Through Sarkisian's five seasons, his third offense is the most prolific Longhorn attack in points per game (35.8), yards per play (6.67) and total offense (477.5 yards per game). Texas also tallied 244 explosive plays in 14 games (the fourth most in FBS), matching the 2024 offense’s 16-game total of plays from scrimmage that netted 10 or more yards.

That’s the standard the 2026 offense is chasing. The current group has the tools to break the mold and establish a new bar for Sarkisian’s offenses on the Forty Acres.

Nevertheless, two things must happen for the vision to come to fruition. If they do, the results the Arch Manning-led offense generates should surpass that of an offense that got the program to the cusp of playing for a national championship.

— The beauty of the 2023 running back room is that even when Jonathon Brooks was lost for the season with a knee injury in a November road win over TCU, CJ Baxter and Jaydon Blue picked up the slack. The Longhorns had a top-25 running game nationally in yards per game (25th with 188.4) and yards per carry (20th with 5.01), avoiding a statistical decline without Brooks, who appeared on his way to All-American honors as a legit candidate for the Doak Walker Award at the time of his injury.

Baxter (117 yards on 20 carries against Iowa State) and Blue (121 yards on 10 carries against Texas Tech) both recorded 100-yard rushing games after Brooks’ injury. Texas averaged 200.8 yards per game and 5.54 yards per attempt over the last four games of the season, including a 180-yard effort against Washington in the Sugar Bowl.

The conditions are ripe (a revamped offensive line that’s created a push at times this spring against a stout defensive front) for Raleek Brown and Hollywood Smothers to run the ball with the kind of consistency the Longhorns have been missing over the last two years. What the offense needs from the overhauled backfield beyond that is for the trio of Brown, Smothers and Derrek Cooper (who, by all indications, has had a tremendous spring) to be the three-headed monster Sarkisian almost had in 2024.

Tre Wisner emerged as an unlikely 1,000-yard rusher, but Baxter’s preseason knee injury resulted in Texas missing the between-the-tackles thumper to pair with Wisner and Blue.

Can Brown and Smothers surpass the 2,473 scrimmage yards and 20 touchdowns that Blue and Wisner combined for that season? If they’re anywhere close to that level of production and are consistently effective enough to let Cooper’s role grow as he gains more experience, the Longhorns will have the goods to be the top backfield in the SEC.

— Sarkisian detailed during his post-practice press conference on Tuesday how Cam Coleman and Ryan Wingo can mutually benefit by sharing the field.

“Both of those guys are so accustomed to always having the safety cheating towards them,” Sarkisian said. “If you're only going to play with one safety, you can only cheat so many ways. If you're going to play with split safeties, surely that helps the run game."

In December, I wrote about Wingo’s sophomore season production mirroring the numbers Xavier Worthy put up in 2022. While nobody should expect Wingo to get the same kind of target share as a junior that Worthy did (26.7 percent of the team’s targets went to Worthy in 2023), it’s possible that Wingo and Coleman taking advantage of the opportunities they get against favorable coverage could allow them to match or exceed the production of Worthy (75 receptions for 1,014 yards and five touchdowns) and Adonai Mitchell (55 catches for 845 yards and 11 touchdowns).

Coleman and Wingo can definitely force defenses to play more two-high safety looks than they want. Still, a potent Texas running game, especially one in which opponents have to respect the run threat Manning presents, means opposing defensive coordinators would, at some point, have to devote an extra defender to stop the run.

In 2023, defenses had to pick their poison when trying to slow down the Texas offense. The 2026 offense can present those same issues, but the personnel upgrades Sarkisian’s organization made during the transfer portal window could make the current offense even tougher to defend.

To continue the theme of highlighting a deep, talented group of incoming transfers, I wanted to rank the five previous transfer hauls from the most to the least impactful. If nothing else, it’ll help set the bar for what the 2026 group of Longhorn newcomers must accomplish to maximize what they collectively bring to the table.

