4 takeaways from Texas's sloppy win vs. Mississippi State

Missed opportunities

It seemed like there were many big opportunities for Texas to take hold of this game in the first half against Mississippi State. A combination of penalties and mistakes on the offensive side of the ball cost the Longhorns on multiple possessions in this game.

A handful of controversial calls by the referees and by Sarkisian also kept the Longhorns from getting points on the board in the first half of this game. Texas went for it on a fourth-and-short play in Mississippi State territory that wound up taking three points off the board for the Longhorns late in the first half.

Penalties were an issue for Texas and Mississippi State in this game. Both teams had over 60 penalty yards, negating multiple big plays.

A dropped pass by sophomore wide receiver Johntay Cook II on a nice deep ball pass from Manning also kept points off the board for the Longhorns in the first half. Cook responded with a nice catch on a good pass on a crossing route from Manning in the second half for an explosive play through the air.

All in all, Texas must convert on more offensive drives than it did in this game to meet expectations and contend for a national title and the SEC Championship this fall. This was a messy game for the Longhorns, but it can't be this sloppy for the rest of the regular season in SEC play.