The No. 1 Texas Longhorns just survived their first massive road test on Saturday, squeezing out a 20-17 win against No. 14 Tennessee in Knoxville. This wasn’t just any nail-biter, though. Head coach Steve Sarkisian had a direct, fiery message after the final whistle, aimed squarely at whoever dared to label his team “soft” leading up to kickoff.
An Anonymous Jab Ignites the Fire
Before the game even kicked off, an anonymous coach who had already played Texas this season spilled some serious tea to The Athletic’s Bruce Feldman. Their take? The Longhorns are “soft everywhere,” lacking a real “edge.” This unnamed coach specifically said, “They’ve got everything. They look the part. They’re fast. They can bend. But they just don’t have an edge to ’em. They’re soft everywhere.” Ouch. It’s pretty clear someone made sure Sark heard that loud and clear before his team stepped onto the field.
The Longhorns Answered on the Field
Sark wasn’t just talking smack in the postgame presser. He backed it up with what happened on the field. The game itself saw several Tennessee players get banged up, with Vol quarterback Faizon Brandon leaving early in the first second after taking a big hit. He went into the medical tent with trainers for a series, appearing to suffer a shoulder injury, but he did return and looked okay the rest of the game. Vol defensive lineman Xavier Gilliam also left with an injury. Sarkisian pointed to all this, saying, “I do think we need to get healthy. We were a little banged up coming out of the game. And I think they were banged up too. I think they had eight guys get carted off, so I’m not sure who wrote the article today and what coach said, we weren’t a physical football team , they might want to write another article.” The Longhorn defense put on a show, too, racking up an incredible 10 sacks. Collin Simmons was an absolute force, leading the charge with five sacks, which ties a Texas record for the most sacks in a single game. “Soft” just doesn’t scream “10 sacks,” does it?
Now, Texas gets a much-needed bye week to recover and reload. After that, it’s straight into one of the biggest games of their season: the Red River Rivalry against the Oklahoma Sooners on October 11. If this gritty road win and Sarkisian’s postgame fire showed us anything, it’s that this Texas team isn’t afraid to get physical and shut down the doubters. Bring on Oklahoma!
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by The Sporting News.
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