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Duvernay’s long developing route finds pay dirt

Often when I begin a rankings list I'll mention schematic fit as something I account for. I'll say something like, I'm not going to let a kid's bad choice sink my evaluation. Or if they make a good decision, I'll happily ride those coattails. Often with the elite players fit doesn't matter as much, but I will account for how well a program has been developing talent. No fan base has learned this simple lesson harder or more resolutely than Texas: development really matters.
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Inside the Gameplan: Gundy the fox

Mike Gundy is the one problem in the Big 12 that Tom Herman has yet to solve. In 2017 the Longhorns caught Oklahoma State with a surprise haymaker, unveiling the 3-2-6 “lightning” package as a base defense and combining it with Michael Dickson’s punting to shut down the Cowboy offense. However, the Texas offense came up with next to nothing and the ‘Horns went down 13-10 in overtime when a dazed Sam Ehlinger threw an interception into the end zone.
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Scipio Tex: Oklahoma State Cowboys Preview

I don't need to sell y'all on the importance of winning this Big 12 home opener against a dangerous Cowboy football team with a first rate offense and some really good offensive coaches. Though Texas leads the overall series 24-9, Texas hasn't won since 2014 and the Cowboys have won 7 out of the last 9. By the way, that 2014 Texas win was when Mike Gundy was saddled with Dax Garman as his starting QB. I won't get into the 2015 loss in Austin as I'm not Blame It On The Refs Guy, but I'm getting pissed off just thinking about it and I'm white knuckling and about to punch an object really, really hard.
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Is the Big 12 better than we thought?

That's the question I'm wondering after absorbing as much football over the first three weeks as I could. I think certainly the floor and middle are stronger than many, myself included, expected. The ceiling will be decided by Texas and Oklahoma. Then maybe decided by Texas and Oklahoma again. But the the middle-tier programs may need to be expanded and the worst teams may prove better than we thought even if they finish where conventional wisdom expects them to.