After Texas beat Ohio State in a season-defining comeback, head coach Steve Sarkisian made sure to show his team the iconic Kobe Bryant press conference video after the Los Angeles Lakers took a 2–0 lead in the 2009 NBA Finals.
“What’s there to be happy about? Job’s not finished,” Bryant said in the video.
Because Sarkisian understands how fast and how hard teams can fall in college football.
As every Texas fan knows, the Longhorns started ranked No. 1 in the AP Poll last season, never to return to it again in 2025 after their week one loss. The year before that, in 2024, the Longhorns were ranked No. 1 midseason, only to fall after a home loss to Georgia.
Having that No. 1 ranking has been somewhat of a curse for the Longhorns, at least over the past couple of seasons. And now, the Longhorns have found themselves on top again after a 21-point comeback against the old No. 1, Ohio State.
But for Texas, will this time be different?
Only time will tell, but regardless, this is the first time in a long time that the No. 1 feels earned. Maybe not comfortable, but definitely earned. No regular-season win in the past few years compares to the one Texas achieved last Saturday.
The AP Poll is an external opinion, one that changes from week to week. Sarkisian isn’t sure how well the team handled that top ranking in the past — and now, Texas has a greater target on its back.
But he is aware his team must stay focused on what it can control.
“A week ago, the narrative was we can’t win the big game,” Sarkisian said. “Now the opinion is, ‘Oh, now we’re the best team in the country,’ allegedly, and so everybody’s patting us on the back. Two polar opposites of where we are. We need to stay right here, right? We need to stay enamored of what we need to do and focus on us and continue to try to improve, regardless of who the opponent is or isn’t.”
It can be difficult for a group of young guys to come down from a win over Ohio State. Even if Texas wins out, this still may be _the_ win of at least Sarkisian’s tenure.
But the reality is that it is only week three, and Texas needs to move on quickly. After wrapping up nonconference play against UTSA this weekend, the Longhorns face a tough Southeastern Conference slate. And because Texas is at the top of the pack, every opponent it faces here on out will give the Longhorns its absolute best.
There is still so much to improve, and the Longhorns know they are only as good as their last outing. Fittingly, the Ohio State celebration was over by Monday morning practice, because by no means did Texas play a lights-out game against the Buckeyes.
“At practice, to be honest, today it felt like we lost,” senior quarterback Arch Manning said on Monday. “Like, we’re back going. So flush it, move on and keep it rolling.”
How Texas performs is what matters most. And how Texas wants to perform is determined by how it prepares. No poll will actually matter until toward the end of the regular season, when the College Football Playoff Committee begins to release its rankings.
So No. 1 in week three is not a prize; it’s a tool. What will Texas do with it?