Jeff Howe

I could’ve stopped at the red zone. It’s that important.

AUSTIN, Texas — Offensive issues in the red zone alone aren't to blame for Texas entering a colossal bout with No. 1 Ohio State on Saturday (6:30 p.m., ABC), saddled with a two-game losing streak to the Buckeyes. Still, it’s hard not to look at the Longhorns’ woes inside the 20 when trying to figure what must change to achieve a different outcome in their third meeting with Ohio State in just over 600 days. Steve Sarkisian said as much on Monday when asked if Texas took the right steps in the offseason to fix its issues in goal-to-go situations against the Buckeyes. “When it comes to those scenarios, personnel helps,” Sarkisian said. “Schemes help, the right play call at the right time helps, the mentality helps. It all adds up because they've got good scheme(s), they've got good players, they've got good play-callers. It's the marriage of those two things coming together. Ultimately, we need to be better in those scenarios. You just think about these last two games we've played them; that was probably the difference in the ballgame was our inability to score inside the 10.” The red-zone issues were front and center during last season’s 14-7 season-opening loss in Columbus. The Longhorns failed to score on their two trips inside the Ohio State 20-yard line, including a sloppy attempt at a quarterback sneak on fourth-and-goal from the 1-yard line in the second quarter and back-to-back incomplete passes by Arch Manning (a crossing route to Ryan Wingo on third down and a corner route to Parker Livingstone on fourth down) from the Buckeyes’ 9-yard line in the fourth quarter. Last season, Texas was 4-for-7 in the red zone in its three losses, with its 57.1-percent scoring rate ranking 127th among FBS teams who had at least one red-zone possession in a loss. With only three total red-zone touchdowns in losses to Ohio State, Florida and Georgia, the Longhorns tied for 107th in FBS with a 42.9-percent red-zone touchdown rate. Unfortunately, red-zone misfires have been a trend in Texas’ last eight losses under Sarkisian. Since the start of the 2023 season, the Longhorns are 15-for-24 in the red zone in their eight losses (Oklahoma, Washington, Florida, Georgia three times and the Buckeyes twice). Along with recording a 62.5-percent scoring rate, Texas has also tallied an abysmal 41.7-percent touchdown rate in those losses, scoring only 10 touchdowns on 24 red-zone possessions. The Longhorns have an 84.4-percent red-zone scoring rate in their last 36 wins (135-for-160), including a 6-for-7 mark in last Saturday’s 59-7 rout of Texas State. James Simon’s 6-yard touchdown run with 2:08 left to play against the Bobcats was the 100th red-zone touchdown (62.5-percent red-zone touchdown rate) Texas has scored in a win since it dispatched Rice, 37-10, to open the 2023 season with a victory. The Longhorns need to reverse the trend to change their fate against opponents ranked in the top five of the Associated Press Top 25 (2-5 since 2023). Included in Texas' nine failed red-zone possessions across its last eight losses are some of the most painful what-if moments of Sarkisian’s tenure. — The Sooners’ goal-line stand in 2023. Texas came up empty after facing first-and-goal at the 1-yard line. — The Longhorns couldn’t finish a potential game-winning drive against the Huskies in the 2024 Sugar Bowl, failing to score after driving the ball to the Washington 12-yard line with 15 seconds on the clock. — Texas settled for field goals on its last drive in regulation and its lone possession of overtime in a 22-19 loss to Georgia in the SEC championship game in 2024. — A forgettable sequence in a Cotton Bowl loss to Ohio State, which went downhill after the Longhorns had first-and-goal at the 1-yard line with 3:56 remaining in regulation. Under Sarkisian, Texas has ascended high enough in college football’s national championship race to see the summit. It would’ve been easier to deal with the College Football Playoff losses in particular if the Longhorns had been blown out in both games, Sarkisian joked. While a win over the Buckeyes wouldn’t guarantee Texas a trip to Las Vegas for the CFP title game, it would be a monumental step in helping the