Rat poison is everywhere as Texas football rakes in weekly awards for big win over Michigan

If you believe “rat poison” is real, avert your gaze. That includes anyone working inside the Texas football building.

Weekly honors are pouring in for the Texas Longhorns after last weekend’s 31-12 win over Michigan that pushed the Horns up to No. 2 in the AP Top 25. There are so many, it’s a tad overwhelming.

It started on Monday. Quarterback Quinn Ewers was named the SEC offensive player of the week and center Jake Majors was named SEC co-offensive lineman of the week.

Texas has captured co-offensive lineman honors for two straight weeks now. Right tackle Cam Williams won the award after the season-opening win over Colorado State.

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More awards came rolling in Tuesday. Ewers was named the Maxwell Award player of the week, the Maxwell Football Club announced. It’s the second time he’s won that honor, the first coming in September 2023 after beating No. 3 Alabama on the road.

Not to be outdone, Majors was named the Outland Trophy national player of the week by the Football Writers Association of America. Majors was named in the preseason to the Outland Trophy watch list for being one of the nation’s best linemen.

Ewers was named to the Earl Campbell Tyler Rose Award player of the week while tight end Gunnar Helm received honorable mention honors. Helm was named the East-West Shrine Bowl’s Texas star of the week after leading the Horns with seven receptions last Saturday.

The defense got into the act as well. Safety Andrew Mukuba was named the Jim Thorpe Award national defensive back of the week, the Oklahoma Sports Hall of Fame announced Tuesday. It’s the first time Mukuba has won this award despite three standout seasons at Clemson before he transferred to UT.

UTSA

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That’s quite a haul for one win over a top-10 team. No wonder Texas coach Steve Sarkisian has stressed to his players they need to keep the momentum going this week against UTSA (1-1) and beyond.

The “rat poison,” as coined by former Alabama coach Nick Saban, is everywhere around Royal-Memorial Stadium.

“We need to go to another level with our killer instinct,” Sarkisian told UT reporters on Monday, “and we need to be more relentless in the fourth quarter of these types of games. The game’s in hand, and that’s OK that it’s in hand, but that doesn’t mean that’s how it has to go and give up a touchdown and not get first downs.

“The game just felt like we only played three quarters,” he added. “I want to play 60 minutes. I want to make it 60 minutes of hell for our opponents, and we have a roster that can do that.”