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This One Hurts. Time to Eat Some Crow. First off, let me say it: this one hurts. I woke up around 3 a.m. because I had way too many thoughts bouncing around my head after that game. CJ probably spoke for a lot of us last night when he called this one of the worst losses of the Sarkisian era. Oklahoma was undermanned. Texas had the talent advantage. And yet, once again, Texas could not get out of its own way. I talked a lot of crap going into this game, so it’s time to eat some crow. But I’m putting some sauce on it first. 1. Jeff Banks At some point, we have to have the conversation. I understand Sark protecting his guy. I understand loyalty. But this is a results business, and special teams have been involved in too many moments that have either cost Texas games or unnecessarily kept opponents alive. Oklahoma 2026. Tennessee 2026. Ohio State 2026. Vanderbilt 2025. Georgia 2025. At some point, it stops being bad luck and starts becoming a trend. I understood Sark getting irritated when the media pressed him immediately after the game, but eventually somebody has to answer a pretty simple question: What exactly are we getting from this unit? 2. Arch Manning — and the Quarterback Development Question This is the hard one, because at some point the kid gloves have to come off. I’m not saying bench Arch. This team was built around him being the guy. But it’s Year 4, and we cannot keep grading him like he’s a young quarterback who just needs more time. The processing has to be faster. The pressure recognition has to be better. We cannot keep seeing throws into triple coverage, receivers being stared down, or pressure creeping toward the line without Arch checking, killing or audibling into something that gives the offense a chance. Those were some of the frustrations that stood out most to me against Oklahoma. But I also think this conversation has to go beyond Arch. At some point, AJ Milwee has to be questioned too. We just came out of the Quinn Ewers era feeling like Texas never completely maximized what Quinn could have been. Now we’re watching Arch Manning — one of the most talented quarterback prospects Texas has ever signed — and we’re having some of the same conversations about development. That cannot just keep being blamed on the quarterback. Milwee has been talked about as someone who could eventually become a head coach. Maybe he will. But if that’s the trajectory, then one of the first things I need to see is the ability to develop quarterbacks into leaders and complete players. That is always going to be a crucial part of being a head coach. And while we’re at it, I’m ready to retire the whole “QB whisperer” label with Sark. I don’t even know where that started. To me, quarterback development is taking a player and making him substantially better at the position: processing, anticipation, pocket management, decision-making, leadership and understanding defenses. What Texas has done too often feels like something different. Sark is brilliant at surrounding a quarterback with answers. Elite receivers. Talented running backs. Formation advantages. Motion. Play-action. Schemed-open throws. NFL concepts. Talent everywhere. And there is nothing wrong with that. Good coaches are supposed to make life easier for their quarterbacks. But building a bigger safety net around a quarterback is not the same thing as developing the quarterback. That’s the distinction I keep coming back to. If you take someone who should be an elite quarterback and constantly have to protect his weaknesses with everything around him, eventually you’re left with an average quarterback who possesses elite talent. That isn’t development. That’s compensation. And Texas cannot afford to do that with Arch Manning. The talent around him should absolutely help him while he develops. But eventually Arch has to become the reason the offense works — not someone Sark has to continually build around just to keep the offense functioning. Some of that responsibility belongs to Arch. Some belongs to Milwee. And some absolutely belongs to Sark. Because after Quinn and now the questions surrounding Arch, I think it is fair to start asking whether Texas is actually developing quarterbacks or simply giving talented quarterbacks enough weapons to survive their shortcomings. 3. The Defense This is where I’ll give some credit. The defense wasn’t perfect. There were offsides. Encroachment. A roughing-the-passer penalty. The PI issues continue to show up, and with how physical this secondary plays, teams are going to keep testing that. But Will Muschamp and that defense did almost everything they could to give Texas a chance. And that might be what frustrates me the most. We could be watching one of the most talented defenses in the country get wasted because the offense cannot consistently stay on the field. We saw shades of this last season too. The defense plays great football early. Then they keep getting sent back onto the field. Eventually they get leaned on, fatigue sets in and mistakes start happening. At some point, that isn’t solely a defensive problem. The offense has to help them. Last night, the defense deserved better. 4. Steve Sarkisian I’m saying this calmly, but understand there is a whole lot of irritation behind it. How much more do you need? The money is there. The facilities are there. The recruiting is there. The talent is there. At some point, the results have to match the resources. After Ohio State, Sark talked about how all that ultimately mattered was having one more point than the other team. Fine. But there is a difference between winning close games and playing not to lose them. When Texas kicked that field goal instead of going for it, I immediately had a bad feeling. And then hearing afterward that there wasn’t a fourth-and-2 call the staff trusted? That’s a problem. Because if the head coach, offensive architect and play caller does not have a play he trusts with the game hanging in the balance, what are we doing? That was one of the biggest frustrations in my notes after the loss. Sark is a great game planner. I still believe that. But maybe it is finally time to seriously discuss bringing in a true offensive coordinator and another voice on game day. You cannot call yourself one of the best offensive minds in football and then repeatedly have no answer for the same pressures beating your offense. Oklahoma’s strength was always going to be its defense. Sark knew that. Texas knew that. Everybody knew that. So why did it look like Texas was surprised when Oklahoma attacked them exactly where Oklahoma is strongest? And for what it’s worth, I’m not killing the offensive line for this game. They got beaten at times, but several of those pressures came because Oklahoma simply brought more bodies than Texas had available to block. That was exactly how I saw the line’s performance afterward. That isn’t always an offensive-line failure. Sometimes the quarterback has to recognize it. Sometimes the play caller has to give him an answer. That’s why, for me, this one falls primarily on Sark and Arch. And now, after looking at the quarterback-development picture more broadly, I’m adding Milwee to that conversation too. Final Thoughts I’m going back to bed after this. But the sun is going to rise burnt orange again. And so are we. This team has to rally. It has to reenergize. And maybe — hopefully — this loss becomes the wake-up call this team desperately needed. I’m not saying Texas is suddenly going to become 2024 Ohio State. But the talent is here to be better than what we just watched. A lot better. Every issue I just mentioned has to improve, though. Because I said it before the Oklahoma game, and unfortunately I feel even stronger about it now: If Texas couldn’t beat Oklahoma, there are more teams on this schedule capable of beating Texas. And now they have to prove this loss woke them up instead of exposing who they really are. Because the sun will rise burnt orange again. The question is whether this team will rise with it.

