GAMEDAY College Football
Texas 34, Alabama 24
(AP Photo/Vasha Hunt)
By JOHN ZENOR
Associated Press
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. - Quinn Ewers finished what he started last season, passing for 349 yards and three touchdowns to lead No. 11 Texas to a 34-24 victory over third-ranked Alabama in a huge win for a program trying to climb back into national championship contention.
The Longhorns (2-0) delivered the biggest victory under Steve Sarkisian in a game that slipped away last season after a red-hot Ewers exited because of a first-quarter shoulder injury. He was back and with another big weapon in Adonai Mitchell. This amounted to a welcome-to-the-Southeastern Conference moment for a program set to join Alabama & Co. next season.
It didn't come without a fight from the Crimson Tide (1-1), which has now seen three games slip away late in the past two seasons. Alabama had its 21-game home winning streak snapped along with a 57-game regular-season binge against nonconference teams dating to Nick Saban's debut season, 2007.
Mitchell delivered big against ‘Bama - again. The Georgia transfer caught touchdown passes of 7 and 39 yards in the fourth quarter. As a freshman Mitchell’s 40-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter of the national championship game against the Tide gave Georgia the lead and the first of back-to-back titles.
He caught the winner against Ohio State in the semifinal as well. Then Mitchell headed to Texas and another showdown with Alabama.
Sarkisian, a former Alabama offensive coordinator, came into the game 14-12 at Texas and with just two wins in nine tries against ranked teams. He left with a doozie of a win over his former boss.
Ewers was 24-of-38 passing and tight end Ja'Tavion Sanders had five catches for 114 yards.
Alabama's Jalen Milroe delivered big plays passing and running, but also was picked off twice on bad decisions. He was 14 of 27 for 255 yards with a pair of touchdowns.
Both quarterbacks delivered big drives to swap the lead in the final 16 minutes.
Alabama didn't grab its first lead until Milroe found Jermaine Burton - also a transfer from two-time defending national champion Georgia - in the left corner of the end zone for a 49-yard touchdown with 14 seconds left in the third quarter. That came after a fourth-down stop when Ewers couldn't control the snap under center.
That lead became a double-digit deficit again in a whirlwind 84-second span.
Ewers answered right back with a 50-yard pass and run to Sanders. Then he promptly hit Mitchell for his 7-yarder.
Jerrin Thompson stepped in front of Milroe's pass and raced 32 yards to set up Jonathon Brooks' 5-yard run. Suddenly it was Texas 27, Alabama 16.
Milroe and ‘Bama weren’t done. Milroe recovered a dropped snap and hit tight end Amari Niblack, who rambled for a 39-yard touchdown.
Milroe's two-point pass made it 27-24 with 11:08 left before Mitchell's long score put it away.
THE TAKEAWAY
Texas: The Horns kept up the pressure on Milroe and delivered big plays offensively. More importantly, Texas didn't flinch on the big stage, especially in the fourth quarter on their first trip to Tuscaloosa since 1902.
Alabama: The offensive line was pushed around much of the. Penalties proved costly. And Saban's team faces renewed questions after losing a pair of down-to-the-wire games last season.
September 9, 2023
| Scoring Summary | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| First Quarter | Tex | Ala | |||
| Tex | FG | 4:42 | Bert Auburn 32 yard field goal | 3 | 0 |
| Second Quarter | Tex | Ala | |||
