Texas football's red-zone struggles have haunted Longhorns' last two losses to Ohio State

When Texas football coach Steve Sarkisian looks back at his team's two meetings against Ohio State over the past two seasons, one thing jumps off the film when it comes to the Buckeyes having won both hard-fought games.

The red zone. Specifically, when Texas has the ball inside the red zone.

Therefore, it's no surprise that Sarkisian said his No. 5 Longhorns will have to execute better inside the 20-yard line if they hope to knock off No. 1 Ohio State Saturday at Royal-Memorial Stadium and stake their claim to the top spot in the national polls.

"That was probably the difference in the ball games, was our inability to score inside the 10," Sarkisian said Monday during his news conference. "Hopefully this time around, we get more opportunities like that, and we can capitalize on them."

Buckeyes won in red zone in two previous games vs Texas

6:30 p.m. Saturday at Royal-Memorial Stadium.

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Two years ago in their College Football Playoff semifinal, Texas scored on one of its two trips inside the 10 in Ohio State's 28-14 win . In comparison, the Buckeyes scored touchdowns both times they reached the red one.

Last year, Texas didn't score either time it penetrated Ohio State's 20-yard line in a 14-7 loss in Columbus, Ohio. The Buckeyes scored in their lone foray into the red area.

So, by even basic journalistic math, that means Texas has gone 1-4 when it comes to scoring against Ohio State in the red zone over the past two seasons while the Buckeyes are 3-3. If the two teams play another slugfest Saturday where points come at a premium, those trips inside the 20-yard line will prove crucial, Sarkisian said.

"I think when it comes to those scenarios, personnel helps, schemes help, the right play call at the right time helps, the mentality helps," he said. "It all adds up, because they've got good scheme, they've got good players, they've got good play callers. So, it's that marriage of those things coming together (and) ultimately, we need to be better in those scenarios."

Cam Coleman , Hollywood Smothers among Texas' offensive additions

The personnel seem better for the Texas offense, considering what Sarkisian and his staff added in the transfer portal in the offseason. Right tackle Melvin Siani and left guards Dylan Sikorski and Laurence Seymore III add some muscle up front. Receiver Cam Coleman and running backs Hollywood Smothers and Raleek Brown bolster the skill spots.

Now, Sarkisian wants to find a way to utilize all of his playmakers for the first time against Ohio State. Last season against the Buckeyes, Texas ran the ball efficiently with 166 yards on 37 carries, but only threw for 170 yards on 30 passes for a meager average of 5.7 yards per attempt. In 2024, Texas threw for 283 yards, but only ran the ball for 58 yards on 29 attempts.

"I've got to find a way to find balance in this game," said Sarkisian, who has been the Longhorns' play-caller since he took over as head coach for the 2021 season. "When you're playing really good teams, which Ohio State is a very good football team, you have to try to find a way to have balance in the game because the coaches are too good, the players are too good, the players are too smart.

"When you become one-dimensional, you're that much easier to stop. And so, finding balance in a game like this is important," he continued. "We hit a few of those passes (last year), I probably feel a little better about me as a play-caller in those games. You don't hit them, I don't feel quite as good. That's kind of the life of a play-caller. That's the way it goes."

In other words, Sarkisian doesn't think his team got muscled around, especially in that pesky red zone.

"I don't think it was about physicality," he said. "I think it was about our inability to execute (and) get points on the board when we had chances."