No. 3 Texas claws Kentucky in 31-14 victory on Senior Day

For potentially the last time in his Texas career, Quinn Ewers took the field with the Longhorns at DKR on Senior Day. Against Kentucky, the Longhorns offense had an up and down game. However, once again, the Texas defense made several stellar plays – leading the Longhorns to a 31-14 home victory over the Wildcats.

On Saturday, the Texas defense came to play. Led by Anthony Hill’s tremendous play, the Longhorns allowed only 232 yards of total offense. Furthermore, Hill himself contributed two of the team’s six sacks against Mark Stoops’ Kentucky offense. Along with defensive pressure up front, the Longhorn secondary also created two turnovers courtesy of interceptions by Jelani McDonald and Andrew Mukuba. In fact, Texas’ stout defensive play had so much of an impact that Stoops actually elected to bench starting quarterback Brock Vandagriff for freshman backup Cutter Boley after the half.

Meanwhile, for Steve Sarkisian’s offense, play continues to be streaky – but it gets the job done. While Quinn Ewers might not have lit up the scoreboard, he stayed clean in the turnover column and threw for two touchdowns. On Senior Day, it was Ewers’ connection with senior Gunnar Helm that paid off. The 6’5″ tight end finished the contest with five catches for 52 yards, and was the recipient of both of Ewers’ touchdown passes.

On the flip side, the Texas running backs continue to play with house money. Despite of tallying a whopping 250 yards on the ground, the Longhorns lost two fumbles. The unfortunate part is that both Quintrevion Wisner and Jaydon Blue had solid games otherwise. Against the Wildcats, Wisner tallied 158 yards on 26 carries, while Blue added another 96 yards on 15 attempts. Additionally, both running backs rushed for a touchdown.

If Texas wants to have a shot at winning the national championship, the running game has to become more consistent. It is one thing to put up numbers, it is another to do so while turning over the ball. Why is running the football important? Because, as Steve Sarkisian likes to say, football is a complementary game. An enhanced running game will inevitably open up better passing opportunities as well.

Despite of the inconsistencies offensively, the Longhorns moved to 10-1 with the win. More importantly, this team has a legitimate chance at making a playoff run. If the Longhorn offense can stay out of their own way, Pete Kwiatkowski’s defense is good enough to win a championship this season. Furthermore, even despite of the struggles offensively, Steve Sarkisian’s squad has still played well. If Ewers and the running backs can flip the switch, this year has the potential to be different.

Next weekend, the Longhorns will travel to College Station to take on Texas A&M. Kickoff is scheduled for 6:30 P.M. (CT) in a game that will air on ABC.