The Texas Longhorns are having a great start in their first season in the Southeastern Conference, and they have big plans for the trophy they recently won after another strong victory over their Red River rival that also switched leagues.
“Two years ago when we won the Golden Hat, you might have thought we won the Super Bowl,” said fourth-year Longhorns coach Steve Sarkisian after their 34-3 win on Saturday against Oklahoma, which is now unranked.
“This year was like, OK, we got the Golden Hat back, but let’s put it in the trophy case and let’s keep grinding, let’s keep going. So I think that’s the mentality of our team.”
With a record of 6-0 for the first time since 2009, when they were the national runner-up, No. 1 Texas is aiming for even bigger trophies after making the College Football Playoff for the first time last year as the Big 12 champion.
This season, the Longhorns have already beaten the defending national champion, Michigan. They will return home from the State Fair of Texas to prepare for their game next Saturday against No. 5 Georgia, who were back-to-back champions before Michigan won.
“The journey is far from over,” Sarkisian said, noting that his teams have won 18 of their last 20 games after a 13-12 record in his first two seasons.
Receiving 56 of 62 first-place votes on Sunday, Texas has solidified its position at No. 1 in The Associated Press college football poll. This is four more first-place votes than last week and their highest total since being the unanimous No. 1 in October 2008.
“The first half of the season, I don’t see a lot of teams that have played as well in all three phases as they have,” said Oklahoma coach Brent Venables when asked about the Longhorns as the top team.
He has been part of national championships as a defensive coordinator with the Sooners and Clemson.
“They’ve got a good team and they’re good in the right places: quarterback, offensive line, and they’ve got explosive playmakers. They’ve got a really good defense, and they’ve got good experience,” he said. “So a veteran team that’s got good players.”
This is the fourth time this season that the Longhorns are at the top of the poll, the most for them in a single season since 1977, when they ended the regular season undefeated in the last six polls before losing to Joe Montana-led Notre Dame in the Cotton Bowl.
Texas has given up only 38 points, the fewest allowed through six games since 30 points in the 1964 season, when their only loss was to national champion Alabama in the Orange Bowl. Two of the three touchdowns scored against the Longhorns happened late in games that were already decided.
Quarterback Quinn Ewers returned from an abdomen strain after standout redshirt freshman Arch Manning won both of his starts.
Although the Longhorns managed just 13 yards on 10 plays without a first down in the first quarter against Oklahoma, they ended with 406 total yards. Ewers threw for 199 yards, including the go-ahead touchdown, and also scored on a 1-yard run.
The Longhorns’ point differential of plus-221 is their highest through six games since 1915. They have only trailed once this season, and that was for less than four minutes before Ewers threw a 7-yard touchdown pass to tight end Gunnar Helm after Oklahoma kicked a field goal to lead 3-0.
Regarding the defense, Sarkisian mentioned it has “assumed a real kind of swagger” and confidence. The unit does not seem satisfied even though it is leading the nation by allowing only 6.3 points and 229.7 total yards per game.
“Our best ball is yet to come,” said junior cornerback Michael Taaffe confidently after the 120th Red River game. “Everybody around outside the locker room might say, ‘Wow, this is such a complete defense.’
But everybody in the locker room knows that the offense gets after our butt a lot during the week of practice. … That gives us the confidence, the preparation.”
