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For all of the talk regarding strategy, keys to victory and other games within the game that will determine a winner in Saturday’s blockbuster season opener between No. 1 Texas and No. 3 Ohio State (11 a.m., Fox), Ryan Day’s response to a question during his Tuesday press conference reinforced what makes the difference when push comes to shove in a high-stakes battle. “If we don’t stop the run and run the ball,” the Buckeyes’ coach said when asked about the importance of success in the trenches, “we’re not going to win the game.” Under Steve Sarkisian, the Longhorns are 33-4 when winning the rushing yardage battle. Since the start of the 2021 season, Texas has held an opponent under 100 net rushing yards in 19 games, winning 18 of them (last season’s College Football Playoff semifinal loss to Ohio State in the Cotton Bowl is the only loss). While using a variety of formations and pre-snap movements to create mismatches in the passing game separates Sarkisian’s offense from other attacks, it’s much more potent when the Longhorns can run the football. If the defense remains stout against the run, the offense doesn’t need to pile up rushing yards to be successful (only four of the team’s 13 wins last season saw Texas rush for 200 or more yards). Still, the ground attack can’t falter the way it did in the Longhorns’ losses last season, three games in which Texas averaged a paltry 39.3 yards per game and a forgettable 1.4 yards per attempt. When adjusting the yardage totals to exclude sacks, Texas still only rushed for 231 yards on 61 attempts in its losses. Averaging 77 yards per game and 3.4 yards per attempt didn’t cut the mustard for an offense that netted 186.3 rushing yards per game and ran the football at a 4.8-yard-per-game clip in 13 victories (even with a 30-carry, 53-yard outing in the Peach Bowl win over Arizona State counting toward the production). The Longhorns failed to reach 30 official rushing attempts in last season’s losses, including the loss to the Buckeyes (58 yards on 29 carries). Still, a sack-adjusted 85-yard effort on 25 carries (3.4 yards per attempt) positioned Texas to reach the national championship game. Such production (as long as the re-tooled offensive line can create enough room for C.J. Baxter, Quintrevion Wisner and the other running backs to operate, Sarkisian stays patient, content to let his offense work over the Ohio State defense with a series of body blows throughout the bout) can get it off on the right foot in the first step of the 2025 squad’s quest to ascend to the top of the mountain. View full news story

Couple of notes on Jonah Williams First, was told Thursday he is up to 217 pounds. And that doesn't mean anything for his position. Prior to re-injuring his hammy, he was one of the fastest testers on the team at 210+ pounds. He will return to the field at safety for Texas. Second, prior to the re-injuring of the hammy, he was going to compete at punt and kick off return. Third, he came to Texas with football in mind and nothing has changed in that regard. It's all about getting back to 100%, and not pushing it to get back this time. He took a week off after baseball concluded and went right back into football conditioning. In retrospect, probably should have given it 2-3 weeks. But that is an athlete trying to get ready to be on the field for football season. Lesson learned.

The expectation is K Mason Shipley takes the field for all field goals on Saturday vs. Ohio State. I don’t know if that is a surprise to anyone, but given there was not a depth chart announced and Sarkisian spoke on the position today, I wanted to make the post. Sarkisian today on the Texas State transfer, “I thought Mason really came on strong the last 2.5 weeks of training camp."

Just like you, I too am scarred by Tom Herman telling me every Wednesday or Thursday that the week of practice leading up to a big game has been amongst the best the Longhorns have ever had. So if you want to tap out now, feel free, I won't blame you. However, I will tell you that the quarterback at The University of Texas has received extensive praise from the Texas coaching staff during the Longhorns' preparation for the defending National Champions. Even with shuffling on the offensive line, the Texas quarterback has had command of practice and looked incredibly sharp in practice this week. Again, I understand this is often said in lead-ups to big games, but you don't often see your head coach laughing and joking with the media while on the podium if practice went poorly. Also, aside from the practice focus, I have been told Arch Manning is the first in the facility each morning – confirming what CJ Baxter mentioned in his media availability on Monday. We will see how it translates, but a sharp week of practice has folks growingly confident in Austin.

