OTF Premium Snap Judgments: No. 1 Texas rides historic defensive performance to road win over No. 14 Tennessee, 20-17

[Horn365]

Lost in the bad offensive performance…Ryan Wingo played great!!

[nineliveslost]

1 minute ago, Horn365 said:

Lost in the bad offensive performance…Ryan Wingo played great!!

you missed the onside kick 

[NTX_Horn]

I guess the defense is still ahead of the offense.  It’s what we heard all fall camp.  Bye week is here and time to fix some of the issues and get some guys healthy.  I hope to see improvement vs this awful OU team.  

[Horn365]

6 minutes ago, nineliveslost said:

you missed the onside kick 

As far as the offense is concerned. And apparently it was illegal kick 

[tommym]

I think a certain gives Sark problem. the defensive coordinator at Tennessee was with Ohio St and Oklahoma St. Sark sometimes cant adjust to certain defensive.  Like others at OTF, sark likes to look pretty throwing deep balls and exciting plays.

Texas just needs to sometime dink and donkey down the field. The interception had to be set play. Sark is very stubborn sometimes to adjust. I am not expert, just seems shorter passes, allow playmaker do playmaker plays.  

Are defensive was good just need to cut down on untimely penalties. Muschamp was the best hire so far during the sark era. We as Texas fans want the best, some have to remember Vince and Colt had bad stretches before greatness.

[FM518]

I wish in the opening script Sark would give Arch a few more lay ups. Some short stuff, and quick passes to the backs that's won't be fumbled. More Bishop please!!!!

[ThatHornsGuy87]

4 hours ago, TexasFight12 said:

I think Texas wins by 20 if Smothers was healthy.  Arch didn’t have the run game to make his day easier until the 4th quarter. Then the offense looked good. 

Nah. Smothers is pretty good. Im not Bijan would have made a difference behind that line today. Kinda hard to do anything when Knowles was spamming engage 8 majority of the game

[4thandFive]

I assume Cooper is too banged up to lean on?

[hookemrj13]

1 hour ago, Gerry Hamilton said:

Best game as a Longhorn

He's gunna transfer huh?

[Game of the Century]

4 hours ago, Robbin Antono said:

Arch is not very good, he is indecisive and doesn’t know how to read pre-snap.Flood and Sark need to stop doing this Guard pull and try to outsmart people, just be physical and block darn it

I’m gonna disagree with half of this.  Arch is indecisive sometimes and it’s costly. I think he actually reads the pre-snap look pretty good. The problem was Knowles had the defense shifting into something else right before the snap leaving little time to process. His problem through this season has been reading it properly and then being in accurate. 
 

 Knowles is a wizard and has shark’s  number.  Our offensive performance was more about that than it is about Manning

Also the offensive line was a sieve for 3/4s. On two many plays two defenders were blowing through the middle of the line unlocked. 

[texcoyote15]

I wonder what it would take for us to get a top offensive line? Wr hit the portal for it and a couple of them start.  What would it take?  I’d really like to know.  Everyone will say fire Kyle Flood. But we been talking about offensive line for years and it just never seems to change 

[TexasLonghorns]

2 minutes ago, texcoyote15 said:

I wonder what it would take for us to get a top offensive line? Wr hit the portal for it and a couple of them start.  What would it take?  I’d really like to know.  Everyone will say fire Kyle Flood. But we been talking about offensive line for years and it just never seems to change 

It’s not the personnel on the OL that’s the issue, it’s Sarks scheme. Ask @Gerry Hamilton. Nothing will change, even with a new OL coach. 

[TTown]

We do have to clean things up. Penalties discipline etc. The crude gestures and more. Then I see tape of UT Asst coach trying to run in Tennessee tunnel after a game ball 😂. On top of Nansen and other issues. I hope Sark or somebody lays that hammer down.

We are still in great shape if we quit shooting ourselves in the foot. To be 4-0 after less than stellar performances. Tells you we can still be great if we ever consistently put it together. 

[Corey Burger]

This defense is elite. 
 

It’s on Sark to get the offense going. 
 

Just let Arch be Arch the way Mack let Vince be Vince. Stop trying to make him live within the system and let him play some backyard ball. Less thinking, more doing, more points, more confidence. 

Sark is kind of outsmarting himself at this point. 
 Take the bridle off of one of your best horses. 

[texcoyote15]

Just now, TexasLonghorns said:

It’s not the personnel on the OL that’s the issue, it’s Sarks scheme. Ask @Gerry Hamilton. Nothing will change, even with a new OL coach. 

It doesn’t seem like personnel because I know we have better players than some teams that block better than we do.  It seems alot of times they bring pressure and some of our guys take the wrong area/man and someone comes up the gut free and sometimes our guy just gets pushed like they were on skates back into the QB.  I assume we’re playing the best 5 or they wouldn’t be playing.  We have had good individual guys Banks/Goosby but we never have a complete highly functioning unit 

[Shmatt]

We’re a football team that’s just gonna have to win ugly, that’s Sarks MO tbh it’s been that way since our first playoff appearance. It is who we are, I’m at fault for expecting a clean offense product so at least my expectations are changing. I still think we win 10+ but just not the way I thought we would get those wins.

