Unlike Texas’ previous big-time non-conference games in recent years, the Longhorns had the fabled “warm-up” game to fine-tune any discrepancies in their machine heading into the season.
Before Alabama in 2023 and Michigan last season, the Longhorns faced Rice and Colorado State, respectively, outscoring them 89-10 before facing much tougher opponents the following week.
Sometimes, trial by fire doesn’t produce the most favorable results — it didn’t work for the Longhorns this go around.
But let’s jog our memory here for a moment. Remember last season, after Notre Dame rolled into Kyle Field and took down the Aggies in week one? It feels like many have forgotten that the Fighting Irish followed that game up by losing to Northern Illinois, with the Huskies’ head coach tearing up on national television.
That loss did not define Notre Dame’s season, even though it was tough in the moment for the team — it taught the Fighting Irish how to overcome adversity, and by that season’s end, they would end up in the national championship game.
Channeling my inner Steve Starkisan by way of a book analogy, let’s not judge the book after reading the first chapter of the Longhorns’ season.
It was horrible to watch Texas struggle this past weekend. The loss truly burns the soul, but truth be told, it’s what the Longhorns needed. Being able to face this feeling now will prove invaluable in the long run before Texas gets too far into the season, when more is at stake.
Starkisan learned with this current iteration of the Texas Longhorns that the pieces are there, but they have not fully blossomed just yet.
We have been spoiled for the past couple of seasons, watching the well-oiled machine that has been the Longhorns, but this is a new group. If you have played any competitive football above the Pop Warner level, you understand there’s something different about competing against an unfamiliar opponent rather than your buddies for an entire offseason.
While the public has smashed the panic button after just one game, it’s a good thing for Texas. It pushed the hype train onto other teams. Think about LSU — after the Tigers beat Clemson, they are now the media’s darling. It’s easier playing as the No. 7-ranked team compared to No. 1.
“Every team has the best opportunity to improve from week one to week two. Going into the season, you don’t really know what you have for sure as a coach,” Nick Saban, former Alabama head coach, said on ESPN’s pregame show before the North Carolina vs. TCU game.
Now, San José State comes in for the home opener Saturday. The Spartans will serve as the de facto sacrificial lamb for the young Longhorn offense to experiment and get all the kinks out of the way before more daunting opponents that lie ahead.
The Texas offense will be able to experiment more against LSU, allowing sophomore quarterback Arch Manning to gain the much-needed confidence he lacked in week one. It will also allow him to get on a better page with his receiver against a “lesser” secondary.
The next three games at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium should be uncompetitive blowouts and probably not the most memorable, but the following games will serve Texas for far longer than most will give credit.
Last week’s game does not define the season; it’s how well the Longhorns can bounce back from adversity and learn from fixable mistakes that will.
