Texas takes the No. 1 ranking into its SEC debut at home against Mississippi State

Updated Sep. 26, 2024 6:10 a.m. ET

Associated Press

Texas is finally ready to play SEC football.

Three years after announcing its move from the Big 12 to the Southeastern Conference, the No. 1 Longhorns open their first league schedule Saturday at home against Mississippi State.

“It's here,” senior defensive back Jahdae Barron said. “It's going to be amazing.”

Steve Sarkisian was just about to start his first season as Texas coach when the deal was struck and the move itself was still years away. The original plan had Texas and Oklahoma joining the SEC in 2025. Their entry got bumped up a year through an agreement with the Big 12, and Oklahoma's SEC debut last week was a 25-15 loss to No. 5 Tennessee.

“I didn't know when I took the job that's what were were going to do,” Sarkisian said. “If you looked at the history of the College Football Playoff, the SEC is competing or winning the national championship. The thought was we had to build a roster and a team that could beat the best in the SEC.”

A trip into SEC territory the second week of the 2021 season was dismal. Texas was dismantled by old and future rival Arkansas. The Longhorns finished 5-7 that season, raising doubts whether a program that had been underachieving for more than a decade would ever be “SEC ready."

The Longhorns answered that in 2023. The Longhorns beat Alabama on the road, won the Big 12 championship and made the College Football Playoff for the first time.

Texas started this season ranked No. 3, smashed defending national champion Michigan on the road in week two, then leap-frogged undefeated Georgia to No. 1. It didn't even matter who was playing quarterback: starter Quinn Ewers was injured against UTSA and Texas plugged in hotshot freshman Arch Manning.

Nice to meet you, SEC.

“You know this is the baby NFL," Texas wide receiver Johntay Cook said of the league. "That’s what they call it.”

Mississippi State is walking into a rough welcome party. The Bulldogs have lost three in a row and face the Longhorns with freshman Michael Van Buren starting at quarterback after starter Blake Shapen was lost for the season with a shoulder injury.

First-year Bulldogs coach Jeff Lebby summed up the situation as a big chance for the Bulldogs to shock the country.

“(Texas) is a football team playing as good as anybody in the country," Lebby said. “What an unbelievable opportunity for us to see how we’re gonna respond.”

Texas quarterbacks

Ewers or Manning?

Ewers returned to practice after missing a game and a half with an abdominal strain, but Sarkisian called him questionable to play depending on how he progresses this week. Manning won his first career start last week and has passed for eight touchdowns and run for two more. Sarkisian has said Ewers is the starter when healthy enough to return.

Rough road

What a time for Van Buren to make his first college start. On the road. Against the No. 1 team. In front from 100,000 screaming fans. Lebby wants his talented but inexperienced freshman not to get overwhelmed by the moment.

“He can keep things alive with his feet, he can go make the throws we need him to make, but the experience piece of it is what matters,” Lebby said. “For Mike, it’s about focusing really small, taking great care of the football.”

Texas defense

The Longhorns' gunslinging quarterbacks have snatched all the attention, but the defense has smothered its first four opponents. Texas has allowed just two touchdowns and 22 total points, ranks No. 1 in scoring defense and No. 5 in total defense. Its seven interceptions are tops in the SEC. Texas will test Mississippi State's 48-game scoring streak.

Longhorn linebackers

Anthony Hill Jr. and Liona Lefau play the same position and have become the Longhorns’ all-around defensive playmakers. Hill is Texas’ leading tackler and has two sacks and an interception. Lefau has two sacks and recorded a safety.

“Guys aren’t counting their reps, they’re making their reps count,” Sarkisian said. “I think that we’ve got a team full of guys that are selfless.”

Run game

Texas running back Jaydon Blue returned from an ankle injury to rush for 124 yards and score four touchdowns last week against Louisiana-Monroe. He faces a Mississippi State defense that gave up 262 yards to Arizona State's Cam Skattebo in week two. The Bulldogs have found some success on the ground. They rushed for 240 yards in last week's loss to Florida.

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