Texas Football: 5 overreactions from nailbiting win over the stingy Baylor Bears

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AUSTIN, TX – OCTOBER 13: Sam Ehlinger #11 of the Texas Longhorns awaits the snap with blood running from his hand in the first quarter against the Baylor Bears at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium on October 13, 2018 in Austin, Texas. (Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images) /

3. We found out the hard way how vital Sam Ehlinger is for this offense

The one thing that fans of Texas football at this point in the season were hoping didn’t happen became a reality against Baylor. Rising star sophomore quarterback Sam Ehlinger went down with what appeared to be an injury to his throwing hand. He left the game in the first half with a bloody throwing hand and didn’t return.

Ehlinger only attempted five passes before he was out for the game with what amounted to be a shoulder sprain that should have him back by the Oklahoma State game on Oct. 27. The Texas offense clearly missed Ehlinger since his skill set is very close to what Tom Herman and offensive coordinator Tim Beck use to run their scheme.

Junior quarterback Shane Buechele was the alternative option for the Horns if anything ever happened to Ehlinger. Yet, Buechele didn’t get any playing time this season until Ehlinger left the game and had some visible issues getting comfortable with the offensive flow. Buechele had to rely on the numerous weapons for the Horns on the outside to get things going.

On 34 passing attempts, Buechele completed 20 for 184 yards and one touchdown. He also tossed one interception on the day which is only the third of the season so far for the Horns. Buechele ran this offense very similar to how it looked last season which is a worrying sign if Ehlinger is out against Oklahoma State. Paying attention to this development during the bye week will be key.

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