The Texas Longhorns had a comprehensive win over the Texas State Bobcats at Darrell K Royal–Texas Memorial Stadium on Saturday. Still, there are a few things Texas must improve before facing the No. 1 Ohio State Buckeyes in a few days.
It was exactly how UT coach Steve Sarkisian would have wanted to start the season. Texas got an easy win, but there were several teachable moments for the team to improve on.
"Well, I love the physicality. Obviously, there's gonna be plenty of things that I know we were screaming and yelling on the headset about," Sarkisian said after the game. "It was a good start for the first game. It'll come together."
With Ohio State headed to Austin, it will need to "come together quickly."
Bend but don't break Defense
You can already see the improvement
Will Muschamp has brought to the Longhorns defense. The once and future defensive coordinator had the Texas D hungry and aggressive. UT grabbed three turnovers on the afternoon, two fumble recoveries and one interception. The Horns even got a scoop and score.
But Texas State did chew up a good amount of yardage on the Longhorns. The Bobcats converted several third downs and hit some big plays. At halftime on Saturday, Texas coach Steve Sarkisian mentioned it to ESPN.
"On defense, we've been a little 'bend but don't break," Sark said. "But that was a great turnover for us by Raheem Biles knocking it out and Graceson Littleton for the touchdown."
The Longhorns defense gave up 349 total yards, more than anyone in burnt orange would have liked. TXST had 188 yards passing and 161 yards rushing.
It is concerning Texas State had more rushing yards than the Longhorns, especially when you consider how much more UT had the ball.
Run blocking by Offensive Line
From a pass blocking standpoint, the offensive line had a good day against the Bobcats. Manning was pressured just 13% of the time. While that's a big improvement from last season, the Buckeyes will bring a lot more heat than the Bobcats did.
The offensive line concern is still run blocking. On paper, Texas had a good day. Transfer duo Hollywood Smothers and Raleek Brown both flashed big plays, which is exactly why they were brought in from NC State and Arizona State respectively.
But if you go beyond the big plays, there is a lot of room for improvement. Apart from the Smothers 45-yard run on the Longhorns first drive and a 21-yard TD run by Brown, Texas averaged just 2.1 yards per carry the rest of the game.
There were several times the Bobcats defense had a clear shot and the RB in the backfield. The run blocking must be more consistent against one of the best defenses in the nation next Saturday night.
The run blocking has to be cleaner and more consistent against Ohio State for them to be successful offensively. Now, I didn’t expect those issues to be answered in Week One, but it could’ve been a better run blocking performance for the Texas OL.
Tighten up Arch Manning
Arch Manning had a very solid game against the Bobcats. The junior from New Orleans finished the game going 20 of 27 for 305 yards, four touchdowns and one interception.
Manning had a much stronger start to his second full season as the Texas starting QB than he did last year. But he still had a few throws he'd like back. On the final drive of the first half, Manning threw one ball at the feet of his receiver on the outside, a continual problem in 2025.
Arch Manning throws his first INT of the season to end the half against Texas State. pic.twitter.com/MRBJOubKHM
— ESPN College Football (@ESPNCFB) September 5, 2026
He followed that with his one pick of the afternoon. Manning made a quick pump fake to the right side, then immediately through the ball down the seem to Emmett Mosley V. There were two defenders in front of Mosley, including Ryan Nolan, who made the interception. It seemed like a designed pump fake/quick toss up the middle. It didn't work. It was a bad decision and a bad throw.
Manning looked much improved. But if he wants to beat the No. 1 team in the nation, he can't have mistakes like the one he made to end the half.
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This article originally appeared on Longhorns Wire: 3 things Longhorns must improve before hosting No. 1 Ohio State