[UTexas]

1 hour ago, NTX_Horn said:

I’d definitely like to see Bishop more involved going forward.  Tunnel screens, quick throws.  Just get him the ball!

He’s being used more and more each game it seems.

[texcoyote15]

Bishop is going to get more involved. The dude is very very talented. I saw him last year in a playoff game and I was sold. He’s 160 something pounds but plays way bigger 

[Jonnyt_71]

The offense is obviously pretty bad right now. Who is taking accountability? It should be Sark and Arch up first and not necessarily in that order. 

[AusMOJO]

I think the horse has already been beat enough, so I won't dog pile on. Glad to be 4-0 but man, something just isn't clicking.

Muschamp is doing great though, huge positive and was glad to see the DL finally get home on some their sacks for once. They had been pretty close the last several games. He's going to need to get used to games like this though, PK did and then he got ran off for it. 

 

[Pugsly]

Such a wonderful day for the Manning family, watching the game from Peyton's suite. Sen. Blackburn and the President smiling for the cameras, taking up space. and then on the field passion play from a top 10 pick in the 2027 NFL draft. Was that a "Mid-summer Nights dream" or  was it just a bold impression of Lance Rentzel's favorite passing  rout, "Zip Down and Out"? 

It'll be alright, I'm sure the Manning family will be laughing it off after a few cold ones.  Wow! What a day!

It's a W. 🤘

[Drew Saenz]

I’m not buying this “win is a win” mentality. We’re are seriously flawed. The lack of discipline is going to kill us in the end. 
 

The Simmons issue is a microcosm of the team. All the talent, just to negate it with bonehead behavior. 
 

I’m not even offended. It’s just bad play. It costs the team. 

[mmdaytontexas]

10 hours ago, TheNightKing said:

Yes,,,,, he is. Even so bad that BiLuccii called him out TODAY.Lucciis a glorified vlogger 

When you are referencing the Aggy Billy Lucci, you already lost all credibility. And you are wrong. CJ is 100% right. This offense sucks right now because it is so inconsistent. He's not saying they don't have the potential to be really good, they are just not playing like it.

[PaulieD]

14 hours ago, Jeff Howe said:

Colin Simmons committed one of the most inexplicable penalties ever committed by a Texas player in the No. 1-ranked Longhorns’ 20-17 road win over No. 14 Tennessee on Saturday.

The Volunteers didn’t score on the drive, one of their 11 possessions that failed to put points on the scoreboard. Will Muschamp’s defense put Josh Heupel’s offense in a vice, with the opponent’s only offensive touchdown coming with 1:22 left in the game.

Still, Simmons’ 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty for "simulating using the restroom” after sacking Faizon Brandon in the second quarter was a microcosm of the self-inflicted mistakes that plagued Steve Sarkisian’s team.

Texas (4-0, 1-0 SEC) committed 11 penalties for 115 yards and lost the turnover battle, 1-0 (Arch Manning’s second-quarter interception was the lone turnover for either side). Officials nullified Jermaine Bishop Jr.'s 22-yard punt return in the third quarter after ruling that Ryan Niblett made a hand motion indicating a fair catch. The kicking game gave up a Tennessee (3-1, 0-1) touchdown on a 57-yard punt return by Qua Moss.

The Vols mounted a furious comeback, cutting the deficit to a field goal before recovering an onside kick. Thankfully, the Longhorn defense stepped up and put the kibosh on what would've been an improbable come-from-behind win.

Rasheem Biles sacked Brandon and Hero Kanu forced a holding penalty on Tennessee’s last possession. Jelani McDonald knocked down Brandon's desperation heave to the end zone on the final play of regulation.

The offense slipped gears all day, but Simmons recovered from his forgettable moment when his team needed him. Simmons led a historic defensive charge to get Texas out of Neyland Stadium with a win.

Simmons’ five sacks tied Shane Dronett’s school record for a single game, which the late Longhorn great set against Texas Tech in 1990. The 10 sacks Muschamp’s defense racked up are the second-most ever in program history and, even with Brandon leading a 10-play, 80-yard touchdown drive late in the fourth quarter, the Vols only mustered 221 total yards (2.9 yards per play), went 4-for-17 on third down (2-for-4 on fourth down) and kicked a field goal on their only trip to the red zone.

Sarkisian’s offense heads into the bye week with more questions than answers after an erratic showing. Other than Gianni Spetic’s leg (2-for-2 on field goals, including a 44-yarder in the third quarter), the special teams can’t be considered a strength right now.

Nevertheless, Saturday further proved Muschamp’s defense is championship-caliber. The Longhorns needed every bit of Saturday's performance to head back home with an undefeated record intact.

***

Other than Tennessee’s fourth-quarter touchdown drive, Muschamp’s defense did what he was hired to do.

Texas threw a lot of different looks at Brandon (17-for-29, 145 yards and a touchdown; two net rushing yards on 23 official carries), making it impossible for the Vols to get the passing game going.

