Texas Longhorns Safety Had Brutal First Half vs. Arkansas

AUSTIN -- Texas Longhorns safety Michael Taaffe is the unquestioned leader of the defense, but he's seen better days than what occurred in the first half against the Arkansas Razorbacks.

Taaffe was on the wrong end of a few highlights against an explosive Arkansas defense, which included a Leonard Fournette-like touchdown run by Razorbacks running back Mike Washington.

Credit to Taaffe for trying to get down and dirty on defense, but getting trucked can often be the result, especially against an offense as productive as Arkansas'. Taaffe finished the first half with a team-high six total tackles, but this wasn't enough to prevent some forgettable plays.

Michael Taaffe on Wrong End of 2 Highlights vs. Arkansas

Texas Longhorns defensive back Michael Taaffe celebrates after the Kentucky Wildcats fail to score during overtime at Kroger Field. | Jordan Prather-Imagn Images

Along with the touchdown run by Washington, Arkansas quarterback Taylen Green also juked-out Taaffe on an impressive 18-yard run.

Taaffe was left on the ground and in the dust as Green showed off his dual-threat ability.

Here's a look at the Washington touchdown run:

TALK TO 'EM MIKE pic.twitter.com/xy83Gm3q9d
— Arkansas Razorback Football (@RazorbackFB) November 22, 2025

It wasn't the best half for Taaffe but he still remains an integral part of the Texas defense. The Longhorns led the Razorbacks 24-20 headed into the locker room.

Taaffe made it clear earlier in the week that the Arkansas offense had some notable talent, headlined by Green.

"Don't look at anything else but the tape," Taaffe said. "What you see on tape is a really dangerous football team, a quarterback that's dual-threat that might be one of the best quarterbacks we've seen all year, and some really good receivers, and then two heck of really good running backs, also really a tight end. So tape shows that they're dangerous, and we know what we have to do."

Taaffe returned to action in the loss to Georgia after undergoing thumb surgery following the win over Kentucky last month.

The secondary had some notable slip-ups against the Bulldogs, something that Taaffe acknowledged a few days after the loss.

"There was a mistake or two that just really hurt us," Taaffe said. "Each of those five plays that resulted in touchdowns, it was just one mistake here, one mistake there, that ultimately turned in touchdowns. And that's what happens when you play really good teams, is they find your mistakes and they make you pay for it. So, you know, I don't think it was a bigger issue than it was just one mistake after the other, and they found that when we made mistake."

Headed into the Arkansas game, Taaffe had posted 58 total tackles (31 solo), one sack and one interception this season.