Texas football won’t be playing Kansas like initially planned. The last regular season game for the Longhorns this Saturday got canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Game postponed before
The Texas game against Kansas got postponed a few weeks back. Back in late November, the Longhorns should’ve played this game coming off of their second bye week of the season. Instead they received an extended break and played Iowa state the weekend after. This resulted in Texas having an extended break and not playing an actual game for just under three weeks. Practice could only do so much and the extended break ended up hurting more than helping, as it lost to Iowa State and ended any chance of qualifying for the Big 12 Championship
Texas football
The Longhorns have now officially ended their season 6-3. We’ll have to wait and what bowl game the Longhorns qualify for. It was a disappointing season for Texas this year. Expectations included contending heavily for the Big 12 Championship and giving themselves a chance to reach the College football Playoff this year. Once again, the Longhorns didn’t meet their expectations. Now, 6-3 is still a respectable record for anyone, especially during this season given the circumstances. Everyone dealt with the same challenges this season, and Texas still failed to meet expectations this year.
The offseason essentially starts now for the Longhorns, and they have many things to address before they can move forward with the team. There will be major changes coming to the team next year, and that will determine who comes in, who leaves and who comes back. This includes the coaching staff and the players as well.
Kansas football
The Jayhawks now finish their season with a record of 0-9. They probably expected to win at least one game this season. Some changes will likely go through the Kansas’ coaching staff as well in the offseason. Kansas is more known for the basketball team rather than its football team. The losing streak now continues and we’ll have to see what lies ahead for the Jayhawks next season. This game would’ve been a trap game for the Longhorns. Texas came in as the heavy favorites and expected to beat Kansas. The Jayhawks had nothing to lose. It would’ve set up for an intriguing game, given that Kansas would’ve brought out every trick play and play the game unpredictable. Texas would likely win by a big margin, it just sets up an interesting what if scenario.
Looking forward
Texas football still has a bowl game before its season is officially over. The game being canceled by the COVID-19 pandemic will cause the bowl game opponent to change than what was predicted. It depends on how the rest of the season plays out. The Longhorns weren’t able to reach the Big 12 Championship this year, and will have to settle for a potential bowl game win in the Tome Herman era, again. We’ll have to wait and see what bowl Texas qualifies for, and who the opponent will be. Until then, Herman needs to keep his team prepared and ready to play anyone.