program reach heights it hasn't since Vince Young crossed the goal line on fourth-and-5 in the Rose Bowl more than 20 years ago. “When you're that close, it's probably harder to get over, but I say it a lot: that's the life of a competitor,” Sarkisian said. “We're very fortunate to put ourselves in that arena, to put ourselves on that stage and I wouldn't want it any other way than to be on that stage. There's a lot of other people that were sitting at home on their couch watching us play in that game. The goal is to win that one and then win one more. We've got to do everything in our power to try to put ourselves back in those positions to be even better if we're fortunate enough to be in that situation again.” That includes improving their execution in critical situations like the red zone, which should play a significant role in determining the outcome of another top-five tussle with the Buckeyes. Other statistics to follow when No. 4 Texas hosts No. 1 Ohio State on Saturday: — The Longhorns haven’t had a problem generating explosive plays against the Buckeyes. Texas had a 9-4 edge in explosives (rushing attempt of 12 or more yards and a pass completion of 15 or more yards) in the Cotton Bowl and a 7-2 advantage in Columbus. Nevertheless, the Buckeyes made theirs count, whereas the Longhorns’ production was largely for naught. Of the 16 explosive plays Texas has tallied in the two games, only five led to a touchdown or reached the end zone. Five of Ohio State’s six, however, occurred on a touchdown drive or scored, including Julian Sayin’s game-deciding 40-yard touchdown strike to Carnell Tate in the fourth quarter. — If red-zone issues weren’t solely responsible for the Longhorns losing the game last season, penalties could’ve been largely to blame. The Buckeyes’ first touchdown drive (a 13-play, 80-yard march in the second quarter) was aided by a 15-yard face mask penalty against Colin Simmons on third-and-4 from the Texas 44 and a 10-yard defensive holding call against Malik Muhammad two plays later. The Longhorns also had a safety wiped off the board when Simmons forced a holding call in the end zone in the third quarter, only for Liona Lefau to get called for illegal hands to the face, forcing second-and-9 from the Buckeyes’ 2-yard line to be replayed. Ohio State won the penalty battle in a landslide (two for 15 yards, whereas Texas was assessed six penalties for 50 yards), which the Longhorns can’t repeat. — To-go distance on third down is more critical to Texas because the Buckeyes have won the last two games despite going a combined 6-for-22 on third down. While the Longhorns finished last season’s game at the Horseshoe with an average to-go distance of 5.5 yards on third down, they were 1-for-6 on third-and-8 longer (the only conversion was a 32-yard touchdown pass from Manning to Livingstone on third-and-10, which was third-and-5 before Texas was flagged for a false start). Sarkisian will have more of his call sheet available on critical downs if the offense stays as close to on-schedule as possible. That’s where the running game will be a huge factor, especially with the Longhorns coming off a game against Texas State in which nine of the team’s 31 rushing attempts by a running back (29 percent) were stopped at or behind the line of scrimmage. Texas can’t count on a 2-for-4 day on third-and-9 plus like the offense had last Saturday. Likewise, Will Muschamp’s defense will look to put Ohio State behind the chains more often than the Bobcats, who averaged 4.3 yards to go on third down (nine of Texas State's 14 third-down conversion attempts were third-and-4 or less). — It shouldn't need to be said that turnover margin is important in a game of this magnitude. It's hugely important for the Longhorns, though, who are 6-12 under Sarkisian when they lose the turnover margin. That includes their losses to the Buckeyes; a David Gbenda interception against Will Howard in the Cotton Bowl is the only turnover Texas has forced in its last eight quarters against Ohio State. 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Trust me, athletic departments and professional franchises still have plenty of ways to give fans the middle finger. What Georgia is doing is the tip of the iceberg.

