Hook'em Headlines
Fansided

Texas Football: Ranking the 5 best defenses the Longhorns face in 2018

By Andrew Miller

FORT WORTH, TX - NOVEMBER 04: Ty Summers (42) of the TCU Horned Frogs sacks Shane Buechele (7) of the Texas Longhorns in the second half of a football game at Amon G. Carter Stadium on November 4, 2017 in Fort Worth, Texas. (Photo by Richard W. Rodriguez/Getty Images)
FORT WORTH, TX - NOVEMBER 04: Ty Summers (42) of the TCU Horned Frogs sacks Shane Buechele (7) of the Texas Longhorns in the second half of a football game at Amon G. Carter Stadium on November 4, 2017 in Fort Worth, Texas. (Photo by Richard W. Rodriguez/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
3 of 6
Next
AUSTIN, TX – OCTOBER 07: Duke Shelley #8 of the Kansas State Wildcats celebrates after Joshua Rowland #49 of the Texas Longhorns missed a fourth quarter field goal at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium on October 7, 2017 in Austin, Texas. (Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images)
AUSTIN, TX – OCTOBER 07: Duke Shelley #8 of the Kansas State Wildcats celebrates after Joshua Rowland #49 of the Texas Longhorns missed a fourth quarter field goal at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium on October 7, 2017 in Austin, Texas. (Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images) /

4. Kansas State Wildcats

Like Texas Tech, the defense of the Kansas State Wildcats tends to be projected on a year-by-year basis. Kansas State is usually tough for Big 12 teams to score on when playing at Bill Snyder Family Stadium in Manhattan, KS. That’s exactly what lies ahead for the Horns this fall in a difficult late September conference battle.

The Kansas State defense will also benefit from solid quarterback play on the other side of the ball. Either Alex Delton or Skylar Thompson will take the reigns to the Kansas State offense, and head coach Bill Snyder knows how to manage the clock with a veteran quarterback leading the way.

To say that Kansas State’s run defense was stingy last season does not do its front seven any sort of justice. The Wildcats gave up 1.1 rushing touchdowns per game and held opposing running backs to 3.6 yards per carry. In a conference loaded with running back talent last year, that’s a crazy defensive stat to register.

On a positive note for the Horns, last year the offense put up the second most points of any that Kansas State faced last season. Heisman winning quarterback Baker Mayfield and the Oklahoma Sooners were the only offense that put up more points on the Kansas State defense than Texas and Oklahoma State (who each posted 40 on the Wildcats).

Home/Texas Football