Texas’ defense is about to have a glaring hole in it.
Colin Simmons is expected to miss Saturday’s game against Ole Miss after suffering a high ankle sprain, ESPN reported. The Texas defensive end’s outlook from here is week-to-week.
Simmons left the Longhorns’ 27-24 loss to Florida in rough shape. He needed help getting to the sideline in the fourth quarter, then was carted to the locker room and ruled out for the rest of the game. Texas dropped its second straight contest after blowing a 14-point lead in the first half.
The Dallas native has been the engine of Texas’ pass rush and one of the most dominant players in the country. He leads the nation with 10.5 sacks and has piled up 45.5 tackles for loss and 31.5 sacks across 35 games with the Longhorns. His performance against Tennessee stands out even more - a program-record 5.5 sacks.
If Simmons is sidelined for four weeks, Texas would be without him for home games against No. 7 Ole Miss and Mississippi State, plus road trips to No.
22 Missouri and No. 18 LSU.
That would leave the Longhorns trying to contain four teams with dynamic quarterbacks who can punish defenses when the pass rush disappears.
The impact on Texas’ defense could be severe. Simmons is the centerpiece of a unit built around pressure, allowing the secondary to play aggressively. The Longhorns rank No. 7 nationally in sacks per game, and more than half of those sacks have come from Simmons alone.
Behind him, the options are thinner. Defensive tackle Maraad Watson is the only other Texas player with more than one sack.
Freshman Richard Wesley, a top 100 recruit from Chatsworth, California, is next on the depth chart. Texas could also lean on junior Zina Umeozulu, a backup behind Lance Jackson who has three sacks in 19 career games.
That uncertainty arrives while the program is already dealing with a major identity problem. After an embarrassing 1-2 start in SEC play, Steve Sarkisian said all options were on the table, including benching Arch Manning or giving up playcalling duties.
At his weekly press conference, Sarkisian said Texas would stick with Manning for now, but added that he needs more from the high-profile quarterback. It is a sharp turn from the buzz that followed Manning’s arrival in Austin as the No. 1 recruit in the nation.
Texas was already viewed as one of the most disappointing teams in the country last season after opening as preseason No. 1 and missing the College Football Playoff. This year, the slide has happened even faster after the Longhorns reached No. 1 again earlier in the season.
The program poured resources into a loaded transfer class in hopes of setting up Manning’s expected final season. Right now, though, Texas is staring at the possibility of being left on the outside again when the postseason arrives.
In Other News...
Ole Miss Looks Ready For Much Bigger Games After Statement Win
Ole Miss spent Saturday looking every bit like a team built for the bigger stage, taking control early and never really letting Missouri get comfortable in a 31-3 win. The Rebels defense set the tone throughout the afternoon, keeping the Tigers away from their preferred answers and making the kind of steady, disciplined stops that can travel well when the schedule tightens up.
Pete Goldings group now heads into the heart of SEC play with some real momentum behind it, and his record against ranked opponents sits at 6-1 after another statement performance. The challenge for Ole Miss is obvious enough: this level of defensive sharpness has to hold when the opposition gets tougher, because the next stretch will say a lot about whether this was simply a strong showing or a preview of what the Rebels can sustain. [Read more 🡒]
Pete Golding Sends Ole Miss Fans A Warning About Arch Manning
Pete Golding spent part of the buildup to Ole Miss meeting with Texas pushing back on the easy take about Arch Manning. The Rebels defensive coordinator said the notion that Manning is not an elite player is crazy, a notable stance given the turnovers that have shadowed the quarterbacks season. Texas coach Steve Sarkisian has already confirmed Manning will stay in the lineup against Ole Miss, which keeps the focus on how the Rebels plan to handle a passer Golding clearly still views as a major challenge.
Golding pointed to more than just the stat sheet, crediting Mannings athletic ability and past success while suggesting some of the struggles have been a matter of bad luck. For Ole Miss, that kind of warning matters because it comes from inside the opposing scouting report, not from a fan debate or a headline. If Manning settles in, the Rebels know they could be facing a quarterback Golding believes is far better than the public conversation has suggested. [Read more 🡒]
Ole Miss Finally Has A Contender Identity But One Test Awaits
The Florida loss could have sent Ole Miss into a familiar kind of October wobble, but instead the Rebels have started to look more like a team with a real identity. The defense has tightened up, the rushing attack has taken on more of an edge and quarterback Trinidad Chambliss has helped steady things while Kewan Lacy and Makhi Frazier have given the ground game some much-needed punch. Even the performance against Missouri carried that sense of progress, with Ole Miss doing a far better job of controlling the Tigers on the ground.
Now comes the part that will say the most about where this team really stands. Texas offers a different level of challenge, and it is the kind of matchup that can either validate the recent surge or expose how far Ole Miss still has to go. Health will matter, too, especially with Lacy emerging as such an important piece of the offense, because the Rebels' ceiling feels tied to how long they can keep their key runners available and the defense playing with this same level of urgency. [Read more 🡒]