<body><div><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=1cegB4_0w4kfzwo00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=1cegB4_0w4kfzwo00" width="1200" height="628" >DALLAS — The Red River Rivalry is known for momentum swings strong enough to create an avalanche. On Saturday, in the 120th meeting between the No. 1 <a href="https://247sports.com/college/texas/">Texas</a> football team and No. 18 <a href="https://247sports.com/college/oklahoma/">Oklahoma</a>, a late first-half surge by the Longhorns buried the Sooners in a resounding 34-3 win for football coach <a href="https://247sports.com/coach/Steve-Sarkisian-764">Steve Sarkisian</a>'s club.Texas (<a href="https://247sports.com/college/texas/team/texas-longhorns-football-43/schedule/">6-0, 2-0 SEC</a>) is off to a 6-0 start for the first time since 2009 thanks to a salty defensive effort by coordinator <a href="https://247sports.com/coach/Pete-Kwiatkowski-800">Pete Kwiatkowski</a>'s group. The Longhorns held the Sooners to 3.4 yards per play (237 yards of total offense), a 4-for-14 day on third down (an average to-go distance of 8.6 yards) and two turnovers, but the offense's opportunity to score 14 points in 41 seconds and grab a 21-3 halftime lead wouldn't have been possible if not for the strong start by Kwiatkowski's stoppers.Oklahoma (4-2, 1-2) started its first three possessions of the game at the Texas 45, its 49 and its 37-yard line, respectively. The Sooners, however, averaged only 2.8 yards per play on those drives, missing a field goal and punting at the end of a series that netted minus 12 yards thanks to a sack by safety <a href="https://247sports.com/Player/michael-taaffe-46110323/">Michael Taaffe</a> and a critical tackle in space by linebacker <a href="https://247sports.com/Player/anthony-hill-jr-46097274/">Anthony Hill Jr.</a> (11 tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss, two sacks and one quarterback hurry) before <a href="https://247sports.com/Player/tyler-keltner-46058160/">Tyler Keltner</a> knocked home a 42-yard field goal to end an 11-play, 38-yard march with points."They were getting stuck in some really tough field position," Sarkisian said, who praised the defense for the unit's ability to "keep putting out fires" on Saturday. "Our defense has assumed a real, kind of swagger about them — the way they play — and a real confidence about them."We do sudden-change drill once a week, so they know what to expect when that stuff comes," he added. "Nobody panics. They just go take the field and they keep playing."An interception thrown by <a href="https://247sports.com/Player/quinn-ewers-45572600/">Quinn Ewers</a> (20-for-29 for 199 yards, one passing touchdown, one interception and a 1-yard rushing touchdown in the fourth quarter), who made his return from an oblique injury, and a personal foul levied against the Longhorns helped Oklahoma win the field position battle early. Still, with quarterback <a href="https://247sports.com/Player/michael-hawkins-jr-46116154/">Michael Hawkins Jr.</a> (19-for-30 for 148 yards and 27 yards rushing on 20 carries) and the Sooners unable to sustain drives or create explosive plays to move the ball in chunks, the defense standing tall allowed Ewers and the offense time to get settled."The first quarter was tough," Sarkisian said. "We were a little off offensively. They got the lead but I don't think anybody panicked. That's a sign of a really good team. We showed great poise and composure. The second quarter was, obviously, huge in the ballgame."Then the defense started turning the ball over and stopping the run, and the game went the way that it went."Texas dominated the second quarter, scoring three touchdowns and winning the total yardage battle by 169 yards, 222-53 (10.1 yards per play gained and 3.8 yards per play allowed). The Longhorns also forced two turnovers, the first coming when Hill chased Hawkins from behind and forced a fumble, which defensive lineman <a href="https://247sports.com/Player/vernon-broughton-46055073/">Vernon Broughton</a> recovered at the Oklahoma 43 with 1:51 left until halftime.Texas had a 14-3 lead at that point with the offense's first score coming on a 7-yard pass from Ewers to <a href="https://247sports.com/Player/gunnar-helm-46098641/">Gunnar Helm</a> (91 yards on five receptions) on a tight end throwback early in the second quarter. The 10-play, 75-yard drive tied for the Longhorn offense's second-longest of the day, but a drive that covered 84 yards en route to the game's second touchdown only lasted four plays.After Ewers fired a dart to wide receiver <a href="https://247sports.com/Player/ryan-wingo-46101905/">Ryan Wingo</a> (two receptions for 49 yards and a 25-yard gain on an end-around) on third-and-6 from the 20, the true freshman pulled away for a 44-yard gain to the 36-yard line of the Sooners. <a href="https://247sports.com/Player/quintrevion-wisner-46104003/">Quintrevion Wisner</a> (118 yards on 13 carries) took a handoff from Ewers on the next play and followed blocks from <a href="https://247sports.com/Player/kelvin-banks-jr-46082828/">Kelvin Banks Jr.