2026, Week 2; No. 4 Texas 24, No. 1 Ohio State 23
Ohio State football suffered a heartbreaking loss in Game No. 2 of the 2026 season Saturday night, as Texas scored 21 unanswered points in the second half to shock the Buckeyes 24-23 at DKR Memorial Stadium.
Junior quarterback Julian Sayin completed 17-of-32 passes for 278 yards and a touchdown, while also throwing one interception.
Junior star wideout Jeremiah Smith was Sayin’s top target, hauling in eight passes for 164 yards and a touchdown. Bo Jackson added four catches for 37 yards, while Mason Williams finished with two receptions for 29 yards.
The Buckeyes got strong production from the backfield as well, with Bo Jackson leading the way with 74 rushing yards on 19 carries. Ja’Kobi Jackson added 20 yards and a touchdown on five carries, while Sayin rushed four times for minus-7 yards. Yet, the team was only able to average 3.0 yards per carry.
Defensively, Earl Little Jr. led Ohio State with 11 tackles, while Payton Pierce added nine and Devin Sanchez recorded eight. Jaylen McClain finished with six tackles and an interception, while Jay Timmons recovered a fumble on the opening play of the game. The Silver Bullets finished with two sacks and six tackles for loss.
Ohio State jumped out to a 23-3 lead before Texas stormed back in the second half. Connor Hawkins connected on three of four field-goal attempts, including a 48-yarder, while Ja’Kobi Jackson and Jeremiah Smith provided the Buckeyes’ touchdowns.
Texas quarterback Arch Manning completed 23-of-37 passes for 195 yards, one touchdown and one interception. Hollywood Smothers led the Longhorns with 74 rushing yards and two touchdowns, including the game-winning one-yard score with 25 seconds remaining.
Ohio State outgained Texas 372-336 and held the Longhorns to 195 passing yards, but Texas controlled the fourth-down battle, converting 2-of-3 attempts. The Longhorns commanded the second-half of the game, leading to a victory.
The comeback was historic. Texas became the first team to overcome a 20-point fourth-quarter deficit against an AP No. 1 team. Before Saturday, teams in that situation were 0-197 since 2004.
The Longhorns also completed the largest fourth-quarter comeback ever against a No. 1-ranked team.
For Ohio State, it was the first time under Ryan Day that the Buckeyes lost after leading by at least 17 points at halftime. Ohio State also suffered its largest blown lead under Day.
For Texas, the 20-point comeback was the fourth-largest in program history.
GAME RECAP
The Buckeyes won the coin toss and elected to defer, giving Texas the ball first. Arch Manning’s opening pass was completed to Roderick Brown, but Brown was stripped by Jaylen McClain, who recovered at the Texas 18. The play was reviewed and the call was upheld.
Ohio State could not find the end zone, but Caden Hawkins drilled a 26-yard field goal to put the Buckeyes ahead. 3-0 OSU, 12:04 Q1 [6 plays, 11 yards, 2:45]
Manning then tried to take a deep shot to Cam Coleman, but Coleman could not complete the diving catch. The ball ricocheted off Coleman and into the hands of Buckeye safety Jaylen McClain for his second takeaway of the game. The interception was reviewed and upheld.
The Buckeyes took advantage of the second turnover, leaning heavily on Jeremiah Smith before Ja’Kobi Jackson powered through for an eight-yard touchdown run. 10-0 OSU, 5:39 Q1 [10 plays, 81 yards, 4:36]
Texas went three-and-out again as Manning struggled to find his rhythm.
Ohio State put together another long drive early in the second quarter, but the Buckeyes came up short when Jackson was stopped for a one-yard gain on fourth-and-two from the Texas 13.
The Longhorns finally found some offensive rhythm, but a 30-yard touchdown pass to a wide-open Ryan Wingo went through his hands. Ohio State’s defense held Texas to a 37-yard field goal. 10-3 OSU, 5:42 Q2 [16 plays, 69 yards, 7:41]
The Buckeyes answered with another scoring drive, but Texas star edge rusher Collin Simmons sacked Julian Sayin to help stall the possession. Hawkins came on and connected from 30 yards to push Ohio State’s lead back to 10. 13-3 OSU, 1:41 Q2 [9 plays, 63 yards, 4:01]
Texas tried to respond before halftime and converted a short pass to Brown, but the Longhorns went for it on fourth-and-one from the Ohio State 41. Ryan Wingo was stopped for a 10-yard loss by Jermaine Matthews Jr., giving the Buckeyes possession.