Tennessee's best vertical throws were Brandon chunking the ball and hoping for a defensive pass interference call (Bo Mascoe was flagged twice). Brandon’s only completions of 15 yards or more were to Mike Matthews on the Vols’ touchdown drive, including a 30-yard touchdown, with Matthews getting position on Mascoe near the front pylon.

The Longhorns suffocated Tennessee’s ground attack, which finished with 70 net yards on 44 official rushing attempts (1.6 yards per carry). The Vols had 143 sack-adjusted rushing yards (4.2 yards per attempt), well below their three-game season average (298.7 yards per game and 6.7 yards per carry).

Entering the game with an FBS-leading 29 10-plus-yard runs from scrimmage, Muschamp’s defense limited Tennessee to four. It's longest gain was 16 yards on a scramble by Brandon on the touchdown drive.

***

Muschamp brought pressure and played tight man coverage on the back end. A healthy portion of the defense’s success, however, was the defensive line winning in the trenches against the Tennessee offensive line.

Simmons’ redemption arc saw him finish with eight tackles (six solos), a quarterback hurry and a forced fumble. If Zina Umeozulu hadn’t grabbed Brandon’s facemask on the Vols’ last possession, Simmons would’ve had the half-sack he needed to break Dronett’s record.

Simmons, Kanu, Umeozulu, Maraad Watson and Alex January tallied nine of the 10 sacks. Even when Brandon got loose and escaped pressure, Biles (13 tackles, two tackles for loss, one sack and a quarterback hurry) and Justin Cryer (nine tackles and a pass breakup) were on top of him.

Ian Geffrard had one hurry in the box score. Regardless, the Arkansas transfer made an impact when he was on the field, helping clog the middle of the line to stymie the Tennessee running game.

There shouldn’t be two happier coaches on the team’s flight home than Kenny Baker and LaAllan Clark. Their guys delivered a dominant performance.

***

It’s unrealistic to expect the Texas offense to do what it did on its two touchdown drives over a four-quarter game.

On those two drives, which ended with Raleek Brown (17 carries for 67 yards)rushing touchdowns, the Longhorns were the high-powered, balanced unit everyone expected them to be coming into the season.

— 15 plays

— 135 total yards (9 yards per play)

— Eight first downs

— Manning: 5-for-5 for 87 yards

— 2-for-2 on third down

— 10 carries for 42 yards (4.2 yards per attempt)

— Four explosive plays (Emmett Mosley V’s 43-yard catch, Ryan Wingo’s 18-yard catch on a critical third down and two 10-yard runs by Brown)

— 2-for-2 in the red zone with two touchdowns

— No turnovers

Then, there’s the offense's other 10 possessions:

— 40 plays

— 127 total yards (3.2 yards per play)

— Manning: 9-for-14 for 114 yards

— 1-for-10 on third down

— 26 carries for 19 yards (0.7 yards per attempt)

— Five explosive plays

— 1-for-1 in the red zone with a field goal

— One turnover (an interception thrown by Manning)

***

When the offense was good on Saturday, they met the defense's standard.

Sarkisian, who had another tough outing trying to move the ball against Jim Knowles’ defense (six sacks and 10 tackles for loss), finally ditched the long-developing pass plays that made it hard for Manning to scan the field and pivoted away from pulling linemen in the running game. Texas moved the football when Sarkisian dialed up more quick-hitters on the ground and used hard play-action passes off the run and quick throws (like a 14-yard screen to Wingo on the fourth-quarter touchdown drive) to open windows for Manning.

But when the offense was bad, it was putrid.

If the Longhorns had lost, two scoreless second-quarter drives that started with great field position while the Tennessee medical staff was examining Brandon for a possible shoulder injury might’ve been the Vols’ stay of execution. A two-play drive ended with an interception was followed by a three-and-out, a drive that opened with a 12-yard loss on first down when Manning couldn't handle Connor Robertson's high snap.

The offense wasn't good enough on Saturday. On a day when Texas hoped to find an identity, Sarkisian instead has a slew of inconsistent moments, out-of-sorts play calls, poor execution and self-inflicted wounds to sort through when he deconstructs his team's first regulation road win since the 2024 regular-season finale against Texas A&M.

At least the Longhorns get a bye week to sort things out before heading to Dallas to face Oklahoma.

 

View full news story

 

Great reads, Jeff.

Question - what do you think of Cryer's play so far?  Seemed like he was all over the field, and played better than the critiques that I read here.  Thanks, P

[PaulieD]

13 hours ago, Gerry Hamilton said:

Problem is... there was a lot more than that today.

Happy to be 4-0 ... but that was a totally undisciplined football team that turned into a comedy of errors at times. This is year SIX ... year SIX ... 6! 

There is nothing wrong with being happy to be 4-0, and there is nothing wrong with expecting to see a much more disciplined product in year SIX

Coach has an off week to do some serious behind-the-shed arse wuppin.

We came in with a chip on our shoulder, but you can't let that translate into bonehead plays and penalties.  Sark is also overthinking his offensive game plan. Opponents now know his tendencies, so he must realize that, and change his approaches.  They aren't letting you throw long developing passes.  Short dunks and dinks, aka the Pirate's offenses of yesteryear.

Edited 1 hour ago by PaulieD
I'm OCD