Texas football is traveling to Lexington, Kentucky, to take on the Wildcats this weekend, and they're coming off a solid performance against the Oklahoma Sooners.
The Longhorns are looking to build off that win and continue to climb in the SEC Standings and earn a spot in the SEC Championship Game. If the Longhorns take it week-by-week, they might find themselves playing for the championship this season.
Even though Kentucky is 0-3 in the SEC this season, don't count them out because they have a challenging environment to play in. Other SEC teams would likely agree with Steve Sarkisian that playing in Lexington is tough. It will surely provide a challenge for the Longhorns heading into this weekend.
Here are four storylines heading into this weekend's game against the Wildcats:
1. Can Arch Manning continue to improve?
Arch Manning showed significant improvement last weekend against the Oklahoma Sooners. You could tell how accurate he was with his passing compared to the Florida loss. The question heading into this weekend's game is, can he continue to improve and lead the Longhorns down the field? The last thing Sarkisian wants to see this weekend is Manning beginning to regress again.
2. Will Stone and Jerrick Gibson's departure
Texas had some unexpected midweek news with Will Stone and Jerrick Gibson deciding to leave the team. With the injury to CJ Baxter, Quintrevion Wisner is going to be running the ball a lot this weekend. Mason Shipley will be taking over Stone's kickoff duties for the remainder of the season.
You have to wonder if their departures could be a factor in how Texas performs on the field this weekend.
3. Can the Texas defense clamp down on the Wildcats?
The Longhorns' defense held the Sooners to two field goals at the Cotton Bowl last weekend. The fact that the Longhorns held Oklahoma to zero touchdowns is awe-inspiring. Can they do it again this weekend in Lexington, Kentucky? If the Longhorns can be disciplined on defense and still get to Cutter Boley, they might be able to replicate it again.
With the Wildcats looking for their first conference win this season, the Longhorns' defense will have a tough time limiting them to zero touchdowns.
4. Longhorns' run game identity
Texas might have solved its running game problem last weekend against Oklahoma.
Now, can the Longhorns use what they did last weekend to run over the Wildcats this weekend? It will be something that Longhorn fans will have a close eye on this weekend. It's going to be a fun game to watch on Saturday night.