The last time the Ohio State Buckeyes faced the Texas Longhorns, Ryan Day’s team came away with the victory. The story changed completely on Saturday night: despite not putting on a great performance, Arch Manning’s team came away with the win, something that left the quarterback himself satisfied.
“So proud of our guys,” Manning said to the reporters once the game concluded. “In all three phases. It wasn’t very pretty but we found a win to win. That’s what good teams do.”
In some way, No. 16 made it clear that they got revenge for what happened the last time the Longhorns and Buckeyes met on the field: “We couldn’t lose to them again. I had nightmares about that game last year. So, we’re glad to get a win tonight. We’ll have a good night in Austin.”
Manning’s performance against Ohio State
Arch Manning had a wild night in Texas’ epic 24-23 comeback win vs Buckeyes, proving he’s got that clutch gene when it matters most. After a brutal start where the Longhorns found themselves trailing 23-3 entering the fourth quarter, Arch completely flipped the script.
Head coach Steve Sarkisian of the Texas Longhorns speaks with Arch Manning #16.
He finished the game 23-of-37 for 196 passing yards, one touchdown, and an early interception. The stat line overall looks pretty average on paper, but his fourth-quarter heroics were insane: he went 8-for-11 for 91 yards down the stretch, throwing a slick 3-yard TD pass to Ryan Wingo and pulling off two massive fourth-down conversions to seal the largest fourth-quarter comeback against a No. 1 team in history.
What’s next for the Longhorns?
Two wins in two games, and the contender label is slowly beginning to be applied to Steve Sarkisian’s team. These are the upcoming games the Longhorns have ahead, as they look to continue building on their winning record.
- vs UTSA, September 19
- at Tennessee, September 26
- vs Oklahoma, October 10 (Cotton Bowl)
- vs Florida, October 17
- vs Ole Miss, October 24
Sarkisian wants to face the best
The nature of college football often leads programs to face teams from higher tiers, as well as weaker opponents. Sarkisian, an experienced coach, does not want to take the easy route. Instead, he chooses to face quality opponents and set the bar as high as possible.
“We could be like other teams and play Jones Junior High tonight and win 66–0. I don’t know what that does for us. What I think it does for us, is we found out we can (win big games),” Coach Sark revealed during his press conference.
