AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Shane Buechele passed for 296 yards and two touchdowns and Texas got coach Charlie Strong a desperately-needed win, snapping a three-game losing streak with a win over Iowa State 27-6 Saturday night.
Buechele threw scoring strikes of 37 yards to Jerrod Heard and 75 yards and Devin Duvernay in the third quarter as the Longhorns’ high-powered offense overcame a sluggish start.
Texas (3-3, 1-2 Big 12) hadn’t played at home in a month and the losing streak fueled intense speculation that Strong’s job is on the line in his third season. He has two seasons left on a five-year contract that pays him more than $5 million per season. The win also snapped a 14-game losing streak when Texas trailed at halftime.
Texas played its best defensive game of the season. Strong took over defensive play-calling two weeks ago and the Longhorns responded with eight sacks against Iowa State, containing a Cyclones offense that was averaging 39 points over the previous three games.
D’Onta Foreman rushed for 136 yards and a touchdown for Texas, his seventh game in a row with at least 100 yards.
Joel Lanning passed for 140 yards for Iowa State (1-6, 0-4).
TAKEAWAYS
Iowa State: The Cyclones’ collapse came early this week. Iowa State lost upset bids with fourth-quarter collapses the previous two weeks, but were undone this week by the Longhorns big-strike touchdowns in the third.
Texas: A big sigh of relief for Strong. The defense showed its biggest improvement since Strong took over the play calling with a devastating pass rush and the offense woke up in the second half. Arguably Strong’s biggest win because he simply couldn’t afford to lose.
UP NEXT
Iowa State: The Cyclones are off next week, then host Kansas State on Oct. 29.
Texas: The Longhorns play at Kansas State next Saturday.