Jeff Howe

Arch Manning is one of several Longhorns on the Bowman Football checklist:

I know this is a grail card for more than a few members of the OTF family:

No better week for the offense to come together than the SEC opener on the road against a Jim Knowles defense.

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. View full news story

Topps Finest and Upper Deck SP were my favorite products from the time they came out until I put my collecting on hold when I graduated high school.

My bid came up a little short:

Bijan has 108 rushing yards on 13 carries in the first half tonight against the Packers.

Seems that way, unfortunately.

Bijan Robinson (along with Cameron Williams) and the Falcons will kick off Week 3 of the 2026 season tonight in Green Bay, with Matthew Golden and Barryn Sorrell in action for the Packers. *** Longhorns in the NFL: 53 Longhorns on the 53: 42 Practice Squad: 6 Injured Reserve: 5 *** Arizona Cardinals (3): Hayden Conner, Devin Duvernay, D’Shawn Jamison* Atlanta Falcons (2): Bijan Robinson, Cameron Williams Baltimore Ravens (1): Ethan Burke Carolina Panthers (2): Jonathan Brooks#, Ja’Tavion Sanders Chicago Bears (3): Roschon Johnson, Christian Jones*, Malik Muhammad Cincinnati Bengals (1): Jack Endries Cleveland Browns (1): Isaiah Bond Dallas Cowboys (2): PJ Locke, Demarvion Overshown Denver Broncos (5): Jahdae Barron, Sam Ehlinger, Lil’Jordan Humphrey, Brandon Jones, Malcolm Roach Green Bay Packers (2): Matthew Golden, Barryn Sorrell Jacksonville Jaguars (1): Quinn Ewers Kansas City Chiefs (1): Xavier Worthy Los Angeles Chargers (1): Cameron Dicker Los Angeles Rams (5): Jack Bouwmeester*, Matthew Caldwell#, Poona Ford, Bill Norton*, Jordan Whittington Miami Dolphins (3): DJ Campbell, Trey Moore#, Michael Taaffe New England Patriots (1): Brenden Schooler New Orleans Saints (3): Kelvin Banks Jr.#, Vernon Broughton, Jaylan Ford# New York Jets (4): Andrew Beck, Adonai Mitchell, Joseph Ossai, T’Vondre Sweat Philadelphia Eagles (4): Jaydon Blue*, Jake Majors*, Andrew Mukuba, Moro Ojomo Pittsburgh Steelers (1): DeShon Elliott# San Francisco 49ers (1): Alfred Collins Seattle Seahawks (2): Michael Dickson, Byron Murphy II Tennessee Titans (2): Gunnar Helm, Anthony Hill Jr. Washington Commanders (2): Samuel Cosmi, Charles Omenihu * — Practice Squad # — Injured Reserve

I like the idea of hologram Davy Crockett picking games.