Inside the Numbers: Texas just seemed outmatched against Georgia

The then-No. 1 Texas Longhorns played their worst game of the season while hosting the then-No. 5 Georgia Bulldogs and were soundly beaten in Austin and fell from the top of the nation. Not only have the Longhorns sacrificed the top seed in the country, they have also diminished their chances of securing a spot in the College Football Playoff with just five games remaining in the regular season.

Georgia was the physically stronger team in the contest and kept the Texas offense under control for most of the game, forcing the defense into tight-space situations, resulting in 30 points being given up. In fact, until the Bulldogs' only touchdown of the second half, the Longhorns defense allowed just 17.8 yards per scoring drive and held the Bulldogs to three short-field field goals. The offense's inability to put together any meaningful drives other than one cost Texas the game and its place at the top of the nation.

Texas Third Downs: 02/14 (14.29 percent)

Against UGA, it felt like a repeat of the problems left by Texas in the past, as the Longhorns were unable to put together any longer drives and gave the Bulldogs good field position on multiple occasions. It's well known that the Longhorns didn't convert a third down until Quinn Ewers connected with Ryan Wingo for three yards with 8:25 left in the game. Randomly, This was only the second time in the game that Texas faced a third-and-short opponent. Average, Texas averaged 6.5 yards from goal and did not convert an attempt longer than four yards in the game.

The Longhorns left He made three three-pointers in three of the game's first six drives and brought the defense back onto the field through a punt or turnover on every first-half drive, with only one drive lasting more than two minutes. The Texas Offensive On average, only five plays were run per drive, averaging 23 yards gained in the contestwith only one drive lasting longer than 10 plays and only four of their 14 drives lasting longer than two minutes.

Georgia defense: 7 sacks, 10 tackles for loss, 8 hurries

After two months of the Texas offensive line being hailed as one of the best units in the country, Georgia's defense came into its own, using a combination of covert pressure and pure athleticism to play alongside the Longhorns. Not all of the sacks are on the offensive line, as both Quinn Ewers and Arch Manning struggle to step up and get rid of the ball under pressure. Regardless of the source, it was an uncharacteristic game for both the Horns and Dawgs front lines Georgia gave up seven sacks for the first time since its 2021 opener against Clemson, and the Texas line gave up more sacks in this game than in the previous six.

One of the biggest problems for Texas in the contest, and especially on third downs, was the complete dominance of the Georgia defensive line. Three of the Bulldogs' seven sacks in the game came on third downs, including one of the crucial turnovers that helped put Georgia far ahead in the game. The Longhorns' inability to extend drives ended up being one of the biggest keys to the game.

Texas offense: 29 rushing yards

With Georgia spending most of their time in the Texas backfield and the Bulldogs taking advantage of short fields to provide some separation in the second quarter, this hindered the Longhorns' ability to generate ground play, which became one-dimensional and put the Bulldogs' defense at an advantage. It was the worst rushing performance since the 17-10 loss for 28 yards TCU in 2022. Even if you include the 59 sack yards, it would be the worst performance of the year at 55 yards and the worst since the 51 rushing yards against the Washington Huskies in the 2022 Alamo Bowl. This game is notable because Bijan Robinson and Roschon Johnson were out and Jonathon Brooks had limited appearances due to an injury that required offseason surgery.

The Bulldogs also seemed to return to form against Texas, looking as elite against the run as they had in terms of total yardage since Vanderbilt last year. If you look at the standard per rush, you would have to go back to the last game of the 2022 season – where they beat Alabama for the championship – to see a better performance.

Despite the frustrations, Texas still has goals to achieve, but they have exhausted their only “get out of jail free” card of the season. However, they won't be playing against another team as talented as Georgia, as only one team with a blue chip rate of over 70 percent is still on the schedule.