Two days ahead of kickoff, I wanted to revisit position room confidence rankings ahead of the season. This was an exercise I posted earlier in the offseason, but given that things have changed since the beginning of fall camp, it is worth revisiting expectations and evaluate where things stand by position group. *** 1. Linebacker Steve Sarkisian mentioned he has four starters at the position and I believe him. Anthony Hill Jr. is the national name, but look for TyAnthony Smith to surprise a lot of folks. Lefau and Moore round out a very talented 2-deep at backer. 2. EDGE Headlined by Colin Simmons, Texas has its healthiest group of pass rushers that I can remember. The room is deep, talented and hungry. 3. Quarterback When your quarterback is Arch Manning, it elevates the room into conversations it otherwise wouldn't be in. Matthew Caldwell has some experience and it appears that the hope for KJ Lacey is rising by the day. 4. Safety Returning a 2nd Team All-American is just the start. Derek Williams Jr. returns to the field and joins 2024 breakout player Jelani McDonald to make for a very sturdy front line. Xavier Filsaime received plenty of praise as fall camp progressed as well. 5. Defensive Line The talk of the offseason was the five portal additions to the Texas defensive line room, and while there isn't any continuity, there is experience and that is my biggest selling point at five. Alex January will start, now pick Cole Brevard or Maraad Watson and high ceiling remains. 6. Running Back CJ Baxter's return to the field has been a revelation in fall camp and for good reason. Texas' running back room looks significantly different from this time a year ago, though they don't crack the top five simply out of the "Go Prove It" aspect for Baxter. Very bullish on this room. 7. Cornerback I feel great about Malik Muhammad taking the next step, though am waiting to see how the opposite cornerback position plays out. Sources have expressed confidence in Jaylon Guilbeau, and his experience should certainly help. Kobe Black had moments, but not much burn. Perhaps the star of the defense is just that, STAR Graceson Littleton. 8. Tight End Adding Jack Endries to this unit allowed for a very firm floor for what to expect in 2025. Now the versatility of Endries, Washington, Shannon and Townsend gives Texas as deep and multiple of a tight end room as Sarkisian has ever had at Texas. The No. 8 ranking comes just as a result of other talent elsewhere. 9. Wide Receiver The glaring question mark right now is what is happening with Emmett Mosley V. Until there is a specific time table for when we will see Mosley on the field, this room takes quite a hit. Two players have receptions in the room, and even with Livingstone's pending emergence, there just is not any other type of production at the moment. 10. Offensive Line Depth is in question and the guys in the film room are still playing musical chairs with the starting five this close to game time. Could the offensive line be better in run blocking this fall? Perhaps, but I have quickly detoured away from this unit being an overall improvement from a year ago when four guys ended up on NFL rosters.

For one final time this weekend, Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian will meet with the media to discuss the opening game of the season on Saturday against Ohio State. The Longhorns and Buckeyes kickoff at 11:00 a.m.

Steve Sarkisian participated in today’s SEC Football Coaches Weekly Media Teleconference. The teleconference is a much tighter window than Sarkisian’s Monday press conference or his Thursday Zoom call (his portion of the call lasted less than six minutes). Still, Sarkisian’s comments on Wednesday addressed a few key topics ahead of No. 1 Texas opening the 2025 season on Saturday against No. 3 Ohio State (11 a.m., Fox). — When asked if Emmett Mosley V will be available for Saturday’s game, Sarkisian said the Stanford wide receiver transfer is “limited this week.” He didn’t elaborate further. Presumably, the first three wideouts to see the field against the Buckeyes will be DeAndre Moore Jr., Ryan Wingo and Parker Livingstone. If Mosley doesn’t play, the wide receiver rotation will be filled out by players the staff trusts. “At the end of the day, it's not about ability; it's what you're able to do,” Sarkisian said. “What you're able to do is what ultimately you show us, and then if you can do it consistently, that earns our trust. When you have our trust, we're going to play you." — What is Sarkisian hoping to learn about his team inside the Horseshoe against the Buckeyes? “Everything,” he said. “It's a new team. New people doing new things. New roles, new responsibilities. Everybody's had to elevate their game from last year to the next, whether it's a third-year player to a senior player, a second-year player to a third-year player, from a special teams guy playing more on offense or defense, from kids who were in high school now playing for us in college. I'm curious about it all. It's going to be fun to get answers to a lot of things that we have questions about, which, quite frankly, is just about everything.” — This isn’t the first time in Sarkisian’s career as a head coach when he’s had to open a season against the opponent his team played to end the previous season. Washington’s 2012 season ended with a 28-26 loss to No. 20 Boise State in the Las Vegas Bowl, but Sarkisian’s fifth campaign in 2013 started with the Huskies welcoming the Broncos to Seattle, a game Washington won convincingly, 38-6. Sarkisian’s Huskies also avenged a 56-21 loss to No. 8 Nebraska in the third game of the 2010 season with a 19-7 win over 17th-ranked Huskers in the Holiday Bowl, which wrapped up his second season at Washington with the program’s first winning record (7-6) in eight years. For Sarkisian, going 232 days between meetings with a non-conference opponent, even one as talented as the reigning national champions, isn’t foreign. “Part of it is, schematically, how much are people really going to change? Names and faces, some of them can remain the same. Some of them are new. How do people evolve and grow in their roles — some of the returning faces? There's challenges to it all,” Sarkisian said. “I think, at the end of the day, there's some commonalities, I'm sure, that they'll be, that they do. There'll be some new things. Maybe they move some pieces around, some people in different spots. What do they do with Jeremiah [Smith]? Do they use them the same way? Do they use him differently? Do they use them on punt returns? Do they use him on kick returns? How much did they do with Caleb Downs? Sonny Styles? A lot of similar names from last year, it's just, how much do they evolve? Then, how much have we evolved with some of the people in our organization and some of the schemes? That's part of the process of [a season opener]. That's always one of the challenges of Game 1 is the unknowns, and then trying to put your players in the best position to have some success.” View full news story

