The Good, Great and Grand of Texas’ Week 4 Performance

Dominant. Lopsided. Trouble-free. Whatever you want to call it, the Texas Longhorns handled business on Saturday night in Austin.

Usually, this postgame article points out the good, bad and ugly of Texas’ outing. But Week 4’s edition will look different, after the Longhorns put together, far and away, their best all-around showing of the 2025 season.

Therefore, here's the good, great and grand of the Longhorns' 55-0 win over the Sam Houston Bearkats.

Good -- a stifling defense

A shutout speaks for itself.

25 Texas Longhorns recorded a tackle on Saturday night. The Bearkats totaled just 50 yards in the first half, ultimately gaining only 113. The Sam Houston offense moved the sticks for the first time with under two minutes remaining in the second quarter. In 26 minutes of possession, the away team acquired seven first downs.

Texas's defensive line wreaked havoc. The Longhorns earned five sacks and 10 tackles for loss. The run defense allowed just one yard per carry across 26 attempts.

Sam Houston's offense never sniffed the redzone. It was Texas defensive demolition at its finest.

“We wanted [the shutout] so bad," defensive back Michael Taaffe said postgame. "Especially in DKR. The fans deserved it. Our D-line deserved it. They’ve been stopping the run all season. It’s been awesome to play behind. And when you don’t have a guard or a center that’s double teaming, climb up to you because they’ve got to worry about the D-tackles. It makes your job so much easier. So happy for those guys.”

Great -- finally a fast start

Sep 20, 2025; Austin, Texas, USA; Texas Longhorns running back Christian Clark (6) runs for yards past Sam Houston Bearkats defensive lineman Darius Jackson (90) during the first half at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Scott Wachter-Imagn Images | Scott Wachter-Imagn Images

Texas's opening drive touchdown on Saturday night was its first since the College Football Playoff quarterfinal against Arizona State, per Horns247's Eric Henry.

After troubling starts in their first three games of the 2025 season, the Longhorns came out firing against Sam Houston, stringing together back-to-back touchdown drives in which Texas used over nine minutes of clock, ran 21 plays and collected the needed 136 yards.

The fast start led into the Longhorns scoring points on nine consecutive drives. After only having three 60+ yard-touchdown drives through three games, Texas put together SIX touchdown drives of 60 or more yards against the Bearkats.

The explosivity was there for the Longhorns at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium. And at the forefront of their 600-yard offensive performance was their quarterback.

Grand -- the Arch Manning show

Against the Bearkats, Manning returned mechanically and confidence-wise. The swagger was there, the accuracy was there. It seems that he's settled in.

After his opening pass of the ballgame was blocked, Manning threw just two more incompletions. He went 18 of 21 for 309 yards with three passing touchdowns, also adding two touchdowns through his legs. According to John Bianco, Texas's senior associate athletics director, Manning is the fourth Longhorn quarterback this century to score multiple passing and rushing touchdowns in the same game.

His wide receiver trio of Ryan Wingo, DeAndre Moore Jr. and Parker Livingstone combined for 12 receptions and 206 yards, Manning's connections with the three clearly becoming cleaner in-game.

Specifically, Manning-to-Wingo seemed to really find its footing on Saturday night. Wingo reached paydirt twice, including on a 53-yard bomb. The two connected for Wingo's first touchdown of the year last week, building off that outing in this one:

"For sure, [last week] gave me a lot of confidence," Wingo said postgame. "When [Arch Manning] told me he was going to try to get me the ball more, I knew I had to do my part: catch it, make plays, and hold up my end. So I just came out locked in, ready to show I could do it.”

When looking at Manning's performance, you can say what you want about the competition. But what is important to take away is the betterment in his reads, placement an,d timing. In all three facets, Manning looked much more polished and assertive than he has at any time so far this season. He eased into the game, and the playbook opened up for him as a result.

Now, Manning and company have a bye week to focus on translating Week 4's showing into Southeastern Conference competition. The Longhorns head to Gainesville to take on the Florida Gators on Oct. 4.