Five Takeaways From Texas's SEC Debut Against Mississippi State

The Longhorns defeated Mississippi State 35-13 to move to 5-0 on the season and earn their first SEC win.

Texas Longhorns defensive back Malik Muhammad (5) celebrates a defensive stop during the game against Mississippi State at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium in Austin Saturday, Sept. 28, 2024. / Aaron E. Martinez/American-Statesman / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Texas ended Saturday with another win after beating the Mississippi State Bulldogs 35-13 in their first SEC game.

While the score makes it look like Texas dominated, Mississippi State kept it a game starting the second half, but mediocre offense led to their downfall, while Arch Manning and Texas started to find their stride.

There were lots of mental mistakes for the Longhorns throughout the game and Mississippi State dominated the time of possession, but a win is a win, and I doubt Texas can't complain too much about that. Here are the five takeaways from the game:

1. Arch Manning played consistently well.

After seeming to struggle a bit against ULM last week, Arch Manning was on all cylinders today. Despite not knowing if he'll start until the morning of, Manning completed 26 passes on 31 attempts for 324 yards and two touchdowns. Manning also added 33 yards on the ground and a touchdown through six attempts.

Manning looked more grounded this game, not getting too impatient and wanting to sling it downfield every other play. He instead opted for more check-downs and quick passes that would work pretty often.

Once he got his legs moving in the second half, the Bulldogs had no answer for the quarterback, both on the ground and in the air.

With Ewers coming back soon, Arch made sure to go out with a bang. This performance hopefully will stop any doubters from thinking Manning isn't worth the hype because he showed that he belonged Saturday.

2. The offensive line played its worst game.

Flags, flags, and more flags.

Texas had a lot of plays called back due to holding, and had multiple false starts over the game.

Two sacks also tied for the highest allowed for the season. Texas still has a very strong offensive line, but they couldn't ever really get it together Saturday.

These kinds of mistakes will get Texas in trouble in bigger games, luckily, Mississippi State still struggled to take advantage of the holding calls and false starts, but film will be rough for Texas's o-line.

3. Defense found themselves in the second half.

It's crazy to say 13 points is the highest the defense has given up so far this season. They only allowed 6 points in the first half, but Mississippi State put a ton of pressure on them.

Texas struggled with the run game in the first half, the Bulldogs had more yards on the ground than through the air with 150 rushing yards in the game. Mississippi State was able to get consistent short gains, which helped them continually pick up third-and-shorts, keeping them on the field for extended times.

In the second half, it seemed like the defense had a lot more control with the run game, and they didn't let Mississippi State get going with the passing game.

Collin Simmons I feel deserves a lot of recognition in this game. He kept putting pressure on the QB and was a defining presence in the run game.

The defense would've shut down Mississippi State in the second half if it wasn't for one big pass play followed by a QB rush that ended in a touchdown.

Once they settled down, it was another show that was expected out of this defense. A bye week will hopefully provide some help for the run defense.

4. Run game needs to wake up sooner.

Texas opted really not to run it that often at the start of the game, but having negative yards rushing with two minutes left in the first half should never happen against a defense like Mississippi State.

Once the second half hit, Texas hit the ground running, scoring two rushing touchdowns in the second half, including a nice 26-yard rush sneak play with Isaiah Bond.

Jaydon Blue didn't get much going after a four-touchdown performance last week, granted he wasn't as involved. He only rushed for 36 yards off six attempts and a touchdown. He also struggled with keeping the ball, having two fumbles that Mississippi State recovered.

Tre Wisner was the leading rusher on the day with 88 yards off 13 carries. Jerrick Gibson did not get any carries until the third quarter, getting 16 yards on four attempts.

The one-dimensional game in the first half seemed to halt Texas's offense multiple times, it seemed the offense moved a lot more freely in the second half with the running game included.

5. No need to panic on Texas just yet.

There were a ton of mistakes. A lot of flags, a lot of missed tackles. Not to include a questioning move by head coach Steve Sarkisian to take back a field goal to make it two possessions to eventually have a turnover on downs on a 4th and 3.

But fans shouldn't hit the panic button just yet. Texas was not going to put out a lot of tape ahead of a bye week and Oklahoma and Georgia when playing against one of the worst in the conference. The execution was poor for the most part, but there were flashes of a Texas team that deserves the number-one ranking.

The Longhorns still won by multiple touchdowns when it seemed like the game could have swung momentum many times. The team is resilient, and they never got desperate despite how close it was.

Even if you want to panic, the top of the SEC didn't really have a good week. Ole Miss lost to Kentucky at home, and Georgia, at least at the time of writing this, looks like a dumpster fire.

Texas had a great performance compared to them. I believe they will be just fine.

Texas gets to rest up before they head to Dallas to face Oklahoma in the Red River Showdown. The date is set for October 12th, and kickoff will be at 2:30.