Texas entering into Steve Sarkisian’s fifth season on the Forty Acres as the No. 1 in the Associated Press Top 25 doesn’t guarantee anything. Still, the history of preseason No. 1 teams since 1998 — the first season in which the Bowl Championship Series decided college football’s national champion — is a sign that the Longhorns can almost bank on a prosperous season. The proof will be in the pudding, whether Texas is destined for a third consecutive trip to the College Football Playoff under Sarkisian. Regardless, there’s a baseline level of success that the previous 27 clubs voted No. 1 in the preseason by AP Top 25 voters has reached. — Only one of the 27 previous preseason No. 1 teams failed to win 10 or more games. USC opened the 2012 season ranked No. 1 by the AP (LSU was No. 1 in the Coaches Poll) and went 7-6 with a loss to Georgia Tech in the Sun Bowl. Lane Kiffin’s last full season as coach of the Trojans saw USC join Ole Miss (1964) as the only preseason No. 1 teams in history to not appear in the final poll. — Texas will attempt to join Florida State (1999), USC (2004) and Alabama (2017) as the only preseason No. 1 teams in the BCS/CFP era to win a national championship. — In the BCS era (1998-2013), four preseason No. 1 teams — Miami (2002), Oklahoma (2003), USC (2005) and Ohio State (2006) — reached the national championship game. The Hurricanes, Trojans and Buckeyes won their respective conference championships; the Sooners lost to Kansas State in the Big 12 title game. — While Alabama (2017) is the only preseason No. 1 to win a national championship in the CFP era (since 2014), nine other No. 1 teams made it to the CFP: Florida State (2014), Alabama (2016, 2018 and 2021), Clemson (2019 and 2020) and Georgia (2023 and 2024). Of those eight teams, four (Alabama three times and Clemson in 2019) reached the national championship game. — Nick Saban’s 2017 Crimson Tide won the national championship with a walk-off victory over Georgia, but the Bulldogs won the SEC title with a win over Auburn. Of the 27 previous preseason No. 1 teams, 14 won at least a share of a conference championship, while Oklahoma (2003), Florida (2009) and Georgia (2023) lost their respective conference title games. — Eleven preseason No. 1 teams since 1998 didn’t win a conference championship, reach the BCS title game or make the CFP: Nebraska (2000), Florida (2001), Georgia (2008 and 2023), Florida (2009), Alabama (2010, 2013 and 2022), Oklahoma (2011), USC (2012) and Ohio State (2015). The 2015 Buckeyes, the 2022 Crimson Tide and the 2023 Bulldogs are the only AP preseason No. 1 teams since 2014 to not qualify for the CFP in the four-team format. — Georgia was No. 1 to open the 2024 season, the first in the 12-team CFP format. The Bulldogs went 11-3 and won the SEC championship with an overtime win over Texas before falling to Notre Dame at the Sugar Bowl in the CFP quarterfinals. Final results for preseason AP Top 25 No. 1 teams since 1998 2024: Georgia (11-3, SEC champions, lost in the CFP quarterfinals to Notre Dame) 2023: Georgia (13-1, lost the SEC championship game to Alabama, Orange Bowl champions) 2022: Alabama (11-2, didn’t make it to SEC championship game, Sugar Bowl champions) 2021: Alabama (13-2, SEC champions, Cotton Bowl champions, lost the CFP national championship to Georgia) 2020: Clemson (10-2, ACC champions, lost in the CFP semifinals to Ohio State) 2019: Clemson (14-1, ACC champions, Fiesta Bowl champions, lost the CFP national championship to LSU) 2018: Alabama (14-1, SEC champions, Orange Bowl champions, lost the CFP national championship to Clemson) *2017: Alabama (13-1, didn’t make it to the SEC championship game, Sugar Bowl champions, CFP national champions) 2016: Alabama (14-1, SEC champions, Peach Bowl champions, lost the CFP national championship to Clemson) 2015: Ohio State (12-1, didn’t make Big Ten championship game, Fiesta Bowl champions) 2014: Florida State (13-1, ACC champions, lost in the CFP semifinals to Oregon) 2013: Alabama (11-2, didn’t make SEC championship game, lost the Sugar Bowl to Oklahoma) 2012: USC (7-6, didn't make the Pac-12 championship game, lost the Sun Bowl to Georgia Tech) 2011: Oklahoma (10-3, Insight Bowl champions) 2010: Alabama (10-3, didn’t make the SEC championship game, Citrus Bowl champions) 2009: Florida (13-1, lost the SEC championship game to Alabama, Sugar Bowl champions) 2008: Georgia (10-3, didn’t make SEC championship game, Citrus Bowl champions) 2007: USC (11-2, Pac-10 co-champions, Rose Bowl champions) 2006: Ohio State (12-1, Big Ten champions, lost BCS national championship game to Florida) 2005: USC (12-1, Pac-10 champions, lost Rose Bowl/BCS championship game to Texas) *2004: USC (11-0, Pac-10 champions, BCS national champions) 2003: Oklahoma (12-2, lost the Big 12 championship game to Kansas State, lost the Sugar Bowl/BCS championship game to LSU) 2002: Miami (12-1, Big East champions, lost the Fiesta Bowl/BCS championship game to Ohio State) 2001: Florida (10-2, didn’t make the SEC championship game, Orange Bowl champions) 2000: Nebraska (10-2, didn’t make Big 12 championship game, Alamo Bowl champions) *1999: Florida State (12-0, ACC champions, BCS national champions) 1998: Ohio State (11-1, Big Ten co-champions, Sugar Bowl champions) View full news story

