Trevor Goosby Praises Texas Longhorns Offensive Line's Bounce Back Performance

The Texas Longhorns got the exact performance they were looking for against the No. 6 Oklahoma Sooners on Saturday. Texas walked into the Red River Rivalry limping after stubbing its toe last week against the Florida Gators; however, this time out, the Longhorns performed like people expected.

Even with a slow start in the first half, Texas walked out of the locker room looking like a completely different football team. Credit for the victory will obviously go to quarterback Arch Manning, who had his game in a big-time matchup, and the Longhorn defense, which was stifling, holding the Sooners to just six points and a second-half shutout.

However, a unit that should also receive plenty of credit for the Longhorns' rivalry victory is the offensive line, especially after last week's poor performance, where the protection failed time and time again. As Texas surrendered six sacks, 35 quarterback pressures, and 10 quarterback hits a week ago in Gainesville.

Leader of the Offensive Line Comments on Units' Performance

Texas Longhorns quarterback Arch Manning (16) looks to throw as Oklahoma Sooners linebacker Kip Lewis (10) defends during the first quarter at the Cotton Bowl. | Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images

The Texas offensive line put together its most complete performance against Oklahoma, as the protection held up throughout the afternoon, with Manning being sacked just once against the Sooner defensive line, which entered the game with 21 sacks. Without being pressured on every drop back, Manning was able to complete 21 of his 27 pass attempts for 166 yards and a touchdown.

The Longhorns' offense was also able to effectively run the ball, essentially for the first time all season, as the offensive line got a real push against the Sooners' defensive front. Texas finished with 138 yards on the ground, with someone other than Manning being the leading rusher, with running back Quintrevion Wisner leading the team with 94 yards on 22 carries.

Left tackle Trevor Goosby spoke postgame about the offensive line's much better showing against the Sooners, emphasizing that the unit needed to make a big response to quiet any doubt by focusing on themselves.

“I think for us it was all about the response," Goosby said. "I think all week we really leveled up and it really showed on the field today. Blocking out the noise and realizing, hey, we just have to go out and do what we know we have to do.”

Goosby and the Longhorns' offensive line understood the challenge the Sooners' defensive line brought to the table as Oklahoma entered the game as one of the best complete defenses in all of college football defense atop the national leaderboards in nearly every statistic. The Sooners rank second in scoring defense, fifth in rushing defense, second in tackles for loss, tied for second in sacks and allowed two rushing touchdowns through five games.

Clearly, the Longhorns' offensive line was up for the challenge, as Goosby mentioned the stoutness of the Oklahoma defensive line and how the challenge was another eager task that Texas was looking forward to taking on.

"We were really looking forward to it," Goosby said. "Obviously, they’re an amazing defensive line, and coming off last week, it was really a real challenge for us. It was a real opportunity for us to go show what we are capable of."