How The Texas Longhorns Position Groups Graded Out vs. Georgia

The Texas Longhorns will now be spiraling heading down the final weeks of the season. With Texas suffering its third loss of the season in a disappointing showing in Athens, losing handily to the No. 5 Georgia Bulldogs 35-10 on Saturday night, putting its postseason chances likely out of the picture.

Having to course-correct and reclaim any chance at the College Football Playoff, the Longhorns will return home to take on one of two rivalry matchups to end the season, taking on the struggling 2-8 Arkansas Razorbacks on Nov. 22 from Darrell K. Royal Stadium.

Taking a closer look at the Longhorns after their ugly showing on the road, here are this week's position group grades.

Grading the Position Groups

Quarterback: A-

To place any of the blame for the loss on the shoulders of quarterback Arch Manning would be a gross overstatement. With the signal caller battling throughout the night in Athens, he finished the game completing 27 of his 43 pass attempts for 251 yards, a touchdown, and an interception.

While Manning's stat line might not blow anyone away and might garner some blame from the box score watchers, the quarterback dealt with crucial drops by his pass catchers, with one drive stalling after three straight drops by three different receivers. And after Manning brought the Longhorns within one score after a touchdown pass to Ryan Wingo to make the game 14-10, Manning didn't get to touch the football again until the score was 28-10.

Running Back: B-

When the leading running back only gets nine carries and is not allowed to get into a rhythm, it's tricky to evaluate the Longhorns' running game against the Bulldogs. As Texas' leading rusher, running back Quintrevion Wisner finished the game with nine carries for 37 yards, averaging over four yards per carry.

The Longhorns shied away from the ground game after moving the ball well on the opening drive, with 33 rushing yards, to somehow end the game with a combined 23 rushing yards.

Pass-Catchers: C+

Texas Longhorns wide receiver Ryan Wingo runs the ball against Georgia Bulldogs linebacker Quintavius Johnson in the first half at Sanford Stadium. | Dale Zanine-Imagn Images

It was a rough start for the Longhorns' pass catchers on Saturday, as they ended the first half with four crucial drops, with two coming from the number one option in Ryan Wingo. However, Wingo was able to make up for his early game woes in the second half, ending the game with nine receptions for 62 yards and the lone Longhorn touchdown in the game.

Emmett Mosley V also gave Texas life in the first half and finished the game with three catches for 66 yards.

Offensive Line: B-

The offensive line was able to keep its shape for most of the ballgame, even though it surrendered three sacks to a Georgia defense that was dead last in the SEC in sacks and was leaky when run blocking, with the Bulldogs recording seven tackles-for-loss.

However, it was not the worst performance seen from the unit this season, as the offensive line was able to give enough time for Manning to operate the offense.

The Defense: C

The Longhorns' defense has usually been the strongest side of the ball for Texas throughout the seasons; however, the performance they turned in on Saturday night was far from their usual selves.

The Georgia offense managed to gain 357 yards of total offense, with lots of mistakes and miscommunications in the secondary as Bulldogs quarterback Gunner Stockton completed 24 of his 29 pass attempts for an impressive 82 percent completion percentage, averaging nearly eight yards a completion, tossing for four touchdowns and just a single interception.

Special Teams: D

Special teams has influenced many of the Longhorns' games this year with game-changing plays against Oklahoma, Kentucky, and Mississippi State; however, against Georgia, special teams actively hurt the Longhorns.

While the specialists in kicker Mason Shipley, punter Jack Bouwmeester, and return man Ryan Niblett were sure-handed as usual, it was the Longhorns' return coverage, penalties, and a fourth-quarter breakdown that hurt the burnt orange.

As the Bulldogs' return specialist, Zachariah Branch returned three punts for a total of 30 yards, and for kickoffs, he recorded two returns for 63 yards and a long of 44, giving the Bulldogs the spark before the offense headed out on the field.

A holding call nullified a huge 59-yard kick return by Niblett, and putting the final nail in the coffin was a surprise onside kick by the Bulldogs, which they recovered and which took all the life out of the Longhorns.