Snap Judgments: No. 19 Texas does enough to get a much-needed win over No. 7 Ole Miss

Forget the SEC championship, the College Football Playoff or anything besides No. 19 Texas hanging on for a 34-27 win over No. 7 Ole Miss.

The Longhorns stopped the bleeding from a two-game losing streak.

It wasn’t pretty.

Texas (5-2, 2-2 SEC) tied the Steve Sarkisian-era single-game record with 14 penalties and set a new single-game high with 121 penalty yards.

A 24-3 halftime lead evaporated in the second half. The Rebels scored 21 points to tie the game while the Longhorns were mired in an all-too-familiar lull, with five consecutive possessions ending in a fumble, three punts and an interception.

For the second time in SEC play, the hands team couldn’t recover a late-game onside kick. The botched recovery made this Texas' third conference game decided on the last play.

Nevertheless, the Longhorns overcame their second-half struggles to get a much-needed win. The offense ended the game with a pair of scoring drives and the defense, although things got leaky in coverage, forced a punt, blocked a field goal and intercepted Trinidad Chambliss for the third time on three of Ole Miss’ (5-2, 3-2) last four possessions.

***

Sarkisian, to his credit, was committed to the run down the stretch and it paid off. Raleek Brown and Michael Terry III carried the ball on the first five plays of a 6-play, 80-yard touchdown drive to regain the lead in the fourth quarter.

Other than a short pass to Ryan Wingo on the first play of the Longhorns’ last drive, Arch Manning was involved in two plays: his 1-yard touchdown run (on a bootleg that was wide open, similar to his first touchdown, both of which were good calls by Sarkisian, since Manning hasn't been the ball carrier in those situations) and a 2-yard scramble on the play before Gianni Spetic’s 33-yard field goal.

With 207 yards on 42 official rushing attempts, Texas improved to 25-2 under Sarkisian when recording at least 40 official rushing attempts in a game. Although the 40-carry mark includes plays like sacks and kneel-downs, it reflects a dedicated effort to run the football.

That’s what Sarkisian did to get the offense in gear in the fourth quarter.

***

Brown’s 157 yards (6.8 yards per carry) is the best yardage day by a Longhorn since Tre Wisner went for 186 yards in the 2024 regular-season finale against Texas A&M. Wingo’s 111-yard performance included a 50-yard touchdown catch from Manning.

Their efforts made Saturday’s win the first Texas game with a 100-yard rusher and a 100-yard receiver since Jonathon Brooks and Xavier Worthy did it against TCU on Nov. 11, 2023.

Even though the offense mustered just 19 net yards in the third quarter, the Longhorns finished the game with 419 total yards (5.8 yards per play). Since joining the SEC, Texas is 9-0 when it records at least 400 total yards.

***

Brown’s ability to read zone runs and hit open cutback lanes helped Texas avoid a third consecutive loss. Brown ran with vision and violence, two things he hasn’t shown consistently as a Longhorn.

***

When Texas needed some thump in the running game, Terry delivered (41 yards and a touchdown on eight carries). Terry’s two explosive runs (12 yards and 19 yards) on the 80-yard touchdown drive made him the big, physical back between the tackles the Longhorns figured they'd miss with Derrek Cooper not yet back to 100 percent.

***

Rasheem Biles was all over the field. It’s hard to believe he was credited with only four tackles (one tackle for loss, two pass breakups, and four quarterback hurries).

Biles’ fourth-and-goal interception was one of the game's pivotal plays. He also pressured Chambliss on a critical third down in the first half, forcing a rushed throw that fell incomplete as the Rebels settled for a field goal.

On a day when Will Muschamp manufactured pressure with the absence of Colin Simmons, Biles pressured Chambliss and was around the ball on critical downs.

***

Along with Biles, Justin Cryer (five tackles, an interception and a pass breakup) came up big for the Longhorns. Chambliss tested the Texas linebackers in coverage and they were up for the challenge.

***

Muschamp deserves a lot of credit for Chambliss’ rough start. He dialed up different pressures, but showing blitz and then dropping defenders seemed to throw off Chambliss’ timing in the first half.

***

Things are by no means fixed on the Forty Acres.

Sarkisian must resolve the team’s third-quarter woes (I still don’t know why he gets away from things that work early). The kicking game is still way too feast-or-famine. Penalties remain a problem. Manning had moments of brilliance mixed with critical mistakes and the offense left points on the field. Ole Miss had 162 of its 364 total yards (44.5 percent) in the fourth quarter.

Still, the Longhorns deserve credit for pulling it together and executing well enough, long enough to win. While this team shows no signs of getting off the rollercoaster any time soon, Saturday’s win was one in which their stretches of good play outweighed the bad.