Wanted to bring some updates from the Ryan Day press conference ahead of the Texas–Ohio State season opener this Saturday. Notes and quotes in the comments below.

During the weekly SEC Teleconference, Steve Sarkisian was asked about the status of WR Emmett Mosley V and his availability for Ohio State. Sarkisian's answer did not change from his Monday press conference. "He is limited this week." Mosley's availability remains up in the air for Saturday.

On Monday, Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian was pretty blunt with his assertion that he expects LT Trevor Goosby back on the field for the Ohio State game on Saturday. Goosby was a full-participant Tuesday morning as the Longhorns continued their game prep for Ohio State. Texas continues to rotate some bodies around on the offensive line to create the optimal five, but things are trending positively for Goosby to be as close to full-strength as possible come kickoff in Columbus.

It is game week! Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian will meet with the media this morning to discuss the upcoming week or practice and final preparations for the massive season opener in Columbus against Ohio State. @Jeff Howe and I are on scene for the Sarkisian availability and will have updates accordingly. We should get going at around 11:35 a.m.

AUSTIN, Texas — There was a time when Steve Sarkisian couldn’t take Texas on the road and buy a win. After traveling to Boone Pickens Stadium and dropping a 41-34 decision to No. 11 Oklahoma State on Oct. 22, 2022, Sarkisian’s road record as coach of the Longhorns stood at an abysmal 1-6. While Bijan Robinson churning out 216 yards on a career-high 35 carries in a win over TCU in Fort Worth accounted for Sarkisian’s only victory through his first six true road games on the job, things haven’t been the same since the loss in Stillwater. That’s the last time Texas lost a true road game, establishing the longest active road winning streak in the country after last season’s 17-7 win over No. 20 Texas A&M at Kyle Field. Winners in each of their last 11 true road games, the No. 1 Longhorns try to make it 12 consecutive victories next Saturday when they open the 2025 season against No. 3 Ohio State. Traveling to the Horseshoe to face the reigning national champion for the second time in less than eight months might make for the toughest road trip of Sarkisian’s tenure. That’s saying a lot, considering the Aggies became the fifth Associated Press Top 25 opponent to fall victim to Texas during the streak. The streak started with a turning point in Sarkisian’s time leading the program — a 34-27 win over No. 13 Kansas State on Nov. 5, 2022. With the Wildcats on the verge of forcing overtime, and the Longhorns on the verge of blowing a 21-point halftime lead, Keondre Coburn stripped a scrambling Adrian Martinez. Jaylan Ford secured the loose ball and the victory for Texas, its first under Sarkisian away from Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium over an AP Top 25 opponent. Since then, the Longhorns have snapped Alabama’s 21-game winning streak at Bryant-Denny Stadium in 2023 and Michigan’s 23-game winning streak at the Big House last season. A 27-24 win over No. 25 Vanderbilt was one of three ranked opponents Texas defeated on the road en route to a 13-win season and a second consecutive trip to the College Football Playoff in 2024. The key to changing the program’s fortunes when traveling into enemy territory, Sarkisian said after the team’s second camp scrimmage last Saturday, was sticking to the routine he established in 2021. “I don't know that there's some secret sauce. We're a routine operation," Sarkisian said. "As much as some of us wanted us to change