1. 2024

11 Transfers: Kendrick Blackshire (LB), Silas Bolden (WR), Isaiah Bond (WR), Velton Gardner (RB), Matthew Golden (WR), Jermayne Lole (DL), Trey Moore (EDGE), Andrew Mukuba (S), Amari Niblack (TE), Bill Norton (DL), Tia Savea (DL)

Blackshire never played a snap for the Longhorns, while Gardner, Niblack and Savea didn’t make a dent in the program. Still, to get first-round (Golden) and second-round (Mukuba) draft picks, a game-changing return specialist (Bolden), an NFL wideout who contributed significantly when healthy (Bond), a formidable pass rusher who will be drafted (Moore) and two defensive linemen (Lole and Norton) who were key pieces of a national championship-caliber defense out of the rest of the group is an incredible hit rate for a transfer portal haul.

2. 2022

Seven Transfers: Jahleel Billingsley (TE), Quinn Ewers (QB), Agiye Hall (WR), Tarique Milton (WR), Isaiah Neyor (WR), Diamonte Tucker-Dorsey (LB), Ryan Watts (CB)

Despite getting little to nothing from the offensive skill players, Texas landed a franchise quarterback (Ewers) and a future NFL draft pick on defense (Watts) in Sarkisian’s second talent acquisition cycle. Considering when he got to the Forty Acres and what he did to solidify the most important position on the field, on top of making Texas an attractive option for skill position transfers, Ewers is the most important Longhorn acquired from the transfer portal since it launched in 2018.

3. 2023

Five Transfers: Trill Carter (DL), Jalen Catalon (S), Gavin Holmes (CB), Adonai Mitchell (WR), Ryan Sanborn (P)

The smallest portal haul of Sarkisian's tenure has a case to be ranked higher because of how important Mitchell and Sanborn were to a team that was good enough to win a national championship.

Catalon made plays until his body let him down and Holmes was a solid multi-year contributor in the secondary. Similar to when Texas took Milton in 2022, Carter was an insurance policy the Longhorns didn’t need to cash since it had arguably college football’s top defensive line rotation that season, with Byron Murphy and T’Vondre Sweat as the tip of the spear.

4. 2025

11 Transfers: Jack Bouwmeester (P), Cole Brevard (DL), Matthew Caldwell (QB), Jack Endries (TE), Lavon Johnson (DL), Hero Kanu (DL), Emmett Mosley V (WR), Travis Shaw (DL), Mason Shipley (K), Brad Spence (LB), Maraad Watson (DL)

If for no other reason, this group isn’t ranked higher because there’s a lot of football to be played before a proper verdict can be rendered. That said, it's borderline disrespectful to rank the group this low because of how important the one-year transfers were in 2025.

Texas wouldn’t have been a 10-win team if not for Caldwell and Shipley. Endries will be drafted later this month and Bouwmeester was an upgrade for a punt team that struggled in 2024.

While Brevard and Shaw were solid stop-gap linemen for one season, Kanu and Watson could leave the program as top-100 draft picks. Mosley and Spence are positioned to play a high percentage of high-leverage snaps this season and both of them have the tools to play at the next level.

5. 2021

Six Transfers: Ben Davis (EDGE), Darrion Dunn (CB), Ovie Oghoufo (LB), Devin Richardson (LB), Keilan Robinson (RB), Ray Thornton (EDGE)

Sarkisian’s first portal class did produce an NFL draft pick (Robinson). Although the efforts the six transfers made as Longhorns are appreciated, this group exemplified a roster in which the most talented players lacked experience and the most experienced players didn’t significantly raise the team’s ceiling.

The Longhorns averaged 137.8 yards per game on the ground. That’s the lowest single-season average by an offense Sarkisian has been associated with since USC averaged 128 rushing yards per game in 2006 (Lane Kiffin’s last season as Pete Carroll’s offensive coordinator and one season after the Trojans lost Reggie Bush and LenDale White to the NFL).

After a historically forgettable season (the 2025 rushing output was the worst on the Forty Acres since 2014, when Texas averaged 137.4 yards per game), Sarkisian's aggressive, across-the-board rebuild will, hopefully, positively impact how the Longhorns run the football.

Texas overhauled the running back room with two proven commodities at the Power Four level (Raleek Brown and Hollywood Smothers) and its top high school target in the 2026 cycle (Derrek Cooper). When Laurence Seymore and Paris Patterson Jr. join Jonte Newman, Melvin Siani and Dylan Sikorski on campus in June, they’ll complete Sarkisian’s first group of offensive linemen acquired via the transfer portal.

