Texas Football: 5 reasons to believe Longhorns will make the Playoff

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AUSTIN, TX – OCTOBER 13: Breckyn Hager #44 of the Texas Longhorns and Charles Omenihu #90 apply pressure to Charlie Brewer #12 of the Baylor Bears in the first half at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium on October 13, 2018 in Austin, Texas. (Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images) /

4. Best defense in the Big 12

A major reason why the Horns would not be out of their league is the play of one side of the ball under second-year defensive coordinator Todd Orlando. This Texas defense might actually be playing better than it did last year. Or, that could be due to the offensive efficiency going up therefore the amount of time the defense spends on the field is reduced.

Texas accomplished a feat that is near impossible for most teams in this conference year in and year out. Barring the 48-45 victory over the Oklahoma Sooners in the Red River Showdown two weeks ago, the Horns have allowed 17 points or less to every Big 12 opponent its faced this season. That defense was even close to holding Oklahoma under 35.

That one time that the Texas defense ran out of steam against a Big 12 opponent came against a head coach in Lincoln Riley and an offense led by Heisman candidate Kyler Murray that could be the overall best in the nation. Texas even held the Sooners to an impressive 24 points until the start of the fourth quarter when everything broke open.

The run stopping ability is almost as good as it was last year statistically and passes the eye test to the fullest degree. As long as the Horns hold opposing ground games to less than four yards per carry on a regular basis and keep down the total number of rushing yards, the result is very likely to be positive. Pass defense is vastly improved too behind a rejuvenated group in the defensive backfield.

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