Last updated on Nov. 7 at 2:15 p.m. CT
The Longhorns entered their Week 10 matchup against the Missouri Tigers with a slew of injuries, but very few of those were to Texas's defensive line.
That changed as the top-20 SEC matchup unfolded, and one of the biggest losses came right at the end of the third quarter when defensive tackle Hero Kanu went down with an unclear injury.
Kanu has undeniably been one of the veteran leaders of Texas's defense this season, and while the unit saw the semi-return of star edge rusher Colin Simmons against the Tigers, it was still far from full strength.
So, the loss of a consistent presence like Kanu was a big hit for the Horns, especially because they were already struggling to slow down the Missouri offense.
Will Muschamp's defense is quickly losing depth
When Kanu left the game, the Tigers had already posted over 250 total yards of offense, and that included quarterback Austin Simmons completing well over 50% of his pass attempts for more than 200 yards through the air.
The Horns were struggling to get pressure into the backfield, so losing a starting tackle to injury was far from ideal, especially when you take into account just how tired this defense has looked later in games this season.
While you can control the pace on offense, the defense has to adhere to when the opponent wants to snap the ball. So, as big men go down and depth along the line diminishes, those big men are going to have to play an increased number of snaps, giving them less and less time between plays to catch their breath.
Simply put, Texas defensive coordinator Will Muschamp was having to juggle a lot on his side of the ball, even with Simmons back in the rotation just behind the line of scrimmage.
In what was a huge sigh of relief for the Horns ahead of kickoff was when Texas announced that both defensive backs Kade Phillips and Graceson Littleton would be available, alongside Simmons' return after missing three weeks.
So, Muschamp had a little bit of depth back. However, Kanu's leaving only aggravated an issue that seemed to be compounding during the middle stretch of Texas's season.
Heading into the Missouri game, Kanu had 20 starts in 21 appearances for the Horns since transferring to Texas from Ohio State. He played in 27 games for the Buckeyes but didn’t earn a starting appearance before transferring.
With Kanu sidelined, for however long, expect backup DTs like Alex January, Josiah Sharma, and Zion Williams to step up to fill in for his absence.
Kanu eventually returned to the game agianst Missouri as the fourth quarter unfolded.
This story will be updated as news comes in.
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