What We Learned: Adonai Mitchell's Career-Game Leads Texas Longhorns 33-30 Win vs. Kansas State
The Texas Longhorns survived a late scare from the No. 23 ranked Kansas State Wildcats, who overcame a 17-0 deficit to take the game to overtime.
It was another case of a second-half stall from the Longhorns offense as they were outscored by the Wildcats 23-13, which helped Kansas State force overtime. However, even with the late momentum on the Wildcats side, the Longhorns were able to secure the 33-30 win.
So, with the Longhorns advancing to 8-1 on the season, we empty the notebook from the win.
A Budding Connection?
Nov 4, 2023; Austin, Texas, USA; Texas Longhorns wide receiver Adonai Mitchell (5) reacts after making a catch during the second half against the Kansas State Wildcats at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium.
Scott Wachter-USA TODAY Sports
Through two starts, it has become increasingly clear that Maalik Murphy's arm is as advertised. The redshirt freshman signal-caller showed off his cannon-like arm in the blowout win over the Wildcats with a pair of big-time throws to Adonai Mitchell.
After catching the first touchdown of Murphy's career a week ago, Mitchell got the Longhorns on the board first versus the Wildcats, reeling in a 37-yard pass. Then, on the next drive, the pairing would connect again for a 47-yard completion.
The transfer from Georgia has quickly become a favorite target of Murphy as they continued to build a rapport in the win, as Mitchell finished with 149 yards and a touchdown on eight receptions.
Baxter's Breakout
What's better than having a good running back? Having two good backs is always better, which is exactly what the Longhorns had versus the Wildcats.
After a strong start to the season for Jonathon Brooks, who surpassed 1,000 yards rushing midway through Saturday's contest, he wasn't the only star of the show, thanks to the emergence of C.J. Baxter.
After the true freshman scored the game-winning touchdown two weeks ago against Houston, he put together a complete performance versus the Wildcats as he totaled 90 yards and a touchdown on 10 carries. Baxter even recorded the longest play of his career on a fourth-down run that he took 54 yards for a score.
Second-Half Slump
While the Longhorns' passing game has maintained its explosiveness with Quinn Ewers out with injury, they've struggled for consistency. Murphy started strong for the Longhorns in the first half, completing 12 of his 21 passes for 175 yards and a touchdown with just one interception. However, in the second half, the Texas offense seemed to have lost its rhythm.
Murphy completed seven of his 16 passes in the second half as he threw another interception, while the Longhorns were outscored 23-13 in the final two quarters of the second-half.
The struggles for a consistent passing game hurt a Texas offense that seemed fairly one-dimensional as they relied heavily on its ground game.
