Texas finally got the kind of SEC win it had been waiting for, and the defense made sure it looked the part.
The Longhorns rolled past Mississippi State 31-3 on Saturday night, turning in their first double-digit victory over a Power Conference opponent this season. The offense still had its rough patches, but the defense carried the night with one of its sharpest performances yet, and that made the winners-and-loser conversation tilt heavily toward that side of the ball.
Maraad Watson delivered the game’s most electric moment. The Texas defensive lineman pounced on a fumble and rumbled 61 yards for a touchdown, a play that had the whole sideline swarming him as he finished off a dominant first half.
At 333 pounds, Watson had teammates clearing the way as he lumbered into the end zone for what was easily one of the night’s signature highlights. The Syracuse transfer now has 16 total tackles, including eight solo stops and three sacks, and this one goes straight onto the reel.
But Watson’s score never happens without Rasheem Biles. The linebacker ripped the ball loose from Mississippi State quarterback AJ Swann, setting up the return and capping a huge night of his own.
With edge rusher Colin Simmons still out, Biles has taken on more of a leadership role over the last two weeks, and he backed it up with eight tackles, four tackles for loss and three sacks. It was one of the best outings of his Texas career.
Arch Manning lived in the middle ground again. He flashed the kind of talent that can light up a scoreboard, then followed it with a mistake that gave Mississippi State life.
Manning threw for 220 yards and three touchdowns, but he also coughed up a fumble that the Bulldogs recovered. The first half looked like his best stretch of the night, with the broadcast crew raving about how well he was playing, but the turnover brought back the same issue that has followed him through Texas’s last three games.
The numbers were strong, and they helped produce a win, but the giveaways remain a problem. There was some blame to spread around, too, with a shaky offensive line and dropped passes factoring in.
The roughest night belonged to Mississippi State’s quarterback room. Swann was injured on the hit that caused the fumble, and head coach Jeff Lebby said at halftime that he would not return.
That was already a brutal blow, and it came on the heels of another season-ending quarterback injury, with "Super" Kamario Taylor having just undergone foot surgery. Parker "Billy" Puckett was next up, and he had a miserable time against Texas’s defense.
Lebby is running out of answers, and the Bulldogs are running out of healthy quarterbacks.
Texas’s defense did more than just make plays - it controlled the entire game. The Longhorns shut out Mississippi State in the first half for the first time this season, and the Bulldogs’ only points came after starting with the ball at the 28-yard line because of Manning’s fumble.
Even then, Texas limited them to a field goal. The Longhorns forced two turnovers, including the fumble and a turnover on downs, and never let Mississippi State breathe.
It was a dominant showing, and Will Muschamp’s unit deserved every bit of the praise it got.
In Other News...
Texas Win Came With A Missouri Concern Fans Can't Ignore
Texas got the result it wanted against Mississippi State, but the win came with a longer injury list than anyone around the program would have liked. Several key players, including Graceson Littleton, Cam Coleman, Kade Phillips, Hollywood Smothers and Ryan Wingo, were unable to finish the game, forcing Texas to keep adjusting on the fly as the roster thinned out in real time.
Steve Sarkisian acknowledged the concern afterward, and the biggest issue now is not just who got hurt, but how serious those injuries might be. The press box observations offered some clues about the nature of the setbacks and the substitutions that followed, but for Texas the real answer will come later, when the team gets a clearer read on who can move forward and who may be limited heading into the next stretch. [Read more 🡒]
Cam Coleman Gave Texas A Spark Then Left Fans Worried
Cam Coleman gave Texas exactly the kind of early lift it needed against Mississippi State, turning his first two catches into 61 yards and a touchdown before the second quarter even settled in. He had only recently worked his way through a shoulder issue from the previous week, but after being cleared to play, he looked like a difference-maker right away and helped set the tone for the Longhorns.
Then came the sight that had Texas fans uneasy. Coleman was seen heading to the locker room in the second quarter without an obvious injury moment on the field, a development that immediately shifted attention from his big start to his availability for the rest of the game. For a Texas offense that had already leaned on his explosiveness, the next update mattered almost as much as the production he had already delivered. [Read more 🡒]
Texas Backfield Suddenly Has A Bigger Problem Than Fans Expected
Texas backfield took another uneasy turn against Mississippi State when Hollywood Smothers was injured and sent to the medical tent after absorbing a hard hit. It was already a game in which his role had been limited, and the moment only added to the sense that the Longhorns are still trying to sort out how much they can count on him in a rotation that has been shifting for weeks.
Raleek Brown has been the steadier presence in the run game, and his strong outing against the Bulldogs only sharpened the contrast. Smothers has already missed two games with a lower-leg injury, and Brown has outpaced him in both rushing yards and touchdowns this season, leaving Texas with a backfield picture that feels less settled than anyone expected. [Read more 🡒]