Texas found a way to get their fourth-straight win
, this time 22-21 over LSU in Baton Rouge. Arch Manning had a very poor day throwing the ball until the final drive, when he made a few big throws before the TD pass to Raleek Brown. The defense struggled at times, but shut down the LSU offense in the fourth quarter to give the offense time to comeback. The Longhorns move to 8-2 and are officially in the drivers’ seat for the CFP.Here are the five things we learned about the Longhorns tonight:
Elite defenses will stifle this offense
The pattern is fairly cut and dry. The top-tier defenses Texas has faced(Ohio State, Tennessee, Oklahoma, LSU) have shut them down. The defenses' weaknesses (Missouri, Mississippi State, Ole Miss) gave the Texas offense a chance to have solid performances.
Arkansas and Texas A&M are not elite defenses but if Texas is going to make a CFP run, they’ll need to fix this issue.
Arch Manning's game-winning drive vs. LSU 🔥 pic.twitter.com/S2wYHv3upk
— SEC Network (@SECNetwork) November 15, 2026
With no run game, Manning will force
Another constant of the season is Arch Manning’s poor decision making. The trigger to that is the same: a struggling run game. He took home three INTs tonight, all of which being poor decisions and poorly played passes. Manning seems to feel he needs to create explosives when things get stagnant and it leads to massive mistakes. If Texas can’t run the football, Manning will turn the ball over.
Defense has openings that can be exploited
This was the first time the Texas defense seemed to have rather consistent openings. Dilin Jones had a nice day running the ball, including the 44-yard TD run. In the passing game, Leavitt found too many open crossing routes that killed Texas on 3rd down. The defense did find some confidence late, holding LSU to just 8 yards in the fourth quarter. There isn’t reason to panic about the defense but the openings were there to be exploited.
This team has something different about them
It’s absolutely undeniable this team is mentally tougher than most. Three different times this season, they’ve entered a fourth quarter needing to comeback or outdo their opponent and they did. The fourth quarter shortcoming against Oklahaoma and Florida have become fourth quarter strength against Missouri and LSU. In a CFP run, that mental toughness could be something no one else possesses.
Texas is all but in the CFP
Following the Florida loss, the goal was clear: get to at least 9-3 and in the CFP. It seems, considering it’s Arkansas and Texas A&M on deck, Texas is firmly in the field of 12. If Texas wins out, they could join Georgia in Atlanta for the final SEC title game. If they drop one of the next two, they are still likely in, just as a visitor in the first round. Simply put, Texas has found a way to essentially stamp themselves in the CFP.
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This article originally appeared on Longhorns Wire: Five Things we learned Texas vs. LSU: UT's mental toughness is an edge
