Baton Rouge, La. – With four seconds left to play, Texas QB Arch Manning found Raleek Brown for a 4-yard touchdown pass to lift the Longhorns over LSU, 22-21, on Saturday night in Death Valley.
Safety Ty Benefield shined on defense for the Tigers, recording eight tackles, two interceptions and a sack. Princewill Umanmielen was a force off the edge as well with eight tackles of his own.
The Tigers return to action next Saturday for a road test vs. Teneessee in Knoxville. The game will kick off at 2:30 p.m. CT.
Game Recap
Arch Manning and Texas opened their first offensive possession by moving the ball down field with ease, resulting in an 11-play, 75-yard drive. The drive ended with a touchdown as Manning took a 1-yard rush into the end zone, giving the Longhorns the early 7-0 advantage with 10:31 to play.
LSU responded with a scoring drive of their own on their opening possession, going 13 plays for 75 yards. The drive ended with a 10-yard touchdown connection from Leavitt to Jackson Harris, whose stock continues to rise. The Tigers tied the game with Texas, 7-7, with 5:16 to play in the first quarter.
On 3rd-and-6 from the UT 24, Manning’s pass intended with Emmett Mosley V was intercepted by safety Ty Benefield and returned 33 yards down to the Longhorn 7. Two plays later, Leavitt found Harris again, this time for a 9-yard touchdown reception, giving the Tigers the 14-7 lead with 9:17 to play in the first half.
Texas was able to cut the deficit to 14-10 after putting together a 12-play drive spanning 50 yards, which culminated in a 42-yard field goal from Gianni Spetic with 3:22 to play in the first half.
The Tigers finished the first half with points. After an 11-play, 55-yard drive was halted, Scott Starzyk attempted a 38-yard field goal, but it went wide right. LSU took a 14-10 lead into the locker room.
On 3rd-and-5 from the UT 45, Manning’s pass intended for Ryan Wingo was intercepted by Ty Benefield once again, his second pick of the night. LSU took over at their own 28.
The Tigers added on with an explosive play in the run game. On 2nd-and-6 from LSU’s own 44, Dilin Jones took a 44-yard rush to the house for the score, extending LSU’s lead to 21-10 with 5:52 remaining in the third quarter.
With Texas driving into LSU territory, edge rusher Princewill Umanmielen took down Manning for a sack to force a 41-yard field goal from Spetic. The Tigers still led, 21-13, with 1:35 to play in the third quarter.
The Longhorns cut the deficit even further with a 50-yard field goal from Spetic, making it 21-16 with 11:37 to play in the contest.