No. 3 Texas football went into a hostile environment against a historic rival for the first time as SEC foes on Nov. 16 in Fayetteville against the Arkansas Razorbacks. Texas and head coach Steve Sarkisian have been great playing on the road, especially in conference play, dating back over two years (nine-game road winning streak coming into Week 12).
Jahdae Barron and Quinn Ewers lead Texas football to big road win over Arkansas in a rivalry game
This weekend was the first time the Longhorns and Razorbacks have met on the gridiron in Fayetteville since the 2021 season. Especially on the defensive side of the ball, Texas came out proving how different this game would be against Arkansas this fall in SEC play.
That said, the Longhorns' offense still had some struggles keeping the chains moving, especially on the plus side of the 50 in Arkansas territory, in the first half. Quarterback Quinn Ewers made some bad decisions when Texas was faced with second and third-down and manageable early in this game.
A combination of Texas's inability to execute consistently on offense and Arkansas hanging tough on each side of the ball made this a close game well into the second half.
The momentum was firmly on Arkansas' side for most of the third quarter and heading into the final frame in the fourth. But Texas saw key players rise up to make big plays on each side of the ball to get the big win on the road over its rival when it was all said and done.
Here are four takeaways from No. 3 Texas's gritty win on the road over rival Arkansas in Fayetteville on Nov. 16.
Jahdae Barron proves he's the class of the SEC among DBs
Texas's best player in this game was easily senior cornerback Jahdae Barron. The fifth-year experienced defensive back made an impact on this game in multiple ways for Texas's defense.
Texas with an interception pic.twitter.com/WKkvNxeERN
— Mr Matthew CFB (@MrMatthew_CFB) November 16, 2024
Barron set up Texas's first score of the game, giving the offense great field position in Arkansas territory after an interception of Razorback quarterback Taylen Green in the first quarter.
Later in the first half, Barron made a couple of big plays to create negative plays for Texas's defense against the Hogs. He even had a big sack on a money down that helped to keep the Arkansas offense off the scoreboard late in the first half.
With his interception and multiple tackles for loss, Barron put himself in a class of his own after this game against the Hogs. Barron is now the only FBS defensive back this season with at least four interceptions, a half dozen pass breakups, multiple tackles for loss, and a fumble recovery.
Well into the second half, Barron continued to make big plays for the Texas defense. He had a quarterback pressure in the second half that forced a throwaway from Arkansas quarterback Taylen Green on a money down in the Longhorns' territory on defense.
Barron has put together plenty of tremendous performances in SEC play for the Longhorns this season. But you could pretty easily argue that this was his best and most well-rounded performance for Texas's defense. He amassed over a half dozen tackles, one interception, one sack, two quarterback pressures, two tackles for loss, and a pass breakup.