| Ala | FG | 14:55 | Will Reichard 42 yard field goal | 3 | 3 |
| Tex | TD | 13:26 | Xavier Worthy 44 yard TD pass from Quinn Ewers (Bert Auburn Extra Point) | 10 | 3 |
| Tex | FG | 4:05 | Bert Auburn 29 yard field goal | 13 | 3 |
| Ala | FG | 0:00 | Will Reichard 30 yard field goal | 13 | 6 |
| Third Quarter | Tex | Ala | |||
| Ala | FG | 11:04 | Will Reichard 51 yard field goal | 13 | 9 |
| Ala | TD | 0:14 | Jermaine Burton 49 yard TD pass from Jalen Milroe (Will Reichard Extra Point) | 13 | 16 |
| Fourth Quarter | Tex | Ala | |||
| Tex | TD | 14:05 | Adonai Mitchell 7 yard TD pass from Quinn Ewers (Bert Auburn Extra Point) | 20 | 16 |
| Tex | TD | 13:50 | Jonathon Brooks 5 yard TD run (Bert Auburn Extra Point) | 27 | 16 |
| Ala | TD | 11:08 | Amari Niblack 39 yard TD pass from Jalen Milroe (Isaiah Bond 2pt conversion attempt is GOOD) | 27 | 24 |
| Tex | TD | 8:23 | Adonai Mitchell 39 yard TD pass from Quinn Ewers (Bert Auburn Extra Point) | 34 | 24 |
| Team Stats | ||
|---|---|---|
| Texas | Alabama | |
| First downs | 22 | 18 |
| Rushing | 6 | 7 |
| Passing | 12 | 10 |
| Penalty | 4 | 1 |
| 3rd Down Efficiency | 7-18, 39% | 5-14, 36% |
| 4th down efficiency | 1-3, 33% | 1-1, 100% |
| Rushes-Yards | 37-105 | 35-107 |
| Passing Yards | 349 | 255 |
| Return Yards | 70 | 12 |
| Completions-Attempts-Int | 24-38-0 | 14-27-2 |
| Sacks-Yards Lost | 0-0 | 5-31 |
| Punts | 3 | 5 |
| Fumbles Lost | 2-0 | 0-0 |
| Penalties - Yards | 4-40 | 10-90 |
| Texas Passing | |||||
| Player | Cmp | Att | Yds | TDs | Int |
| Q. Ewers | 24 | 38 | 349 | 3 | 0 |
| Alabama Passing | |||||
| Player | Cmp | Att | Yds | TDs | Int |
| J. Milroe | 14 | 27 | 255 | 2 | 2 |
| Texas Rushing | ||||
| Player | Carries | Yds | Avg | TDs |
| J. Brooks | 14 | 57 | 4.1 | 1 |
| C. Baxter | 11 | 31 | 2.8 | 0 |
| Q. Ewers | 3 | 11 | 3.7 | 0 |
| K. Robinson | 3 | 6 | 2.0 | 0 |
| A. Mitchell | 1 | 5 | 5.0 | 0 |
| X. Worthy | 1 | 3 | 3.0 | 0 |
| J. Blue | 1 | -2 | -2.0 | 0 |
| Alabama Rushing | ||||
| Player | Carries | Yds | Avg | TDs |
| J. McClellan | 12 | 45 | 3.8 | 0 |
| J. Milroe | 15 | 44 | 2.9 | 0 |
| R. Williams | 6 | 12 | 2.0 | 0 |
| J. Miller | 2 | 6 | 3.0 | 0 |
| Texas Receiving | ||||
| Player | Rec | Yds | Avg | TDs |
| J. Sanders | 5 | 114 | 22.8 | 0 |
| A. Mitchell | 3 | 78 | 26.0 | 2 |
| X. Worthy | 5 | 75 | 15.0 | 1 |
| J. Whittington | 3 | 44 | 14.7 | 0 |
| C. Baxter | 4 | 21 | 5.3 | 0 |
| J. Blue | 1 | 7 | 7.0 | 0 |
| J. Brooks | 1 | 4 | 4.0 | 0 |
| K. Robinson | 1 | 3 | 3.0 | 0 |
| Q. Ewers | 1 | 3 | 3.0 | 0 |
| Alabama Receiving | ||||
| Player | Rec | Yds | Avg | TDs |
| K. Prentice | 5 | 68 | 13.6 | 0 |
| J. Burton | 2 | 58 | 29.0 | 1 |
| A. Niblack | 2 | 45 | 22.5 | 1 |
| I. Bond | 1 | 34 | 34.0 | 0 |
| M. Benson | 2 | 33 | 16.5 | 0 |
| J. McClellan | 1 | 12 | 12.0 | 0 |
| R. Williams | 1 | 5 | 5.0 | 0 |
| Texas Interceptions | ||
| Player | Int | Yards |
| J. Thompson | 1 | 32 |
| J. Barron | 1 | 16 |
| Alabama Interceptions | ||
| Player | Int | Yards |
| Texas Punting | |||
| Player | Punts | Yards | Avg |
| R. Sanborn | 3 | 150 | 50.0 |
| Alabama Punting | |||
| Player | Punts | Yards | Avg |
| J. Burnip | 5 | 263 | 52.6 |
| Texas Punt Returns | |||
| Player | Ret | Yards | Average |
| Alabama Punt Returns | |||
| Player | Ret | Yards | Average |
| K. McKinstry | 1 | -6 | -6.0 |
| Texas Kick Returns | |||
| Player | Ret | Yards | Average |
| K. Robinson | 1 | 22 | 22.0 |
| Alabama Kick Returns | |||
| Player | Ret | Yards | Average |
| K. Law | 1 | 18 | 18.0 |
| Texas Missed FG | |
| Player | Length |
| B. Auburn | 42 |
| Alabama Missed FG | |
| Player | Length |
