When Oklahoma initially listed John Mateer as questionable for its massive Week 7 matchup with Texas, many felt it was merely a stunt ahead of one of the biggest rivalries in college football. Mateer, however, would make his surprising return in the game, which pleased Longhorns head coach Steve Sarkisian.
Despite the rivalry, Sarkisian was happy to see Mateer recover from his hand injury and return so quickly. But more than anything, the veteran coach was glad that Texas beat a complete Oklahoma team to remove any potential excuses.
“First of all, I'm glad the quarterback played, and John Mateer is a heck of a player,” Sarkisian said, via On3 Sports. “But I didn't want to come up and hear and answer, ‘What if he would have played?' The fact that we created three turnovers [and] we got five sacks. When you look at our defense, there were a lot of great playmakers today and a lot of guys did some different things.”
Although Mateer played, many wondered if the star quarterback returned to the field too quickly. He was initially expected to be out for roughly four games, but instead missed only one contest and returned just 17 days after his hand surgery.
Mateer ended the game with 202 passing yards, zero touchdowns and three interceptions. He completed a season-low 52.6 percent of his passes while taking five sacks after not taking more than one in either of his first four games of the year.
Texas improves to 4-2 while handing Oklahoma first loss
Texas stifled Mateer all game to hand Oklahoma its first loss of the 2025 season. The 23-6 win was just what the Longhorns needed one week after suffering a 29-21 upset loss to Florida.
Texas fell out of the rankings following its loss to Florida, but will likely return to the top 25 in Week 8. Oklahoma entered the game ranked No. 6 but is destined for a steep decline after the 17-point defeat.
Given the unpredictability of the competitive SEC field, teams continue to fluctuate in and out of the rankings. Despite dropping out of the top 25, Texas kept itself in the College Football Playoff conversation with the Red River Rivalry win.
The Longhorns will look to carry their momentum into Week 8 on the road against Kentucky, which is coming off a bye week after suffering a 21-point loss to Georgia. Oklahoma will also remain in action on the road, taking on a South Carolina team that suffered a 20-10 loss to LSU in Week 7.