Elko really wants to go after his most rabid fans? Be careful what you wish for. In a weird way, I kind of agree with Billy (I can't believe I just said that).

If not for the O and special teams this defense might've legit given up 3-6 points total. If not for the big 40 yard run OU would've had under 200 total yards. I think the D still has things to improve but they've once again carried this team and are 100% not the reason we lost.

Nah, it was all PK's fault. Sark had to babysit him....lol.

The wrong coach got fired last season.

I’m still waiting on somebody to show me a successful QB sark put in the league that amounted to anything in the league. The stats don’t lie. From 2021-2026, the offense has gotten statistically worse. Sark ruined Quinn and he has absolutely FAILED to develop arch. Arch will not be going to the league after this season, but I’m not sure he will be at Texas next season either. Sark has already hit his ceiling. You can’t convince me otherwise. And please spare me the “two final fours” to defend him when one of those playoff appearances was given to Texas bc Florida st got hosed.

Offensive coordinator and offensive line development. Texas struggles against competent defenses and repeatedly makes the same undisciplined mistakes year after year. Arch Manning running the ball more may help them look better against the weaker defenses on the schedule, but it doesn’t fix the core issue: this is simply not a well-coached offense. Spare me the “best play-calling” talk. Sark succeeded under Saban because those teams were far more disciplined and better at developing players. That’s leadership from the top down.

I legitimately don’t understand why Texas defense is coming up in the OU loss discussion. Texas defense is the only phase that is playing/showing championship caliber performance. It’s damn hard to lose a game when a defense holds an opponent to 238 yards and 2-13 on third downs. Texas offense and special teams are the reason there is a loss in the column. Period.

