Are you football-curious? Want to know what your coworkers are talking about but don’t know who Kirk Herbstreit is (or he gives you the ick)? We’ve got you covered. We’re trying out a new approach to football coverage at The Barbed Wire in which we share some of our internal dialogue, text exchanges, and jokes we found on the internet.
So join our team of completely unqualified-to-write-about sports writers as we recap the highlights of Texas teams — in college and the pros (and maybe the occasional high school team if we’re feeling spicy).
You won’t find stats for every player — ESPN and all 1,000 other sports outlets have that covered. We’re here for a good time, if not a serious one. Also, don’t be mad if we get something wrong, we’re new at this. And here as much for the food and gossip as we are play-by-play.
Now, we’re ready to rumble. This weekend’s Texas football games delivered everything a fan could want: blowouts, drama, and enough face-palms to make even seasoned fans question their life choices.
Texas Drop a Gutwrencher
Tampa Bay quarterback Baker Mayfield broke Houston hearts on Monday Night Football, leading the Buccaneers to a wild 20-19 comeback win. The Texans thought they had sealed it when Nick Chubb blasted in a 25-yard touchdown with just over two minutes left, but Mayfield wasn’t done. On fourth down with the game on the line, he scrambled for a first down, then strung together a series of completions, including two huge catches by rookie running back Bucky Irving, to set up Rachaad White’s game-winning score.
For Mayfield, it was his second straight last-minute drive to steal a win and his first-ever prime-time victory with Tampa Bay after starting 0-6 in those slots. For Houston, it was more heartbreak — a night that started with promise ended with fans muttering what-ifs over late defensive breakdowns. In short: the Texans cued up their happy ending, but Mayfield rewrote the script with his own last-second twist.
Brandon Aubrey and the Leg that Saved the Dallas Cowboys
Let’s start with the NFL and the Dallas Cowboys aka the team your dad loves to hate. They beat the Giants in a game that was less “football” and more “Marvel movie where Iron Man and Thor just keep blasting each other with bigger and bigger lasers until the stadium’s about to collapse.”
This was all offense, all the time, as Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott and the Giants’ Russell Wilson threw for more than 800 yards combined, and the fourth quarter turned into a straight-up action sequence.
Prescott hit George Pickens for a touchdown, Wilson dropped a pinpoint bomb to Malik Nabers with 25 seconds left, and just when it looked over, Cowboys kicker Brandon Aubrey leveled up and booted a 64-yard nuke (ok, it was a really long field goal) to force overtime.
Overtime felt like a video game where both players kept mashing the wrong buttons, until Wilson tossed an interception that gave Dallas new life. Prescott scrambled like a guy spamming the “sprint” button in Madden, setting up Aubrey for the game-winning 46-yarder. Cowboys win, 40-37.
It was messy, it was chaotic, it was cinematic and if you’re new to the sport, this was football at its most fun: two quarterbacks trading highlight-reel shots until somebody finally dropped the controller.
Now with the NFL out of the way, let’s move on to college ball, where there was LOTS of drama.
Aggies’ Answered Prayers
The highlight by far was #17 Texas A&M vs #8 Notre Dame, which turned into a total heart-stopping classic. The underdog Aggies trailed for most of the game, but just when fans started texting their group chat for comfort, A&M pulled off a last-minute miracle. With only 13 seconds left, Aggie quarterback Marcel Reed threw a touchdown on 4th down, and the Aggies snatched a wild 41-40 win right out from under Notre Dame’s nose.
If you’re new to college football? Here’s the deal: emotions go from “Oh no, it’s over” to “DID WE JUST WIN?!” in about two seconds. Fans screamed, the team piled on Reed like he just announced free tacos at Kyle Field, and Aggies everywhere are now telling anyone who’ll listen that “THIS is our year.” Sometimes college football can be a bit ho-hum but sometimes (like tonight!) it’s absolutely legendary.
Arch Manning Gets… Booed?
Meanwhile the Longhorns, led by the (sorry this is mean but also true) extremely disappointing Arch Manning, beat UTEP 27-10. Manning looked more like a deer in LED headlights every time UTEP’s defense blitzed.
The crowd booed in the first half, proving Austin fans expect fireworks at all times, preferably with pyrotechnics and a guitar solo.
Manning’s stat line was … pretty bad: 11-of-25 for 114 yards, with one touchdown and an interception. But the eye test was even uglier. He held the ball too long, floated a few wobbly passes, and looked jittery. His confidence seems shaken, and head coach Steve Sarkisian has simplified the offense to help Manning as much as possible. But clearly, something needs to change.
The Manning haters were out in full force. And, not to pile on, but the nepo jokes really write themselves.
Beat Coats and a Win For the Red Raiders
And in Lubbock, Texas Tech destroyed Oregon State, 45-14, powered by Tech quarterback Behren Morton tossing 4 TDs like he was playing Madden on Rookie mode. Texas Tech stayed unbeaten and confirmed there’s basically nothing to do in Lubbock on a Saturday except win by a billion.
And finally, Baylor rolled Samford 42-7, and it was essentially over after the first quarter. Baylor running back Bryson Washington ran for 135 yards and two TDs, and quarterback Sawyer Robertson threw three touchdowns. The highlight of the game, if you ask us, was the “bear coat” photo op — where Baylor defenders celebrated takeaways on the sideline by putting on a furry coat from one of their strength coaches. Yes, the sideline swag was better than Samford’s offense.
Osa Odighizuwa and a Little Time to Touch Grass
And now to our light-hearted segment, Osa Odighizuwa, the Cowboy’s defensive lineman, was named community MVP this week after hosting a baby shower for 20 single mothers and their families in Dallas. The moms reportedly received more than $500 in gifts for their children, and information about local services. We love to see it.
And the Cowboys were finally covered by our favorite sports analyst of all time — the 2-year-old viral sensation who bust into “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star” after seeing the Dallas logo. So, will the Cowboys be good this year?
“Maybe.”
