3-2-1: No. 3 Texas dominates No. 10 Michigan in every aspect in the Wolverines' own Big House
ANN ARBOR — The Texas Longhorns have never played in front of a crowd as large as 111,170. A significant number of those in Michigan Stadium were hoping that Steve Sarkisian’s No. 3 Texas team would falter in the home of the defending national champions, No. 10 Michigan.
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The Longhorns did not falter. Instead, they excelled in nearly every aspect of the game during a 31-13 win.
Here are three plays, two players, and one moment that defined the game.
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Three Plays
Play 1
The Longhorns and Wolverines failed to score on their opening drives, and Texas returned to the field for its second drive. Quinn Ewers led the Longhorns just outside the red zone and netted a short gain on first down.
On the next play, Michigan dropped seven defenders but as the first half would show, Wink Martindale‘s defense was simply dropping to spots. There wasn’t as much identification as movement by Wolverine defenders.
Ewers stepped up in the pocket and those players defending space looked to defend a new space. They completely forgot about Gunnar Helm running up the middle of the field and into the end zone.
Helm had a massive day for the Longhorns, catching seven passes for 98 yards and his score. He showed maturity, elusiveness, and tackle breaking ability the Longhorns felt like they had last year in Ja’Tavion Sanders. They might just have it again.
Play 2
Andrew Mukuba was taken out of the starting lineup today for Texas for Derek Williams, likely a nod to Williams’ athleticism and tackling ability. Not to say that Mukuba lacks in that area, but Williams strengths on the field more often made more sense for the Texas defense.
So what did Mukuba do in his opportunities?
Three tackles, two pass breakups, and an important interception that led to the field goal that made it 17-3 Texas.
Play 3
Look familiar? Maybe Steve Sarkisian grabbed this from Andy Reid after watching his former WR1 play on Thursday night and thought it was a good idea for Ryan Wingo. Maybe Reid saw it from Sark and wanted it for Xavier Worthy and Patrick Mahomes.
Either way, this explosive game arrived at a point where the game had seemingly gotten sleepy. Neither team had done all that much in the third aside from a Michigan field goal. This brought the Texas bench to life.
Jaydon Blue punched the ball in for a well-deserved score to make it 31-6 a couple of plays later.
Two Players
Quinn Ewers
Ewers was better than he was against Alabama in 2022 and in 2023. His first half saw him finish with an 18-for-26, two touchdown stat line. Sarkisian’s scheming deserves a portion of the credit but Ewers was making the right reads on nearly every play and more importantly he wasn’t punished for any of his major mistakes.
Ewers had a play on the first series that, though it did not result in any points for the Longhorns, seemed like a sign of the day he was set to have. He handled pressure with aplomb and found Isaiah Bond deep down the field.
He also had a play on the final series of the half for Texas that will bring a considerable amount of attention on him from front offices when the scouts that were in Michigan Stadium return to their NFL franchise. Something about Matthew Golden seems to bring out the best in Ewers’ arm and that was apparent at the end of the half.
Ewers finished 24-for-36 for 246 yards and three touchdowns.
The trenches
It’s hard to give it to one player when both lines for the Longhorns had phenomenal days.
The Michigan defense is going to prove to be a quality unit over the course of the season. The Longhorns made them play a Big 12, Air Raid level of snaps in the first half. That’s not to say the Longhorns ran the Air Raid, but they found a lot of success with Ewers through the air and much of that had to do with the offensive line. To be sure, Texas had over 100 yards on the ground for the game, too.
By the way, there was a key play that really wasn’t a play.
Following Wingo’s long run to the tight red zone, Ewers took a snap and was hit a little to late for Texas’ liking.
A few years back, the same thing happened to Hudson Card. Nothing really happened to the offending opponent in the aftermath.
On Saturday? Texas DJ Campbell earned a personal foul that Texas coaches probably didn’t mind all that much. Other teammates were there to offer backup for QB1.
That’s a sign of progress in culture even for a team that has made a considerable amount of progress in the area. But it also showed progress between the snap and the whistle against a strong defensive unit.
Speaking of defenses, the Longhorns controlled the Michigan offense. Davis Warren could do nothing, finishing with two interceptions. Alex Orji fared worse.
The run game wasn’t working against the likes of Jermayne Lole, Alfred Collins, Vernon Broughton, and even Bill Norton, plus the EDGEs. Barron and the rest of the secondary gave up a long play of 24 yards and it took a fantastic play from Coleston Loveland for it to happen.
Texas’ defensive front was the best one on the field on Saturday.
One Moment
The second quarter changed this game.
Put simply, here was Texas’ second 15 minutes.
- 12-play, 76 yards, 4:53 – Jerrick Gibson 7-yard rush to make it 14-3 Texas
- 10-play, 29-yard drive, 4:10 – Bert Auburn 26-yard field goal to make it 17-3 Texas
- 6-play, 42-yard drive, 0:49 – Quinn Ewers to Matthew Golden for 5 yards to make it 24-3 Texas.
On the other side, Michigan scored zero. The Wolverine second-quarter drives went Warren interception (with Mukuba getting his shot at Texcaliber), Loveland fumble (with Jahdae Barron getting a second date at the sword), and end of half.
Much of this game depended on whether Texas could hit on explosive plays (they did) and if Michigan could sustain drives against the Texas front (they could not). Once the score became 14-3, Michigan needed to mix things up at least a bit.
A sequence where Sherrone Moore saw the need to run a flea flicker with Donovan Edwards was enlightening. So too was the attempt to bully Texas on the third down prior to the field goal that lead to their only points of the half.
Texas wasn’t perfect on defense. Michael Taaffe himself saved four points. But it made the plays the Wolverines weren’t anticipating them making, plus some Michigan miscues for good measure.
Conversely in that second quarter, Texas topped the Wolverines at their own game. After Blue was hobbled in the first half, Tre Wisner stepped up and ran with the type of effort that dotted his special teams and offensive snaps last season.
Wisner ceded the position to Jerrick Gibson, who cruised into the end zone as part of a significant moment for the true freshman.
One more mistake trying to do something for Loveland gave Ewers the chance to convert at the end of the half, and convert he did to Golden.
The Longhorns ran a whopping 45 plays in the first half including 27 in the second quarter. Texas controlled the clock with both the pass and run game for 9:58. Michigan had just 21 total plays in the first 30 and saw their defense on the field for 19:06 of it.
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Texas marched into the Big House and defeated Michigan with a game indicative of the Longhorns’ own strengths, but they put gave Michigan a few lessons they’ve taught plenty of other teams in the past few seasons as well.
