Texas Longhorns Broke Long-Standing Records in Historic Win Over Ohio State

The Texas Longhorns were finally getting another shot to take down the Ohio State Buckeyes as the two programs met for the third time in three seasons, but were yet to win once against the Big 10 member.

Hosting the meeting in Austin, led by a crazy first half that saw no bounces go the way of the Longhorns. It turned around as they came back from a 23-3 deficit for a comeback victory that had everyone speaking on the miracle in Austin.

While the comeback was indeed historic, it was more record-breaking than initially thought, setting NCAA records, personal records for head coach Steve Sarkisian, and snapping a Buckeyes trend that dated as far back as 2011.

Walls and Records Were Broken

Texas Longhorns head coach Steve Sarkisian leaves the field following the NCAA football game against the Ohio State Buckeyes at Darrell K Royal–Texas Memorial Stadium in Austin, Texas on Sept. 12, 2026. Texas won 24-23. | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

The Longhorns needed a signature win, especially in the Manning era who needed to silence the doubters surrounding his time since taking over as the starter. It looked like the win would escape the Longhorns in the first half, but the second half, completely flipped the script, and history.

It marked the biggest comeback in a top-5 vs top-5 game since 1995, shattering the previous record of 17, when Georgia met Oklahoma in the 2018 Rose Bowl. It also representing the biggest lead ever blown by an AP No. 1-ranked team since 1995, which beat out the previous record of 14, set by the Alabama Crimson Tide in the infamous kick-six game.

To put into perspective how slim the odds were, with 2:53 left in the third quarter, still trailing by 20 and needing to drive over half the field to score, ESPN analytics gave the Longhorns just a 1.3 percent chance to win.

The win broke other general histories of the sport as AP No. 1 teams were 197-0 since 2004 when leading by 20 points or more in the fourth quarter. The Buckeyes also had streaks ruined in this loss: they had gone 137-0 when leading by 17+ going into the 4th, and 21-0 in that spot as AP No. 1, and had gone 160-1 after leading by 20+. The only loss was 2011 at Nebraska.

For Sarkisian, it was his biggest career comeback, overtaking the 17-point win at Mississippi State last year. It also marked the biggest fourth quarter comeback since 1995 when they came back 21 points at Oklahoma State in 2007.

The Longhorns needed that win as a program, but it was more than just a miracle in Austin, and the true scope of the historic comeback will be in the record books for the years to come, as will the memory of the win.

Sign up to our free newsletter and follow us on Facebook, X and Instagram for the latest news.

Add us as a preferred source on Google