Texas Football: 3 takeaways from heartbreaker in 2023 Red River Rivalry

2 of 4

AUSTIN, TEXAS – SEPTEMBER 30: Quinn Ewers #3 of the Texas Longhorns is congratulated after a rushing touchdown in the first quarter against the Kansas Jayhawks at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium on September 30, 2023, in Austin, Texas. (Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images) /

3. Texas football overcame a sluggish offensive start

Quinn Ewers threw two interceptions in his first nine pass attempts this afternoon. He also fumbled. Despite that, Ewers found his groove and had a solid game. Oklahoma scored on one of those three turnovers. As much as those turnovers hurt, Texas hung in the game offensively. One of the reasons was running back Jonathan Brooks.

Brooks ran for 159 yards and a touchdown this afternoon, keeping much of the pressure off Ewers. It seemed like Texas was fighting from underneath offensively for most of the game. One of the reasons was penalties. The Longhorns committed nine penalties for 70 yards. It seemed as if anytime the ‘Horns had any momentum, a penalty put them behind the chains.

Dillon Gabriel is a Red River legend

Some names evoke memories of Red River’s past. Roy Williams and Teddy Lehman are two examples of players whose names are forever part of Red River Rivalry lore. Quarterback Dillon Gabriel can now add his name to that list.

The UCF transfer was on his way to UCLA when his old offensive coordinator — Jeff Lebby — called him the day before classes began at Westwood. Gabriel threw for 285 yards, ran for 113 yards, and scored two touchdowns, none more critical than the go-ahead touchdown pass to Nic Anderson with under 20 seconds left in the game.

Home/Texas Longhorns