Texas Needs to Stop Wasting Its Best Offensive Starts

Texas has not needed long to show its offensive potential in either of its last two losses. Against Oklahoma, Arch Manning connected with Cam Coleman for a 41-yard touchdown on the opening play. Against Florida, Raleek Brown capped a seven-play, 75-yard drive with a 31-yard rushing touchdown.

Both starts gave the Longhorns early momentum, and both games were winnable deep into the fourth quarter. Yet Texas lost 27-24 each time, in part because its offense struggled to maintain the rhythm it established early.

The play-by-play reveals a more specific concern than simply starting fast and finishing poorly. Texas can move the ball when its first-down calls create favorable matchups, but when those opportunities disappear, negative plays and failed conversions repeatedly interrupt the offense.

Texas Needs an Answer When the Opening Script Runs Out

Texas Longhorns wide receiver Cam Coleman. | Scott Wachter-Imagn Images IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The Florida game offers the clearest example of how quickly Texas' early efficiency began to fade. After Brown's opening touchdown, the Longhorns moved 60 yards on eight plays during their next possession, but settled for a field goal. The drive appeared promising until a third-and-three rush by Hollywood Smothers lost four yards, pushing Texas out of a manageable situation and forcing Gianni Spetic to kick from 38 yards.

Texas' next offensive possession was the first to end without points. Starting at its own 5-yard line, the Longhorns opened with consecutive gains of seven and six yards from Smothers. But Raleek Brown managed just four yards on the next carry, followed by two more on second down. Manning's third-down pass fell incomplete, and Texas punted after gaining only 19 yards.

The problem was not that Florida suddenly shut down every aspect of the offense. Texas had already shown it could run the ball and complete short passes. Instead, the offense failed to turn those modest gains into another first down, allowing one incomplete pass to end the drive.

Against Oklahoma, the pattern took longer to emerge. Texas scored on its opening play, then added a 34-yard touchdown pass to Ryan Wingo and a field goal before halftime. The Longhorns went to the locker room leading 17-7, having generated 382 total yards by the end of the game.

But Texas' first possession after halftime stalled after an initial screen pass to Wingo. The drive ended in a punt, and Oklahoma responded with a field goal to cut the deficit to seven. Texas went three-and-out on its next possession, then failed to convert a third-and-one on another drive. That sequence left the Sooners with favorable field position and helped them regain control.

The difference between the opening periods and those stalled possessions was not simply play-calling. Texas had fewer successful early-down plays, faced more difficult conversion situations and struggled to recover when a play failed. Against Florida, a lost yard on third down turned a promising drive into a field goal. Against Oklahoma, a failed short-yardage conversion helped shift momentum.

Steve Sarkisian needs to prepare for that transition. The opening script can establish a rhythm, but the offense must have reliable answers when defenses adjust. More varied early-down runs, quick throws and manageable third-down situations can help Texas avoid becoming dependent on explosive plays.

The Longhorns have already proved they can start games well. Their next challenge is making sure a stalled possession does not become the beginning of a larger offensive slump. Against Ole Miss, sustaining that rhythm could matter just as much as finding it in the first place.

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