Along with the personnel changes (not to mention Brandon Baker’s shift inside to guard and the addition of Michael Masunas to be an in-line, run-blocking presence at tight end), the Longhorns have also adopted a new mindset in spring practice.

“That means just being able to get set and pound that rock,” Baker said after Thursday’s practice when asked to define what Sarkisian means when he talks about getting the running game going. “Knowing and taking on that responsibility as a group of five, but also the guys behind us as well.”

It might sound like a tired cliché, but 21 years ago, the 2005 offensive line’s battle cry was to “pound that rock.” It’s a creed Will Allen, Justin Blalock, Lyle Sendlien, Jonathan Scott, Kasey Studdard and the rest of the group lived by as they paved the way to the program’s most recent national championship.

Better, more well-positioned personnel should help Texas move the football more consistently and effectively on the ground in 2026. But a mindset rooted in toughness and a desire to move opposing defenders against their will is the kind of foundation upon which championship-caliber running games are built.

— I’ve viewed Ryan Niblett’s status heading into the 2026 season as one that mirrors where Keilan Robinson was at one point in his career.

Like Niblett, Robinson earned his stripes as a difference-maker on special teams. Still, his role on offense didn’t expand until Sarkisian trusted him to be more intricately involved, which made the offense less predictable and tougher to defend with Robinson on the field.

Niblett turned nine targets last season into eight receptions for 60 yards, with just three of those catches resulting in first downs (no touchdowns). He rushed for 15 yards on five carries, with none of those attempts gaining more than seven yards.

It was hard for Robinson to find touches while playing alongside Bijan Robinson, Roschon Johnson and Jonathon Brooks. Robinson’s 20 touches from scrimmage in 2023 were the fewest in his career, but he averaged a career-high 9.5 yards per touch and scored three touchdowns while continuing to make plays in the kicking game.

Niblett said after studying and watching Robinson as a true freshman in 2023, he learned what it takes to maximize a specialized role like the one he could have this season.

“Just being able to see his role, just how he attacked the workouts, how he attacked special teams and just being able to be there when JB or anybody else was down,” Niblett said. “Being a student of him and watching him in front of me, it's helped a lot.”

— One of the most encouraging things said by the four Longhorns who met with reporters on Thursday’s post-practice Zoom call was Ryan Wingo describing how much work KJ Lacey has put in, aside from the snaps he’s getting with the first-team offense in Arch Manning's stead. 

“I actually was throwing with KJ yesterday,” Wingo said. “That leadership thing — he hit me up to go throw. He's kind of putting that out there off the rip.”

Even though Sarkisian said Tuesday that “the whole roster is competing their asses off right now for an opportunity to play” when asked if Dia Bell is competing for the No. 2 quarterback, there’s a reason why the Longhorns didn’t target a sure-fire backup to Manning in the transfer portal. While Lacey reaching out to Wingo to help him get in some extra work isn’t groundbreaking news on its own, those are the kinds of habits that will ease the staff’s mind regarding the state of the quarterback room whenever the post-Manning era begins.

It can be tough to gauge a linebacker’s performance in non-padded practices, so patience was required while waiting to hear feedback on how the Pitt transfer was adjusting to life in a Texas uniform and his role in Will Muschamp’s defense. When Sarkisian was rattling off players he’d consider pleasant surprises through seven practices, he described how the All-ACC linebacker has been more of a complete player than what the staff anticipated.

“I had an idea we were going to get a flashy player,” Sarkisian said of Biles, who recorded 101 tackles, 17 tackles for loss, 4.5 sacks, six pass breakups, two interceptions (both returned for touchdowns), two forced fumbles and one fumble recovery in 2025. “He's a very good pass rusher. He's physical. He's smart.”

Biles didn’t come to the Forty Acres with the kind of hype that accompanied Cam Coleman. The impact Biles has made hasn’t been as intense or felt as quickly as what the Longhorns have gotten from Bo Mascoe (whose versatility was touted by Sarkisian on Tuesday).

Still, what can’t be overstated is Biles’ importance to the defense.

Every notable Texas defense since Mack Brown’s first season on the job has had a strong heartbeat from the inside linebacker position, including Muschamp’s units (2008-10). Whether it was Rashad Bobino, Emmanuel Acho, Roddrick Muckelroy or Keenan Robinson, Muschamp’s defenses had dependable, productive linebackers playing between an attacking front and a ballhawking secondary.