Ohio State quickly capitalized. Bo Jackson helped set up the offense with a run and a pair of screen passes before Sayin delivered a strike to Jeremiah Smith for a 19-yard touchdown with just 10 seconds remaining in the half. 20-3 OSU, 0:10 Q2 [4 plays, 49 yards, 0:39]
The first Ohio State drive of the second half ended in a punt, but the Buckeyes added to their lead on their next possession. Two Sayin incompletions stalled the drive, but Hawkins came through from 48 yards for his third field goal of the afternoon. 23-3 OSU, 8:09 Q3 [7 plays, 43 yards, 1:51]
Two more punts ended the third quarter, but the momentum began to swing toward Texas.
Manning started to find his rhythm and moved the Longhorns into Ohio State territory. Texas then faced fourth-and-nine at their own 42, but Manning kept the drive alive with a completion to Emaree Winston.
Then Arch found Wingo for a three-yard touchdown, giving Wingo a chance to make up for his earlier drop. 23-10 OSU, 14:19 Q4 [15 plays, 91 yards, 6:28]
Texas continued its comeback attempt on the next possession. Manning converted another key fourth down with a pass to Emmett Mosley V before Hollywood Smothers finished the drive with a one-yard touchdown run. 23-17 OSU, 7:14 Q4 [13 plays, 72 yards, 5:32]
Ohio State had a chance to put the game away, driving into Texas territory, but the Buckeyes stalled after several uncharacteristic drops from Jeremiah Smith. Hawkins came on for a 45-yard field goal attempt with 4:16 remaining, but the kick sailed wide. 23-17 OSU, 4:16 Q4 [7 plays, 48 yards, 2:58]
Texas took over, and Manning was suddenly in full command. The Longhorns methodically marched down the field, with Manning continuing to find his receivers before Smothers powered into the end zone from one yard out with just 25 seconds remaining. 24-23 TEX, 0:25 Q4 [12 plays, 73 yards, 3:51]
Ohio State could not generate anything with the remaining time, and the Longhorns finished off a remarkable comeback after trailing 23-3 midway through the second half.
THREE TAKEAWAYS
Momentum is a dangerous thing when playing not to lose.
Aggressive first half, passive second half. That disastrous fourth quarter was the epitome of what a team with momentum does against a team that takes their foot off the gas.
Granted, playing conservatively is not always a bad thing. You don’t want to force anything and cause mistakes that can spiral. And let’s be clear, Steve Sarkisian and Texas deserve a lot of credit. Those fourth-down play calls took guts, stupid amounts of guts, and those were the plays that shifted everything in favor of the home team. The Longhorns never wavered once they had the momentum.
Sayin and Smith had some mistakes, uncharacteristic ones. And the seemingly passive plan on the play sheet did nothing to help rip the momentum back from the Longhorns.
The 2024 National Championship run was very special for many reasons, but one of them was the aggressiveness the team played with. They showed no mercy and played with such drive to obliterate whoever opposed them. That would’ve been nice to see in this game, and hopefully it can resurface later in the year.
Missed opportunities cannot be a theme for the season again.
Most of the game was dominated by the Buckeye defense, and they caught some breaks. That interception was very lucky to have been popped in the air, and McClain was in the right spot at the right time. Texas also had some uncharacteristic throws, some bad drops, and defensive lapses.
Yet throughout, points were left on the board. 10 points off the two turnovers sounds good, but they turned the longer of the two drives into a touchdown. Many short drives from the Longhorn offense turned into nothing for Ohio State.
Two red zone field goals, a fourth-down miss at the 13, and of course, a missed field goal in the clutch. The curse continues.
Quite simply, just capitalize. That’s it. Take advantage of what is given, because if one of those opportunities turns into something more on the scoreboard, a very different conversation is being had after this game.
Some major adjustments will be needed before Big Ten play.
There are many things that can be broken down from this game. Both lines are in need of some major work, mostly the offensive line, which may be reshuffled after Phillip Daniels went down with an injury. The run game is still lackluster and doesn’t provide the pop that is needed to pair with the passing game.
Defensively, coverage was weaker as the game went on, with missed assignments and wide-open receivers being a problem. The safeties at times seemed very lost on who to pick up.
Again, give Texas credit where they deserve it. Their wideouts are well good enough to find soft spots in the Buckeyes’ zone coverage, which they did often in the final quarter.
From kicking in the clutch to shoring up the defense to figuring out the offensive line and how to get this run game going, there’s a lot this team can do to be better. The good news is, it’s all fixable, and the talent is on this roster to make the corrections.
The biggest question is: can this coaching staff recognize when to kick it into high gear? Let’s hope so.
NEXT WEEK
The Buckeyes will look to bounce back next week against their second MAC opponent of the year, an in-state team in the Kent State Golden Flashes. They enter the game at 1-1 after beating Wofford 36-15 in their previous game.
Ohio State has never lost to Kent State, leading the all-time series 3-0, with the last matchup coming in 2014.
The game is scheduled for a noon kickoff EST. Keep listening to Buckeye football all season long on 98.3 WPKO with pregame coverage on Saturday, September 19th beginning at 10:30 a.m.