I actually thought Arch saw the field decently (from my seat). Made some good throws. The pick 6 was horribly inaccurate to a wide open Cam Coleman. The second INT I got nothing for ya though. I’m much more frustrated now about the penalties and special teams pissing away these games

After sleeping on it, the season isn’t over. In fact, Texas can still lose one more game and make the Playoffs. Sark has to get Arch’s legs more involved. That’s the key to success 🤘

Well said sir, well said. I didn’t think we were really the best team right now but we had earned #1 with the wins. But you could see the loss coming eventually. Look at Florida. Looked invincible and now? Same with LSU and Ole Miss. will it be easy? No. But can we run the table? Maybe, and with another loss we still get in. I do think the offense is a chronic problem and won’t be fixed by just “working on it” as part of a process. Sark needs to own up to the offensive woes that aren’t new and aren’t going away. Maybe if he wasn’t burdened by that responsibility he could address penalties and such. Special teams has chronic problems. Lack of attention to detail. Without the limitation on coaches, there is no reason to not have a focused special teams coach. Banks can recruit I get it but our TEs could use more attention anyway. If these issues arent addressed it will prevent a natty. Watching Bama and Georgia go at it I certainly see daylight between us and them and it isn’t that we are ahead. Good news is Florida looks beatable, Muschamp is probably beyond pissed as are most of the guys. Have to just win the next one and not let this linger. It could be worse, look at the dumpster fire in College Station.

Not going to happen The most popular player at Texas is always the backup QB

As a former Little League football coach, the toughest thing for me to teach my players was how to overcome their fear of contact. Then I realized something: it’s not necessarily about eliminating the fear of contact. It’s about not allowing that fear to dictate how you approach a collision with another player. When something is coming at you full speed, you have to meet it with full speed, but with the proper leverage, mechanics, and focus. That’s not just football. That’s life. Another thing I learned as a coach is that development is a process. Life is a process. I’m not going to sit here and tell you that this game against OU wasn’t disappointing or frustrating. I hate OU. I hate them so much that I paid for a membership to a site just to watch how their fans would react when things went wrong. I hated them to the point that I wanted their football program to become so bad that there would be no reason to continue playing the Red River Rivalry in Dallas. I wanted the games to return to Norman and Austin because the Sooner faithful had stopped showing up in Dallas. Just this past week, there were people on that site who usually attend the game every year but were actually considering not going this season. They were frustrated with Brent Venables, upset with Ben Arbuckle, and had lost so much faith in John Mateer to the point that they wanted the backup to start. I wanted Texas to do more than beat them. I wanted the Longhorns to annihilate them, send them to 2–3, and end their season. It’s playoff or bust for them. They’re starving for championship No. 8, and they believe they should be competing for national championships almost every year. They also believe Texas fans are some of the worst people on Earth. They hate us to our core. That’s why I wanted us to bury them. But I also take every Texas loss hard. Sometimes, I take it so hard that I’ve considered stepping away from being a spectator of the game altogether. I know realistically that Texas isn’t going to win every game until football is no longer played, but that doesn’t make losing on a Saturday any less miserable. Despite the disappointment, though, I enjoyed today’s game. I decided to step away from the hate. I don’t know whether the Oklahoma program will fall off the face of the earth, but I do know I no longer want to spend my time obsessing over their football program. I canceled my membership. I can’t keep wasting time reading about OU football every day out of pure hatred while neglecting other things that deserve my attention. Now, let’s get back to why I enjoyed today’s game. The way OU won was exactly how everyone said they would have to win it. OU media, Texas media, and the national media all pointed to the same formula: a defensive touchdown, a special teams touchdown, and Texas making mistakes. That’s what makes this rivalry special. I know this loss sucks for us, and I’m sure they feel like they’re on top of the world right now. But I don’t believe this game changed the trajectory of either team. I don’t think OU is suddenly going to win eight straight games and make the playoffs. And I don’t think Texas is going to give up a special teams touchdown and a defensive touchdown every week. Some will say, “Well, Texas will face better offenses.” But will we face better defenses? We don’t know. I’m not going to speculate, and I’m not going to predict what happens next. What I am going to do is enjoy the process of this season. There were some positives to take away from today. Derek Cooper looked really good. Cam Coleman had a good game against one of the top-rated pass defenses in the country. Bishop scored a touchdown. Wingo had an explosive touchdown catch. The Texas defense allowed only 10 points, but there are still areas where they still need to improve, particularly limiting penalties and creating turnovers. Even Arch had some really good moments. He delivered that throw to Coleman by getting himself ready to throw instead of just winging it. And after the pick-six, he battled back and led Texas down the field to tie the game at 24. Hopefully, this loss loosens this team up a little bit and allows them to play more freely and attack. I know some of you didn’t enjoy Steve Sarkisian’s press conference, but after listening to Sark, Hero, and Arch speak, I’m encouraged. People want to see them frustrated, angry, self-deprecating, and acting as if all hope is lost. They want to see the emotional fallout. But this is a process. It’s not a beauty pageant. When you treat football like a beauty pageant, you can end up with teams that look fantastic during the first few games but struggle later because they haven’t developed the other areas of their game they need when opponents start figuring them out. I honestly think this team needed to lose to help it transition to the next phase of its development. That thought has been on my mind for the last couple of weeks. Now that this team has experienced the fear of losing, hopefully, it can move past that fear, stop pressing, and just go out there and play ball. I’m not happy about the loss. I’m not going to pretend it didn’t hurt. But I’m choosing to focus on the process, the development, and what this team can still become. I’m still 10 toes down in this, and I’m still sipping the finest of the burnt orange Kool-Aid. I know @Bobby Burton is with me. Hook ’Em!

