Texas-Oklahoma takeaways: Longhorns topple No. 6 Sooners to reignite College Football Playoff hopes

By Sam Khan Jr., Grace Raynor, Chris Vannini and Dane Brugler

Arch Manning and Texas finally figured some things out on Saturday afternoon and picked up their first Power 4 win of the season in a 23-6 victory against No. 6 Oklahoma in the Red River Rivalry.

With the win, the Longhorns, who already have losses to Ohio State and Florida, were able to quiet the chorus of skepticism around them — at least for another week — and perhaps most importantly, get the win they needed to stay in the College Football Playoff hunt.

“I think what we saw today was Texas fight,” coach Steve Sarkisian said postgame on ESPN. “It was a gut-check coming out of last week’s game.”

The Longhorns trailed 6-3 at halftime after a frustrating first half, featuring penalties at crucial times, a missed 55-yard field goal and an inability to get out of their own way. On their first three third downs of the game, Texas faced third-and-23, third-and-12 and third-and-30 as the Longhorns’ vulnerable offensive line again struggled.

But Manning and Co., who got the ball to open the second half, methodically strung together a 14-play, 75-yard scoring drive capped by a 12-yard touchdown throw from Manning to DeAndre Moore Jr. to take a 10-6 lead. The offensive line was able to settle in, the run game popped for the first time all afternoon and Manning went a perfect 6-for-6 passing as he looked more the part of the behemoth preseason expectations thrust upon him.

The Longhorns put the exclamation point on the afternoon with a 75-yard punt return for a touchdown from sophomore receiver Ryan Niblett in the fourth quarter with about 10 minutes to play. Manning finished 21-of-27 passing for 166 yards and one touchdown with no interceptions, in addition to using his legs at critical times to pick up 34 yards on four carries.

Defensively, the Longhorns made things tough on Oklahoma quarterback John Mateer, who was playing just 17 days removed from surgery on his throwing hand. Texas finished with five sacks, and Oklahoma had 258 yards of total offense to the Longhorns’ 302.

The victory is Texas’ first in the SEC this season and could give the Longhorns the momentum boost they need.

Manning outplays Mateer

Well, that wasn’t on my Bingo card, but it just goes to show what happens in rivalries.

Coming off his brief layoff because of a hand injury, Mateer struggled with his ball placement all afternoon — and at least some of that has to be pinned on his health. However, he has had issues with processing all year long, and he did again Saturday against a very athletic and motivated Texas defense. Mateer can be guilty of throwing into a crowd without really reading the field, as his aggressiveness has bordered on recklessness all season.

He’s still an interesting NFL Draft prospect, especially from a physical standpoint — his arm talent and rush ability are impossible to ignore. But I question how ready Mateer is for an NFL offense because of his sloppy processing.

Poor processing has also been the main issue for Manning this season. He certainly had his share of rough moments in the first half Saturday, too, but the second half featured some of his best football to date. Manning was hardly scintillating, but he took care of the ball, kept Texas out of problematic situations and was great on third down.

As we noted last week, Manning is probably better viewed as a 2027 NFL Draft prospect at this point. Ultimately, we might say the same about Mateer. — Dane Brugler, NFL Draft analyst

Mateer plays through injury

Mateer played the game with a brace on that right wrist and thumb. The injured hand was further damaged in the game when he got cut by a helmet on a hit in the first half. Blood was seen on his pants, and he cleaned it up with a towel but didn’t miss a play.

It’s hard to know how much the surgically-repaired thumb played into Mateer’s performance, though the surgery was less than three weeks ago, but his mistakes were costly for the Sooners. His first two interceptions were forced throws and poor decisions. The second one, late in the first half, came after poor clock management from the coaches and may have cost the Sooners much-needed points. The third turnover in the second half was simply a bad throw that was behind his receiver on a third down (a down that was replayed after a hold wiped out a big Mateer run).

Mateer has been known to make bad turnovers by trying to force things in. He had two more near-interceptions in the first half and close calls in the second. It marked the fourth time in five games this year he’s thrown an interception. A backward swing pass throw in the fourth quarter that became a fumble sent an Oklahoma drive way back, and the ensuing punt was returned for a Texas score, all but closing the door.

