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The Texas football defense took a blow before their Red River Rivalry game against the Oklahoma Sooners even started. Ryan Watts, a starter and key player in the Longhorns' secondary, has been ruled out for the game due to injury, a source told ESPN's Pete Thamel.
Watts was unable to practice this week in the lead-up to the game against Oklahoma after sustaining a lower-body injury during Texas football's victory over Kansas last week.
He was initially listed as doubtful for the contest, so it's not surprising to see him ruled out, given how much of an uphill battle he was facing to suit up for the contest.
Watts, a senior defensive back and a native of Little Elm, Texas, transferred to the Longhorns in December of 2021 after spending two seasons with the Ohio State Buckeyes.
He appeared in 13 games for Texas football last season, tallying 51 tackles, a sack and an interception.
Watts has continued to be a key contributor on the backend for a Longhorns defense that ranks 17th in total yards allowed per game and 13th in points allowed per contest.
In his place, Texas will likely rely upon Wake Forest transfer Gavin Holmes and freshman Malik Muhammad to hold down the fort against a strong Oklahoma football offense, as noted by Thamel.
The Longhorns dominated the Sooners in a 49-0 victory last season, but this Oklahoma team has put a much better product on the field- particularly on defense- thus far in head coach Brent Venables' second season at the helm.
Texas football leads the all-time series 63-50-5, but the Sooners are 16-8 against the Longhorns since 2000.