Biles has the kind of skills Muschamp can weaponize. But the only way he can become a chess piece for Muschamp is if Biles gives the Longhorns the same down-to-down consistency he gave Pat Narduzzi’s Panthers during his sophomore and junior seasons.

From that standpoint, Biles could give Muschamp the same kind of presence he expected to get when he recruited Jordan Hicks to Texas in 2010.

Although Muschamp only coached Hicks for one season, the 10-year NFL veteran left the Forty Acres as an All-American and a third-round pick in the 2015 NFL Draft. Hicks’ last season as a Longhorn (147 tackles, 13 tackles for loss, 3.5 sacks, two interceptions and four pass breakups in 2014) mirrors the line Biles posted last season.

The two seasons also produced eerily similar Pro Football Focus grades:

Biles — 83.7 overall, 89.3 run defense, 84 tackling, 82.9 pass rush and 74.4 coverage

Hicks — 78.5 overall, 72.1 run defense, 89.8 tackling, 71.8 pass rush and 83.4 coverage

Even though Hicks played 13 games in 2014 compared to Biles' 10-game season in 2025, they finished their respective campaigns neck and neck in total pressures (18 for Biles and 16 for Hicks), stops (51 for Biles and 47 for Hicks) and NFL passer rating allowed (66 for Biles and 66.3 for Hicks).

Biles is arguably the most accomplished transfer Texas landed during the portal window. With spring practice heading down the home stretch, we should start to hear more reports from behind the scenes that jibe with Biles’ résumé.

Rodriguez, who underwent offseason hand surgery, had a staple removed that was used in the initial procedure. According to Schlossnagle, it was discovered that Rodriguez was allergic to cobalt and nickel, which were the materials used to manufacture the staple.

The negative reaction caused the inflammation, pain and discomfort Rodriguez has experienced throughout the season.

Performed by Dr. Steven Shin, the surgeon for Rodriguez’s initial surgery, who also operated on Oklahoma quarterback John Mateer’s broken thumb during football season, Rodriguez’s latest procedure lasted roughly 20 minutes.

“According to Dr. Shin, it went absolutely as well as it possibly could,” Schlossnagle said.

Now, the wait begins for when Rodriguez can return to the diamond.

Once Rodriguez is 10 days removed from the procedure, Schlossnagle said, he’ll get his stitches removed. Schlossnagle didn’t want to say when he expects Rodriguez back in the lineup, but it sounds like the initial timeframe of a 2-3 week absence is likely how long Texas (24-4, 7-2 SEC) will be without one of its most significant players.

On Tuesday, Schlossnagle moved Temo Becerra from third base to shortstop to fill the void. The corresponding moves were Casey Borba going across the diamond to third base and Josh Livingston filling in for Borba at first base.

“More than likely, that’s what it’ll be to start the game,” Schlossnagle said of the interim lineup. “Then, we’ll figure it out as we go."

The new-look lineup is subject to change based on the Longhorns’ opponents. Additionally, Schlossnagle wants to see how the infield moves hold up when the playing surface switches from artificial turf to grass and dirt over the next two weekends.

Texas begins a three-game road series against South Carolina (14-16, 1-8) on Thursday and will travel to Texas A&M (23-5, 5-4) next Friday for a three-game series in College Station. Founders Stadium and Olsen Field at Blue Bell Park both feature natural playing surfaces.

Schlossnagle, who once again praised the Round Rock Express for allowing the Longhorns to practice on the grass and dirt at Dell Diamond before Texas played three games at Houston’s Daikin Park earlier this season, said there wasn’t enough time for the Texas infielders to get to Round Rock before the team flew out on Wednesday.

Nevertheless, Schlossnagle is confident the Longhorns “will be ready to go” against the Gamecocks on Thursday (6 p.m., SEC Network) after Wednesday’s onsite practice in Columbia.

— The injuries and on-the-mend status of multiple safeties have opened the door for Derek Williams Jr. to lock down the starting spot next to Jelani McDonald. Factor in the combination of Williams being almost 16 months removed from the knee injury that ended his 2024 season, with the return of Blake Gideon to the Forty Acres, and the redshirt junior has a chance to get back on the upward trajectory his career was on before the injury.

