The Texas Longhorns have given themselves new life for the 2026 season following a big-time bounce-back performance, leading to what could be a momentum-building 34-27 win over the then No. 7 Ole Miss Rebels.
The Longhorns crawled into their matchup against the Rebels on Saturday following back-to-back losses, falling well outside the top 15 and having to deal with swelling outside noise, criticism, and pressure.
But the Longhorns responded as they needed to with a big win, putting themselves at a 5-2 record and an even 2-2 record in conference play as they prepare for the back half of the regular season. However, while Texas did come away with a win, its discipline is still a major issue that needs to be resolved.
Texas Needs to Get its Penalty Issues in Check
While the Longhorns got back in the column after two disappointing performances, the win didn't come with a perfect performance from Steve Sarkisian's squad.
Another third-quarter stalling allowed the Rebels to get back in the game following an impressive first half from Texas, but the biggest eyesore for the Longhorns was penalties.
The Longhorns were called on a season-high 14 penalties, tying the most penalties called in the Sarkisian era for an astonishing 134 yards, a new high in penalty yardage under Sarkisian.
And the Longhorns' head coach acknowledged that while his team was able to overcome those issues, he knows that's not the best way for Texas to win football games.
"One, I think we got a pretty good team," Sarkisian said after the win. "Two, It's a dangerous way to live, and so we've got to clean this stuff up."
The Longhorns beat them several times over due to penalties on the offensive and defensive sides of the ball, making the game much harder for Texas. None of the penalties were better examples of that than the three that were called on Ole Miss's touchdown drive that put the game within one score in the third quarter.
The Rebels began the third quarter by returning a Texas quarterback Arch Manning fumble for a touchdown, followed by a 10-play, 80-yard touchdown drive to make the game 24-17; however, fueling the drive were two pass interference penalties and a roughing the passer call on the drive.
The Longhorns gifted the Rebels 40 of the 80 yards they amassed to score that touchdown. A couple of drives later, another pass interference penalty on the Texas secondary set up another Ole Miss touchdown just a play later, this time to even the score at 24.
Texas managed to get back on track over the weekend; however, its penalty issues cannot be overlooked or ignored despite the win.
If the Longhorns wish to continue this momentum, especially with the challenges they have for the rest of the regular season, they'll have to play much cleaner football to make winning big-time games much easier.
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