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Four core principles of football likely decide Red River Shootout between No. 1 Texas, Oklahoma

AUSTIN, Texas — With three wins in five meetings with Oklahoma as Texas’ coach, Steve Sarkisian knows what it takes to win the Red River Shootout.
“The team that runs the ball, the team that converts third downs, the team that wins a turnover battle and the team that can pressure the quarterback generally comes out on top,” Sarkisian said Monday. “You get back to the core fundamentals of what the game of football is all about. As much as we want to talk about the emotions of the game, as much as we want to talk about the trick plays or the craziness that can happen in this game, it generally comes back to the things that are important to football, right? Who can run the ball? You know who can convert third downs and extend drives? Who can create turnovers? Who can take care of the ball? And then, ultimately, who can pressure the other team's quarterback to affect him?”
If Sarkisian is going to become the first Longhorn coach since David McWilliams to win three in a row over the Sooners and give No. 1 Texas (4-0, 1-0 SEC) the program’s first three-game winning streak over Oklahoma (2-2, 0-1) in almost 30 years (1997-99), his squad must continue to execute four core principles of football at a winning level inside the Cotton Bowl. In winning the last two meetings by a combined score of 57-9, the Longhorns have dominated Brent Venables’ team in the statistical categories that matter when the two long-time rivals lock up in Dallas on Saturday (2:30 p.m., ABC).
RUSHING YARDS
The team that’s won the rushing yardage battle has won 25 of the last 28 meetings. That’s been the case in Sarkisian’s five games against the Sooners, with Texas owning the line of scrimmage over the last two seasons.
The Longhorns out-gained Oklahoma on the ground in 2024 (177-89) and 2025 (136-48). Even excluding lost yardage on sacks, Texas has still dominated the Sooners on the ground; the Longhorns had a 183-120 edge two years ago and won the rushing yardage battle 142-80 last season.
Texas played defense at such an elite level in last year’s 23-6 victory that Sarkisian didn’t need to abandon the run. Even in the face of Oklahoma racking up 12 tackles for loss and almost half of the Longhorns’ net rushing yards coming on two plays (a 37-yard run by Tre Wisner in the second quarter and a 29-yard game-clinching run by Arch Manning), Sarkisian kept plugging away long enough that only three of Texas’ 21 non-sack rushing attempts in the second half were stopped at or behind the line of scrimmage.
“Everybody wants to run the ball and sometimes it's not always pretty. Everybody wants to run the ball and the first run doesn't go for eight yards. Sometimes, it goes for one. You can't just give up,” Sarkisian said. “I think what also helps you stay committed to the run is playing good defense. When you're playing good defensive football, sometimes, games aren't pretty early on, but you can stay committed to it and then, inevitably, the dam starts to break and you can start to snap off some longer runs that way.”
If Hollywood Smothers and Nick Townsend return from injury, the Longhorns should run the football more effectively than they did in their 20-17 win over Tennessee on Sept. 26, when they recorded a season-low 61 rushing yards (94 yards and 3.1 yards per attempt when adjusted to exclude sacks).
Venables' run defense is a respectable 42nd nationally, allowing 115.5 yards per game. Oklahoma is 36th in FBS in yards per rushing attempt allowed (3.23) and is tied with the Longhorns for allowing the third-fewest 10-plus-yard runs among SEC defenses (13).
Still, the challenge the Sooners face stopping the Texas running game isn't as daunting on paper as what's in front of Oklahoma on the other side of the ball. Ben Arbuckle's offense will try to establish the run against a Longhorn defense allowing fewer than 100 rushing yards per game (99.3, ranked No. 26 nationally) while holding opponents to under three yards per rushing attempt (2.84 yards per carry allowed is No. 18 in FBS).
Oklahoma enters the game with the 131st-ranked rushing offense in the country (99 yards per game) and is 133rd nationally in yards per rushing attempt (2.93). Stanford is the only FBS offense with fewer 10-plus-yard runs than the Sooners (nine).
The advanced statistics paint Oklahoma's running game in a less favorable light. According to CFBData.com, the Sooners are last in the SEC in line yards per carry (2.5), second-level rushing yards, open-field rushing yards, stuff rate and power success rate.
TURNOVERS
The winner of the turnover margin has won 19 of the last 28 meetings. That includes the last four games, with Texas racking up a plus-4 in turnover margin in the last two seasons (plus-5 in Sarkisian’s three wins).
Since 1999, the team that wins the rushing yardage battle and the turnover margin in the same game is 17-0.
Playing turnover-free football helped the Longhorns weather the storm in last season’s win over Oklahoma. The Sooners, meanwhile, couldn’t recover from John Mateer’s three interceptions, including one right before halftime that was equal parts a bad decision by Mateer and questionable clock management by Venables.
Texas left Knoxville with a win despite losing the turnover battle, even if one of the lost turnovers was an onside kick recovery by the Vols that the SEC later clarified was an illegal kick. While the Longhorns are even in turnover margin on the season, Oklahoma’s minus-6 deficit (tied for the worst among Power Four clubs) includes an SEC-leading 10 giveaways, with six fumbles lost tied for the second-most in FBS.
THIRD-DOWN EFFICIENCY
Somehow, despite facing third-and-7 or more 11 times, Texas was 10-for-17 on third down in last year’s Red River Shootout while facing an average to-go distance of nine yards. The Longhorns can’t expect the same results in third-and-long situations against a Sooner defense that’s held opponents to a 23.1-percent third-down conversion rate (12-for-52) through four games, the third-best mark in the country.
Even though Texas was 3-for-12 on third down in its win over Tennessee, it's still a top-20 offense in college football on third down, moving the chains at a 50-percent clip (30-for-60). A 9-for-16 effort in the team’s Sept. 12 win over Ohio State included a 4-for-5 showing in the fourth quarter.
Will Muschamp’s defense has performed well enough on third down in the last two games to bolster a No. 48 national ranking in third-down defense (34.6 percent conversion rate allowed). Texas held UTSA and the Vols to a combined 5-for-28 on third down; the Longhorns are tied for No. 35 nationally and third in the SEC on fourth down (3-for-8), with only Tennessee (0-for-5) and LSU (1-for-4) boasting better fourth-down defenses.
The current trend bodes well for Texas against an Oklahoma offense that’s a combined 10-for-32 on third down in its last two losses to the Longhorns. The Sooners are 109th nationally on third down this season (18-for-53), including a combined 5-for-27 (18.5 percent) effort in losses to Michigan and Georgia.
SACKS
The 11 sacks the Texas defense has piled up in two consecutive wins over Oklahoma almost matches the historic 10-sack game the Longhorns recorded in their road win over Tennessee. Texas’ run defense in Dallas has opened the door to get after the quarterback; the Longhorns got Mateer on the ground five times in an upset victory in 2025.
While Oklahoma finished last season’s loss to Texas with 12 tackles for loss, only one of those was a sack of Manning, which came on the Longhorns’ first possession. The offensive line’s protection and Manning’s ability to escape pressure minimized negative plays on a day when the offense struggled to stay on schedule.
This season, Manning has been a more effective passer under pressure than Mateer.
According to Pro Football Focus, Manning (pressured on 43 of 146 dropbacks) is 14-for-26 for 190 yards and a touchdown under pressure, with four big-time throws, one turnover-worthy play and an adjusted completion percentage of 71.4. Mateer (pressured on 46 of 127 dropbacks) is 16-for-32 for 237 yards and two touchdowns, but has thrown two interceptions, has committed five turnover-worthy plays and has an adjusted completion percentage of 55.2.
Mateer has been better at preventing pressure from turning into sacks. His pressure-to-sack rate of 15.2 percent (seven sacks on 46 pressures) is on track to be better than his 2025 mark of 19.7 percent (27 sacks on 137 pressured dropbacks).
Sacked on 13.3 percent of the pressures Texas allowed last season when he was behind center (22 sacks on 165 pressured dropbacks), Manning has been sacked 10 times in four games. His 23.3 percent pressure-to-sack rate is the fifth-highest among 17 SEC quarterbacks who’ve been pressured at least 25 times.
Making these two quarterbacks feel the heat is only part of the battle. Getting home and getting the quarterback on the ground is a formidable challenge for two aggressive, talented defenses.
Jeff Howe

