‘What Does It Say About Arch Manning,’ ‘Solely on Arch Manning and the Texas Offense’ — Longhorns Face Questions After Loss to Unranked Oklahoma

Unranked Oklahoma beat No. 1 Texas 27-24 on Saturday at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas on Tate Sandell’s 47-yard field goal as time expired. All five of ESPN’s College GameDay pickers had taken the Longhorns that morning.

The Sooners were outgained 382-238 and won anyway, scoring touchdowns on a second-quarter blocked punt and senior defensive back Peyton Bowen’s 42-yard interception return. With the score tied 24-24, sophomore defensive back Courtland Guillory picked off Texas quarterback Arch Manning with 19 seconds left to set up the winning kick.

Oklahoma (3-2) had been 0-4-1 all-time against Texas when the Longhorns were ranked No. 1 in the AP poll.

Oklahoma Defense and Special Teams Topple Texas in Upset

The GameDay panel was Desmond Howard, former Alabama coach Nick Saban, Pat McAfee, Kirk Herbstreit and guest picker Bryce Young, the Carolina Panthers quarterback. Pro Football Network’s College Football Playoff Meter leaned the same way, giving the Longhorns a 78.6% chance to win and Oklahoma 21.4% as of Oct. 10, 2026.

Still, the Sooners’ defense arrived with credentials. It ranked fourth nationally in pass defense and fifth in total defense, and PFN Impact had it second of 138 graded FBS team defenses this season with a DEFi of 96.7, behind only LSU.

Two of Oklahoma’s three touchdowns came with its offense on the sideline. Sophomore defensive lineman Danny Okoye blocked a punt that Dakoda Fields recovered in the end zone to tie it 7-7 early in the second quarter. Texas led 17-7 at halftime, but Bowen’s return put the Sooners ahead 24-17 with just over 10 minutes left.

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Oklahoma coach Brent Venables, whose defense held Texas to 3-of-14 on third down, said on ABC after the game that his team isn’t that bad.

“Is this Brent Venables’ masterpiece?” Tom Fornelli of CBS Sports wrote on X.

The winning drive started in the secondary. Guillory intercepted Manning, who was throwing under pressure, and Oklahoma took over at its own 39 before quarterback John Mateer hit receiver Isaiah Sategna III for gains of 13 and 20 yards. That set up Sandell, who had missed from 52 yards in the second quarter and made a 53-yarder in the third.

“The Oklahoma defense and special teams best Texas and Arch Manning today,” one fan wrote.

Sarkisian Explains 4th & 2 Kick and Texas Mistakes

With the score tied 24-24 and about two minutes left, the Longhorns faced fourth-and-2 at the Oklahoma 35, and coach Steve Sarkisian sent out senior kicker Gianni Spetic, whose try from beyond 50 yards drifted wide right. The Texas defense forced a three-and-out to get the ball back with 54 seconds left.

Sarkisian said after the game that he has a lot of faith in his kicker and that he went back and forth on whether to go for it or kick.

“What does it say about Arch Manning and this Texas offense that Steve Sarkisian elected to go for a 50+ yard field goal on 4th & 2?” another fan wrote.

Texas’ offense entered with a 71.7 Offense Impact grade from PFN Impact this season, tied for 85th of 138 graded FBS team offenses, and it punted on each of its first four possessions of the second half Saturday.

Manning still threw touchdown passes of 41 yards to Cam Coleman, 34 to Ryan Wingo and 15 to freshman Jermaine Bishop Jr., three against a defense that had allowed one passing touchdown through four games. Both of his interceptions led to Oklahoma points. He entered Saturday with a PFN Impact QBi of 79.1 this season, 55th of 165 graded and qualified FBS quarterbacks.

Sarkisian said Texas gave up a blocked punt for a touchdown, threw an interception for a touchdown, committed penalties and gave Oklahoma chances to hang around, and the Sooners took advantage. A pass interference call and a roughing-the-passer penalty that wiped out a Texas interception helped set up running back Lloyd Avant’s 2-yard touchdown run that tied it 17-17.

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“This game is solely on Arch Manning and the Texas offense,” another fan wrote, pointing to a Texas defense that held Oklahoma to 238 total yards and 2-of-13 on third down.

Looking Ahead in Week 7 to Florida

Texas (4-1) hosts Florida in Austin on October 17 in Week 7. PFN’s College Football Playoff Meter, as of October 10, 2026, had given the Longhorns a 92.9% chance to make the playoff and projected 84.5% even with a loss to Oklahoma. With the loss, however, their chance of reaching the SEC title game has dropped from 40.7% to 21.3%.

Oklahoma (3-2) hosts Kentucky in Norman the same day. In those projections, PFN’s College Football Playoff Meter had put the Sooners’ playoff chances at 0.8%, rising to 3.0% with a win over Texas. Crazier things have happened.

This article originally appeared on Pro Football Network.