Before Texas took the field against Mississippi State, reports began to circulate that coach Steve Sarkisian is open to NFL opportunities after the season. Sarkisian’s agency put out a statement denying that he has any interest in leaving Texas, a surprising decision.
It’s rare that agencies get into the weeds with individual rumors or reports. And furthermore, Sarkisian’s tenure has been defined by institutional alignment and lack of drama. For the first time on Saturday, that impeccable facade cracked.
The morning messiness set the tone for a lackluster performance against Mississippi State. The Bulldogs came into the game losers of 15 straight SEC games, including 0-11 under coach Jeff Lebby. For the second straight week, No. 22 Texas narrowly escaped with a 45-38 overtime win against an SEC bottom-feeder.
Last week, it needed a field goal in overtime to outlast lowly Kentucky. This time, the situation got far more dire. After Texas went up 14-7, Mississippi State smelled blood. The Bulldogs scored 24 consecutive points as Sarkisian’s signature offense recorded three turnovers on downs, an interception and a punt. They were outgained 300-96 across nearly two quarters.
Steve Sarkisian’s NFL interest isn’t new, but timing of latest report raises questions at turbulent Texas
John Talty
But while the offense collapsed, the defense’s regression without All-American safety Michael Taaffe in the lineup was perhaps more stunning. Texas allowed big plays, like a 62-yard screen pass for a touchdown by running back Fluff Bothwell. They made small plays, like a 5-yard pass on third down by Blake Shapen to Davon Booth to extend a drive into a touchdown.
To its credit, Texas went on a furious run of its own in the fourth quarter, capped off by a lengthy punt return from Ryan Niblett for a touchdown to force overtime. When quarterback Arch Manning was knocked out with an apparent head injury, backup Matthew Caldwell threw a tight touchdown pass to Emmett Mosley V, which proved to be the game-winner.
After Texas beat struggling Kentucky last week, Taaffe turned to reporters and asked them to put smiles on their faces and requested less critical questions of the offense. Taaffe missed the game against Mississippi State after undergoing hand surgery. He could be out for a while.
Finding things to smile about at Texas is getting more difficult. Wins are wins, but it’s getting hard to ignore the string of putrid performances.
The hype around Texas all offseason compared favorably to any team of the College Football Playoff era. Manning was a heavy favorite to win the Heisman Trophy, while the Longhorns were the odds-on favorite to win a national championship.
Texas was picked No. 1 in the preseason AP Top 25 for the first time in program history. Even the teams of Darrell K. Royal and Mack Brown were never picked first, despite winning national championships. Following back-to-back trips to the national semifinals — sparked by a famous quarterback — Sark’s squad got the nod.
However, the Longhorns became the first preseason No. 1 team to lose their opener since 1990 when No. 3 Ohio State held them scoreless for three quarters. A road trip to The Swamp against Florida ended in a loss to the since-fired Billy Napier. Napier’s only FBS wins this season? Mississippi State and preseason No. 1 Texas.
Even after beating Mississippi State, Texas could fall out of the AP Top 25. Over the past 50 years, only one team has started the season at No. 1 and finished the year unranked: 2012 USC, coached by Lane Kiffin. No preseason No. 1 has even fallen out of the AP top 10 by the end of the year in the College Football Playoff era. Before the Trojans, the last team to fall all the way out of the rankings was 1964 Ole Miss.
Speaking of the Rebels, Oklahoma’s loss to Kiffin’s Ole Miss will put a severe damper on the only positive datapoint Texas has this year: a win in the Red River Rivalry. With four games remaining against AP top 15 opponents, Oklahoma probably won’t be a ranked win by the end of the year.
However, the most damning part of Texas’ struggles against Kentucky and Mississippi State in successive weeks is the path ahead. The Longhorns played six games against unranked opponents in their past seven games, including closer-than-expected fights with UTEP, Kentucky and Mississippi State, and a loss to Florida.
Starting next week, the path gets substantially harder. Three of Texas’s final four games are against AP top 10 opponents. They still have to go on the road to play No. 5 Georgia, and host No. 3 Texas A&M in the season finale. There’s also a sneaky rivalry game against Arkansas, which would love nothing more than to hand Texas a loss.
All week, the conversation in Austin has centered on Sarkisian’s play calling. But ultimately, that’s small potatoes compared to the mismanaged roster. The offensive line has completely collapsed since Tom Herman recruits and first-round pick Kelvin Banks have cycled out of the program. Injuries have tanked the running back position in successive years. Young receivers have not developed. As more is put on the defense to bail out the struggling offense, the unit is starting to show cracks of its own now too.
Texas is the only program to reach the national semifinals in each of the last two seasons. They rank No. 4 in the 247Sports Talent Composite, tied with Alabama with a nation-leading 14 five-stars. The program has been run too well for the past three years for Sarkisian to accept results this middling.
That could mean a review of offensive line coach Kyle Flood, who has struggled to develop his own recruits consistently. Quarterbacks coach A.J. Milwee also could become a target after multiple years of stagnating quarterback play, despite consecutive generational recruits. And of course, it’s worth asking if Sarkisian should be focused more on roster and staff management than second-and-5 play calls. Everything should be on the table.
Texas is 6-2. Its goals are technically still on the table. But eight games into the season — with its toughest matchups ahead — the Longhorns appear teetering on the edge of the abyss.
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