Burning Question Revisited: Did Texas start to form an identity on offense against Tennessee?

It’s time to revisit On Texas Football's “One Burning Question,” where we ask a question about the Texas Longhorns heading into a game.
Entering Saturday’s 20-17 win over No. 14 Tennessee, the burning question was:
Will the Longhorns start to form an identity on offense against the Vols?
In short, no.
Texas lacked the consistency needed to string together successful possessions and didn’t capitalize on opportunities to put Tennessee on the ropes. The Longhorns were out-gained by the Vols on the ground (70-61), lost the turnover battle (2-1), went 3-for-12 on third down and had more three-and-outs (six) than scoring drives (four).
Yet amid the trash heap of forgettable moments, Texas did some things well. Well enough that if they build on them during the bye week, the Longhorns could come out of the Red River Shootout against Oklahoma on Oct. 10 (2:30 p.m., ABC) with a clearer sense of who they are and what kind of team they can be offensively.
It’s unrealistic to think every call Steve Sarkisian makes will work. Still, one of the most frustrating things about the offense’s performance in the SEC opener is that when the Longhorns weren’t beating themselves and trusting proven concepts, Jim Knowles and the Vols couldn’t handle Sarkisian’s attack.
For starters, Sarkisian’s opening script was executed to perfection, with Raleek Brown's 9-yard touchdown run punctuating a 7-play, 75-yard drive on the offense’s first possession.
After Arch Manning connected with Ryan Wingo on an 8-yard, high-percentage pass on the first play from scrimmage, two tough, between-the-tackles runs (one by Brown and another by Derrek Cooper) set up Manning’s 43-yard play-action bomb to Emmett Mosley V. Two plays later, Brown reached the end zone with help from Connor Robertson and Brandon Baker, who walled off their defenders to create an alley, and Ryan Wingo, who’s second-level insert block (lined up stacked behind Melvin Siani at the snap) got Brown loose.
“To get the ball in that environment and to go seven plays, 75 yards, to take the lead 7-0 on the road, I thought, was really big for us about owning the environment, owning the arena,” Sarkisian said Monday. “I've never been to a game where the opposing fans were all in their seats by the time we took pregame warmups. That was a different environment.
“That was a really cool way to start,” he added. “From that point forward, until about the second-to-last offensive drive, we did not play very good offensive football. I'd love to say it was this or that. It literally was us taking turns not doing the things that we had practiced to do.”
Texas mounted four scoring drives against Tennessee: the game-opening touchdown drive; a 10-play, 62-yard drive in the second quarter for a field goal (a 22-yarder by Gianni Spetic); a 6-play, 48-yard drive in the third quarter for another field goal (a 44-yarder by Spetic) and an 8-play, 60-yard drive in the fourth quarter for a touchdown (Brown’s 4-yard rushing touchdown with 5:41 left in the game).
Even though a clunky goal-to-go sequence and a delay-of-game penalty on third-and-2 forced the Longhorns to settle for field goals on two of those possessions, the offense was humming on those four drives:
— Total Plays: 26
— Total Offense: 230 yards
— Yards Per Play: 8.8
— Arch Manning: 11-for-13, 184 yards
— Rushing Offense: 15 carries, 46 yards (3.1 yards per attempt) and two touchdowns
— Sack-Adjusted Rushing: 13 carries, 56 yards (4.3 yards per carry) and two touchdowns
— First Downs: 12
— Third Down: 2-for-4
— 10-Plus-Yard Plays: 7
— 20-Plus-Yard Plays: 3
What worked for Texas on those possessions:
— Sarkisian leaned mostly on duo and insert as the primary running game concepts, ditching long-developing plays and running the ball without pulling linemen.
Baker and Siani caved in the front side of the line on Brown’s 4-yard touchdown run, clearing a path for Emaree Winston to lead Brown into the end zone. The only negative play on 13 non-sack rushing attempts was a 3-yard loss when the Vols’ penetration swallowed up Cooper for a 3-yard-loss on a zone run behind the right side of the line.
— Most of Manning’s completions on those four drives came on hard play-action passes set up by positive rushing plays, quick throws to stationary targets or screens and other quick throws to the perimeter.
The football moved through the air when Sarkisian stuck with those calls and Manning pulled the trigger at the right time. The Longhorns found themselves behind the chains in a world of trouble when some combination of long-developing pass plays, poor pass protection and communication breakdowns didn’t give Manning enough time to find an open man before Knowles’ pressure got home.
— Texas either avoided stubbing its toe and made plays to recover from its mistakes on the four scoring drives.
The most pivotal moment came on the fourth-quarter touchdown drive, with the Tennessee defense sacking Manning for an 8-yard loss on the first play. But Winston and Trevor Goosby opened a lane over the left side of the line on the next snap, springing Brown loose for a 10-yard gain. From there, with the offense recovering from second-and-18 to face third-and-8, Manning hit Wingo down the seam for 18 yards and a first down, one of four first downs the Longhorns picked up on the drive.
No college football offense is perfect. Still, what Texas must avoid, by building on the things the offense does well, are possessions that destroy the fabric of complementary football.
There were three drives in the Tennessee game when the Longhorns could’ve mashed the gas and cruised to a win:
— A second-quarter drive from their own 43-yard line after Faizon Brandon left the game with an apparent shoulder injury. Texas led, 10-3, with 12:38 remaining in the half.
— Another possession in the second quarter, this time with 10:17 on the clock and the ball at its own 38-yard line.
— With 4:50 remaining in the game, the Longhorns had the ball at the Vols’ 41-yard line after Alex January sacked Brandon, forcing a Tennessee turnover on downs.
What happened on those three drives?
— A two-play drive that ended when Kayin Lee intercepted Manning’s attempt to hit Cam Coleman on a post route at the 4-yard line.
— A three-and-out that started with a 12-yard loss when Manning couldn’t handle a high snap from Robertson.
— A three-and-out that ended on third-and-8 from the Tennessee 40-yard line, with Arion Carter and Tyree Weathersby converging on Manning for the Vols’ sixth sack of the game.
With three chances to pull away, the Texas offense gained 16 yards on eight plays, didn't record a first down, punted twice and lost their fifth turnover of the season. When the Longhorns needed to execute, they couldn’t protect the quarterback and failed to run and protect the football.
After 60 minutes, Texas had enough on its four scoring drives to overcome a litany of self-inflicted wounds and failed attempts to execute. The Longhorns must eliminate the extended lulls that have plagued the offense through four games before a stretch of eight consecutive SEC games begins against the Sooners in Dallas.
Jeff Howe

