The Texas football team performed a wild feat on Saturday night. Texas scored 24 points in the fourth quarter to force Mississippi State into overtime, before ultimately winning the game 45-38. Arch Manning threw for more than 300 yards in the contest, before leaving with an injury.
Longhorns coach Steve Sarkisian was in awe of his team, following the victory.
“Once a year you have culture wins and that was our culture win (vs. Kentucky). I think we got a mulligan because this was our culture win,” Sarkisian said, per the Associated Press. “I don’t know if I’ve ever been more proud of a group of guys. Our toughness was going to have to be the best it’s ever been for our program.”
While Texas is riding high off that win over the Bulldogs, there is evidence to show that the team may be in deep trouble. Here are some reasons why the Texas victory over Mississippi State shouldn't have Longhorns fans too elated.
Arch Manning is hurt
Texas quarterback Arch Manning was putting together the performance of his career on Saturday night. He led the Longhorns back from a 17-point deficit, to force the game into an extra period.
Manning though suffered a concussion in overtime, while trying to go for a score. His head bounced off the ground, in what looked like a scary moment. Matthew Caldwell replaced Manning, who went on to win the game for Texas.
Caldwell has a lot of experience, but he hasn't spent a lot of time in the Longhorns offense. If Texas is without Manning for an extended period of time, it limits what the squad will be able to do offensively. Texas coach Sarkisian said once the team returned to Austin late Saturday night, they would have more information about Manning's situation.
That leads to the next area of concern.
Texas football has a very tough schedule ahead of them
Texas has a gauntlet of a schedule ahead. It won't be easy for an injured Manning or the newbie Caldwell to pick up wins against these teams.
Texas football has meetings left this season with Vanderbilt, Georgia, Arkansas and Texas A&M. Three of those schools are currently ranked. The Longhorns have to go to Georgia, while Vanderbilt and Texas A&M come to Austin.
That's simply a brutal slate. No one this season has been able to stop a Texas A&M team that just smacked LSU right in the mouth. Vanderbilt is having a year for the ages. Georgia is a top 10 team. Things could get ugly for the Longhorns, if they aren't careful.
Is Steve Sarkisian leaving the program?
Another reason why one could argue Texas isn't a contender is due to the status of their head coach, Sarkisian. Sarkisian is rumored to have told his agent to let NFL teams know he is interested in pro jobs. That includes the job opening with the Tennessee Titans.
Sarkisian has refuted that reporting, but it is certainly a distraction for his team. The Longhorns are having a somewhat down year compared to last season, when they reached a College Football Playoff semi-final game. It would make sense that the Texas coach might be looking for something new.
There's one final reason why Texas football could be a pretender.
Texas' secondary is struggling right now
The Longhorns got smoked on defense for a good portion of the Mississippi State game. Texas finished the game allowing 445 total yards. That was bad enough, but 382 of the yards they allowed were through the air.
That continues a troubling trend for Texas this season. In a loss earlier in the year to Florida, the Longhorns allowed 298 passing yards to DJ Lagway. Texas also gave up 457 total yards in that game.
There have been multiple games this year where the Texas secondary got torched. Another example is against Kentucky, where Texas needed overtime to win the game. If the squad's defense doesn't step it up, Texas has no chance to win the remainder of the games that lie ahead.
The Longhorns are 6-2 overall, following the huge win over Mississippi State. Time will tell if Texas can get the wins it needs to earn consideration for a CFP berth.