It probably depends on whether or not Castellanos has been cleared by the NCAA. I don't know that it's an apple-to-apples comparison.

One of the issues with PFF is that it’s too cut and dried, which makes sense because they have so much data to process it doesn’t leave time for nuance. Defensive players really get dinged for missed tackles, but there were a couple of plays where Biles technically missed the tackle and played his assignment correctly. That led to other guys being in a position to clean it up.

AUSTIN, Texas — Rasheem Biles' impact in his Texas debut made a strong impression on the SEC office. Strong enough to garner co-SEC Defensive Player of the Week honors, the league announced Monday. The weekly recognition comes on the heels of Biles recording five tackles, half of a tackle for loss, a forced fumble and an interception in a 59-7 season-opening rout of Texas State. Biles’ forced fumble in the second quarter was scooped up by Graceson Littleton, who returned it 59 yards for a touchdown. His third-quarter interception of an attempted screen pass inside the Bobcats’ 40-yard line led a three-play touchdown drive, which ended with a 21-yard touchdown run by Raleek Brown. Throughout preseason practice, Steve Sarkisian said Biles was “a problem” on the practice field, similar to how he’s described Colin Simmons’ on-field impact. Sarkisian said the same thing about the Pitt transfer on Monday, lauding everything Biles brings to the table ahead of the Longhorns’ highly anticipated clash with No. 1 Ohio State on Saturday (6:30 p.m., ESPN). “He's a problem because he has a unique skill set. In high school, this guy was a DB, so he's got coverage skills; he's got route recognition; but on top of that, he's got instincts that are hard to quantify,” Sarkisian said. “The screen he gets the interception on, they were trying to deceive us with a bolt motion by the running back with kind of a tunnel screen coming back inside and he sees it, puts his foot in the ground. There's certain guys that the ball finds them or you can say they find the ball. “He almost recovers the fumble that Maraad (Watson) causes, too. Not to mention, there's not many guys that are in a hole where there's about a five-yard space that would think, 'Here comes a runner, and my first thought is I'm going to six-inch punch the ball as I'm striking him in the face.’ Most guys are thinking, 'Just get him on the ground.' But he plays the game on another level intellectually,” he added. “A lot of guys probably can do that; he has the skill set to match it, to have the ability to do that. We're fortunate because he is versatile. He can play in pass coverage. He can play the run. He can rush the quarterback. He's got ball skills. He's got instincts. All of those things add up to he's a problem.” Texas needs Biles to be a problem when the top-ranked Buckeyes come to town on Saturday. A Columbus native, Biles, who attended Pickerington Central, admitted during a preseason media availability that he didn’t consider returning home to play for Ohio State when he entered the transfer portal. “They called, but I’m not — I didn’t want to stay in Columbus, if I’m being honest,” Biles said. “Obviously, we’ve got agents and made my list. I told my mom, ‘Columbus?‘I ain’t really trying to be in Columbus. I ain’t trying to be a Buckeye. They didn’t want me out of high school and I was right there; no point in trying to get me now. “I’m excited for that game, definitely,” Biles said. “That’s circled on my calendar, for sure.” View full news story

ICYMI, this was Sark's update on Cooper today during the press conference: “Derrek’s in a boot and he’ll be in a boot until the foreseeable future."

A Big Ten crew worked the game in Ann Arbor, so I would imagine an SEC crew will work the game in Austin next year.

I did like Muschamp making use of the offense substituting by running new linemen into the game. Also, I was impressed with the fact that Texas didn't have any penalties for substitution infractions. The operation was fairly clean, considering the circumstances.

Other things I'd like to see carry over: — Kobe Black's hit on Chris Dawn Jr. Yes, it was a tremendous, legal hit. That's how you coach those collisions in today's game. But you can't let opponents get too comfortable taking chances on low-percentage passes. You've got to protect your territory between the hashes. — Arch's scramble drill throw to Spencer Shannon for 11 yards on the second touchdown drive. With Arch thriving when he can get loose and make plays with his legs, his receivers need to do what Shannon did and help their quarterback by making themselves an open target. — The offensive line's push on the 13-play, 80-yard drive that ended with Raleek Brown's 13-yard touchdown run. The Longhorns converted second-and-1, third-and-1 and third-and-2 on the ground with ease. The running game bogged down from there, but Texas dominated in the trenches on that possession. — All three turnovers were truly forced. Biles and Maraad Watson punched two balls out and Biles read Brad Jackson all the way on his pick. Texas needs to seize opportunities to turn Ohio State over. — Raleek Brown's touchdown run on the delay/draw. Texas State stopped playing the RPO and was strictly playing the run from about the middle of the second quarter. One great counter when you're getting a lot of penetration and the defense is shooting gaps and hunting negative plays is to call a draw or something where the defense's aggressiveness works against them. I loved that call by Sark.

It also looked like the defense had pre-snap alignment issues on that play.

It seemed like the D-line got gassed. Texas State did a good job of using tempo to its advantage. And that style of offense naturally opens up the middle of the field, which makes it conducive to hitting big run plays between the tackles. If Texas had game-planned more than it otherwise did, it might've been a different story. Regardless, I'd expect Texas to play the run much differently against Ohio State.

