After an emotional, program-lifting win against the Oklahoma Sooners two weeks ago, the Texas Longhorns look to stay consistent Saturday against the K-State Wildcats at Darrell K. Royal Texas Memorial Stadium/Jamail Field.
Even with the week off, as they watched Oklahoma dispatch K-State, the Longhorns know that the team they saw last week isn’t the team they’ll see this week when they line up on Saturday at 11 a.m.
“Well, Kansas State, they’re going to be hungry, especially after that loss,” Lorenzo Joe, Texas wide receiver, said to Texas Sports while meeting with the media this week. “After the TCU game we were hungry for a win, went out against OU and got that win, so they’re going to come in here and they’re going to fight hard. We’ve just got to keep on coming out here and working hard during practice, prepare hard and like I said, they’re going to be hungry for a win. We’ve just got to hit them in the mouth first.”
In their victory over the Sooners on Oct. 10, the Longhorns used an effective ground game to the tune of 313 yards rushing.
Texas quarterback Jerrod Heard collected 115 of those yards, and his play will be a main focus for the K-State linebacking core, led by senior linebacker Will Davis, a player who’s familiar with the exploits of Heard.
“Jerrod Heard, he’s an incredible athlete and he can run with anyone in the country,” Davis said. “He can run around you and he can throw the ball too. I’ve played against him in high school so I’ve seen it first hand.”
The Longhorns also have revenge on their minds this week. Last season’s matchup in Manhattan quickly turned into a nightmare for Texas as the Wildcats pitched a 23-0 shutout victory in Bill Snyder Family Stadium. Texas is hungry to prove that last season’s affair was a fluke.
“Just going out there and redeem ourselves, going out there and making plays, and like I said, just going out there and fighting for each other,” Marcus Johnson, Texas wide receiver, said. “We can’t really get too caught up in the fact that whatever happened last year. It was what it was. But obviously you want to go out there and play well for each other and for Coach (Strong), but we’re not really worried about last year too much. We’re just playing our game, honestly.”
Although Texas has struggled during the 2015 campaign, the Wildcats aren’t phased by the Longhorns’ record and know that they’ll see a much better team on Saturday.
“Texas is a good football team,” junior offensive lineman Terrale Johnson said. “They are always good. I watched Texas when I was young and I could tell that even though they have a bad record, they have good players and good coaching. It is going to be a tough team, but we just have to get ready for this week and play well.”