I’m still so pissed I can’t sleep. Looking at a 4 hour drive home doesn’t help.

sark wasnt coaching then for them

Ohio State’s three highway preventing explosive plays also had a roll in that. No one else has done that. Matt Sims had a great breakdown of Arch’s game. Arch’s pick 6 was the result of bad mechanics and not getting his shoulders square to the line of scrimmage. He had Cam Coleman open, made a great initial play of getting outside the box, but that little part allowed the throw to be high. 🤘🏾

Kiffin WRs have not done well in the NFL. Same reason Heupel WRs haven't. Let him go. You can get someone better in the portal.

Was coming in here to say this lol. All to unranked teams no less! Only fitting that as this recruitment stumbles and fumbles towards the finish line that the teams do the same. Good news is someone must win in Austin next week!

Of the 3 teams LSU has the better offense . Even with the loss tonight. We would just squander his talents . Since we don't throw to the middle of the field, slants or crossing routes etc. Half kidding , but sure $ will decide this.

I hope Royal flips to Florida. Anyone who thinks the Gators are the way to go deserves his fate.

I wonder which team lost the best today in his eyes!

Apparently take it easy and do nothing. Because they look like they just got off vacation after every bye week.

One thing I'm surprised about is the lack of turnovers by Muschamp's D. They would've had a couple today if not for some untimely errors. Considering how turnover prone Mateer was. Also thought they would sack him more with how bad their OL is.

PK against Ohio State gave up 21 in the playoff game in '24, where the offense fumbled the game away with a chance to tie it. Last year on the road, held them to 14 points (7 if Guillbeau turned his head and made a play on the ball). PK certainly had his issues, I don't deny that. But he 100% got scapegoated by Sark. As it turns out, Sark was full of it.

This was about as tough a loss as I can remember. Because OU was inferior, like not even in our league. Yet we let them hang around instead of going for the throat. Something Sark lacks. You gifted them points and still they hung around. I don't put any of this on the D, they dominated this game and basically gift wrapped a Texas win. Only for the O and special teams to pee all over it. There was several penalties on D that sucked but some of them were so egregious I just can't with it. The refs seemed determined to call anything on that drive to keep OU in the game. This has been a problem all year but no one wanted to hear it because "well a win is a win" and now it's a loss, to your rival who absolute sucks.