Williams, who started over Andrew Mukuba early in the 2024 season before a hamstring issue cost him three games, made impact plays as a true sophomore. Along with Malik Muhammad, Williams was playing a significant role in the secondary by the end of his freshman season in 2023.

Williams' return to his pre-injury form would significantly cushion the blow of Michael Taaffe’s departure. At the very least, Williams has an opportunity to enter the summer a significant step ahead of everyone other than McDonald in the safety room if he takes advantage of his opportunity.

— I’ve been thinking about Ryan Niblett’s potential to be for the 2026 backfield what Keilan Robinson was in 2023.

But what if I’ve been thinking about the wrong back for a specialty role?

Now is the time when Michael Terry III can do enough unique things to stand out in a crowded backfield.

Terry continues to make strides and, even if he’s behind Raleek Brown, Derrek Cooper and Hollywood Smothers in the pecking order, he can carve out a significant role on offense.

Along with his potential as a runner and a receiver, Terry’s progress could force Steve Sarkisian’s hand to bring the Wildcat back in the mix on offense. Such a package would give Terry a unique role he can sink his teeth into while minimizing the risk of making Arch Manning a true additional hat in the running game.

Wildcat or not, forcing Sarkisian to create something for him is something Terry can do if his development is expedited.

— Even though Laurence Seymore was recruited out of the transfer portal to be a plug-and-play guard, the Texas offense will be better if Seymore has to battle for a starting role.

Dylan Sikorski has a chance to come out of the spring with Sarkisian and Kyle Flood believing in him as a starting-caliber player.

One of the more intriguing practice tidbits from the weekend was Sikorski and Jackson Christian getting first-team snaps at guard. The Longhorns won a recruiting battle with Tennessee to get Sikorski when he decided to transfer from Oregon State, so it’s not crazy to think he could emerge as legitimate competition for Seymore.

That’s assuming his elevation up the depth chart wasn’t a one-off situation. After last season, Texas can't enough quality depth in the trenches.

— Nothing feels set in stone from a depth standpoint at cornerback, other than Graceson Littleton, Bo Mascoe and Kade Phillips separating themselves as the top group. If Samari Matthews is indeed the second-most talented cornerback on the roster, which is what a source told On Texas Football over the weekend, he should have a chance to compete with Kobe Black and Warren Roberson for snaps behind Mascoe and Phillips.

One of the reasons why Sarkisian made a coordinator change and hired Muschamp is his long-stated desire to play tighter, more physical man coverage. Like Phillips, Matthews has the physical traits that should translate to being a good man-cover guy early in his career.

Confidence goes a long way at cornerback. Matthews is reportedly bringing it with him to the practice field by the truckload.

— I keep making the comparison between Sterling Berkhalter and Tarique Milton, who Sarkisian took out of the transfer portal for the 2022 season.

Given Jordan Whittington’s injury history, Texas needed an insurance policy in case he went down in the middle of the season. Thankfully, the Longhorns didn’t need to cash the policy, but the early returns from Berkhalter’s addition suggest landing the Wake Forest transfer was a shrewd move by the staff.

At a time when Emmett Mosley V is on the mend, Kaliq Lockett is on the shelf and Ryan Wingo is working his way back, Berkhalter can establish himself as someone Sarkisian can trust.

Sarkisian has kept his receiver rotation tight throughout his tenure, with few targets available for anyone outside of the top group. If Berkhalter can maintain the consistency he’s shown through the first two weeks, he has a chance to be in the mix of the guys who are afforded playmaking opportunities in games.

Jim Schlossnagle continued to go with Rodriguez (.271/.386/.383) in the clean-up spot despite the sophomore battling through a hand issue. Injured during the 2025 season, Rodriguez underwent surgery in the fall and while he was ready for the start of the 2026 season, the issue lingered and particularly bothered him in situations when he’d swing and miss in the box, which led to him often grimacing in pain and, at times, requiring attention from the team’s medical staff during at-bats.

Rodriguez’s ability to hit from either side of the plate and the respect opponents continued to show him, even while he clearly wasn’t 100 percent, justified keeping him in the middle of the order. With Rodriguez out, Schlossnagle has the option of moving Casey Borba (.333/.438/.667) up to the No. 4 hole, where his team-leading 31 RBI and nine home runs (tied with Aiden Robbins for the team lead) would give the Longhorns a formidable option.

