Texas opened their season today with a loss at Ohio State, 14-7. The Longhorns were plagued by missed opportunities in the red zone on Saturday.
The Texas Longhorns fell in their opener against the Ohio StateBuckeyes, 14-7. The Longhorns were plagued by unsettled QB play from Arch Manning and multiple missed chances to finish off drives.
The debut of Arch Manning as the true QB1 of the Texas was one to forget, going 17/30 for 170 passing yards, a touchdown pass and an interception. He was able to do some damage with his legs, but the Ohio State did a great job of bottling #16 and the Texas pass game all afternoon. The vast majority of the yards came on the final two drives of the game, where Texas was able to find chunk plays in the pass game, including the lone TD to Parker Livingstone late.
Two drives for the Longhorns ended on turnovers on downs inside the Ohio State 10-yard line, including getting stuffed at the 1-yard line with a chance to tie it. Another turnover on downs to start the game and an Arch Manning interception in the 3rd quarter gave Ohio State the opening they needed to win this game.
The Texas offense got stifled in the first half, only totalling 79 yards. Arch Manning went 5/10 with 26 yards through the air and the Texas offense went 1-7 on 3rd downs in the first half. Penalties hurt the Longhorns the most, however, with Ohio State’s lone touchdown drive coming on the shoulders of two penalties by the Texas defense.
The good news for the Texas offense is the defense played completely clean outside of those few penalties, holding Ohio State to 103 yards and 2-6 on 3rd down in the first half. A couple of missed moments put Texas in a hole heading into the break and were searching for consistency on offense.
In the first drive out of half, Texas was able to march down the field to the Ohio State one yard line, only to be turned away on 4th down. The offensive woes continued with an Arch Manning interception, which in turn led to a TD drive from Ohio State, capped with a 40-yard connection between Julian Sayin and Carnell Tate, which proved to be the knockout blow.
Texas would put together a nice, 13-play, 76 yard drive, but again would get stopped inside the 10-yard line on a 4th down. After a quick three and out from the Ohio State offense, the Texas offense was able to get a rhythm and find a 32-yard TD throw from Arch Manning to Parker Livingstone to cut the deficit in half.
The Texas offense was able to get the ball back and make their way to the Ohio State 47, but a couple of misfires from Arch Manning led to another turnover on downs, and Ohio State was able to kneel it out.
Missed opportunities in plus-territory, much like last year, hurt Texas today. Texas was able to outgain Ohio State by 44 yards on the ground and 133 yards total, but struggled to execute in the red zone, leaving at least 14 points on the table. It was a day Sarkisian and the Longhorns will have to learn from if they want to keep their hopes for another CFP berth alive.
Texas turns the page to next Saturday, when they will invite the San Jose State Trojans into Austin at 11 a.m.. San Jose State started their season 0-1, falling to Central Michigan 16-14 on Friday. Texas will be looking to get in the win column at home, but for now, plenty of things to clean up for the Longhorns.
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This article originally appeared on Longhorns Wire: Manning, Longhorns fall short in key moments in 14-7 Ohio State loss
Category: General Sports
