COLUMBUS, OHIO – Texas entered the season as the top-ranked team in the AP Poll for the first time in program history because of a strong defense and the hype surrounding new starting quarterback Arch Manning. The defense lived up to the billing in the 14-7 loss at Ohio State in Week 1. The ranking, like the hype around Manning, was short lived, however. 

Manning was 17-of-30 for 170 yards, one touchdown, and one interception as a passer in his 2025 debut. He added 38 yards on 10 carries. The stat sheet paints a brighter picture than he deserved, at least through three quarters. Manning was 9-of-15 for 38 yards and an interception entering the fourth quarter. His first completion of over 10 yards didn’t happen until his 17th attempt. Of his first 10 completions, five were caught by running back C.J. Baxter. 

Playing in a phone booth didn’t help the Texas run game. The Horns ended the game with a respectable 166 yards on 37 carries. Tre Wisner led the way with 80 yards on 16 carries. Baxter, in his first game since 2023, added 40 yards on the ground to his 25 yards as a receiver. He led the Horns with five catches. Four of Texas’ 10 offensive possessions ended with turnover on downs, including two in the red zone. Four more ended in punts. 

Despite the sloppy offensive performance, Texas had the ball near midfield with a chance to tie the game at the two-minute timeout. The Longhorns reached Ohio State territory but couldn’t convert a fourth down with 1:27 left in the game. 

THREE THOUGHTS

Red zone woes continue: Steve Sarkisian is considered an offensive wizard and one of the top play callers in college football. His kryptonite appears to be the red zone. Texas was 0-for-2 in the red zone in the loss to Ohio State on Saturday. That included a goal line stand by the Buckeyes when Manning was stuffed on a quarterback sneak early in the third quarter. It was the first of two possessions in the second half that ended inside the Ohio State 10 without points. The first was a 15-play drive. The second was 13 plays. 

The frustration was nothing new for Texas. The Longhorns was 1-for-2 in the red zone in the Cotton Bowl loss to Ohio State in January. They ranked 54th nationally last year in red zone touchdown percentage and 101st in red zone scoring percentage. The offense was 120th in red zone touchdown percentage in 2023 and 65th in 2022. They were 90th in red zone scoring percentage in 2023. 

The hope for Texas was that the return of Baxter, a big, bruising running back, and the insertion of Manning would jumpstart the red zone offense. Early returns, at least against an elite defense like Ohio State, were more of the same lack of results. 

Big game Sark: Texas is now 3-8 against Top 10 teams in the Sarkisian era after the loss to Ohio State. Those three wins were against Michigan and Arizona State in 2024 and Alabama in 2023. That Michigan team finished 7-5 in the regular season last season. Arizona State was a double-digit underdog against Texas in the Peach Bowl. The win at Alabama in 2023 remains the true signature win of his tenure. 

For nearly a dozen years Texas lost to teams that it shouldn’t. Sarkisian put a stop to that for the most part. For the past few years, the Longhorns rarely lay an egg against a bad team. He’s raised the Horns back to national prominence and put the program on the doorstep of greatness. But to take the final step towards SEC championships and national titles requires beating the best of the best. He hasn’t done that consistently in Austin yet. 

Nothing lost for Texas: Ohio State losing the 2005 clash at The Shoe to the Longhorns was a death knell to its national championship hopes. The BCS era meant only two teams could dance for a national title and an early season loss was essentially the end of those hopes. That’s not true anymore. The playoff has bloated to 12 teams and reaching the conference championship game in the SEC virtually guarantees entrance. 

The Horns didn’t lose anything except a game in Columbus on Saturday. No different than an NFL team losing in Week 1. Winning would’ve been nice and it still carries perks, but losing marquee matchups in the first month of the season no longer defines expectations. Texas doesn’t even need to run the table to return to the CFP for the third straight year. A 10-2 record would get the Longhorns in.