our routine on the road, we stuck with it way back in the day when we weren't a great road team. Over time, guys found the routine of what we did and why we did what we did. “We started to change the narrative of who we were as a road team.” The current road winning streak is tied for the program’s fourth-longest in the AP Poll era (since 1936). No Texas had ever racked up double-digit consecutive road wins until Darrell Royal’s Longhorns won 10 in a row, beginning with a 27-12 victory over Baylor on Nov. 10, 1962, and ending with a 27-24 loss to No. 3 Arkansas on Oct. 16, 1965. Sarkisian’s current streak is tied with a stretch of road success Texas enjoyed under Mack Brown over three seasons (2000-02). After a 28-14 win over Colorado in Boulder on Oct. 14, 2000, the Longhorns didn’t drop another road game until a 42-38 loss to Texas Tech on Nov. 16, 2002, which kept Texas out of the Big 12 title game. Sarkisian has the Longhorns positioned similarly to where Brown had them in the early 2000s. Back then, Texas was stacking elite recruiting classes on top of each other and had been close to playing for a national championship, with a loss to Colorado in the 2001 Big 12 Championship Game costing the Longhorns an opportunity to face Miami in the Rose Bowl. Whether Texas continues the winning streak inside the Horseshoe in nine days or not, double-digit winning streaks in true road games have only happened when the Longhorns have been legitimate championship contenders. — Royal’s Wishbone-era squad won 12 true road games in a row as part of the program’s record-setting 30-game winning streak (1968-70). The ‘68 Longhorns bounced back with a vengeance from a 1-1-1 start, working out the kinks in the Wishbone while getting through Oklahoma State, Oklahoma and No. 9 Arkansas before a 38-14 road win over Rice on Oct. 26. Texas, which won two national championships before its school-record winning streak was snapped with a 24-11 loss to Notre Dame in the Cotton Bowl at the end of the 1970 season, saw the road winning streak end at the hands of No. 16 Arkansas in Little Rock, 31-7, on Oct. 16, 1971. — Fred Akers came painfully close to winning a couple of national championships in his time as the Longhorns’ head man (1977-86). At the height of his tenure, Akers led Texas to 13 consecutive true road wins, which were spread out over four seasons (1981-84). A week after the Longhorns took a No. 1 ranking into Fayetteville and ran into a Razorback buzz, dropping a 42-11 decision, they went into Irving’s Texas Stadium and handed No. 10 SMU its only loss of the 1981 season, recording a 9-7 win. The Mustangs were one of four ranked opponents to drop a home game to Texas during the streak, with two of the ranked wins coming in 1983 (No. 5 Auburn and No. 9 SMU) and another in 1984 (No. 12 TCU). The 44-23 win over the Horned Frogs on Nov. 17, 1984, was the last win during the streak, with a loss to Baylor in Waco ending it a week later (24-10 on Nov. 24). — After Brown’s ‘02 squad lost to Texas Tech, the Longhorns rattled off 15 true road victories in a row over the next four seasons (2003-06), three of which came over ranked opponents. Texas knocked off Arkansas in Fayetteville (2004) and won twice in College Station (2003 and 2005) and Lubbock (2004 and 2006) during the streak. Sandwiched between a 55-16 thrashing of No. 21 Oklahoma State (Nov. 8, 2003 in Stillwater) and a 22-20 triumph over No. 17 Nebraska in the snow (Oct. 21, 2006 in Lincoln) was a 25-22 win in the Horseshoe over No. 4 Ohio State on Sept. 10, 2005, which established the Longhorns as a legitimate national championship contender early in a season that ended with Texas snapping the school's 35-year title drought. View full news story

