WATCH: Cedric Golden on Texas football's uneven SEC debut, bye week
Columnist Cedric Golden examines Texas 35-13 win over Mississippi State in its SEC debut behind backup QB Arch Manning.
- Texas is on a bye however is off to its second straight 5-0 start underneath coach Steve Sarkisian.
- Texas A&M seeks to break a five-game shedding skid against ranked groups when it hosts Missouri Saturday.
- Texas is just not solely the No. 1 crew within the nation however tops within the state. Who rank 2-5 within the Lone Star State?
The 5-0 Texas football crew will return from their bye subsequent week with the 2 largest challenges on their schedule to date once they resume the Red River Rivalry with Oklahoma on Oct. 12 adopted by a house showdown on Oct. 19 with Georgia, which has received two of the final three nationwide championships.
Here are 5 burning questions getting into Week 6 of the school football season:
Who will Texas start at quarterback against Oklahoma?
Quinn Ewers.
Ewers will be again. He reportedly took the first-team reps throughout bye week follow, which is a positive signal that he’s feeling good bodily. It’s his crew and he has earned the best to lead the present shifting ahead.
If something, Ewers needs to be motivated to decide up the place he left off earlier than his stomach harm, however he is additionally auditioning for NFL organizations who could also be contemplating him as a possible first-round decide. We know Arch Manning is able to main this offense, however Ewers is extra skilled and offers the Longhorns one of the best likelihood to win in 2024.
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We’re about to discover out rather a lot in regards to the Longhorns, who will play a recent Oklahoma crew that’s additionally on a bye. Ewers has had a few of his largest video games against the Sooners. The Horns will roll in per week.
Will Texas A&M's drought against ranked groups finish Saturday?
No.
I'm taking No. 9 Missouri over No. 21 Texas A&M 31-24. The Tigers have extra stability at quarterback with Brady Cook whereas A&M coach Mike Elko hasn’t revealed if he'll go along with Marcel Reed over Conner Weigman, who has been out for 3 video games with a shoulder harm.
More: Could Texas construct bundle for Arch Manning when Quinn Ewers returns? What Sarkisian mentioned
I like what Elko has introduced to this protection, however the Aggies have topped 33 factors solely as soon as against Power Four opponents and have misplaced 5 straight video games to ranked groups courting again to the 2023 season. They will come up brief on this one.
Who are the highest 5 groups within the state of Texas?
No. 1 is Texas. Of course. Head coach Steve Sarkisian has assembled Texas' most full crew on either side of the ball since Mack Brown's 2008 crew that ought to have performed Miami for a nationwide title.
No. 2 is Texas A&M. If the Aggies can beat Missouri, they're going to start a season 5-1 for the primary time since they went 9-1 in 2020. No. 3 is SMU.
The Mustangs are twelfth within the nation in scoring, averaging 42.2 factors. And be careful for working again Brashard Smith, who's averaging 101.8 dashing yards a sport. No. 4 is Texas Tech. Seriously, who had the Red Raiders main the Big 12 after that 52-51 win over Abilene Christian in Week 1?
And No. 5 is Sam Houston State. The Bearkats are 5-1 and in the course of a fantastic bounce-back season, their second as an FBS program. (Texas State would have grabbed this spot had it not blown a late lead in a 40-39 loss to the Kats in Week 5.)
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Which Power Four coach is on the most popular seat?
Florida’s Billy Napier, who hasn’t been in a position to sit down in his workplace in almost two years, however I worry that Dave Aranda’s time is nearing an finish at Baylor.
WATCH: Naming Texas football's MVP, Aggies' QB resolution vs. Missouri
Yum and Eckert make their On Second Thought debut and chat with host Cedric Golden.
Colorado’s Hail Mary cross that compelled extra time and led to a loss two weeks in the past might have sped up these sands which are falling within the hourglass of Aranda's five-year tenure, and issues didn’t get any higher final week when the Bears dropped a 34-28 dwelling loss to BYU after falling behind 31-14 on the half.
Since he led the Bears to a 12-2 file, a Big 12 title and a Sugar Bowl win over Ole Miss in 2021, Aranda has gone 11-19 general and 6-14 in convention play. That consists of an 0-3 start within the Big 12 this season.
Aranda is among the good guys in faculty football, but it surely’s a outcomes enterprise and he hasn’t delivered recently.
Who will be the SEC's three earliest NFL draft picks?
LSU left deal with Will Campbell will go within the high 5 as will his Texas counterpart and native barbecue knowledgeable Kelvin Banks Jr. They’re the 2 finest offensive linemen within the nation. And Georgia security Malaki Starks can cowl all around the area and brings the warmth within the tackling division. He will get the sting over his quarterback teammate Carson Beck.
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