Tom Herman reveals what went wrong for Longhorns in Maryland loss

After a full day to watch tape, reflect on what went wrong, and talk to players and coaches, Tom Herman believes he figured out what went wrong in Texas Football’s stunning Week 1 home loss against Maryland.

The answer from Monday’s press conference?

The Longhorns players abandoned their coaching and training:

• Mistakes that were corrected after spring football suddenly reappeared.
• Players started thinking too much instead of trusting their training.
• Players hesitated instead of played the way they were coached all offseason.
• The psychological barriers that hurt past Longhorns teams hurt this team.

In sum, nine months worth of player development went out the window.

Since no particular unit played very well, Tom Herman was able to cast a wide net over the entire team in his evaluation. He said players were just trying too hard and not trusting what they were trained to do on the football field.

That has been the trademark of Longhorns teams the past seven years. When adversity strikes, players lose focus and try to fix it themselves.

But, Coach Herman liked this team’s response to adversity when Maryland jumped out to a big lead. However, the Longhorns “have to find a way to take the next step putting response into physical action,” according to Herman.

So, what’s the next step to correct these issues?

Coach Herman said the players already started to address the same problems that have plagued the Longhorns. He believes it will lead to a change…

Coach Herman Encouraged by Player Response

Perhaps it was a good thing Texas Football ended up losing to Maryland on Saturday.

If Texas made the big comeback, finally climbed over the hill in the fourth quarter, and won the game, they would not be in position to face reality head-on.

But, losing the way Texas did — including giving up 51 points at home — served as a huge wakeup call.

“These are smart, bright players,” Herman said Monday. “The reminder of what happens when you don’t follow training will register a lot.”

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Tom Herman still believes in his program, his coaches, and the training instilled in the players. It just has to sink in.

“This team was trained and they just departed from their training,” Herman said. “We need to reinforce the training.”

Now that Texas has played a real game, it’s on the coaches to discover and fix the disconnects with their units.

Fortunately, Coach Herman said the players were so disappointed by letting down their coaches that he believes it will lead to a major shift from this team.

Longhorns fans hope that actually happens, as frustration with several years of losing has boiled over. So, what is Coach Herman’s message to Longhorns fans?

“This is a process and we’re in this for the long run,” he said. “The nine months of training was to instill a culture and an attitudinal shift.”

Tom Herman believes it will happen. It will just take time and not be an overnight fix, as shown by the Longhorns’ disappointing opening game loss to Maryland.