Texas LT Trevor Goosby will be sidelined for a practice or two more according to head coach Steve Sarkisian Monday morning. Again, Goosby is not expected to miss much time and it is likely he returns before the week concludes. However, when Goosby went down Saturday during the scrimmage, it was third-year lineman Jaydon Chatman who entered the starting lineup at left tackle. Today, I am told there was some movement on the first team offensive line which aligns with a theory I had earlier this month in regards to Neto Umeozulu and his versatility. The Longhorns bumped Umeozulu out to left tackle, Cole Hutson out to left guard and plugged Connor Robertson into the lineup at center according to a source. We have heard often about the cross-training ability of many offensive linemen currently in Kyle Floods' room, and this further builds on that topic with another veteran getting snaps at tackle.

A handful of players will be meeting with the local media inside of Moncrief this morning. Texas is wrapping up on the practice field shortly and we will have updates below. 11 days away from Ohio State!

AUSTIN, Texas — There was a method to Steve Sarkisian’s madness when the Texas coach embarked on a mission to challenge Malik Muhammad ahead of the team’s second camp scrimmage. “I purposely went after him with a couple of different things,” Sarkisian said after the scrimmage. “For him to play the way that he played gave me more confidence than I've had, and I have a lot in him. Today was very, very encouraging on that front.” Muhammad, a veteran cornerback with 18 starts in 30 career games, will begin the 2025 season with arguably the toughest assignment he’ll face as a junior whenever he has to cover Ohio State’s Jeremiah Smith. Smith was limited to one reception for three yards on Jan. 10, when the Buckeyes’ 28-14 triumph in the Cotton Bowl ended the Longhorns’ season one game shy of the College Football Playoff National Championship. “It was a team effort,” Muhammad said earlier in camp about what it took for Texas to hold Smith to his lowest statistical output and his lowest single-game grade from Pro Football Focus during his remarkable true freshman season. The Longhorns had Smith’s number in Arlington. Still, Sarkisian, who didn’t mention Smith or any other Ohio State wide receivers by name while detailing what Muhammad went through last week, knows coach Ryan Day and offensive coordinator Brian Hartline will be looking to get the 6-foot-3-inch, 223-pound Smith (76 receptions 1,315 yards and 15 touchdowns, which established new freshman records for a Buckeye) involved early and often. The occasions when Muhammad finds himself one-on-one with Smith should be few and far between. That’s not a knock on the 6-foot, 188-pound Muhammad, who Pro Football Focus touts as the sixth-best returning cornerback in the country. Texas should do whatever it takes to limit the times Smith faces man coverage because he destroyed opponents in those situations last season. According to PFF, Smith’s 90.6 grade against man coverage was second among FBS wide receivers (minimum of 13 targets), recording 25 receptions for 384 yards and four touchdowns on 32 targets with a near-perfect NFL passer rating when targeted (156.3). Smith also averaged 4.09 yards per route run (sixth in FBS) with an average depth of target of 11.1 yards, indicating that if Will Howard could correctly identify that Smith was facing man coverage, the nation’s No. 1-ranked recruit in 2024 would be turned loose, and Ohio State could hunt chunk-yardage plays (Smith caught 12 passes last season that traveled 20 yards or more down the field, racking up 467 yards and scoring four touchdowns, recording a near-perfect PFF grade of 99.9 when targeted on deep throws). Julian Sayin, who was named Ohio State’s starting quarterback on Monday, shouldn’t be expected to decipher what Pete Kwiatkowski is throwing at him in his first career start. Nevertheless, it remains to be seen how much Kwiatkowski and Duane Akina alternate between playing man and zone in the opener. That has more to do with trusting the communication that the secondary has worked to rebuild in the wake of losing Jahdae Barron and Andrew Mukuba than anything else. At the same time, an effective pass rush could make life on the back end much more manageable if the Longhorns can routinely pressure Sayin. Although Smith was good last season against zone, catching 43 passes for 783 yards and nine touchdowns, shading coverage to his side of the field and devoting more resources to him, in general, is the path of least resistance. Elevated to the No. 2 wide receiver, with Emeka Egbuka out of eligibility, Carnell Tate was much better against zone last season (a season-long PFF grade of 73.7) than when working against man coverage (59.1). While it’s risky for Texas to let its defensive backs handle Tate, Brandon Inniss and the other Buckeye receiving threats more often in one-on-one situations, Muhammad and the other Longhorn defensive backs should be ready for what they’ll see inside the Horseshoe in 12 days. View full news story