Longhorns in the Polls: Texas maintains No. 1 ranking after 20-17 road win over Tennessee

Saturday's 20-17 road win over Tennessee convinced voters in the Associated Press Top 25 and the AFCA Coaches Poll to name Texas the nation's No. 1 team for the third consecutive week.
The Longhorns controlled their victory over the Volunteers throughout the program’s first-ever trip to Neyland Stadium. Texas (4-0, 1-0 SEC) notched its 12th win over an AP Top 25 opponent since the start of the 2024 season thanks to a defensive effort highlighted by 10 sacks, five of which came from Colin Simmons.
Simmons tied Shane Dronett’s single-game school sack record (set against Texas Tech on Nov. 3, 1990), helping the Longhorns record the second double-digit sack game in school history. With the Texas defensive front dominating Tennessee (3-1, 0-1) at the point of attack, Will Muschamp’s defense held the Vols’ explosive offense to 2.9 yards per play, 1.6 yards per rushing attempt and a 6-for-21 showing on money downs (4-for-17 on third down and 2-for-4 on fourth down).
The coming week will be the 53rd in the history of the AP Poll that the Longhorns have been ranked No. 1. Texas is one week behind Georgia’s 54 weeks at No. 1 for the ninth-most appearances in the AP Poll’s top spot, fitting since the Bulldogs are on the Longhorns’ heels for positioning atop college football’s two major polls.
Texas earned 62 of 70 possible first-place votes from AP Top 25 voters. The remaining eight first-place votes went to No. 2 Georgia (six), No. 4 Miami (one) and No. 6 Indiana (one); No. 3 Notre Dame and No. 5 Ohio State round out the latest top five.
The same is true for the Coaches Poll. The Longhorns got 45 of the 73 first-place votes, followed by the second-ranked Bulldogs (17) and fifth-ranked Hoosiers (eight). The third-ranked Fighting Irish received three votes; the Hurricanes are No. 4 in the Coaches Poll, with the Buckeyes No. 6.
The No. 1 ranking and an undefeated record position Texas as a legitimate College Football Playoff contender entering the Red River Shootout against Oklahoma on Oct. 10 (2:30 p.m., ABC or ESPN). The Longhorns' higher priority is to use the bye week to get healthy and clean things up before their annual grudge match with the Sooners in Dallas, which begins a stretch of eight consecutive SEC games to conclude the regular season.
Although Tennessee dropped to No. 17 after Saturday's loss, the Vols are one of six current AP Top 25 clubs on Texas' SEC schedule. Oklahoma (2-2, 0-1) isn't ranked. Neither are Arkansas or Texas A&M. Still, the Longhorns are scheduled to face No. 8 Florida (Oct. 17), No. 9 Ole Miss (Oct. 24), No. 16 Mississippi State (Oct. 31), No. 25 Missouri (Nov. 7) and No. 11 LSU (Nov. 14) over five consecutive weeks.
Saturday's win over Tennessee validated Steve Sarkisian's belief that his team's big-game experience will be an asset as Texas faces one of the nation's toughest schedules, with the Longhorns winning 12 of their last 17 games against AP Top 25 opponents.
After struggling on the road last season, Sarkisian isn't taking a win over the Vols for granted.
"We’ve got a real schedule," Sarkisian said during his postgame press conference in Knoxville. "That's why I say, 'I'm not going to apologize for winning on the road against a top-15 team,' when other teams don't even play them on the road. We're going to enjoy this. We need to get better. We need to play better. But I know there's more to come. We've got to have a mentality when we go on the road against these good teams that we're going to find a way to win. The easiest way to do that is to play well, but when you're not at your best in one phase or another phase, can you find a way to win the game and then get better going into the next week?”
Jeff Howe

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

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.
Jeff Howe

One Burning Question: Will Texas start to form an identity on offense against Tennessee?

