Top-ranked Texas likes the view from No. 1 but is focused on long season ahead
Advertisement
Read this article for free:
or
Already have an account? Log in here »
To continue reading, please subscribe:
Digital Subscription
One year of digital access for only $205*
- Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
- Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
- Access News Break, our award-winning app
- Play interactive puzzles
*First annual payment billed as $205.00 + GST for one year. This annual subscription will automatically renew at $233.00 + GST every 52 weeks (10% off the regular annual price of $259.35). Offer available to new and qualified returning subscribers only. Cancel any time.
To continue reading, please subscribe:
Add Free Press access to your Brandon Sun subscription for only an additional
$1 for the first 4 weeks*
- Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
- Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
- Access News Break, our award-winning app
- Play interactive puzzles
*Your next Brandon Sun subscription payment will increase by $1.00 and you will be charged $17.95 plus GST for four weeks. After four weeks, your payment will increase to $24.95 plus GST every four weeks.
Read unlimited articles for free today:
or
Already have an account? Log in here »
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Texas has seen the view from No. 1 and the Longhorns know the fall from the college football summit can be hard.
The goal now is to make sure they get more than a fleeting glimpse from the top.
Texas (2-0) jumped to No. 1 after a wild 24-23 victory over Ohio State, which knocked the Buckeyes from No. 1 to No. 6. The Longhorns play UTSA this week before starting Southeastern Conference play Sept. 26 at No. 15 Tennessee.
“A week ago, the narrative was we can’t win the big game,” Texas coach Steve Sarkisian said Monday. “The opinion now is we’re the best team in the country, allegedly, and so everybody is patting us on the back.”
And he cautioned his team about getting carried away with it.
“This is the third straight year we’ve been ranked No. 1 at some part of the season,” Sarkisian said. “I don’t know how we handled it. And I don’t know how worthy we were of those rankings, of the opinions of others.”
The Longhorns look worthy of the top spot for now. How things shake out by season’s end is yet to be seen.
In 2024, Texas rose to No. 1 for the first time since 2008. The Longhorns stayed there for a month before losing to Georgia. They wouldn’t get back to No. 1, but made it all the way to the College Football Playoff semifinals before losing to eventual national champion Ohio State.
The fall last year was much farther and much harder.
Texas started the season No. 1 only to lose the first game at Ohio State. They were 3-2 a few weeks later and unranked. A 9-3 regular season left the Longhorns out of the playoff.
Senior linebacker Justin Cryer, a transfer from Florida State, seemed unimpressed with life at No. 1.
“It’s cool to post on Instagram or whatever,” Cryer said. “We have 10 more games to play.”
That’s where quarterback Arch Manning said the focus should be. He remembers the quick fall from No. 1 last season and getting left out of the postseason.
“The rankings don’t really matter until the playoffs,” Manning said. “We’ve got a lot to prove.”
___
Sign up for Top 25 poll alerts here, visit the Top 25 here and see AP’s full college football coverage here