The No. 5 Texas Longhorns went on the road for the first time in SEC play and while it ended up being an unnecessary nail-biter, they managed to walk away with a win over the No. 25 Vanderbilt Commodores. Many of Texas’ problems were self-inflicted, with penalties, missed opportunities and a lack of complementary football escalating for the second week in a row.

The line problems have not been solved

From Ewers playing with defenders in his face due to miscommunication to key plays being negated by penalties, the offensive line was not up to the standard the team needed and the fans expected a few weeks ago. Texas saw two first downs and a combined 33 yards of plays negated due to holding calls, plus a false start and an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty that put Texas behind the chains on first downs.

One of Ewers’ interceptions, which occurred on the first drive of the game, was due to a defender who should have been responsible for putting a hand on the ball and creating a devastating play. While some sacks came down to the quarterback’s indecisiveness with the ball, Ewers was taken down four times and rushed another two times, with the offense sputtering.

The defense cannot continue to play with its back against the wall

The first time the defense took the field, they were already in the shadow of their own end zone thanks to an interception returned to the Texas 31-yard line. They lost control on a third-and-long, allowing Pavia to rush for an 18-yard touchdown to take the lead. Vandy’s next points came on a three-and-out by the offense and a questionable punt by Michael Kern. The Commodores then went just 29 yards and kicked a field goal as time expired in the first half to cut the lead to 11.

Vanderbilt’s first 17 points of the game covered just 98 yards of the field, with only one starting on their side of the 50-yard line. It wasn’t until their final touchdown drive of the game that they had to start deep in their own territory and convert it into points – one of only two drives longer than 40 yards in a day for the Commodores.

Free football still has a long way to go

The Longhorns defense did their best to keep the team in this game despite the issues on the other side of the ball. Texas turned the Commodores over twice and forced four three-and-outs in the game, two of which came on Vanderbilt’s first two drives of the second half. In response, Texas had a drive sputter that ended in a field goal and saw Ewers pick off a naked bootleg that Vanderbilt sniffed out of the snap and made some incredible individual plays.

Perhaps even more frustrating for the defense is the fact that they have turned the opponent over twice two weeks in a row, but the offense couldn’t find a way to score points. It’s a whole different story for Texas heading into the bye week if they can convert those turnovers into points.