It’s time to tackle “One Burning Question,” an On Texas Football in-season feature where we’ll examine a question facing the Texas Longhorns as they enter a game.
On Sunday, we’ll revisit the question to see whether Steve Sarkisian’s team answered it successfully.
This week, with No. 1 Texas traveling to No. 14 Tennessee on Saturday (11 a.m., ABC), the question is:
Will the Longhorns start to form an identity on offense against the Vols?
It’s easy to identify the symptoms currently plaguing Sarkisian’s attack. The Longhorns can’t rely on big plays; the passing game hasn’t clicked as expected; and while the offensive line has met or exceeded early-season expectations, Texas doesn't have what could be described as a dominant running game.
Remedies include Arch Manning’s decision-making and Sarkisian’s willingness to establish and stick with a capable ground attack.
However, a lack of identity could be the root cause of what’s ailing the Longhorn offense.
The 2023 offense was rounding into a unit capable of producing Sarkisian’s ideal version of balance when Jonathon Brooks suffered a season-ending knee injury in November. Still, Texas rode an offense that was a top-25 unit nationally on the ground (25th with 188.4 rushing yards per game), through the air (17th with 289.1 passing yards per game) and on the scoreboard (15th with 35.8 points per game) to within one play of playing for a national championship.
The 2024 Longhorns tied a school record with 13 wins thanks to an explosive offense. No offense in FBS had more plays from scrimmage of 20 yards or more than Texas, which racked up 108 in a 16-game season en route to a second consecutive College Football Playoff semifinal berth (the Longhorns tied Ohio State for the fourth-most plays from scrimmage with 244 that went at least 10 yards, tied for fifth in the country in 30-plus-yard plays and ranked seventh in 40-plus-yard plays).
Last season, the offense’s identity could be best described as snap the ball to Manning and hope for something good.
When Manning was dialed in and dealing (wins over Oklahoma, Vanderbilt, Texas A&M and Michigan), the offense put a winning product on the field. When Manning struggled or didn’t get enough help from the pieces around him (losses to Ohio State, Florida and Georgia), the offense played a significant role in the team coming up short.
Even if Hollywood Smothers (lower leg) is limited or misses Saturday’s game in Knoxville, Sarkisian’s organization acquired enough pieces around Manning to lighten the load. While the Texas offenses in 2024 and 2025 threw the football to set up the run, the 2026 group showed in a 24-23 comeback win over the Buckeyes that they can win being a run-first unit.
Until the big plays become something the Longhorns can rely on, Sarkisian might be better served leaning into the running game, which could limit possessions for an explosive offense like Tennessee's. While it’s unrealistic to expect any offense to execute as well as Texas did down the stretch of the Ohio State game, ending regulation with 15, 13 and 12-play touchdown drives, entering Saturday’s game ranked No. 10 nationally in third-down conversion rate (56.3 percent) is proof that the current offense has the potential to be arguably Sarkisian’s best at executing in critical situations.
Running the football downhill with a fast, physical mentality is a sure-fire way to attack the structural integrity of the three-safety defense Jim Knowles took from Oklahoma State, Ohio State and Penn State to the Vols as Josh Heupel’s defensive coordinator.
Establishing a consistent, productive running game will go a long way toward the Longhorns leaving Neyland Stadium with a win. Texas is 24-2 under Sarkisian when recording 40 or more official rushing attempts in a game, which it didn’t do the last two times Sarkisian’s offense went up against a Knowles-coached defense (a 2021 loss to Oklahoma State and a 2024 loss to Ohio State), averaging 2.7 yards per attempt.
At the same time, Sarkisian's offense executing in critical situations against Knowles’ defense would be a significant step in the right direction for the Longhorn offense. In Sarkisian’s two head-to-head losses to Knowles, his offenses combined to go 10-for-33 on money downs (9-for-30 on third down and 1-for-3 on fourth down), turned the ball over four times and went 4-for-6 in the red zone, scoring three touchdowns on six chances inside the 20.
Sarkisian's goal is to call the game however he needs if it ends with Texas staying unbeaten heading into the upcoming bye week. Beyond that, however, boarding the return flight to Austin with something to hang their hat on offensively would ease concerns about the Longhorns' offensive trajectory.
Jeff Howe

Explosive play differential could be the deciding factor when No. 1 Texas visits No. 14 Tennessee

