Week One: Wyoming versus Texas

Wyoming at Texas--Wyoming versus Texas is a game between two 8-5 teams that made bowls last fall but does not look to be very close on paper. While Wyoming went bowling last year, they were one of the few teams that had a winning record but were outscored on the season. Texas started out strong but struggled down the stretch versus the top level of competition.

Offense: Texas was one of the better rushing offenses in the nation last fall with 202 yards on the ground per game plus 24 touchdowns. The Longhorns were able to run for 4.5 yards a carry as a team. Passing was more of an adventure for the Longhorns with a solid 189 yards per game in the air but a 16:15 touchdown to interception ratio. The turnovers must be cut down for Texas to beat the better teams on their schedule. Wyoming ended the season at 67th nationally in scoring offense with 26.1 points per game on the season. Leaning on a good rushing attack, the Cowboys ran for 181 yards per game, 20 touchdowns, and an impressive 4.9 yards per carry. The passing game was serviceable with 206 yards per game in the air per game. The Wyoming offense threw for 21 touchdowns while only getting intercepted 11 times in 13 games. With an overall yards per game of 388 yards, the Cowboys were 59th nationally in total offense. EDGE: Texas

Defense: Texas was excellent in 2011 on defense ranking 11th nationally in total yards allowed per game at 306 yards allowed. The rushing defense held opponents under 100 yards per game but allowed 15 rushing touchdowns on the season. Opponents were only able to run for 3.1 yards per carry versus the Longhorn defense. The Texas pass defense gave up 206 yards per game on the season last fall but were very impressive in only allowing 13 touchdowns in 13 games. With 12 interceptions of their own, the Longhorns forced 27 turnovers on the season. Wyoming struggled on defense in 2011 with the 98th ranked defense in the nation giving up 431 yards per game on the season. The Cowboys were horrible at stopping the run with opponents averaging 5.1 yards per carry. Opponents ran for 232 yards per game and 29 touchdowns on the season versus the Cowboy rush defense. Passing the ball was slightly less successful for opponents last fall as Wyoming gave up only 199 yards per game and 18 touchdowns. The Wyoming defense did come up with 13 interceptions as well. EDGE: Texas

Coaching: Mack Brown is the head coach of the Texas Longhorns and is in his 15th season as the head coach of the Longhorns. Brown played college football at Vanderbilt and Florida State before starting his coaching career at Florida State. After Florida State, Brown coached at Southern Miss, Memphis, Iowa State, LSU, Appalachian State, Oklahoma, Tulane, North Carolina, and finally Texas. Texas is Brown's 4th head coaching job with stops at Appalachian State (6-5), Tulane (11-23), and North Carolina (69-46-1) before Texas. Brown is 141-39 at Texas with 1 national championship and 6 top 10 finishes. Dave Christensen is the head coach of Wyoming. Christensen is in his 4th season as the head coach of Wyoming and has been coaching since 1983. In 1983, Christensen started coaching at Western Washington before going to Sehome HS, Everett HS, Spokane CC, Washington, Idaho State, Toledo, Missouri and finally Wyoming. Christensen is 18-20 in three seasons at Wyoming with 2 bowl berths (1-1 in the New Mexico Bowl). EDGE: Texas

Texas is 4-0 overall versus Wyoming all-time playing 2 times in the last 3 seasons as well as 2 times in the 1970s. The Cowboys have lost to Texas by an average of 31.5-6.8 in the 4 matchups with Wyoming scoring double digits one time in four matchups.

Texas was down in 2010 with a 5-7 record but bounced back behind a strong defense and running game to go 8-5 with a bowl berth. Wyoming was very similar in bouncing back from a losing record in 2010 with an 8-5 record and a bowl game. The similarities seem to end there with Texas having a much better team than Wyoming coming into 2012. The Cowboys must do the one thing they could not do in 2011 in stopping the run. The Cowboys may be able to slow down the game and attempt to neutralize the game breakers on the Texas side. Expect Texas to struggle early but roll in the second half and win quite easily in the second half.