Key Stats Show How Much Texas Offensive Line Stepped Up vs. Vanderbilt

The Texas Longhorns emerged from their matchup against the Vanderbilt Commodores with a decisive win, and the offensive line demonstrated critical growth.

Nov 1, 2025; Austin, Texas, USA; Texas Longhorns quarterback Arch Manning (16) throws a pass during the first half against the Vanderbilt Commodores at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Scott Wachter-Imagn Images | Scott Wachter-Imagn Images

With the help of a more highly functioning pass offense, the Texas Longhorns claimed a crucial 34-31 victory over the Vanderbilt Commodores on Saturday.

Quarterback Arch Manning completed 25 of 33 passes, finishing with 328 passing yards and three touchdowns.

While this is a huge testament to his individual growth, the performance also indicates that those who line up in front of him made major improvements.

How did the offensive line play against the Commodores?

Dec 21, 2024; Austin, Texas, USA; Texas Longhorns offensive lineman Connor Robertson (62) against the Clemson Tigers during the CFP National playoff first round at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images | Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

The offensive line has undoubtedly contributed to Texas’ offensive shortcomings in several previous battles this season, and its ability to rise to the challenge of facing SEC defenses has been questioned on multiple occasions. 

However, they did a significantly better job of keeping their quarterback off the ground on Saturday at the Darrell K Royal Texas Memorial Stadium, and the statistics prove it.

The Texas OL isn’t perfect, but man, does this starting five combo provide some optimism:

QB Pressures allowed by SEC opponent:

Florida: 36
Oklahoma: 18
Kentucky: 23
Miss State: 26
Vanderbilt: 6

Best performance of the season, and it was light years better than No. 2.

— CJ Vogel (@CJVogel_OTF) November 3, 2025

For the first time this conference season, Manning escaped the game without taking a singular sack, which shows major improvement by the offensive line in and of itself. He took a season high of six sacks in the Longhorns’ SEC opener against the Florida Gators, and he went down five times against the Mississippi State Bulldogs just last week. 

Additionally, the offensive line allowed just six quarterback pressures against the Commodores, a clear best as far as conference season goes. In their first four conference games, they allowed 36, 18, 23 and 26 quarterback hurries, respectively. 

If they can maintain the level of protection that they demonstrated on Saturday throughout their final three regular-season conference matchups, they could find themselves in a much better position offensively.

What changes were made to improve protection?

Oct 25, 2025; Starkville, Mississippi, USA; Texas Longhorns offensive linemen Connor Stroh (79) and Trevor Goosby (74) block Mississippi State Bulldogs defensive linemen Jamil Burroughs (88) during the fourth quarter at Davis Wade Stadium at Scott Field. Mandatory Credit: Petre Thomas-Imagn Images | Petre Thomas-Imagn Images

Ahead of the Vanderbilt matchup, the Longhorns made a tweak that might’ve been the difference-maker in their game. 

Sarkisian and his staff moved senior Cole Hutson to left guard and put junior Connor Robertson at center, which proved to be a smart move for Texas.

Sure, this offensive line isn’t perfect. Room for improvement still exists, but the same could be said for every position group.

This group seems to be stepping up at a critical point in the season, and if they can keep it up, Texas could continue establishing itself as a serious SEC contender throughout these next few weeks.