AUSTIN, Texas — Steve Sarkisian knows the Texas offense must create more explosive plays than it did in the non-conference portion of the 2026 schedule.
The No. 1-ranked Longhorns enter their SEC opener against No. 14 Tennessee on Saturday (11 a.m., ABC) with nine 20-plus-yard plays from scrimmage. Texas A&M has generated only seven 20-plus-yard plays from scrimmage, the only SEC offense that’s been less explosive than Texas (3-0).
The issues have been most noticeable when going to the air. Things just haven’t clicked when Arch Manning has pushed the ball down the field. 
The Longhorns have completed six passes of 20 or more yards this season, which also ranks 15th in the conference. According to Pro Football Focus, Manning is 3-for-11 on pass attempts of 20 yards or more beyond the line of scrimmage through three games.
Sarkisian likes that his squad has shown signs of playing more efficient situational football than it did last season. The Longhorns are second in the SEC with a 56.3-percent conversion rate on third down and were 10-for-11 in the red zone with nine touchdowns and 4-for-5 on fourth down before last Saturday’s 30-6 win over UTSA (4-for-5 in the red zone with two touchdowns and 0-for-2 on fourth down).
Still, Sarkisian knows he and the Texas staff can’t throw in the towel on trying to hit big plays down the field.
“If we're not going to get the explosives because people are deploying people in a way to try to minimize those, you have to be efficient on third down and in the red area to maximize those opportunities,” Sarkisian said during his weekly news conference on Monday. “On the flip side of that, we have got to continue to exhaust ourselves as a staff to find those explosives, to create opportunities for explosives and then, hopefully, the players — put them in position to trust why and when we're calling those explosive-type plays to take advantage of them.”
Thankfully, while big plays have been hard to come by on offense, Will Muschamp’s defense has helped the Longhorns win the explosive-play margin in each of the team’s first three games.
Texas’ official in-game statistics feed tracks big plays, which are running plays from scrimmage that gain at least 10 yards and pass completions of 15 yards or more. The Longhorns were plus-7 against Texas State, plus-2 against Ohio State and plus-9 against UTSA.
Muschamp’s defense is tied for 38th in FBS in 10-plus-yard plays (29) and 20-plus-yard plays allowed (nine) from scrimmage and is coming off a performance in which none of the Roadrunners’ 14 pass completions went for more than eight yards. After surrendering two 12-yard runs on UTSA’s second possession (a 13-play, 59-yard drive that ended with a field goal), the Longhorns didn’t allow another 10-plus-yard gain on the ground for the rest of the game.
The irresistible force meets the immovable object in Knoxville on Saturday, with Muschamp’s defense trying to stymie the Volunteers’ rushing attack, which is currently the best in the SEC (298.7 yards per game). Tennessee (3-0) leads FBS with 29 10-plus-yard runs from scrimmage, while the Vols’ nine 20-plus-yard runs are tied for ninth-most in the country.
A quarterback who ran Mike Leach’s Air Raid offense at Oklahoma in 1999, Josh Heupel’s veer-and-shoot offense has the trademarks of the system Art Briles made famous (Kendal Briles and Jeff Lebby run their versions of the veer-and-shoot at South Carolina and Mississippi State, respectively). Heupel, who coached alongside Kevin Wilson with the Sooners for five seasons (2006-10), has developed one of the top rushing offenses in the SEC in Knoxville; the Vols led the league in rushing offense in 2023 and 2024, finishing no worse than eighth in the conference since Heupel took over the program after the 2021 season.
The struggles Texas has had trying to hit big plays through the air might continue on Saturday against Jim Knowles’ three-safety defense, which is designed to take away the deep ball. Tennessee is tied for 29th in FBS in 10-plus-yard pass completions allowed (18); only Penn State has allowed fewer 20-plus-yard completions than the Vols (two).
On the flip side, there isn’t enough evidence to show Tennessee can lean on freshman quarterback Faizon Brandon’s ability to connect on deep balls. The Vols have 18 pass completions of 10-plus yards this season, the fewest in the SEC; only Texas and Texas A&M have fewer 20-plus-yard completions than Tennessee’s eight.
Ultimately, Sarkisian’s commitment to running the football and the Longhorn offensive line winning at the point of attack could determine which side wins the explosive-play battle. Although Texas is in the middle of the pack of SEC offenses in rushing attempts that have gained at least 10 (17) and 20 (three) yards, the Volunteers have allowed the most 10-plus-yard (17) and 20-plus-yard (six) runs in the SEC (tied for 116th and 121st in FBS, respectively).
The Longhorns’ willingness and ability to sustain a ground attack could come down to the health of key cogs who appeared on Wednesday’s SEC availability report.
Jordan Coleman's absence means Sarkisian and Kyle Flood must find someone else for the six-offensive lineman package Texas rolled out for the Ohio State game. If Nick Townsend misses his second game in a row, the Longhorns will be without their top lead blocker and tone setter when they want to pound the rock.
According to PFF, only six SEC players have forced more missed tackles than Hollywood Smothers (11), whose 140 rushing yards after contact rank 11th in the conference. If Smothers can’t go or is limited, Sarkisian will look to Raleek Brown and Derrek Cooper to carry the load.
Even if Smothers is cleared for Saturday’s game, Sarkisian could turn to Manning as a threat on designed quarterback runs.
Sarkisian wants Manning to be smart when he’s on the move. He's also “fearful of making a living going down that road."
Nevertheless, Manning’s running ability can benefit the quarterback and the offense as a whole if he's unleashed.
“There will be designed runs and we've had designed runs in previous weeks; we just haven't called them,” Sarkisian said. “You use them when you think you need them most.”
Jeff Howe

Longhorns in the Polls: Texas still No. 1 in AP Top 25, Coaches Poll after win over UTSA

