Coming off a 52-37 win over Arkansas, the No. 17 Texas Longhorns (8-3, 5-2) have to turn around and face a battle-tested and College Football Playoff-ranked No. 3 Texas A&M (11-0, 7-0) team looking to keep its perfect record this season.
No one has to tell Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian that it’s a big game, one that dates back to both schools being in the old Southwest Conference.
“I don’t take games like this lightly,” Sarkisian said Monday when talking with reporters at his weekly press conference. “We got some work to do.”
Texas quarterback Arch Manning had a stellar day last Saturday against the Razorbacks at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium before a packed house. Manning’s play earned him Maxwell Award Player of the Week honors on Tuesday.
The Longhorns are 8-3 on the season, 5-2 in Southeastern Conference play, heading into Friday night’s game.
Manning also earned other weekly accolades from the Davey O’Brien Award and the Associated Press. Manning accounted for six touchdowns, including a touchdown reception, in beating back Arkansas.
Sarkisian, who is looking for a true statement win this season in the hopes that his Longhorns might get ranked higher in the College Football Playoff Rankings (new rankings came out on Tuesday night), seems to relish in the fact that this clash will be under the bright lights.
Dare we say “Friday Night Lights” for two of Texas’ premier college football programs?
“I like that in this game we get an opportunity to stand alone, whether it’s Thanksgiving or the Friday after Thanksgiving,” Sarkisian said. “I just think this game deserves the spotlight to stand alone.
“The fact that we’re playing on Friday night with all the eyes of college football on it, and really the football world on this game, I think this game deserves that,” he said.
Sarkisian was not ashamed to tip his cap in Texas A&M head coach Mike Elko’s direction, either. He pointed toward how the Aggies play defense on third down as an example.
“They’ve got people and players that can win one-on-one matchups,” Sarkisian said. “…We’re going to have to be sound in our schemes, but, two, we’re going to have to win one-on-one battles.”
But Sarkisian has a poor record against top-10 teams while at Texas. He’s gone 2-11 against them, including a 35-10 beatdown against the Georgia Bulldogs in Athens, Ga., this season.
While Manning gets some praise, the Texas defense, which has looked a bit weak recently, will have a huge test in trying to contain dual-threat Texas A&M quarterback Marcel Reed.
When the Aggies and Longhorns take the field on Friday night, a lot will be riding on the outcome.
Sarkisian will look to have his Longhorns ready all across the board for the big battle. Expect Elko to have his Aggies prepared, too.
Cody Croy
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