with a strong running attack of its own on the next drive.

The Bears went 78 yards on 10 plays, all of which were runs. Williams was the star, as he rushed for 25 and 26 yards on consecutive plays before showing off his power on a two-yard scoring run that helped put Baylor on top 28-26.

Russell took a shot to the helmet from sophomore cornerback Kris Boyd on the drive, and while the officials determined it wasn't targeting, Fox Sports NFL rules analyst Mike Pereira disagreed:

"

In the Texas vs Baylor game I thought it was targeting. It was a shot to the helmet.

— Mike Pereira (@MikePereira) October 29, 2016"

Williams and Russell continued to get the job done on the ground on Baylor's next drive. But while it stalled due to an intentional-grounding call, kicker Chris Callahan made a 27-yard field goal with just over two minutes left in the third quarter to make the score 31-26 in favor of the Bears.

Baylor looked to be going in for a touchdown on its next drive, but Texas recovered a fumble by freshman running back JaMycal Hasty at its 7-yard line to remain within one score.

The Bears forced a punt and went back on the attack, however, and Russell continued to make remarkable plays with his legs.

Russell hurdled Texas safety Dylan Haines on a 28-yard run that got Baylor down to the Longhorns' 6-yard line, and Chris Hummer of 247Sports commented on how difficult of a day it was for the defensive back:

Despite that, the Texas defense held strong and only allowed a field goal, which kept the Longhorns within eight points with just under nine minutes left.

That stop may have energized the offense, as Buechele found junior wide receiver Lorenzo Joe on a short pass that Joe turned into a 61-yard gain to Baylor's 13-yard line just three offensive plays after the field goal.

Buechele then threw a seven-yard touchdown to junior tight end Andrew Beck to make it a two-point game, which prompted a two-point conversion attempt.

Senior quarterback Tyrone Swoopes was stopped short of the goal line on a sneak, and Kirk Bohls of the Austin American-Statesman questioned the play call:

With the Bears still on top 34-32, the Texas defense stiffened and forced a punt with a little over three minutes left on the clock.

Texas had a free play due to an illegal substitution by Baylor on the next drive, and Buechele took advantage by throwing the ball deep to Armanti Foreman, who made a spectacular 38-yard catch.

That put Domingue in position to attempt a go-ahead field goal from 39 yards out, and he nailed it.

The Longhorns went up 35-34 and left Baylor with 46 seconds and one timeout.

The Bears needed a miracle to save their undefeated season, but they ran out of time.

Baylor likely played its way out of College Football Playoff contention with the loss due to the unfavorable outlook on the Big 12 and its lack of a conference title game. However, the Bears are still in the hunt for the Big 12 title at 3-1 in the conference and 6-1 overall.

Texas is back in the bowl conversation, and with a fairly favorable schedule on the horizon, Strong may have a chance to save his job for 2017 and beyond.

The Longhorns have struggled to put it all together despite their obvious talent, but Saturday's win may have been the moment that saw them finally turn the corner.

Postgame Reaction

Texas came through with Strong's back against the wall, and he showed a great deal of pride in his team's winning amid a difficult situation, per Davis:

Much has been made of Texas' struggles under Strong, but he made it clear he believes the program is making strides, per Davis:

According to Mike Finger of the San Antonio Express-News, Strong stressed the togetherness of his team:

Baylor head coach Jim Grobe didn't produce as many juicy sound bites as Strong, but he did address a couple of situations of note.

With regard to freshman defensive back Grayland Arnold's being carted off the field, Grobe provided positive news, per Brice Cherry of the Waco Tribune-Herald:

Grobe also explained the reasoning behind Williams and Hasty's increased playing time in the second half, after the pair played more than Shock Linwood, per David Smoak of ESPN Central Texas:

Baylor got more than enough production from its running game to win Saturday, but a failure to put the contest away despite multiple opportunities allowed Texas to pull off the upset.                    

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