For the second consecutive week, the Texas Longhorns are the No. 1 team in the country.
Texas (3-0), which remains atop the AFCA Coaches Poll after Saturday’s 30-6 win over UTSA, is still No. 1 in the Associated Press Top 25. With 58 first-place votes, the Longhorns edged out No. 2 Georgia for the program’s 52nd all-time No. 1 appearance in the AP Poll.
Notre Dame (No. 3), Ole Miss (No. 4) and reigning national champion Indiana (No. 5) round out the latest top five.
Tennessee, a 42-9 winner over Kennesaw State on Saturday and Texas’ opponent in the SEC opener in Knoxville next Saturday (11 a.m., ABC), is No. 14 in the latest AP Top 25. After a 24-23 comeback win over then-No. 1 Ohio State on Sept. 12, the Longhorns improved to 18-14 against AP Top 25 opponents, with an 8-13 record against top-15 opponents.
The victory over the Buckeyes was Texas’ fourth in its last six games against top-15 foes. None of those wins, however, happened in a true road game.
The Longhorns went 2-3 in true road games last season, including losses to No. 3 Ohio State and No. 5 Georgia. Texas' last true road win over a ranked opponent came in a 17-7 victory over Texas A&M at Kyle Field in the 2024 regular-season finale.
Before falling to the Buckeyes in last year's season opener, the Longhorns had an FBS-leading 11-game winning streak in true road games. Last season's true road victories were overtime wins over Kentucky and Mississippi State, the latter of which saw the Longhorns mount a furious fourth-quarter comeback.
Returning to top form on the road is easier said than done against the Volunteers, who will welcome Texas to Neyland Stadium for the first time. ESPN's College GameDay will be in Knoxville, marking the second time in three weeks that GameDay will be on location for a Longhorn game.
Since Darrell Royal's 1969 team took their No. 1 ranking on the road and beat No. 2 Arkansas, Texas has won four of its last six true road games as the No. 1 team in the AP Poll. The Longhorns suffered a 39-33 loss to No. 7 Texas Tech in the program's most recent true road game as the No. 1 team in the AP Top 25.
Jeff Howe

Snap Judgments: No. 1 Texas ends non-conference play with a sloppy win over UTSA

Through the 11:26 mark of the second quarter in Saturday’s 30-6 win over UTSA, No. 1 Texas picked up where it left off in the fourth quarter of last week’s 24-23 comeback win over Ohio State.
The Longhorns led 17-3 after Arch Manning’s 3-yard touchdown pass to Cam Coleman capped a seven-play, 57-yard drive. Steve Sarkisian’s offense averaged 5.5 yards per play, with Manning’s 9-for-12, 102-yard effort and two touchdowns balancing a rushing attack that churned out 57 yards on 11 carries.
Unfortunately, it was downhill from there. The offense lacked cohesiveness, consistency and flow until Derrek Cooper ended an eight-play, 66-yard drive in the fourth quarter with his first career touchdown (a 1-yard run over the right side of the line).
Manning completed seven of his final 20 pass attempts. Texas (3-0) went 4-for-13 on third down the rest of the way and failed to move the chains twice on fourth down (0-for-2).
Obviously, if the Longhorns execute at a similarly forgettable level against Tennessee in their SEC opener next Saturday (11 a.m., ABC), it’ll be a different story on the scoreboard. While Saturday’s clunker came in a lopsided win, Monday’s film session will show a lot of meat on the bone against Jeff Traylor’s scrappy Roadrunners.
***
Manning wasn’t good on Saturday. There’s no sugarcoating his struggles.
He's still unable to hit the crossing routes in Sarkisian’s offense. While the Longhorn receivers either couldn't get open against man coverage or dropped his on-target throws, Manning either misfired or didn’t pull the trigger on plays that could’ve gone for big yardage.
For now, it’s fair to put Manning’s performance (16-for-32 for 161 yards and two touchdowns, with 50 yards rushing on nine official attempts) in the column of a bad night. It’s too early in the season (and too soon after his late second-half outing against the Buckeyes) to hit the panic button. Nevertheless, Manning looked more like he did when he struggled throughout the first half of the 2025 season on Saturday, not like the guy who played as well as any quarterback in the country down the stretch.
***
UTSA deserves credit for crossing up the Texas offensive line with various blitzes, games and stunts and making the Longhorns play behind the chains. That led to Manning bailing out of the pocket more than anybody wanted him to, which exposed him to too many hits in a game Texas won comfortably.
***
Late, hard-charging runs by Cooper (44 yards on 11 carries), Hollywood Smothers (10 carries for 54 yards) and Michael Terry III (seven carries for 39 yards) helped Texas finish with a season-high 228 rushing yards (4.8 yards per attempt). Still, the Longhorns did a solid job running the football; only seven of the 39 carries by the running backs were stopped at or behind the line of scrimmage and seven of the team’s 47 non-sack rushing attempts went for 10 or more yards.
***
Sarkisian doesn’t need to call a jump ball in the red zone for the rest of the season unless it’s going to Cam Coleman.
***
The most disappointing aspect of the offense’s performance was that they wasted outstanding field position. Five drives that started at their own 43, 45, 48 and 49 and the UTSA 39-yard line resulted in Texas only scoring 13 points.
***
Maybe Saturday’s offensive performance will be in 2026 what the Wyoming game was in 2023.
After the Longhorns went on the road and handed Nick Saban his largest margin of defeat in Tuscaloosa, Texas was tied with the Cowboys, 10-10, going into the fourth quarter; a 44-yard touchdown pass from Quinn Ewers to Xavier Worthy kickstarted a 21-point surge, leading to a 31-10 victory.
Time will tell. Still, if we’re judging this offense against the offseason expectations of it potentially being Sarkisian’s best on the Forty Acres, Saturday’s effort fell woefully short.
***
I’ve dissected the offense long enough. The Longhorns’ overall margin for error was significant because Will Muschamp’s defense put the clamps on UTSA (2-1).
After the Roadrunners kicked a field goal at the end of a 13-play, 59-yard drive, one on which Will Henderson III had success running off-tackle, Muschamp’s adjustments suffocated Henderson, Owen McCown and the rest of the Roadrunners’ offense. From the 7:05 mark of the first quarter, UTSA had 146 yards of total offense (3.04 yards per play), three first downs and went 0-for-9 on third down.
Although the offense looked as unappealing as possible, Texas played championship-caliber defense.
***
The game was so tightly officiated (both teams combined for 20 penalties) that I don’t know what to make of the Longhorns finishing the game with eight penalties for 88 yards. It was a sloppy performance, but the SEC officiating crew contributed to the clunky flow.
Jeff Howe

