Longhorns dominate Sam Houston State 55-0 in final nonconference game

AUSTIN (KXAN) — No. 8 Texas did what it needed to do Saturday night, clobbering Sam Houston State 55-0 at DKR-Texas Memorial Stadium ahead of a bye week before Southeastern Conference play begins in October.

The Longhorns dominated in every facet, outgaining the Bearkats 607-111, including 343-86 in the air. Texas quarterback Arch Manning accounted for five touchdowns, 3 passing and 2 rushing, completing 18 of 21 passes for 309 yards. It was the performance he needed, not necessarily from a numbers standpoint, but more of a confidence boost after some uneven performances heading into a tough SEC slate.

“There’s a lot more personality in there than sometimes everyone gets to see,” Longhorns head coach Steve Sarkisian said of Manning. “I always feel like he’s at his best when his emotion comes out, and I think there was a lot built up for last week that he needed to get out. The guys feed off of that. When he plays loose and free, that’s the best version of Arch.”

Sarkisian said the week of practice for Manning was perhaps more important than Saturday’s result.

“The build-up to the game was reminiscent of the way he practiced,” Sarkisian said. “That’s the goal, taking practice to the game when you practice well, and have some success.”

Texas ran for 264 yards with its top two running backs, CJ Baxter and Quintrevion Wisner, who were out with injuries. Christian Clark led the way with 62 yards on 13 carries with a touchdown, and Jerrick Gibson gained 53 yards on 11 carries, also scoring a touchdown.

Sarkisian expects both Baxter and Wisner to be available for the SEC opener.

DeAndre Moore returned from an injury to grab five passes for 79 yards, but the night catching the ball belonged to Ryan Wingo. He caught four passes for 93 yards, including a pair of touchdowns from Manning. Wingo hauled in scoring passes of 53 and 13 yards in the third quarter. Tight end Jordan Washington scored his first touchdown on a 32-yard pass in the second quarter.

Texas was 7-for-7 in the red zone and averaged 8.8 yards per play. Given the Bearkats’ defensive struggles this season, it might seem like an easy thing to do, but being able to execute on offense to achieve that type of dominance was something Sarkisian needed to see.

“We’re hitting our stride heading into a bye,” Sarkisian said. “We played together and we were well-connected tonight.”

Texas recorded five sacks on Sam Houston quarterback Hunter Watson, who was running for his life the entire game. Watson completed 13 of 25 passes for 86 yards with an interception and rushed for 32 yards on 15 carries. The Longhorns held the Bearkats to 27 rushing yards and had 10 tackles for loss.

Jelani McDonald pulled down his second interception of the season, and he chipped in a pair of tackles with one for a loss. Sarkisian said he “squeezes every ounce out of his lemon every day.”

“He has all this physical ability, but now he’s tapping into the mental side,” Sarkisian said. “He’s a real leader on our team, and his playmaking ability is elite.”

Sarkisian’s son, Brady, a junior linebacker, recorded the first tackle of his career. He helped drop Bearkats running back Shane Porter in the backfield for a 5-yard loss with 0:37 left in the game. Sarkisian said that was “a cool dad moment.”

“For him to get a TFL was awesome,” he said. “He got his block knocked off pretty good on a crackback block earlier in the game, but getting that play was a cool moment, and his teammates got to celebrate it with him.”

Texas (3-1) has two weeks to prepare for its SEC opener Oct. 4 against the Florida Gators in Gainesville.