The No. 21 Texas Longhorns got the big win they needed, blowing out the Oklahoma Sooners in the annual Red River Showdown.
Texas looked closer to expectations on both sides of the ball, with the offense
staying on schedule and avoiding losing plays, while the defense got after Oklahoma quarterback John Mateer and forced him into losing plays. The Longhorns brought him down five times and took the ball away three times, keeping the Sooners from scoring a touchdown for the third time in the last four matchups.
Arch Manning, who faced criticism over the last few weeks, didn’t put up gaudy numbers in the game, but was elite when Texas needed him to keep the offense moving in the right direction. Thanks in large part to the arm of Manning, Texas converted a season-high 10 3rd Down attempts and scored on three of their five second-half drives to score 13 points and put the game away.
Now, the Longhorns head back out onto the road to take on the Kentucky Wildcats, who need their own get-right win. Kentucky sits 2-3 on the year, already with three conference losses ahead of their bye week, and coach Mark Stoops on the hotseat yet again. If the Wildcats can get it together and play for their coach, a win over Texas could say a lot for his future. If they cannot and Texas continues on the trajectory they set in Dallas, it may spell the end of the Mark Stoops era in Lexington.