No. 1 Texas vs. UTSA: Stats to track when the Longhorns host the Roadrunners

AUSTIN, Texas — Steve Sarkisian couldn’t have been blunter when describing how No. 1 Texas has protected the football and played defense on third down through two games.
On Monday, two days after the Longhorns rallied for a 24-23 win over then-No. 1 Ohio State and immediately following his team’s first practice ahead of their non-conference finale against UTSA on Saturday (7 p.m., SEC Network+), Sarkisian mentioned ball security and third-down defense as things Texas (2-0) must fix after the team’s film review of the good, bad and ugly plays from the victory over the Buckeyes.
“I got on the offense's butt this morning about the ball. Our ball security is not good enough. Not to be a championship team,” Sarkisian said. “Our third-down defense right now is not good enough. Not to be a championship team.”
Only five SEC teams have fumbled the football more than Texas has heading into the Longhorns’ third all-time meeting against Jeff Traylor’s Roadrunners, with three fumbles coming against Ohio State. While heads-up plays by Kade Phillips (to recover a muffed punt by Ryan Niblett late in the third quarter) and Cam Coleman (to recover fumble on the ensuing offensive series by Emmett Mosley V at the end of a 15-yard completion from Arch Manning) helped Texas end the game with Raleek Brown’s fumble on the first play from scrimmage as its only lost fumble, the Longhorns are almost halfway to their 13-game fumble total in 2025 (eight, two of which were lost) and one-third of the way to the nine turnovers they had last season (Brown’s fumble and two interceptions by Manning, one in each game).
“We take pride in our ability to take care of the ball,” Sarkisian said. “We've got to improve our ball security because it wasn't just about the turnovers; it was the other fumbles.”
With only eight FBS teams forcing more turnovers heading into Week 3 than UTSA (2-0), this would be a good week to right the ship. The Roadrunners have five takeaways this season (tied for fifth nationally with a plus-2.5 turnover margin per game), three of which came in their 31-26 come-from-behind road win over Texas State last week.
“We have got to value the football more in the organization than we have through two games,” Sarkisian said.
Will Muschamp’s defense getting off the field more frequently on third down, however, requires a more nuanced resolution. The Longhorns are tied for 125th nationally in third-down defense, with Texas State and Ohio State moving the chains at a combined 50-percent clip (14-for-28).
What was most disappointing about the third-down effort against the Buckeyes was the defense’s inability to get off the field on third-and-long. Ohio State, which was faced with an average to-go distance of 7.9 yards on third down, converted three of the five third-and-9 or longer situations it had, including a pair of third-and-10 completions from Julian Sayin to Jeremiah Smith (a 19-yard strike in the first quarter and a 43-yard bomb in the third quarter), which came on two different Buckeye scoring drives (a first-half touchdown drive and a third-quarter field goal).
After Ohio State went 5-for-8 on third down in the first half, the 43-yard connection between Sayin and Smith was the only third-down conversion Texas allowed in the second half. The Buckeyes went 1-for-6 trying to move the chains, which Sarkisian credited to Muschamp’s defensive adjustments after a rough start, which included turnovers putting the defense in disadvantageous sudden-change situations (31 of Ohio State’s 37 first-half plays from scrimmage occurred in Longhorn territory).
With Texas’ defensive identity a work in progress, Sarkisian indicated the second-half adjustments against the Buckeyes could be what Muschamp does from the jump against the Roadrunners, who are 6-for-24 on third down this season (25-percent conversion rate is tied for 129th nationally).
“I thought Ohio State, to their credit, did a lot,” Sarkisian said. “They taxed us mentally with some formations, motion, shifts, alignments that caused a lot of communication, and I didn't think our communication was as good as it could have been. I thought we got better in the second half, but I think we're better defensively right now when we're in your face, when we're aggressive. We tried to play the other way a little bit in the first half and that wasn't, kind of, I think, where our identity is. I thought when we just, kind of, got in your face and played a little bit more aggressive, we played better football. That's probably where our bread and butter is right now, but we need to be more versatile.
“We've got to continue to work on those other things.”
OTHER STATS TO TRACK
— What’s impressive about Texas’ third-down offense goes beyond the 64.5-percent clip at which the Longhorns are converting (No. 5 in FBS). That’s on pace to shatter the Sarkisian-era high of 44.03 percent in 2021.
The same is true of the offense’s third-down tries based on a two-game sample.
With 31 third-down attempts through two games, the current pace of 15.5 third-down attempts per game would surpass last season (13.5 third-down attempts per game) for the Sarkisian-era high. Typically, Sarkisian’s offense has relied on big plays to move the chains, ranking among the nation’s leaders in percentage of first downs made on first and second down.
Instead of trying to avoid third down and score in a hurry, the Longhorns are facing more third downs, converting them at a higher clip and putting together more long drives. After recording 14 scoring drives that amassed 10 or more plays in 2025, Texas has already had six such drives through two games this season, including each of the offense’s last three scoring drives against Ohio State.
The trend should continue against a UTSA defense that’s 115th nationally on third down (45.7 percent conversion rate allowed) and 133rd against the run (233 yards per game allowed), with the Roadrunners surrendering more than 5.5 yards per carry.
— With the SEC opener on the road against an explosive Tennessee offense (a top-30 offense in the country with 35 10-plus-yard plays and 14 20-plus-yard plays from scrimmage) looming, the Longhorn defense needs to clamp down on allowing big plays.
Texas is currently tied for 87th nationally in plays from scrimmage of 10 or more yards allowed (25) and is tied for 96th in FBS with nine 20-plus-yard plays allowed. Most of the damage has been through the air; 18 of the 25 10-yard plays and seven of the nine 20-yard plays have been on passing plays by the opponent.
This is another statistical category in which Muschamp’s defense can iron things out before jumping into SEC play. In wins over UTRGV and Texas State, UTSA’s offense has completed 17 passes of 10 or more yards (tied for 74th nationally), with only five of 20 or more yards (tied for 92nd in FBS).
Jeff Howe

Burning Question Revisited: Did Texas win the line-of-scrimmage battle against Ohio State?