The bigger issue for Texas (23-4, 7-2 SEC) is two-fold: What do the Longhorns do at shortstop and what corresponding moves would be made in the infield?

The most likely option is to move Temo Becerra from third base to shortstop. Josh Livingston would be the most likely plug-and-play option to fill the void at the hot corner, but the staff could choose to lean on Borba's experience at third base.

Borba has become a reliable defensive first baseman, perhaps too reliable to move him back across the diamond. Regardless, Borba and Livingston were in the mix at first base leading up to the season, with Livingston, Becerra and Callum Early competing for the starting nod at third base.

Schlossnagle has said that Maddox Monsour has the tools to play shortstop. Would Texas roll the dice with a freshman?

With Jonah Williams on the shelf recovering from shoulder surgery, resulting in Jayden Duplantier becoming a full-time corner outfielder, Monsour and Ashton Larson are the primary designated hitter options. Schlossnagle has also been high on Presley Courville, who made his return from injury in Friday's 4-3, 10-inning win over No. 8 Oklahoma.

If Rodriguez is back within a month (Rogers reported that he’s expected to be out 2-3 weeks, meaning a return for the team’s road series against Vanderbilt in late April could mark Rodriguez’s return if he were to miss the next three weekends), the Longhorns have enough options at the plate and in the field to make do. Even though Rodriguez’s hand issue hampered him at the plate, he continued to play top-notch defense, which is what Texas is likely to miss most in the interim.

After sweeping the Sooners in a three-game series to keep pace with No. 4 Mississippi State and No. 5 Georgia atop the SEC standings, the Longhorns return to action at UFCU Disch-Falk Field against Texas State on Tuesday. Texas will then travel to South Carolina for a three-game series against the Gamecocks beginning Thursday.

“I was like, 'Dang it, man!'” Schlossnagle said after the Longhorns’ comeback triumph over the Sooners, while recalling his thoughts while watching a likely grand slam get knocked down short of the Yeti Yard’s mesh wall in left field. “This is an awesome ball game, but it might not be our night.”

Texas (22-4, 6-2 SEC) only had one hit when the dust settled on the seventh inning — a two-out single up the middle of the diamond by Adrian Rodriguez in the first inning — after Oklahoma (19-7, 4-4) entered the frame with a 3-0 lead. While Luke Harrison’s workmanlike seven-inning performance on the mound (five hits, three earned runs and two walks allowed and one hit batter with six strikeouts) and timely defensive plays kept the Longhorns in the game, they were dealing with an offensive hangover after Thursday’s 14-run, 17-hit onslaught en route to a run-rule romp.

“In the game of baseball, normally, you get 17 hits and you're probably going to get two the next day,” Schlossnagle said. “That's what it was looking like there throughout the course of the game, but our guys stayed with it.”

Schlossnagle credited Harrison for minimizing the damage whenever the Sooners looked poised to put crooked numbers on the scoreboard with runners on base. Thankfully, the aforementioned defensive highlights — Tinney wiping out third baseman Camden Johnson’s attempt to steal third in the first, Temo Becerra nailing Johnson with a throw home after fielding a ground ball hit to him in the third and Andrew Ermis ending the top of the 10th by catching center fielder Jason Walk trying to steal second base, completing a strike ‘em out, throw ‘em out double play after Sam Cozart fanned left fielder Trey Gambill — got Texas out of a few nerve-racking jams.

“He gave us length in the game,” Schlossnagle said of Harrison, who combined with Cozart (three strikeouts with just one baserunner allowed in three innings) to limit Oklahoma to a 1-for-10 night with two outs and with runners in scoring position while limiting the Sooners to a 2-for-12 effort with runners on base. On the heels of Ruger Riojas scattering six hits and striking out eight in a seven-inning complete game on Thursday, Harrison's extended outing and Cozart only throwing 30 pitches means Schlossnagle and Max Weiner have everyone in the bullpen available for Saturday's series finale (4 p.m., SEC Network).

“For us to play 17 innings of baseball or so in two days and we've only used three pitchers, that's good for us."

