Man, talk about a freefall! Texas, once the undisputed No. 1, just coughed up another brutal loss, falling 27-24 to unranked Florida. This wasn’t just any loss either, it was their second consecutive embarrassing defeat, proving that whatever Steve Sarkisian’s got cooking down in Austin, it is just not working.
Sark’s Lamborghini Just Hit A Ditch, Hard
This Florida loss stings like a full contact drill. The Gators were unranked, reeling from two straight losses by over 20 points, and playing their *backup quarterback*, for crying out loud. Yet, Texas, with its shiny, expensive roster and one of the highest-paid coaches in the game, managed to blow a commanding 17-3 first-half lead. Seventeen to three! Only to watch Florida claw its way back and capitalize on an offense that just can’t get out of its own way. This makes Texas the first top-10 team since 2003 to blow a double-digit lead in consecutive weeks to unranked opponents. That is absolutely unacceptable. Sarkisian was handed the keys to a Lamborghini this season, and right now, he’s driven it straight into a ditch. The play-calling? Not good enough. The quarterback play? Not good enough. Even the “much-ballyhooed” roster construction isn’t good enough. For all that investment, the return is pretty pathetic right now.
Arch Manning’s Future Looks More Bench Than No. 1 Pick
A huge part of this mess has to be Arch Manning. Before the season, some folks were talking No. 1 overall NFL Draft pick, but right now, he looks closer to getting benched. Sure, he can still pull off a “wow” play when everything is stacked against him, but his confidence is clearly rattled, and his inconsistent play is actively holding back an offense that should be explosive with guys like Ryan Wingo, Cam Coleman, and Hollywood Smothers. This ain’t the guy who’s going to lead Texas to that preseason national championship goal. An SEC head coach didn’t mince words, saying, “Arch, you don’t know what you’re going to get. Whether it’s good Arch or Dazed and Confused Arch.” After the game, a salty Sarkisian admitted they’re evaluating *everything*, including the quarterback position. “We’re going to evaluate everything,” Sarkisian said. “I don’t know how many times I need to say it. We’re going to evaluate everything from an offensive perspective. Part of that is play-calling.” When a coach has to repeat that, you know things are truly sideways.
Texas is now sitting at a disappointing 4-2, and the road ahead is brutal. They’ve got No. 9 Ole Miss and No. 16 Mississippi State coming up, then trips to No. 13 Missouri and No. 22 LSU. After this latest stumble, CBS Sports’ projections have their playoff odds plummeting to a shaky 43 percent. Missing the 12-team playoff for a second straight season, with all the cash and hype thrown at this program, would be an absolute disaster for Sarkisian and the Longhorns. They’ve got to find answers, and fast, if they want to salvage anything from this season.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by CBS Sports.
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