AUSTIN, Texas — It’s time to revisit On Texas Football's “One Burning Question,” where we ask a question about the Texas Longhorns heading into a game.
Entering Saturday’s 24-23 win over No. 1 Ohio State, our burning question was:
Can the Longhorns win the line-of-scrimmage battle against the Buckeyes?
They did. In emphatic fashion.
Winning in the trenches played, arguably, the most significant role in the program’s first home victory over the Associated Press’ No. 1-ranked team since a 23-20 win over SMU on Nov. 4, 1950.
From the time Texas took possession after an Ohio State punt with 5:47 to go in the third quarter, the Longhorns had a plus-28 play differential over the Buckeyes. Forty of the Texas offense’s 83 snaps came on the unit’s last three possessions: touchdown drives of 15, 13 and 12 plays, respectively.
Even though Arch Manning sparked the first two scoring marches with a pair of fourth-down conversions (a desperation throw while on the move to Emaree Winston and a dart to Emmett Mosley V), Steve Sarkisian put the 20-point comeback on the shoulders of Kyle Flood’s much-maligned offensive line. Including the 34 yards Manning picked up on the five times he called his own number, the Longhorns toted the rock 22 times for 96 yards on their last three drives, including Hollywood Smothers’ over-the-top, game-winning 1-yard touchdown with 25 seconds left on the clock.
The 22 late-game carries accounted for more than half of Texas' 41 official rushing attempts. After rushing for 140 net yards (3.4 yards per attempt), the Longhorns improved to 23-2 in 40-carry games under Sarkisian.
Texas’ only two games with 40 or more official carries last season came against UTEP (56) and Sam Houston (41). The Ohio State game was the Longhorns' first with 40 or more official rushing attempts against a Power Four opponent since a 48-carry, 292-yard outing in a 2024 College Football Playoff first-round win over Clemson.
Whether it’s been a lack of trust in the position groups responsible for making the running game go (the offensive line, running backs or both) or a desire to hunt big plays through the air, Sarkisian has, more often than not, abandoned the run in big games.
That wasn’t the case against the Buckeyes. The belief in the ground attack can be linked to Sarkisian’s trust in the offensive line and running backs after both groups underwent massive offseason overhauls.
The line is playing well together, Sarkisian said Monday while recapping the win over Ohio State and looking ahead to No. 1 Texas’ non-conference finale against UTSA on Saturday (7 p.m., SEC Network+), because of Connor Robertson’s veteran presence at center. While acknowledging that Robertson’s experience helps communication flow better on game day, Brandon Baker and Trevor Goosby have a full season as starters under their belts and seasoned transfer portal acquisitions Melvin Siani (859 snaps at Wake Forest last season, according to Pro Football Focus) and Dylan Sikorski (444 snaps as a sophomore at Oregon State) have exceeded expectations since joining the program.
“I think there's a lot of experience and I think they're just working cohesively well together, but what I liked was the physicality that they played the game with,” Sarkisian said. “They moved the line of scrimmage and they created running lanes.”
For their part, Smothers (74 yards and two touchdowns on 21 carries) and Raleek Brown (10 carries for 54 yards), “didn’t go down on contact," Sarkisian said.
According to PFF, Smothers and Brown combined for 80 rushing yards after contact, with nine missed tackles forced. between them.
“We made guys miss; we ran through safeties,” Sarkisian said. “They were physical.”
The running back group’s toughness translated to much-needed pass protection for Manning, who was pressured on just 11 of his 44 dropbacks, according to PFF. Manning was the sixth-most-pressured quarterback in FBS last season (165 total pressures, on 35.6 percent of his dropbacks), with Ohio State pressuring him on 14 of 34 dropbacks (41.2 percent) in last season’s 14-7 loss in Columbus.
The Longhorns flipped the script in Austin.
While Texas kept Manning relatively clean, Will Muschamp’s in-game adjustment to play man coverage against Jeremiah Smith and put another defender in the box to bolster the run defense paid off with a winning effort against the run (94 yards and three yards per attempt by the Buckeyes, who didn’t have a run from scrimmage longer than 11 yards) and more consistent, effective pressure on Julian Sayin. After the Longhorns only pressured Sayin on five of his 20 dropbacks last season, Muschamp’s defense pressured the 2025 Heisman Trophy finalist on 15 of his 36 dropbacks (41.7 percent), mirroring what Indiana (pressured Sayin on 12 of 34 dropbacks in the Big Ten championship game) and Miami (pressured Sayin on 17 of 40 dropbacks in the Cotton Bowl) did last season in wins over the Buckeyes.
When Texas faced critical downs and needed a defensive player to step up and make a play, Alex January, Hero Kanu, Maraad Watson and Ian Geffrard won must-win battles at the point of attack. Muschamp went with heavier fronts featuring three and sometimes four tackles on the field, the latter being the case when January led the charge to stuff Ja’Kobi Jackson on fourth-and-2 from the Longhorns’ 13-yard line early in the second quarter.
Winning the rushing yardage battle, providing adequate protection for Manning and bringing the heat on Sayin more than Ryan Day and Arthur Smith wanted (Sayin overthrew Devin McCuin on a potential game-clinching touchdown in the third quarter, with Justin Cryer forcing a hurried throw as an unblocked rusher coming off the edge) added up to the Longhorns winning the trench battle and the game. They won the way Sarkisian hoped they could against elite opponents after spending the offseason trying to get Texas to play with more of a physical edge by putting the fulcrums of the running game through competitive, intense inside-run periods in practice.
With the trench battles sharpening both lines of scrimmage, Texas delivered when and where it mattered against the No. 1 team in the country.
“As a coach, you get what you emphasize, right? And we've been emphasizing being a more physical football team, being a more physical offensive team and running the football when they know you're going to run the football and having the ability to do that and having the ability to have confidence to call it that way,” Sarkisian said. “At the end of that game, when we were down there first-and-goal, it was like, 'We're running it, man.' And they knew we were running it. There wasn't a secret. We weren't going to call a bootleg or a tight end corner route or something. The ability to get that ball in the end zone is gratifying as a coach that your players have bought into what you're asking of them to get accomplished."
Jeff Howe

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