In the first quarter of Texas football’s 34–27 victory over Ole Miss, senior quarterback Arch Manning threw an interception in an attempt to find junior wide receiver Emmett Mosley V on first down.
On the very next play, senior linebacker Justin Cryer had an interception of his own, snagging the ball and restoring balance that Texas couldn’t afford to lose so early in the matchup.
In theory, Cryer shouldn’t have had to secure that ball in his hands because the Longhorns’ offense shouldn’t have turned the ball over to begin with. But these back-to-back interceptions were perfectly emblematic of the imperfect, yet deeply motivated, Texas team that took the field on Saturday at the Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium.
It was a team fueled by desperation, external disregard and the dire desire to win at all costs.
“We said all week, whatever it takes,” Manning said after the victory. “(The) last two weeks were tough, but we knew if we do whatever it takes, we’re going to come out with a win tonight.”
Needless to say, it took everything the Longhorns had and came down to the last seconds of regulation – this was their third crunch time win of the year, as senior safety Jelani McDonald secured an end zone interception as the clock expired.
It also took two rushing touchdowns by Manning, a blocked kick by junior defensive lineman Alex January and multiple explosive runs by graduate running back Raleek Brown and sophomore running back Michael Terry III.
Texas has to make more great plays than many teams because of how many mistakes it also accumulates — something that must be addressed in the very near future. But for now, the team will relish a scrappy win and a quarterback who finally seems to be playing with a mentality head coach Steve Sarkisian described as both “edgy” and “borderline arrogant.”
Sarkisian said he loves this new mentality, as do the rest of the Longhorns. Manning said that new mentality is a product of the increasing external criticism he has faced.
“I’ve been hyped up all my life,” Manning said. “I kind of like being disregarded and counted out.”
Oddly enough, being counted out might have been the best thing that could’ve happened to the Longhorns before their matchup against the Rebels. For the first time this season, they played with more of a chip on their shoulder.
It required sacrifice, which was most prominently evidenced by both junior wide receiver Cam Coleman and senior offensive tackle Trevor Goosby leaving the matchup injured. It has since been confirmed that Goosby will be out for the rest of the season.
Texas also entered the game without junior edge rusher Colin Simmons and senior running back Hollywood Smothers. Their injuries, as well as the ones that occurred during the game, made things more difficult for Texas, but they also seemed to increase the Longhorns’ willingness to win as a team at all costs.
It took every player and involved a fiery attitude from each of them, but Texas went 1–0 this weekend, which was Sarkisian’s primary focus.
“It wasn’t about sending a message,” he said after the win. “It was about just getting to 1–0 tonight against the No. 7 ranked team in the country.”
