Despite the final score, Steve Sarkisian’s 2022 Texas squad will likely be remembered for years to come after what happened on Sept. 10.
The Longhorns stood toe-to-toe with No. 1 Alabama, and although it didn’t end in a home victory, the game will go down in college football history as Nick Saban’s team managed to accumulate 15 penalties to Texas’s five. The Crimson Tide, who are ranked No. 1 on the AP poll, only won by a single point.
“In the end, that’s the best team in the country,” the Texas coach said after the game. “In a weird way we can feel pretty good about ourselves and the state of our program.
“But in the end, it still stings.”
Texas lost star quarterback Quinn Ewers late in the first quarter after a big hit sent him to the locker room for X-rays. SI’s Ross Dellenger reported that the young quarterback was holding his left shoulder as he walked the sidelines before heading to the locker room.
Sarkisian said after the game that the quarterback has a clavicle sprain and will get an MRI.
Hudson Card, who lost out on the starting quarterback job in the preseason, took over. Shortly after he entered the game, Texas fans had another fright when Card limped off the field later in the game, and according to Austin American-Statesman’s Brian Davis, third-string quarterback Charles Wright started warming up.
Card remained in the game though, leading the charge despite the offense growing stagnant after Ewers’ injury. It wasn’t always pretty as the referees navigated confusing moments (throwback to the bizarre reverse call in the Crimson Tide’s end zone) or when Bert Auburn missed a crucial 20-yard field goal before halftime. But some redemption came for the Longhorns’ kicker late in the fourth quarter as he made the extra point and helped his team regain the lead.
Bryce Young, though, powered the Tide back into field goal range after a 20-yard scramble. And with 10 seconds to go, Will Reichard hit the 33-yarder that sealed the deal.
Texas tried to pull off a miracle score in the final seconds as Card threw to Bijan Robinson for 30 yards. But in the end, the clock wasn’t on their side. Sarkisian said, “I told the team, I don’t look at this as we lost. We ran out of time.”
- Nick Saban Reacts to Alabama Penalties in Narrow Win Over Texas
- Alabama Survives Texas With Late Scoring Drive by Bryce Young
- Referees Reverse Bizarre Penalty Call Against Texas in Alabama End Zone
- Longhorns Country: Simple, Yet Effective: Sark Reveals What He Needs to See from Longhorns vs. Alabama
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