Texas soccer: Are big-time nonconference video games the norm for Horns? – Austin American-Statesman

Longhorns Soccer
For individuals who benefit from the artwork of alliteration, there are many methods to explain Saturday's scintillating season-opening showdown at Ohio Stadium between Texas football and Ohio State. 
Marquee matchup.
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NO. 1 TEXAS AT NO. 3 OHIO STATE
When/the place: 11 a.m. Saturday in Columbus, Ohio.
TV/radio: Fox; 1300 AM, 98.1 FM, 105.3 FM (Spanish)
Gargantuan gridiron recreation.
Colossal conflict in Columbus.
Large battle between blue bloods.
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TEXAS FOOTBALL: How Arch Manning is preparing for Ohio State Buckeyes' home crowd
Name it no matter you need. This season-opening soccer fracas on Fox incorporates a Texas group that tops the Related Press' ballot and Ohio State, which is third. The sport comes a number of months after Ohio State's highway to a nationwide championship featured a 28-14 win over Texas in the College Football Playoff semifinals.
"I don't suppose it could possibly (get right here quickly sufficient). I don't suppose it could possibly," UT working again Quintrevion Wisner mentioned this week. "We’re undoubtedly prepared, although. Large recreation developing, huge second. We're ready."
Ohio State Buckeyes security Sonny Kinds (6) tackles Texas Longhorns vast receiver Ryan Wingo (5) through the second half of the Cotton Bowl Traditional School Soccer Playoff semifinal recreation at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas on Jan. 10, 2025. Ohio State gained 28-14.
Ohio State and Texas respectively rank second and fifth on school soccer's all-time wins chart. Simply two of UT's 961 wins have come on the Buckeyes' expense. Ohio State has additionally crushed Texas twice.
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However regardless of not assembly one another that always, Texas and Ohio State have created loads of recollections collectively. Vince Younger's 24-yard touchdown pass to Limas Sweed at Ohio Stadium acquired UT's 2005 championship run began, and Ohio State bested Texas in Austin a yr later in a showdown between the top-two groups within the AP ballot. Quan Cosby's dive into the top zone on the 2009 Fiesta Bowl stays a spotlight at Texas whereas Jack Sawyer's sack, strip and rating to seal final season's Cotton Bowl gained't be forgotten anytime quickly in Columbus.
TEXAS FOOTBALL: Longhorns focused on results, not No. 1 hype
After besting Texas on the Cotton Bowl, Ohio State superior to and gained the nationwide championship. Seven months later, Ohio State turns into the ninth defending champion in a 50-year span to play Texas the next season (a tenth defending champion, LSU, had its dwelling recreation towards Texas in 2020 canceled due to the pandemic).
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None of these defending champs, nonetheless, had been the primary group listed on UT's schedule. Texas performed Michigan final yr through the second week of the season, however Oklahoma and Nebraska had been convention foes in 1976, 1986, 1996, 1998 and 2001. USC and Miami's 1990 and 2005 championship follow-ups featured postseason video games towards Texas.
Ohio State can also be simply the third top-five group that Texas has confronted in a season opener prior to now 50 years. Texas beat No. 5 Auburn in 1983, however was crushed by the fifth-ranked Tigers to open the 1987 season.
Heading right into a recreation of this magnitude, Texas coach Steve Sarkisian admitted that he would have appreciated to "get some footing beneath you with some new gamers, some guys that possibly haven't performed with you, even when they're transfers." Sarkisian, although, pointed out that Ohio State is in the same boat. The Buckeyes are simply the sixth group since 2000 to open up their championship protection towards a ranked opponent.
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"I believe on the finish of the day, if it's each of our first recreation, you’re feeling OK. The place I'd be actually uncomfortable if this was our first recreation, they usually had already gotten the sport beneath their belt," Sarkisian mentioned. "So it simply is what it’s. You attempt to put together your group as finest you’ll be able to. You attempt to reduce the self-inflicted wounds, and so you’ll be able to play as clear a soccer as doable come Saturday at midday."
In response to UT, that is the twentieth time that the NCAA's defending champion has confronted the No. 1 group within the AP ballot. The Longhorns had been concerned in two of the earlier 19 showdowns. Texas was the reigning champion when it was crushed in Austin by top-ranked Ohio State in 2006 and No. 1 Alabama on the 1965 Orange Bowl.
Final week, the SEC introduced that its soccer groups will every begin playing nine conference games in 2026. For UT's first two seasons within the league, the SEC scheduled eight league video games. This implies SEC groups will solely schedule three nonconference video games sooner or later and league guidelines mandate that a kind of contests should be towards Notre Dame or a group from the ACC, Large 12 or Large Ten.
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Texas already has future video games towards Ohio State (2026), Michigan (2027) and Arizona State (2032, 2033) on the books. Late final yr, Texas and Notre Dame introduced that they'll meet in nonconference in 2028 and 2029.
MORE: Texas vs. Ohio State game on Fox will stay on YouTube TV — for now
Texas hasn't hidden its want to schedule video games that appeal to the highlight.
Lately, Texas has accomplished home-and-home nonconference collection with Alabama, Cal, Notre Dame and USC, and the Longhorns hosted LSU and traveled to Michigan and performed Maryland inside an NFL stadium. Don't anticipate the Longhorns to alter that scheduling philosophy. Texas athletic director Chris Del Conte, who was a longtime proponent of the SEC increasing to 9 convention video games since UT performs Oklahoma on a impartial website yearly, told reporters this week the Longhorns have an "obligation" to play different big-name opponents.
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"The model of Texas, we owe it to varsity soccer to play one of these recreation," Del Conte mentioned. "We’ve Michigan, we’ve Ohio State, we simply scheduled Notre Dame. We had USC, we had LSU after we had a nine-game (convention) schedule within the Large 12. I believe with the discussions going across the CFP whether or not growth or not, the common season issues. Are we speaking concerning the NFL opening video games proper now? No, they're speaking about Texas enjoying Ohio State, they're speaking about Alabama enjoying Florida State, Clemson enjoying LSU. These video games actually set the tone for faculty. We're not shying away from it. We wish to protect school soccer within the nationwide panorama. 
"Us not enjoying A&M for a very long time damage school soccer. Nebraska not enjoying Oklahoma is mindless to me. We've acquired to have these video games, they're vital. Us enjoying Ohio State, everybody's speaking about it. I'm fired up for the sport."
In terms of scheduling, Sarkisian does have a say in the matter. The soccer coach, nonetheless, mentioned this week that he leaves a lot of the work to Del Conte and his group.
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However life within the SEC is hard sufficient as it’s. Wouldn't the Longhorns be higher served enjoying their nonconference video games towards groups that aren't anticipated to contend for nationwide championships? On Monday, Sarkisian didn't suppose so. Within the coach's thoughts, he mentioned, he didn't consider {that a} loss in certainly one of these video games would hurt a group's probabilities at qualifying for the School Soccer Playoff.
"I take into consideration the CFP, and as we proceed to evolve from two groups to 4 groups to 12 groups and God is aware of the place we're going to go subsequent, my thought is nearly that you just get rewarded for enjoying these video games," Sarkisian mentioned. "The purpose is to be rewarded for enjoying these video games. Clearly, you’ll be able to reward your self by successful. That's useful, however I simply don't suppose both us, or Ohio State for that matter, goes to get punished for enjoying on this recreation from a CFP standpoint."
A College of Montana graduate, Danny has spent the previous 18 years with the American-Statesman sports activities division and he at the moment covers the College of Texas soccer group and athletic division. He’s a faithful husband, father and Colorado Rockies fan. 
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