</a> and <a href="https://247sports.com/Player/hayden-conner-84649/">Hayden Conner</a> to daylight.Wisner was chased down by Oklahoma safety <a href="https://247sports.com/Player/robert-spears-jennings-46113154/">Robert Spears-Jennings</a>, who poked the ball away from Wisner and into the end zone. What could've been a touchback and a disaster for Texas was saved by wide receiver <a href="https://247sports.com/Player/silas-bolden-46081702/">Silas Bolden</a> (one reception for three yards and four punt returns for 70 yards, including a 55-yarder in the fourth quarter), who won a footrace with linebacker <a href="https://247sports.com/Player/danny-stutsman-46082030/">Danny Stutsman</a> and the rest of the pursuing Sooners to the corner of the end zone, where he recovered the loose ball for a touchdown.Two plays after the ensuing kickoff, Hill stripped Hawkins and Wisner didn't need an assist on the play after Broughton's fumble recovery. He found a crease in the middle of the line and ran away from the Oklahoma defense for a 43-yard touchdown with 1:40 on the clock.In 41 seconds of game time, the game went from Oklahoma potentially getting the ball back late in the first half in a four-point game to Texas landing the haymakers required for a blowout victory. The 31-point margin of victory is tied for the fifth-largest by the Longhorns in their series with the Sooners, matching the final score of the 1998 game best known for Heisman Trophy-winning running back <a href="https://247sports.com/Player/Ricky-Williams-46054417">Ricky Williams</a> dedicating his performance to the memory of Doak Walker (Williams swapped out his No. 34 for Walker's No. 37 in Mack Brown's first game and win against Oklahoma while leading the Texas program).The Longhorns tallied 406 total yards (6.7 yards per play) and averaged 5.9 yards per rushing attempt (177 net rushing yards). Texas started slow, but it strung together enough positive plays to put the Sooners away and move on to next week's blockbuster showdown with No. 5 <a href="https://247sports.com/college/georgia/">Georgia</a> at Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium next Saturday (6:30 p.m., ABC).Before moving on to the Bulldogs, however, Sarkisian wanted everyone in his organization to enjoy the fruits of their labor."This game matters to us and I know it matters to Oklahoma, obviously," Sarkisian said. "There's a lot that goes into this. In my opinion, this is the greatest atmosphere in college football."We're fortunate and blessed to be part of it, and full of gratitude that we get to be [involved in] the 120th time these two programs, have met," he added.The Longhorns have taken two of the last three from the Sooners. There's a long way to go before Texas can think about a run of success against Oklahoma like the Sooners had coming into the game (11 wins in the last 15 meetings).Nevertheless, pairing Sarkisian's potent offense with a championship-caliber defense and a kicking game capable of making game-changing plays can put the Longhorns in the group of elite teams in the SEC for the foreseeable future. Sarkisian is confident his bunch can stay the course."[What] I think I'm impressed with, with our guys — we enjoyed the win, don't get me wrong," Sarkisian said. "The locker room was fun and all of that, but it's almost like our team knows there's more work to do. Two years ago when we won the Golden Hat, you might've thought we won the Super Bowl. This year, it was like, 'OK, we got the Golden Hat back. Let's put it in the trophy case and let's keep grinding. Let's keep going.'"I think that's the mentality of our team."</div></body>

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No. 1 Texas football smothers No. 18 Oklahoma to win Red River Rivalry, 34-3

DALLAS — The Red River Rivalry is known for momentum swings strong enough to create an avalanche. On Saturday, in the 120th meeting between the No. 1 Texas football team and No. 18 Oklahoma, a late first-half surge by the Longhorns buried the Sooners in a resounding 34-3 win for football coach Steve Sarkisian's club.

No. 1 Texas football smothers No. 18 Oklahoma to win Red River Rivalry, 34-3

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