Longhorns Notebook: No. 15 Texas Beats Illinois 15-6, Sweeps Las Vegas Classic

Spirits are high in Austin following the No. 15 Texas Longhorns (9-1) putting on a show during their three games in the Las Vegas Classic over the weekend. Entering the weekend they were riding a six-game winning streak and will head home having pushed it to nine straight.

After a gritty win over Washington on Friday and an easier victory over Texas Tech on Saturday, the Longhorns completely overwhelmed the Illinois Fighting Illini (6-4) on Sunday. They trailed 6-1 entering the bottom of the fourth and proceeded to score 14 unanswered runs en route to a 15-6 blowout win.

Texas Longhorns first baseman Kimble Schuessler (10) catches the ball as UIW Cardinals infielder Thomas Lyssy (12) dives back to the base in the sixth inning as the Texas Longhorns take on the University of Incarnate Word Cardinals at UFCU Disch-Falk Field in Austin, Feb. 25, 2025. | Sara Diggins/American-Statesman / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Now, here are three key takeaways from the Longhorns 15-6 rout of the Fighting Illini.

Crooked numbers galore

Following the Longhorns' sweep of Dartmouth last weekend some concerns were raised about the offense's potential to produce runs at a consistent clip. While those worries were unfounded, they were completely put to bed following Texas' run through the field in Las Vegas.

They scored 10 runs in their first two wins and 15 in the weekend finale, with all three games featuring an inning that saw Texas plate seven-plus runs. Scoring 10 runs or more every game is undoubtedly unsustainable, but the Longhorns have shown that if you're not careful they can flip a game on its head in the blink of an eye.

Max Grubbs impresses again

Grubbs held down the fort for the Longhorns on Friday night, slamming the door shut on Washington's late-game rally and recording the save in the 10-9 win. On Sunday, though, he was asked to come in during the top of the fourth.

From there he was able to put the halt on the Illinois offense during his time on the mound. The right-hander delivered a strong outing coming out of the bullpen, providing 4.1 innings and allowing the bats to do their job to put up a ton of runs.

Third starter needed

Kade Bing took the mound to start this one for Texas and appeared to be putting together a second consecutive solid start. However, he fell apart in the fourth inning and ultimately only gave the Longhorns 3.2 innings of work with three of his four runs being earned.

Moving forward, don't be surprised if Jim Schlossnagle and Max Weiner make a change to the third arm in the starting rotation. One name to keep an eye on is Dylan Volantis, who recorded a three-out save in the win over Texas Tech.

There is undeniable potential for Bing on the mound, but with conference play looming the best decision could be to allow him to work his way back into the rotation.

What's next for Texas?

The Longhorns are back in action on Tuesday evening as they kick off another five-game homestand against the Texas A&M Corpus Christi Islanders (6-6) from UFCU Disch-Falk Field at 6:30 p.m. CT.

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