Longhorns & Sarkisian Make History in 34-24 Win Over Alabama
The Texas Longhorns got revenge on the Alabama Crimson Tide inside Bryant-Denny Stadium, as they beat the No. 3 ranked team in the country 34-24 in what could go down as one of the games of the year. Not only is the win historic for the program itself, but it also put many individuals in the record books.
After the first game between these two came down to the wire as the Tide pulled out the win in Austin last season following starting quarterback Quinn Ewers' shoulder injury early in the first half, left fans feeling that if it wasn't for the injury, the Longhorns could've won can now feel justified, as the redshirt sophomore put on a Heisman Trophy-worthy performance against the Tide.
According to ESPN, Ewers became the first non-SEC quarterback to throw for more than 250 yards and two touchdowns against a Nick Saban-coached Alabama team. Ewers completed 24 of his 38 passes for 349 yards and three touchdowns. Two of those scores came in the fourth quarter, as the redshirt sophomore found Adonai Mitchell on both occasions.
© Aaron E. Martinez, USA TODAY
Not only that, but Ewers becomes the first non-conference quarterback to notch a win against Alabama in the regular season since Kinsmon Lancaster, who did it back in 2007 when Louisiana Monroe beat the Tide 21-14 in Saban's first season.
Yet, Ewers wasn't the only one to make history, as the win for the Longhorns snaps Alabama's 57-game winning streak in non-conference games, which dates back to their last loss to the Warhawks in 2007, along with a 43 non-conference game home-winning streak.
Additionally, coach Steve Sarkisian becomes just the third former Saban assistant coach to get a head-to-head win against his former boss. The third-year Longhorns coach joins Texas A&M's Jimbo Fisher and Georgia's Kirby Smart as the only former assistants to accomplish that feature.
It was a historic night for Texas on many fronts, individually and collectively, as the win over Alabama is the first win versus a top-three ranked opponent since the Longhorns knocked off Oklahoma back in 2008.
Yet, even after the big win on the road against Alabama, Texas still has more work to do as they look to check off the rest of their season goals.