In a battle of two much-hyped quarterbacks for different reasons, Oklahoma didn’t have the better one. — Chris Vanini, college football writer

Manning shows poise …

Manning played a good, clean game after last week’s loss at Florida. His numbers weren’t eye-popping, but he played smart football and didn’t put the ball in harm’s way, committing no turnovers and taking only one sack.

The game could have gone awry quickly because the offensive line struggled heavily in the first quarter and Oklahoma’s defense suffocated Texas with its speed by flying to the ball. Manning had to settle for short passes and punts on Texas’ first two possessions.

But Texas did not punt on its final eight drives. Six of those possessions ended in scoring opportunities, the other two in kneeldowns to end each half. Manning was accurate with the ball and used his legs effectively when needed.

It’s not the explosive offense that we might have expected to start the season, but Manning and the Longhorns grew up and showed some progress on Saturday. — Sam Khan, college football writer

… and the Longhorns offense follows

The Texas offense matured on Saturday. After an awful start, filled with penalties and three third-and-long situations, Manning and the Longhorns picked themselves up and methodically began moving the ball. Texas RB Quintrevion Wisner was elusive, finding his way through the Sooners’ defense and breaking some tackles along the way to give Texas the consistent ground presence it desperately needed to keep OU’s defensive line keying on Manning.

After going 0-for-3 on those first three third downs, Texas converted nine of its next 12, including six in a row to start the second half. After a first half that resulted in just three points, Texas didn’t panic. The Longhorns stayed patient, took what Oklahoma gave them, didn’t put the ball in harm’s way and played winning football.

The offensive line played much better in the second half than it did in the first, giving Wisner running lanes and Manning the time he needed to find open receivers or scramble. Manning didn’t force much but created plays outside the pocket when needed and even ran for a pair of first downs on the ground.

The Longhorns aren’t going to wow anyone with their skill talent this year. This is not quite the Texas offense we saw when Bijan Robinson, Xavier Worthy, Adonai Mitchell or Matthew Golden were suiting up for the burnt orange and white. But if the defense continues to play the way it has shown it’s capable of, the offense can do enough to win games. — Khan

Longhorns defense applies the pressure they needed

Texas’ defense showed up in a big way on Saturday. After getting pushed around a week ago by Florida, the Longhorns bounced back by pressuring Mateer early and often. Those pressures contributed to some of Mateer’s interceptions by speeding the quarterback up, which resulted in errant throws. But the Longhorns also did a superb job of corralling Mateer in the run game and not letting him create explosive plays with his legs, which he can do. The one big play Mateer generated on the ground — a 33-yard run — was negated by a holding call.

Texas sophomore edge rusher Colin Simmons had his second consecutive big game after breaking out last week against the Gators. On the back end of the defense, Manny Muhammad (two interceptions), Michael Taaffe, Jelani McDonald and Graceson Littleton (one interception) played disciplined and got to the football consistently.

It’s the third time in four years of the Brent Venables era that Pete Kwiatkowski’s Longhorns defense has held Oklahoma without a touchdown. — Khan

Texas’ playcalling topples Oklahoma

Oklahoma’s defense came into the game leading or in the top five in the country in almost every major stat, but after the first quarter and especially in the second half, Texas’ offense was better.

Both head coaches call the plays in this part of the game, and Sark was simply on top of Venables. The head Longhorn played it safe with Manning early with short and outside passes, but that opened up the middle of the field more. Texas runs that went for nothing in the first half began to consistently pick up three, four, five yards in the second, creating manageable third downs.

Texas punted on the first two drives of the game and then didn’t punt again. The next six drives ended in scores or field goal attempts. — Vanini

What’s next for Texas?

The Longhorns (4-2) will hit the road for two more weeks, going to Kentucky and Mississippi State before returning home Nov. 1 to host Vanderbilt. After the Longhorns saved their season, there’s a chance for them to build some momentum in the coming weeks if they can continue to grow.

If they’re able to win the next two, the Longhorns can keep themselves in the College Football Playoff conversation heading into November. — Khan

What’s next for Oklahoma?

After a 5-0 start, the gauntlet has begun for the Sooners. They travel to South Carolina next week, then play five consecutive teams that were ranked in the top 15 entering Saturday: Ole Miss, Tennessee, Alabama, Missouri and LSU.

A path to the SEC Championship Game and the College Football Playoff is still there, but the margin for error has shrunken dramatically at the midway point of the season. — Vanini

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