Moments after the Texas football team defeated Oklahoma State in overtime Saturday, Joseph Ossai sprawled out in the endzone.
In Stillwater, Oklahoma, the junior linebacker put on a monster performance that concluded in a walk-off sack of Cowboys’ redshirt sophomore quarterback Spencer Sanders.
“I heard Juwan (Mitchell) say, ‘Go slide in the endzone,’” Ossai said in a Monday teleconference. “And that was it from there. We went and had a party in the endzone.”
The outcome of Ossai’s last overtime game on Oct. 10 was the opposite of euphoric. When the Longhorns lost to Oklahoma after four overtimes, Ossai said he was disappointed in himself for not putting the game away.
Senior quarterback Sam Ehlinger said Monday that he spoke on the phone with the linebacker after the loss to the Sooners. The conversation confirmed to Ehlinger that Ossai would show up big against Oklahoma State.
“He said to me, ‘Sam, I’m really upset that we lost, but I’m more upset because I know that in those moments when the game’s on the line, your best players have to make plays,’” Ehlinger said. “And he said, ‘I didn’t do that. I had a chance to end the game against Oklahoma, and I didn’t do that.’”
Ossai did all that and more Saturday, earning him Walter Camp National Defensive Player of the Week honors. He recorded 12 total tackles, six tackles for loss, one forced fumble, one fumble recovery and three sacks.
The linebacker wasn’t even at full strength. Ossai, who wore a shoulder harness Saturday, missed practice last Tuesday and had limited reps Wednesday.
“I don’t really like to talk about pain because I feel like it’s all mental,” Ossai said. “Your body can go through a lot more than what you think it can.”
Sophomore wide receiver Jake Smith also had a redemptive moment Saturday on the crucial 4th and 7 play. Ehlinger escaped pressure from the Cowboy defense to complete the pass to Smith in the back of the endzone.
The score gave Texas the lead with 4 minutes and 27 seconds to go in the game, and it restored Smiths’ belief in himself after his own injuries and bad breaks in the last year.
“It meant a lot,” Smith said Monday. “It definitely gave me a boost in my confidence. Just to be able to have the opportunity to make a play like that at such a crucial point in the game was huge for me. But more importantly, I was happy I was able to do that for the team.”
Ossai and Smith are part of a larger trend on the Texas football team, which is building momentum heading into its matchup against West Virginia this weekend.
Since the Longhorns upset Oklahoma State Saturday, the Big 12 Championship race is still wide open. Senior defensive end Ta’Quon Graham said he has faith the team can get the job done.
“People were riding us off after those two losses,” Graham said Monday. “In 2018, the team had two losses in conference as well, and we made it to the Big 12 Championship game. As a team, as a whole, we’ve always believed in ourselves.”
