Texas survived a grueling second-half collapse to escape with a 34-27 victory over Ole Miss on Saturday night. Forced into pure survival mode after losing key starters on both sides of the ball, head coach Steve Sarkisian relied on a grinding run game to keep the Longhorns’ SEC playoff hopes alive.
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The bad news started rolling in well before kickoff when star pass rusher Colin Simmons was ruled out with a high ankle sprain. He originally suffered the injury late in the fourth quarter during last week’s tough 27-24 loss to Florida, and early reports suggest he could be sidelined until the Arkansas game. Not having him out there completely changed how Texas plays defense because he leads the entire nation in sacks and tackles for loss.
To make matters worse, leading rusher Hollywood Smothers was also sidelined for the night after landing on the SEC availability report. He has been the absolute engine of the Texas ground game this year, racking up a team-high 289 rushing yards and two critical touchdowns after seriously banging up his shoulder against Florida. Regardless, Raleek Brown stepped up in his absence and came up clutch for the Longhorns today!
The in-game damage began early when senior left tackle Trevor Goosby suffered a knee injury during a first-quarter pass play. He was loaded onto an injury cart and taken to the locker room for evaluation. Broadcast personnel later confirmed Goosby was holding his knee as he was carted off. Goosby was replaced by Andrew Cojoe.
Wide receiver Cam Coleman also exited after landing hard while attempting a 34-yard catch early in the third quarter. Coleman immediately grabbed his left arm in visible pain. Medical staff escorted him straight to the locker room, officially ruling him out with an upper-body injury.
The ABC broadcast later showed him tracking straight to the locker room. It was a terrifying sight for anyone hoping for a deep Texas playoff run, as Coleman has been a primary target for big downfield plays all season long.
All of these missing pieces completely tanked the Texas offense as the game rolled into the second half. Without Goosby blocking up front and no Cam to save the day, the Longhorns put up just 19 total yards of offense in the entire third quarter.
A major scare for Texas came when quarterback Arch Manning took a hard head-on sack in the third quarter. Manning briefly stepped to the sideline for a mandatory medical check, forcing him to sit out for a single play while backup KJ Lacey Jr. handed off. Unlike Goosby and Coleman, who were ruled out for the remainder of the game with injuries, Manning returned on the very next series and led the game-winning offense.
Ole Miss suffered its own setback when lead starting running back Kewan Lacy re-injured his left shoulder in the third quarter. Lacy was taken off the field on a medical cart and ruled out for the game. Backup running back Makhi Frazier stepped into the primary role, finishing the drive with 47 rushing yards.
After being limited to just 19 yards of offense across the first 16 minutes of the second half, Texas exploded for 142 total yards in the fourth quarter alone, with 121 of those coming right over the dirt. That physical running game allowed Texas to put up 10 unanswered points, punching in a clutch touchdown and following it up with a 33-yard field goal from Gianni Spetic with just over two minutes left to put the game on ice!
The Rebels came very close to pulling off the comeback, but Trinidad couldn’t connect on a desperation Hail Mary at the buzzer! Just like that, the Longhorns survived without their 4 best players against one of the best teams in the country!
This win has saved the day for Arch and Sark and their playoff aspirations!