By the numbers: Eye-popping stats from the Texas vs. Ohio State matchup

In this new era of college football, teams are assembling the best rosters to win now. This means that the best team will most often have the best offense. This isn't to say that defense isn't important because it is. This is simply to say that the offense is supposed to make the defense's job easier on the field for maximum impact —and vice versa. Last time out, I broke down Arch Manning's performance because it was essential to do that to understand the offense in its true form. This now segues into my next article —breaking down the Texas offense.

The Run Game

Texas ran the ball 37 times for 166 yards, with an average of 4.5 yards per carry. Although it was better than the Buckeyes at just 77 yards and an average of 2.4 yards per carry, it wasn't good enough. Steve Sarkisian took a different approach in this game by not establishing the run as much. With their stable of running backs, the run game will set up the pass game going forward.

Typically, the run game has been his bread and butter. Last year, Texas ran the ball 43% of the time, which significantly helped open up the downfield passing attack.Leading the way in this game was Quintrevion Wisner with 16 carries for 80 yards, followed by CJ Baxter with 10 carries for 40 yards. The production was there, they just need to keep it going.

The Pass Game

The expectation for Texas to start the year off was extremely high. I believe that they will mesh sooner rather than later. However, it was difficult to ignore some of the difficulties. The first half wasn't good at all as Manning went into halftime with just 26 yards. That shouldn't happen to an offense with this many weapons, but it did. The second half is where things started to trend in the right direction, but it was too late by then.

Manning found Parker Livingstone in the fourth quarter for a 32-yard touchdown, which was his lone passing touchdown of the day. He finished with 170  yards passing, 1 touchdown, and 1 interception. It's important to note that Texas had an average of 5.7 yards per attempt, which is pretty low for this offense. This was an indication that the opportunities downfield were being missed.

Efficiency

Texas outperformed Ohio State in most offensive categories, yet still lost the game and here's how:

I'll start with the good - they had 16 first downs to the Buckeyes' 11, 67 total plays to the Buckeyes' 54, 336 total yards to the Buckeyes' 203, and 5 yards per play to the Buckeyes' 3.8. Here's where it gets tricky: third- and fourth-down conversions.

Although they had a better percentage, it still wasn't good enough. 3rd-down was 5/14, which equals 36% and 4th-down was 1/5, which equals 20%. Simply put, you can't operate at optimal capacity with numbers like these. Now, I do like how aggressive Steve Sarkisian is with his play calling. I think that he needs to turn it on and not take his foot off the pedal going forward. This was one of their downfalls last season, in addition to slow starts in the third quarter.

Next, it was time of possession at 27:55 versus the Buckeyes' 32:05; points were left on the table. Last but not least, the penalties — six for 50 yards — can erode momentum.

Special Teams

This was a bright spot for the Longhorns, as they only had four punts. The average punt was 46.3 yards, which is right inside pro range and Jack Bouwmeester pinned three of his four punts inside the 20. That gave the defense an advantage. Kick return and punt return weren't so effective, although there was only one a piece.

Final remarks

Texas has all of the pieces that it needs to make a championship run. These are the growing pains that come with the sport. This game was necessary because I wouldn't be surprised if these two teams meet again in the playoffs.

Longhorn faithful, don't give up on your team just yet.