Tagged for 10 runs in two SEC starts, lefty starter Cameron Johnson struck out eight in a solid five-inning outing for the Sooners. The Longhorns only pushed two runs across the plate through eight innings, with 12 walks issued by Skip Johnson’s pitching staff accounting for the bulk of the offense Texas generated.

“We had him on the ropes a few times,” Schlossnagle said of Johnson, who induced two inning-ending double plays on a night when he dialed up his fastball on 81 of his 95 pitches. “He made enough pitches and he throws enough strikes and then enough pitches that are close to the strikes and he throws so hard that he gets you to chase the ball out of the strike zone.”

Although the Longhorns struck out 11 times, the walks helped the offense break through. A bases-loaded, pinch-hit walk drawn by Josh Livingston got Texas into the scoring column in the eighth.

The Longhorns’ patience finally paid off in the ninth inning, with Ethan Mendoza’s leadoff base knock scooting all the way to the wall in center field for a triple, allowing Tinney to come through with a game-tying RBI single (a rocket back up the middle too hot or reliever Jackson Cleveland to handle).

Six of the seven Texas hits on Friday came in the eighth, ninth and 10th innings, including Becerra’s leadoff single to right and Ashton Larson’s game-winning, opposite-field RBI single, which landed just inside the left-field line to clinch a series victory.

Taking the series from the Sooners with wins that followed two different scripts has positioned the Longhorns atop the SEC standings, with a chance to stay there should they complete the series sweep on Saturday. Similar to going on the road and winning a three-game conference series with then-No. 5 Auburn after a humbling midweek home loss to Tarleton State, Texas put Tuesday’s late-inning collapse in a 9-7 road loss to Houston firmly in the rearview mirror before notching a series win over a formidable conference foe.

“We've only lost four games, but, as you guys know, three of them have just been brutal, tough,” Schlossnagle said after the Longhorns' first win of the season when trailing after eight innings. “To have one that kind of goes our way in a close one like that is big time.”

The downtime allowed Jordan Pope to get treatment for an ankle injury he sustained late in the 74-68 win over the Bulldogs, which allowed the Longhorns to reach the second weekend of March Madness for the first time since 2023 and the second time since 2008.

“With Jordan, I think we’ll be fine,” Miller said Monday during a Zoom call with reporters. “We didn’t do anything yesterday, so we weren’t together, but he’s gotten treatment and moving forward.”

A source told On Texas Football on Sunday how close it could get Pope “to 90-95 percent will come down to Sunday through Wednesday."

Texas (21-14) doesn’t travel until Tuesday for its West Regional semifinal at San Jose’s SAP Center against No. 2 seed Purdue on Thursday (6:10 p.m. CT, CBS). The Longhorns will be on the court for practice Monday afternoon, giving Pope more time to rest before putting his ankle to the test against a veteran backcourt led by Braden Smith, who broke Bobby Hurley’s NCAA record for career assists (1,091 after Sunday’s 79-69 second-round win over Miami) in Purdue’s (29-8) first-round rout of Queens.

“You go and break that record, I think that says everything about his ability to pass, play-make, make his teammates better,” Miller said of Smith. “He’s one of the best in the game and a big, big part of why Purdue is so great offensively.”

The fifth all-time NCAA Tournament meeting between Texas and the Boilermakers will feature two of the most experienced backcourts in the country. Smith and Fletcher Loyer have played a combined 294 collegiate games (147 each), which actually falls short of the 305 combined games played by Pope (134) and Tramon Mark (171).

Pope is averaging 11 points, 2.3 assists and 1.3 rebounds per game in the Longhorns’ three NCAA Tournament victories. Although his 7-for-22 mark from beyond the arc is behind the pace at which he’s converted 3-point shots throughout the season (36.9 percent through 35 games), Pope’s clutch 3-pointer with 1:29 left in a 79-71 first-round win over BYU is one of several big-time plays Texas has gotten from the Oakland, Calif., native during the team’s unlikely run to the Sweet 16.

“I don't know if there's too many guards that are playing in the Tournament that are playing at a higher level than Jordan Pope,” Miller said after Pope scored 17 points on 7-for-18 shooting (3-for-8 from 3-point range) with three assists and no turnovers in the win over Gonzaga. “He means a lot to our team. What he's really mastered is that he controls the game and he's our point guard, but he adds such a strong scoring punch that he can change the game from the 3-point line.”