One of the few times Texas attacked the line of scrimmage with multiple defenders against Texas State was one of the plays made in the 59-7 win over the Bobcats that needs to carry over to the Longhorns’ blockbuster non-conference battle with No. 1 Ohio State on Saturday (6:30 p.m., ABC). After Texas State converted a third-and-4 on its opening drive, it tried to crank up the tempo. While trying to catch Will Muschamp’s defense flat-footed on second-and-6 from the Bobcats’ 40-yard line, Rasheem Biles and Justin Cryer busted loose into the backfield. Torrance Burgess Jr. slipped away from the Texas linebackers, but Jelani McDonald was right there to clean up the play, resulting in the defense’s first tackle for loss of 2026. Texas State’s average to-go distance on third down was 4.3 yards. The Bobcats faced third-and-4 or less on nine (5-for-9) of the 14 times (8-for-14) they lined up to try and move the sticks on third down. Expect Muschamp to be more aggressive on early downs to try and get the Buckeyes behind the chains. Ohio State was 5-for-11 on third down in its 56-3 season-opening win over Ball State, with an average to-go distance of 8.1 yards, which is how the Longhorns would prefer the Buckeyes to operate on critical downs. *** Texas has held Ohio State to a 6-for-22 mark on third down in the last two meetings. Still, the Buckeyes’ combined 2-for-3 mark on fourth down in their two wins over the Longhorns went a long way toward deciding the outcome; one of the conversions was Will Howard’s 18-yard run on fourth-and-2 in the Cotton Bowl en route to the go-ahead touchdown in the fourth quarter, while the other was CJ Donaldson’s 1-yard touchdown run on fourth-and-goal in Columbus last season. Texas held Texas State to a 1-for-3 mark on fourth down, with the first stop coming long before the outcome was decided. After Biles made a tremendous play in space to stop Brad Jackson for a 2-yard loss on third-and-2 from the Longhorns’ 40-yard line, Alex January got the defense off the field by sticking his paw up and knocking Jackson’s fourth-and-4 pass attempt to the ground. The Bobcats called a good fourth-down play, with Chris Dawn Jr. and Blake Smith crossing up Cryer and Graceson Littleton in coverage. Thankfully, January made the kind of play the Longhorns must get to flip the script in the Ohio State series. *** Steve Sarkisian needs to be at his best as a play-caller if Texas is going to get the scarlet-and-gray monkey off its back. That will require setting up big plays the way he did on the offense’s second possession. A swing pass to Raleek Brown helped set up Arch Manning’s 21-yard completion to Ryan Wingo on fourth-and-2 from the Texas State 40-yard line in the second quarter. On both plays, Sarkisian sent Nick Townsend in motion from the short side of the field to the wide side, forming a trey set (a tight end and two receivers on one side of the field in a three-by-one formation). On the pass to Brown, Townsend motioned toward the field as a lead blocker, leading the way for Brown’s 11-yard gain. The Longhorns ran the same action on fourth-and-2 and, with Townsend and Brown selling the swing pass, Manning’s slight pump fake sold the short pass long enough to hold the Bobcat defenders and allow Wingo to get open down the sideline. *** The game has slowed down significantly for Manning since he walked into the Horseshoe for last season’s opener for his third carrier start. More in tune with the offense and playing off his instincts, Manning selling the swing pass to Brown before hitting Wingo for a chunk-yardage play on fourth down was one of several plays he made that can’t be appreciated if you’re only looking at the box score. On the Texas offense’s third scoring drive, Manning made a savvy play after getting the Bobcats to jump into the neutral zone on third-and-9 from the Texas State 46. Instead of taking a deep shot or taking a risk he otherwise wouldn’t, knowing he had an upcoming third-and-4 in his back pocket, Manning carried out the play, slinging the ball to Hollywood Smothers for an 11-yard gain and a first down at the Bobcats’ 35-yard line. Six plays later, Raleek Brown scored from 13-yard out behind Townsend and Trevor Goosby to make it a three-score game, 21-0. What Manning did leading up to the touchdown, including a 16-yard pickup on a pass to Wingo out of a scramble situation and a quick pass to Townsend for nine yards on first down from the Texas State 21, are tangible signs that the Buckeyes aren’t facing the same quarterback they saw last season. View full news story

It depended on where Smith lined up because they move him around a lot. It felt like it was Manny Muhammad for the most part and Littleton when they moved him inside. Carnell Tate caught the touchdown. Unless the Titans want to loan him back to Ohio State for a day, he's gone.