How Steve Sarkisian and Arch Manning faltered as 'Texas beat Texas'

DALLAS - Steve Sarkisian didn't trust his quarterback, and he didn't trust his play caller.

Then, given a second chance in the closing minutes at the Cotton Bowl, both went out and proved his doubts right.

By this point, after Saturday's 27-24 Red River reckoning in which the top-ranked Texas Longhorns confirmed one narrative after another while losing to Oklahoma, it's probably time to acknowledge that we know exactly who they are.

The quarterback, Arch Manning, can make every spectacular throw suggested by his bloodline, and can dice up any defense in the country under pressure. But for every couple of "Holy Moly!" completions, he's going to produce an inexplicable "Holy Moly!" misfire.

The play caller, who happens to be Sarkisian himself, understands offense like few coaches in the world do. But at the most inopportune moments - at the goal line in the national semifinals, for instance - he's prone to freeze up, too.

That shouldn't be surprising anymore, either.

So a month after the college football world saw Manning and Sarkisian at their best in an improbable comeback against Ohio State, we probably should have seen Saturday's equally improbable collapse coming.

And when the Longhorns' best player was asked to explain why one of the most talented teams in the sport lost to their deservedly unranked, thoroughly unspectacular archrivals?

"I think Texas beat Texas," defensive end Colin Simmons said.

Texas beat Texas in ways that have become all too familiar during the Sarkisian era, which has been marked by a series of unquestionable steps forward interspersed with mystifying stumbles.

Penalties proved costly. Special teams were a mess. And a coach who takes pride in boldness picked the weirdest possible occasion to get conservative.

This time, it came at the two-minute warning, with the score tied and the Longhorns facing fourth-and-2 at the Oklahoma 35. For all intents and purposes, a first down there wins the game. To get it, all Texas needed was two yards from an offense featuring an Hall of Fame-pedigree passer, and (allegedly) $4 million worth of wide receivers, and two high-profile transfer running backs, and a left tackle projected to go in the first round of the NFL draft.

But Sarkisian didn't try to gain those two yards. He chose instead to attempt a 53-yard field goal, which - best-case scenario - would have left 1:55 on the scoreboard for the Sooners to win the game against a tiring Texas defense.

Later, Sarkisian said his decision came down to one question:

"Did I think we had a really good play call that could get us the first down?" he said.

How does the No. 1 team in the country, with all of those gifted options, not have that kind of play call? Why wouldn't Sarkisian trust himself to pick one? And why wouldn't he trust in Manning to carry it out?

Well, it wasn't long before we found out. After the Longhorns' field-goal attempt sailed wide right, the Texas defense held. But given the ball again with 54 seconds left, Manning couldn't take advantage.

Just like earlier in the quarter, when he made a bad decision and a worse throw on an airmailed interception that was returned 42 yards for an Oklahoma touchdown, Manning panicked and got picked off again.

Under heavy pressure from his right side, he looked left at first, then apparently didn't get a good look at cornerback Courtland Guillory's positioning when he fired the ball back to his right.

Guillory made the diving interception, and then Oklahoma got two beautiful sideline grabs to set up the 47-yard game-winning kick from Tate Sandell, the transfer from UTSA.

The celebration that ensued probably will turn out to be the highlight of the season for the Sooners, who weren't championship contenders when they arrived at the State Fair and almost certainly weren't contenders when they left, either.

With 12 playoff spots up for grabs, the Longhorns remain firmly in that group. Their victory over the Buckeyes will go a long way toward giving them the benefit of the doubt, even if they absorb another loss or two.

The question is, will they learn what they should from days like Saturday?

Asked after the game if another kicking-game meltdown (this time a blocked punt recovered by the Sooners for a touchdown) would convince him to change the responsibilities of much-maligned special-teams coordinator Jeff Banks, Sarkisian offered a firm, "No."

He went even farther than that when asked if he'd ever give up play-calling duties. That elicited a, "No chance."

In his defense, this is a program that made the national semifinals in two of the last three years, and was ranked above every other team in the sport on Saturday morning. As Sarkisian pointed out, one ugly loss doesn't mean the whole program is crumbling.

"I think there's a ton of belief in what we're doing," he said.

But when he gets another chance, with everything on the line, will Sarkisian believe in his quarterback? Will he believe in his play caller?

To do that, he'll need to believe that the narratives are wrong.