It is safe to say that the Longhorns made a statement on Saturday when they beat a top-25 team that returned all but two starters. By a comfortable margin of 20 points, too.
Steve Sarkisian and the Texas football program are very much headed in the right direction, and so far are off to a better start in comparison to the last regime’s initial start. Texas played as complete a game as a team can considering they had a redshirt freshman quarterback making his first career start, a new offense, and a new defense all while going up against the No. 23 team in the nation.
Some schools within the conference had more issues against unranked schools.
As always, when there is someone new in charge the old culture and methods are abandoned and forgotten in order to make way for the new. Taking on Louisiana Week 1 gave the Longhorns an opportunity to face quality talent, while also learn about themselves and establish the new culture. It also provided an insight of what the Sarkisian era will consist of.
There were many things that could be taken away from the game, such as the offensive line looking like more of a liability than Ryan Gosling at cornerback in Remember the Titans, the fact that the pass rush is immensely improved, or even that the Longhorns opted for white socks and cleats compared to the black socks and cleats that they had worn last season.
However, I think there were three things that stood out the most about Texas’ season opener.