Wanted to put in one place a laundry list of takeaways from today's media availability with Arch Manning, Anthony Hill Jr., and Michael Taaffe. *** Arch – 2 Years at Texas? An answer from the Texas quarterback is making the rounds in NFL Twitter and Draft circles. Earlier in August, Archie Manning told Texas Monthly that Arch would be in school as the starting quarterback for two years, without question. Here is a blurb from the article: Arch responded to a question about his grandfather's comments today with the local media: “Yeah I don’t know where he got that from. He texted me and apologized about that. I’m really just taking it day by day right now.” Still, the belief is that Manning is at Texas for two years. ... My favorite part of the availability today was hearing that Archie ends every phone call with Arch by telling him the same thing: "Get down, or get out of bounds." *** Xavier Filsaime Emergence Anthony Hill Jr. was asked which youngsters were really beginning to make their presence felt in fall camp – he answered with Graceson Littleton and Xavier Filsaime. We have heard Littleton's name often, but Filsaime has really started to catch on over the last week or so. As a result, I asked Michael Taaffe what he has seen from his fellow defensive back. "He has been doing really, really well," Taaffe said of Filsaime. "Well I mean, he is a 10.5-10.6 guy in the 100m to start coming out of high school. So that helps, one. But, two, he has grown his game mentally so much from freshman to sophomore year. When you put the athletic ability with the mental side, it clicks and he is scary." Filsaime has been noted as a great communicator in practice so far in fall camp. *** Favorite Quote of the Day Comes from Anthony Hill Jr., who said he loves playing on the road because seeing home fans filter out of the stadium when Texas is in position to close out games is one of his favorite things to see. Hill has never lost a road game as a Longhorn. Additional Nuggets – Anthony Hill Jr. says that the Texas defense is getting tested often with the legs of Manning in team situations. – Michael Taaffe mentioned that there are plenty of days where the defense wins and days where Arch and the offense ends up getting the better of the defense. There is a fine balance and both sides are improving as a result. – Arch Manning said WR Ryan Wingo had an incredible reception in practice this morning and that the last two weeks of practice have been some of his best as a Longhorn on the practice field. Manning also singled out Parker Livingstone and Daylan McCutcheon as two young guys that have really grown this offseason. – Communication in the secondary remains a focal point, but has grown into a strength. Michael Taaffe barely had a voice strong enough to speak with the media in his time with us this morning. Taaffe credits continuity in the coaching staff with Pete Kwiatkowski being the DC for all five years for why everything has moved smoothly with the additions of Mark Orphey and Duane Akina. – Taaffe mentioned Kaliq Lockett had a really solid scrimmage on Saturday. – Anthony Hill Jr. says the Longhorns still use the way the last two seasons have ended as motivation this offseason. “We think about it. How could you not think about losing those games back to back? But then again, we want to focus day by day and not think about the National Championship. We’ve got to go win week one before we go think about winning week 16.”

Wanted to keep you all in the loop of what else is happening in fall camps from other SEC programs. Some big news going on today, that I will highlight in the comments. If you see anything noteworthy, feel free to include it!

AUSTIN – Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian is speaking with the media Monday Morning in Moncrief. The Longhorns just concluded their second and final scrimmage of fall camp on Saturday, and now preparations for Ohio State ramp up. @Jeff Howe and I are on scene and will provide updates accordingly in the comments down below.

