Texas didn’t just leave the Red River Rivalry with its first loss of the season. It also walked out of Saturday afternoon with a few clear hints about who should be getting more touches, more targets and more snaps when Florida comes to Austin.
The Longhorns fell to unranked Oklahoma, 27-24, in the 122nd edition of the rivalry, dropping to 4-1 overall and 1-1 in conference play. Now the focus turns to Darrell K. Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium, where Texas will meet the unranked Gators after being on the road for an extended stretch.
That loss should send head coach Steve Sarkisian and his staff back through the tape with a sharp eye, especially on a few younger players who flashed enough against Oklahoma to earn bigger roles.
One of the clearest cases is freshman running back Derrek Cooper. Texas had trouble getting the ground game moving consistently against a tough Oklahoma defensive front, but Cooper was the one back who found some room. He finished with eight carries for 41 yards and averaged 5.1 yards per attempt, good enough to lead the Longhorns in rushing.
What stands out most is how he got there. Cooper handled six carries in the first half and picked up all 41 of his yards before halftime.
After the break, though, he touched the ball just twice. That split feels worth revisiting, because his downhill style gave Texas something it could build on even against one of the SEC’s better defensive lines.
Against Florida, he ought to get a bigger workload.
Freshman wide receiver Jermaine Bishop Jr. also made his case for more opportunities. Texas has slowly been expanding his role, and against Oklahoma that paid off in a big way when he found the end zone for the first time in his Texas career.
Bishop Jr. had only one catch, a 15-yarder, but it came with late-game impact: a fourth-quarter touchdown in which he separated cleanly on his route, then slipped a would-be tackler to finish the play in the end zone. Texas has no shortage of pass-catching options, but Bishop Jr. offers something different. He can turn a routine snap into a splash play, and that kind of ability usually deserves more chances.
There’s also room for another freshman to factor into the pass rush. Texas already has one of the most dangerous fronts in the country, with Colin Simmons leading the charge off the edge. But defensive coordinator Will Muschamp could add another wrinkle by giving Richard Wesley more time on the field.
Wesley recorded one quarterback hurry against Oklahoma, and it came on a play that affected one of John Mateer’s throws. PFF credited him with only two snaps in the game, which makes the impact even more notable. If Texas wants another threat coming off the edge against Florida, Wesley looks like a player who has earned a bigger slice of the rotation.
In Other News...
Florida Just Got A Needed Recruiting Boost After That Ugly Loss
Floridas Week 6 loss to South Carolina stung on the field, but the Gators needed something positive quickly and got it on the recruiting trail. Five-star wide receiver Easton Royal, the No. 1 receiver in the 2027 class, flipped his commitment from Texas to Florida shortly after the defeat, giving the program a jolt at a time when the margin for good news felt pretty thin.
Royals decision matters beyond the headline because he is one of the most coveted prospects in the country and is expected to wrap up his recruitment soon. For Texas, it is a notable miss in a class that had been building momentum, while Florida gets a major boost as it tries to steady itself after slipping to 4-2 overall and 2-2 in the SEC. [Read more 🡒]
Texas Has A Discipline Problem Sarkisian Can't Ignore
The loss to Oklahoma brought Texas back to a familiar and frustrating theme: the Longhorns again hurt themselves with flags at the worst possible moments. They were penalized eight times for 61 yards, and the numbers fit the broader concern Steve Sarkisian has been trying to push to the front of the conversation. Even with a modest dip in penalties per game from last season, the Longhorns have not shaken the kind of mistakes that can swing a tight rivalry game.
Sarkisian has already pointed to penalties as the biggest issue the staff has to clean up, and he described the problem as a mix of effort-based plays and mental miscues. That makes the fix harder than simply preaching discipline in practice, because the issue is not coming from one place or one player group. Texas can outplay an opponent in stretches and still leave the door open if it keeps layering avoidable mistakes on top of itself. [Read more 🡒]
Texas Must Fix One Frustrating Problem After Red River Loss
The Red River loss left Texas with more than a blemish in the rivalry column. It also put a spotlight on the kind of offensive inconsistency that has followed the Longhorns at times this season, even with plenty of individual talent on the roster. Senior offensive lineman Trevor Goosby and coach Steve Sarkisian both pointed to the same basic task afterward: put the disappointment behind them and get the unit executing better.
Sarkisian also owned the responsibility for the offenses struggles, a notable admission from a coach who knows the standard in Austin does not leave much room for uneven Saturdays. The Longhorns have shown enough ability to suggest the ceiling is still there, but the next stretch will be about turning that talent into steadier production. For Texas, the frustration is not just the loss itself, but the feeling that the offense still has to prove it can hold up when the stage gets biggest. [Read more 🡒]