Tale of Two Seasons vs. TCU for Longhorns RB Bijan Robinson
AUSTIN -- The No. 18 Texas Longhorns needed their workhorse running back to have any shot at taking down the undefeated No. 4 TCU Horned Frogs on Saturday in Austin. But unfortunately for Bijan Robinson, there was minimal room to operate.
Unlike last season's career-best performance against TCU -- which saw Robinson gash the TCU defense for a career-high in carries (35) and rushing yards (216) while adding two touchdowns -- he hardly made a difference for an abysmal Texas offense in what turned into a disappointing 17-10 loss. With just 12 carries for 29 yards, Robinson finished with the third-fewest rushing yards of his career and the fewest he's had since taking over as the full-time starter at the end of his freshman season in 2020.
The always-dynamic Robinson -- who entered Saturday coming off a 200-yard rushing game and seven straight games of 100 or more rushing yards -- seemed to be at a loss for words for what exactly went wrong.
"Man, I have no idea,” Robinson said of why the offense was unable to produce. "We did have a great week of practice, we were clicking on all cylinders every single day. … It’s frustrating."
For a player as talented as Robinson -- who has at times undoubtedly proved to be the team's best player -- the lack of production is hardly all on him. A tough TCU defense and some questionable play-calling from coach Steve Sarkisian can take the cake for Robinson's forgettable night, but the star running back isn't putting blame on anyone else except the collective offense.
"I can't really tell Sark what to do," Robinson said. "If he sees something, we just got to run it. He's a great play-caller and we have all the trust in him."
Texas had two crucial goal-line opportunities in the second half but failed to give Robinson any significant chance at pounding it into the end zone. His absence from the offense felt so glaring due to how dominant he's been over the past two seasons.
But the best of players and a guy of Robinson's caliber are often targeted by defenses. Safe to say the Horned Frogs provided a recipe of how to handle one of the most talented players in all of college football.
You can follow Zach Dimmitt on Twitter at @ZachDimmitt7
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