AUSTIN, TX – Well, I don’t know if Texas is back, but they darn sure made a statement on Saturday night against No. 1 Ohio State in one of the craziest college football games in recent memory.
Actually, this was about as ugly as it could get for the No. 4 Longhorns football program, at least for three quarters of this thriller.
For a year, we had been looking forward to this rematch between two of the top-spenders in college football, with Texas spending around $40 million on its roster this season.
Saturday night did not disappoint.
Led by Cam Coleman, Trey Wingo and a flurry of offensive weapons, the Longhorns looked more like a mediocre football team for three quarters. Then the Buckeyes could no longer convert, allowing Texas to take advantage of a worn-down Ohio State team.
The first offensive play of the game for Texas turned into a fumble. From there, Ohio State toyed with the Longhorns throughout the first half. The Buckeyes led 20-3 at halftime after holding Texas to just 97 yards of offense over the first 30 minutes.
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This was the Jeremiah Smith show, with the Ohio State wide receiver making Texas’ secondary look inept almost every time quarterback Julian Sayin looked his way, at least until it wasn’t.
For Arch Manning, there was nothing much going his way for three quarters of this Top-5 showdown, which had the Longhorns trailing 23-3.
Whether it was overthrown passes, dropped dimes or interesting play calls from the offensive staff, this one was looking like a major letdown.
At the 8:55 mark of the third quarter, Jeremiah Smith darted down the sidelines as Julian Sayin threw up a heave in front of the Texas Longhorns bench.
There was only one way this one was going to end, and it came with Smith dogging a defender in the process of bringing down the 48-yard catch.
How many NFL receivers are better than Jeremiah right now?
Maybe five?
But the star wideout couldn’t do it all, and Texas’ relentless fourth-quarter performance will be remembered for years to come.
There have been close and thrilling games before, but this felt more like Texas finally getting a massive monkey off its back. Finally, the Longhorns had won a game with their backs against the wall.
At long last, Steve Sarkisian won a heavyweight fight at home, with so much pressure on the program to take the next step.
“What it can do is this team can understand that we can overcome adversity, and we’re going to get faced with more adversity,” Sarkisian said postgame.
“Hopefully, this serves as a lesson that we can come back from a lot.”
Who would have thought at the 6:13 mark of the third quarter that we would be discussing a Longhorns win that could propel the program moving forward?
Just like everyone else across the country, folks are sick of hearing about whether or not Texas is “back.”
But, this one is not going to sit well with those around college football who are already sick of hearing about the Texas Longhorns.
As Arch Manning wrapped up his postgame interview with ESPN, the Longhorns quarterback darted towards the Texas student section like a kid on Christmas. After coming up short last season, along with the pressure that came with being the leader on a team with such high expectations, it felt as though Manning finally let out a giant sigh of relief.
He took pictures, donned a cowboy hat, sang with his teammates and ran towards his coaches. Manning’s Texas teammates came rushing to him, overjoyed with emotion after what they had just helped the Longhorns accomplish.
Not much can beat this night, besides maybe winning an SEC or CFP title.
As the smoke started pluming from the field, athletic director Chris Del Conte walked over to SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey, who was waiting to head toward the Texas locker room to celebrate the win with Longhorns’ faithful.
Parents were taking pictures with their kids on the field. Even Ted Cruz walked back onto the playing surface to celebrate the warranted jinx that he had supposedly put on this team by showing up for recent game days in the past.
There were moments late in the third quarter where Arch Manning brought the crowd to its feet, thanks to his scrambling throughout the field.
Capped off by a touchdown near the start of the fourth quarter, the Longhorns provided fans with hope, and that’s all they needed during this crazy night.
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On Saturday night, we witnessed one of the wildest games in recent memory. We witnessed a potential Texas revival, with a deflating loss for an Ohio State that lost its way thanks to a Longhorns defense that finally rose to the occasion in the second half.
What happens next?
Maybe a rematch in the College Football Playoff? Who knows.
But on Saturday night in Austin, it was the Texas Longhorns who finally took the next regular season step that its fans were praying for.
