The School: University of Texas at Austin
Record: 6-2 (3-1 in the SEC)
Ranking: AP #20, Coaches’ Poll #19, and SP+ #13
Mascot: Bevo is a live Texas Longhorn steer. Hook’em is a costumed version of a Texas Longhorn.
It is not known if Hook’em is required to be a steer…
Location: Austin, Texas
Coach: Steve Sarkisian. Sarkisian is in his 5th season at the head of the Longhorns program. He is 44-19 (17-10 in the Big XII and 10-2 in the SEC). After being a HC at Washington and USC, Sark had to get himself back on track and is a graduate of the Nick Saban Coaching Rehab Clinic.
Conference: The Big 12. Oh, wait, the S-E-C? Sure.
All-time vs. Vanderbilt: 4-8-1. I love this stat so much.
In the Last 10 Years vs. Vanderbilt: 1-0. Until 2024, the teams had not met since 1928.
In the Last 5 Years vs. Vanderbilt: 1-0
The Last Time We Saw These Guys: Langston Patterson and Martel Hight had Commodore faithful seeing visions of another victory over a Top 5 team dancing in their head as a tipped pass interception at Texas’s 31 on their opening drive setup an early go-ahead Vanderbilt TD. Unfortunately, Texas would have a 14-7 lead before the end of the 1st quarter. Then the tipped pass interception luck evened out as Texas stalled Vanderbilt’s drive that looked destined to tie the game.
A rare Sedrick Alexander fumble derailed another foray into Longhorn territory, and the score would be 21-10 at halftime. Hilariously, the third tipped ball interception, this time Randon Fontenette sending the ball skyward for Miles Capers to catch, gave Vanderbilt life again. The offense would convert to get within a TD.
Sadly, a 4th and 2 play ended with Pavia lobbing a hopeful toss into the Nashville sky after the original play was sniffed out and covered perfectly. Texas picked it off and turned the ensuing drive into the game-winning FG. Vanderbilt’s last drive would end in a TD, but the onside kick attempt failed.
Is Vandy Favored?: No. The 2-game streak of being favored over ranked opponents is dead. Vanderbilt is currently a 2.5-point underdog on FanDuel. Still, that means the game at a neutral site would be roughly a pick ‘em or maybe even a slight Vanderbilt favorite. I would think DKR is a bigger home-field advantage than the typical 3 points.
Most Potent Offensive Threat: Ryan Wingo. No matter who is behind center, the 6’2” sophomore WR will be his primary target. Wingo has 29 catches for 504 yards and 4 TDs. He has a 62-yard reception this season and had a 75 yarder in 2024. Vanderbilt’s secondary will have their hands full not getting beat deep, but Wingo will kill them in the intermediate level if they play too soft on him.
Most Potent Defensive Threat: Anthonty Hill Jr and Colin Simmon. Hill is a tackling machine at LB with 60 total stops and 31 solo tackles. In coverage, Hill has 1 interception. He also has 2.5 sacks. The real pass rush threat is Simmon who has gotten to opposing QBs for 7 sacks. He will be disruptive in the passing game but will also be key for Texas’s defense with Vanderbilt’s offense often reading edge players. Simmon will be tasked with muddying Pavia’s cues and disrupting those plays early.
Matchup to Watch: Texas’s DL vs Vanderbilt’s OL. Vanderbilt faces their 2 toughest trench battles in consecutive weeks. Texas is 4th in sacks at 28. They are 3rd in rushing yards allowed per game at 80.75 yards. The yards per rush is even better as they rank 2nd at a measly 2.41 yards per carry. This is going to be a stiff test in a tough environment.
Interesting Fact: Austin was originally incorporated as Waterloo. It was changed to Austin within a few months. There are no records I can find about why they originally chose Waterloo. Maybe they just wanted to avoid invasion by the diminutive. (Yes, I know Napoleon was not actually short for his time.)
If Texas wins, we: lock in for the Dores to have 3 straight elimination games. Vanderbilt essentially needs to beat 1 UT and both of the much weaker pair of Auburn and Kentucky. Doing so to finish the season 10-2 (6-2) will almost certainly result in a CFP bid. The first rankings come out Tuesday, so a big win right before the original release could boost the Commodores.
