Rasheem Biles’ latest honor arrives with a stat line that was impossible to ignore.
The Texas senior linebacker was named the Lott IMPACT Trophy’s Player of the Week on Wednesday after powering the No. 10/11 Longhorns to a 31-3 win over Mississippi State on Oct. 31 at DKR-Texas Memorial Stadium. Biles also picked up the Chuck Bednarik Award’s National Player of the Week and the SEC’s Co-Defensive Player of the Week.
It is the first time Biles has earned the Lott IMPACT Trophy weekly award, and he becomes Texas’ first winner since former Longhorn linebacker Anthony Hill Jr. was honored on Oct. 16, 2024. Biles had already been named a Lott IMPACT Trophy quarterfinalist earlier this year.
Against Mississippi State, Biles was everywhere. He finished with eight tackles, three sacks for 26 yards lost, four tackles for loss totaling 27 yards and two forced fumbles. One of those takeaways was returned 61 yards for a touchdown by Maraad Watson, and it helped Texas turn the game into a runaway.
The Longhorns’ defense squeezed the Bulldogs from the opening whistle, holding them to 187 total yards, 2.8 yards per play and just three points. Mississippi State managed only 68 rushing yards and 119 through the air, well below its pregame average of 439.1 yards per game and 6.3 yards per play. Texas’ defense also piled up seven sacks and nine tackles for loss as a unit.
Biles’ three sacks and two forced fumbles were both career highs, and the three sacks matched the most in a game this season by a true linebacker in the FBS. Both forced fumbles came on sacks, and the first one changed the game’s tone before halftime. With Texas up 10-0 and Mississippi State at the Longhorns’ 34, Biles got to the quarterback, stripped the ball loose and set up Watson’s 61-yard return, pushing the lead to 17-0 at the break.
His second big play came in the third quarter after Texas turned the ball over at its own 28 and Mississippi State drove to the 14. Biles again disrupted the play, forcing a sack that turned into a fumble for a loss of 15 yards. Two snaps later, the Bulldogs settled for their only points of the night.
Biles also opened the game with a tackle for loss on Mississippi State’s first possession, then finished the night with another sack early in the fourth quarter to help force a three-and-out. Texas went on to score again and close out the 31-3 final.
On the season, Biles leads the SEC with three forced fumbles, which ranks sixth in the FBS. He also leads Texas with three interceptions, ranks second on the team in tackles with 61, sacks with four and tackles for loss with 9.5, and is tied for second with four pass breakups. His 9.5 tackles for loss rank fourth in the SEC and 23rd nationally.
Texas’ defense continues to stack up near the top of the national numbers, ranking seventh in team sacks at 3.25 per game, eighth in passing efficiency defense at 106.91, 10th in total defense at 273.1 yards allowed, 10th in defensive touchdowns with two, 12th in passing yards allowed at 170.8, 16th in red zone defense at 0.750, 19th in scoring defense at 17.1 and 24th in rushing defense at 102.4.
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