After looking so much cleaner through the first two games, Texas got sloppy again in Saturday’s 30-6 win over UTSA. The No. 1 Longhorns were flagged eight times for 88 yards, and the biggest issue wasn’t just the number of penalties - it was how often they wrecked drives and special teams momentum.
The game’s first snap set the tone. Rasheem Biles picked off UTSA’s opening pass, but Texas was then penalized because too many players left the bench to celebrate. Texas still finished the drive with a touchdown, but it was the kind of avoidable mistake the staff has been trying to clean up.
The next two flags were both 15-yard penalties that changed the shape of drives. A horse-collar tackle by the Texas defense erased what would have been a 3rd and 14 and handed UTSA a first down, leading to a field goal. On the other side, center Connor Robertson was flagged after arriving late to push Raleek Brown for extra yards, moving the ball from the UTSA 21-yard line to the 36 and turning the possession into a field-goal attempt.
Then came the most damaging penalty of the night. Ryan Niblett ripped off a 34-yard punt return that would have put Texas at the UTSA 22-yard line, but an illegal block in the back wiped out 23 yards. Texas went on to turn it over on downs four plays later after failing to convert a 4th and 6, its first drive without points.
That flag blew up a chance to put the game away early. Texas looked positioned to stretch the lead to three possessions, but instead the momentum swung the other way.
Special teams kept adding to the damage. Texas was hit with a face mask while covering a punt and later a holding call on a kickoff return.
The face mask moved the ball from midfield to the Texas 35-yard line, and UTSA cashed in with a field goal on the next drive. After the holding penalty, Texas’ ensuing offensive series ended in a punt.
In the end, both UTSA scoring drives were helped along by Texas mistakes, while offensive opportunities and red-zone chances were wiped out by flags. Steve Sarkisian’s team now heads into SEC play with penalty issues still hanging around, and Saturday made the cost of those mistakes painfully clear.
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The debate has been loud because the schedule keeps putting SEC games at the center of the sports biggest stage, even as GameDay has continued to visit other conferences too. Some fans point to the quality of the games the SEC has delivered so far and see a simple explanation, while others hear something broader in the pattern, which is why a trip to Knoxville is drawing more attention than a standard early-season broadcast usually would. [Read more 🡒]