Alamo Bowl

Texas has held opponents to an average of just 59.8 yards on the ground this season. Oklahoma’s

Iowa is ranked 27th overall in passing offense this season. The Hawkeyes average 237 passing

Adrian Peterson was the only back the Longhorns allowed to crack the century mark and Texas even held two opponents (Rice and Texas Tech) to negative rushing yards this year.

yards per game. With Texas giving up 233 yards per game through the air this season, Iowa’s only chance at victory might rest on the passing game.

Wide receiver Limas Sweed vs. cornerback Charles Godfrey. With Iowa giving up close to 140 yards

Drew Tate and Albert Young vs. the No. 2 rush defense in the nation. Tate usually gives Iowa an added

per game on the ground, Godfrey might have little help from his safeties in pass coverage. The 6’5” junior wideout has a huge size advantage over the 6’1” corner.

running threat when pass protection breaks down. But the senior quarterback is going to find it tough to run on linebackers Scott Derry, Rashad Bobino and Robert Killebrew. Likewise for Young, who might find little room to run against mammoth DT's Roy Miller and Frank Okam.

Texas is going to have to pony-up in the secondary. Iowa loves to throw the ball and run the option with

Junior running back Albert Young has been the bright spot on offense, but if Iowa is going to win this

senior quarterback Drew Tate. If the Longhorns can keep Tate and junior running back Albert Young contained with just their front seven, Texas can leave safeties Marcus and Michael Griffin in deep quarters coverage. Neither Dominique Douglas nor Scott Chandler command special attention, so both Aaron Ross and Tarell Brown can play man to man. Offensively, if redshirt freshman Colt McCoy can’t play due to a shoulder injury, running backs Jamaal Charles and Selvin Young are going to have to step up big time. Texas will need to get Charles and Young running early to take the pressure off of backup quarterback Matt McCoy. If Colt can’t go, look for Mack Brown to call high percentage passing plays such as screens, slants and outs for Matt. If Colt is cleared to play, then it’s bombs away on Iowa’s average secondary.

game, senior Drew Tate is going to have to play the game of his life. Texas is extremely stout against the run; therefore Iowa’s best bet is to spread the Longhorns out on defense to create running lanes for Young. If Young can have a little bit of success, Iowa can mix in some play action passes with Tate and hopefully strike one or two big plays. On defense, the biggest thing that will help the Hawkeyes is if Colt McCoy can’t play. Okay, so it would help if McCoy, Jamaal Charles and Selvin Young can’t play. The Hawkeyes run defense isn’t very good, so stacking the line of scrimmage is probably the only way Iowa can compete. However, that puts a lot of pressure on the Hawkeyes secondary to keep stud wideout Limas Sweed from dominating. Simply put, Texas has too many weapons for Iowa to contend with.

The quarterback position will probably make or break Texas in this contest. If Colt McCoy can’t play,

If Drew Tate wants to still be considered a top NFL prospect, he’ll need to have great outings

the Longhorns better hope Matt McCoy doesn’t get injured because third stringer Jevan Snead just recently transferred to Ole Miss. Another huge factor is that this is basically a home game for Texas with this bowl being played in San Antonio.

against Texas and then again in the Senior Bowl. He was a big reason Iowa was a preseason favorite as well as why the Hawkeyes dropped to 6-6. Tate needs to come up huge vs. Texas.

Fear not Texas fans. If a shoulder injury keeps redshirt freshman Colt McCoy out of the Alamo Bowl, a

When Iowa coaches handed out a total of 20 awards to players at a recent football banquet, amazingly

McCoy will still lineup under center come game time. Senior walk-on Matt McCoy, who has no relation to Colt, will start in Colt’s place. The bad news for Longhorn fans is that Matt hasn’t attempted a pass in a game since high school. Yikes.

none ended up in quarterback Drew Tate’s hands. The senior was supposed to lead the Hawkeyes to a Big Ten title this year and possibly a Heisman Trophy for himself. Before the season, Tate was projected to be one of the best quarterbacks in college football, but instead led Iowa to a disappointing 6-6 record. Don’t know how “fun” that is for Tate, but nevertheless.