AUSTIN, Texas — Steve Sarkisian won’t know how the Texas interior defensive line measures up to the program’s last few groups until the No. 1 Longhorns meet No. 3 Ohio State in the Horseshoe on Aug. 30. Still, through six practices, Sarkisian knew enough to make a definitive statement about Kenny Baker’s unit. “We're deep,” Sarkisian said after the team's Aug. 5 practice. “That's probably the biggest thing I can say about that group right now. We're playing a lot of guys, which has been good.” Vernon Broughton and Alfred Collins were two of the first 71 picks in the 2025 NFL Draft. Along with losing two of the most prominent members of a Texas defense that was No. 3 in FBS in total defense (283.4 yards per game and 4.4 yards per play allowed), scoring defense (15.3 points per game allowed) in the red zone (62.9 percent conversion rate allowed), the expired eligibility of Jermayne Lole and Bill Norton put the Longhorns in a position in which the 94 snaps Alex January logged as a true freshman made him the team's most experienced returning tackle. Cole Brevard (Purdue), Hero Kanu (Ohio State) and Travis Shaw (North Carolina) joined the program out of the transfer portal during the winter window. Even with January and Melvin Hills III back with a year under their belts, and Myron Charles, Justus Terry and Josiah Sharma making up a strong signing class that was on campus for spring practice, Texas went back into the portal and snagged Lavon Johnson (Maryland) and Maraad Watson (Syracuse) heading into the summer. Ten defensive tackles occupying scholarships on the 2025 roster might seem like overkill. Regardless, Sarkisian wanted to ensure the Longhorns had enough depth to fortify the rotation through what will be a long season if Texas makes another deep run in the College Football Playoff. “When you look at our team, I think about January,” Sarkisian said. “As much as I'm thinking about Aug. 30, I'm thinking about this journey we're trying to go on.” While it might take a few games for Sarkisian, Baker and Pete Kwiatkowski to figure out an optimal rotation, a deep mix of tackles is something the Longhorns didn’t have in 2024. Collins (593 snaps) and Broughton (588) both logged more than 500 snaps last season, according to Pro Football Focus. Lole (469) and Norton (260) were the only other Texas tackles to play more than 100 snaps, with January’s snap total finishing a distant fifth among Longhorn interior defensive linemen. “Where we're at now, a lot of these guys probably would've been able to spell those guys more than we were able to last year,” Sarkisian said. “I think that's probably the difference. Some of those guys, if they were on our team last season, Vernon and Alfred might not have had to have played as many snaps as they did a year ago.” What that might look like when the dust settles on the 2025 season is a distribution of snaps similar to how the Texas defensive tackles operated in 2022. A group that eventually produced six NFL draft picks, including a first-rounder (Byron Murphy II in 2024) and two second-rounders (Collins in 2025 and T’Vondre Sweat in 2024), the defense’s top six tackles in Sarkisian's second season got enough snaps to be impactful during a 13-game campaign. Sweat’s 35.7 snaps played per game led the unit, followed by Keondre Coburn (31.9), Moro Ojomo (31.3), Murphy (30.2), Collins (21.6) and Broughton (20.3). When looking back at the snap totals within the tackle group in 2021, the Longhorns got more from Sweat (26.3 snaps per game in 2021) and Murphy (24.8), which helped Ojomo (35.9) and Coburn (32.4) maximize their time on the field. A deeper, more effective tip of the spear helped Texas finish 22nd nationally in yards per rushing attempt allowed (3.48) and 32nd in rushing yards per game allowed (125.7), a drastic turnaround from Kwiatkowski's forgettable debut (201.6 yards per game and 5.15 yards per attempt allowed). According to PFF’s snap totals from the 2024 season, Watson (37.9 snaps per game) logged the most playing time at his previous stop, followed by Brevard (34.7), Shaw (25.9), Johnson (20.5) and Kanu (7.8). Based on their season-long PFF grades, a rotation could help Texas get more consistent production from Watson and Brevard. No defensive tackle in the Sarkisian era has logged as much playing time in one season as Watson did as a true freshman in the ACC. A few fewer snaps per game could do for Watson what it did for Brevard, whose PFF grade improved from a 60.6 in 2023, when he played in 11 games for the Boilermakers and averaged 35.6 snaps per game, to a 75 last season (a PFF grade of 70 is considered above average). The competition for snaps will bleed into the regular season, which is fine with Sarkisian. If the master plan Sarkisian put into motion works, and the 2025 defensive tackle outlook rivals what happened in 2022, Baker's group should have a lot left in the tank when it matters most in December and January. “That's what my goal was coming into the season: Could we develop that room into where we can play a lot of players, a lot of people, so that over time, that wear and tear wouldn't take its toll on us?” Sarkisian said. “I think we've done that.” View full news story