UTSA film study: How Roadrunners’ defense eliminated big plays from No. 1 Texas

With Texas facing fourth-and-6 from near midfield, UTSA decided to dial up pressure, sending a six-man rush after quarterback Arch Manning.  

The Longhorns were ready to counter, keeping a running back and a tight end in to block on a seven-man protection. The play came down to one-on-one matchups between three Texas targets and three UTSA defensive backs.  

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The Roadrunners have usually been best served avoiding those situations under Jeff Traylor, often ranking among the worst teams in the country at limiting explosive passing plays.  

But at this moment early in the second quarter, Asaad Chapman locked up Cam Coleman on a slant pattern and RJ Lester ran stride for stride with Ryan Wingo up the sideline, so Manning looked to Emmett Mosley V on a 10-yard out pattern from the slot. UTSA’s Nate Robinson, lined up at safety, charged quickly on the break, putting a hit on Mosley that prevented him from making a difficult catch on a high throw.  

Even in a 30-6 loss against the No. 1 Longhorns on Saturday in Austin, the play was one of many on the defensive end that boosted the Roadrunners’ confidence. Texas’ longest gain of the day covered just 24 yards, paying off UTSA’s emphasis on limiting explosive plays this season.  

“We’re really good at eliminating the big play right now,” UTSA coach Jeff Traylor said. “It’s kind of been a nemesis of ours in the past, and we worked our tails off at it. We’re playing a little more bend, don’t break, style of defense.”  

For five of Traylor’s first six years, the Roadrunners ranked in the bottom 25 nationally for most pass plays of 20 or more yards allowed. They also ranked in the bottom five twice.   

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UTSA spent five of the six years ranked in the bottom 20 nationally in most pass plays of 30 or more yards allowed, too, including the worst mark in the country in 2024 and the next-to-worst mark in 2021.    

This year, even with high-flying Texas State and No. 1 Texas on the nonconference schedule, UTSA has allowed just six passes of 20 or more yards, ranking in the top 30 nationally.   

The Roadrunners have also given up just two pass plays of 30 or more yards, sitting in the top 20 in the country.   

“We just played the No. 1 team, arguably the best college football team, and so I think no matter what, we know we can compete with whoever,” UTSA linebacker Brandon Tucker said. “I think it does give us a certain level of confidence, for sure.”  

UTSA also looked more forceful and secure in tackling against Texas compared to the first two weeks of the season. Traylor said the Roadrunners charted 12 missed tackles when they watched the game back, but he credited the Longhorns’ elite athletes for forcing many of those mistakes. 

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Pro Football Focus had UTSA at 19 missed tackles against Texas compared to 25 against Texas State and 18 against UTRGV.  

“There was still more than you would like to believe,” Traylor said. “We’re pretty hard on how we grade it. … We still got some work to clean up.”  

The Roadrunners are also aiming to clean up penalties that consistently put the offense in long-yardage situations. UTSA was flagged for nine offensive penalties totaling 79 yards, including four holding calls. The Roadrunners were also whistled for three pre-snap procedural penalties, a block in the back, and an offensive pass interference when tight end Brandon Young collided with a defender to help free up receiver James Madison on a mesh concept.  

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In Traylor’s eyes, some of the penalties were an inevitable result of competing against the Longhorns’ bigger and more powerful athletes. Not wanting to be fined for criticizing officials, Traylor declined to say much about the penalties Monday, but his in-game tirades made his disagreement clear.  

“From all the texts I’ve received, the devil in me must have come out on Saturday night, because I’ve heard that my displeasure was shown on TV quite a bit,” Traylor said. “I will just leave it right there, so I can keep the money in my pocket.” 

Even without the penalties, UTSA’s offensive line was clearly overmatched against edge rusher Colin Simmons and the rest of Texas’ defensive front.  

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Traylor complimented right guard Darrell Jones and center Luke Lapeze for their play Saturday, and he said he’d be more lenient with his grades for UTSA’s tackles since they were asked to block “the elite of the elite” at Texas.  

“I wish we could go back and rethink some of the things we might’ve done, just to help our kids a little bit more,” Traylor said.  

Traylor added that he believes the offensive line will continue to improve as players recover from preseason injuries.  

Through three weeks, the Roadrunners’ pass-blocking grade on Pro Football Focus is the worst in the nation at 26.3, well clear of next-to-last Central Michigan at 30.2.  

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UTSA quarterback Owen McCown said the unit prepared for the challenge through the week leading up to Texas, and his ability to scramble and throw the ball away limited the Longhorns to one sack despite the offensive line’s struggles.  

“They fought hard, obviously didn’t execute the way they wanted to, but I have full trust in those guys still,” McCown said. “We’ll bounce back next week.”  

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This article originally published at UTSA film study: How Roadrunners’ defense eliminated big plays from No. 1 Texas.

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