Sunday Stats: Three key numbers from Texas’ devastating Week 12 loss originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
The Texas Longhorns’ College Football Playoff hopes took a major hit on Saturday night in Athens, as the Georgia Bulldogs surged late to hand Texas a 35–10 loss. The Bulldogs pulled away in the fourth quarter to turn a tight, one-possession game into a blowout, capitalizing on Texas’ special teams miscues and costly penalties. Here are three key numbers from the Longhorns’ loss that help tell the story.
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23
Texas managed only 23 rushing yards on 17 carries, an average of 1.4 yards per attempt. Georgia’s defensive front completely smothered the Longhorns’ ground game, forcing season-lows for the Longhorns in each of the three aforementioned categories. Saturday’s struggles were a continuation of what is becoming a concerning trend for Texas; over the last two seasons, the Longhorns have logged just 83 total rushing yards across their three matchups with the Bulldogs.
25
The final margin of defeat for the Longhorns was a stunning 25 points, making Saturday the most lopsided loss of the Sarkisian era. Texas was outscored 21–0 in the fourth quarter for the second consecutive week and failed to recover a crucial onside kick early in the fourth, a sequence that led to the score swinging from 14–10 to 28–10 without the Texas offense taking the field in between.
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9
Texas’ penalty problems continued in Athens, with the Longhorns being flagged nine times, compared to just a single penalty committed by Georgia. These nine penalties bring Texas’ season total up to 82, and their 8.2 penalties per game is now the 2nd worst rate in the FBS, as well as the worst of all Power 4 programs.
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No. 17 Texas (7–3, 4–2 SEC) will look to bounce back at home this Saturday against Arkansas (2–8, 0–6 SEC), with kickoff scheduled for 3:30 PM ET (2:30 PM CT).
