Ohio State football: Five takeaways from victory against Texas

Matthew McConaughey did not stick around to watch the Ohio State Buckeyes celebrate a 14-7 victory against Texas.

The Oscar-winning actor and Longhorns superfan, wearing his trademark cowboy hat, plus a burnt orange shirt and blue jeans, made a quick exit Saturday after a long afternoon on the Texas sideline. He walked toward the tunnel on the south side of Ohio Stadium after Ohio State safety Caleb Downs tackled Texas tight end Jack Endries after a three-yard reception on 4th-and-5 with 1 minute, 27 seconds to play.

That play clinched Ohio State’s second victory against Texas in eight months. A 28-14 victory in January in the College Football Playoff semifinals propelled the Buckeyes to their first national championship in 10 years. This victory against the No. 1 Longhorns could push the No. 3 Buckeyes to the top of the Associated Press top 25 after the first weekend of the season.

Ohio State may not have had one fan at the game as famous as McConaughey, but it did have a crowd of 107,524, many of whom mocked Texas with chants of “SEC” in the final moments.

“What an unbelievable atmosphere,” Ohio State coach Ryan Day said.

Day saw the fanfare on the drive from his home to the stadium and on the ESPN College GameDay and Fox Big Noon Kickoff sets.

“We came out for warm-ups, and there weren’t very many empty seats,” Day said. “For a noon kickoff, to have that many people in the stadium was amazing. An atmosphere like that, I think it made a huge difference in the fourth quarter.”

Here are five takeaways from Ohio State’s 2025 season opener:

Credit: David Jablonski

Credit: David Jablonski

Quarterback comparison: The game featured two first-time starters behind center: Ohio State sophomore Julian Sayin; and Texas sophomore Arch Manning.

Sayin completed 13 of 20 passes for 126 yards. His 40-yard touchdown to Carnell Tate with 13:08 left in the fourth quarter gave Ohio State a 14-0 lead. It proved to be the game-winning score.

“Before the drive, they let me know, this might be coming,” Sayin said. “We had done a great job in practice that week of repping that play. Carnell ran a great route and made a great catch and the offensive line protected me up front.”

ExplorePHOTOS: Ohio State vs. Texas

“As a receiver you have to go make the play,” Tate said. “Whether the DB is shorter than you or whether you’re open, whatever you have to do. What happens to you when the ball comes? Either a penalty is thrown or you make the catch, and I made the catch.”

Manning completed 17 of 30 passes for 170 yards with one interception.

“Offensively early on, I thought our plan was pretty good,” Texas coach Steve Sarkisian said. “We were playing physical football. Quite frankly, we just didn’t have rhythm in the passing game yet. We had a couple opportunities there to move it, but that didn’t happen.”

Credit: David Jablonski

Local contributions: Alter graduate C.J. Hicks, a senior linebacker, pressured Manning on his final pass, forcing Manning to settle for the short connection to Endries.

Hicks appeared in his 41st game with the Buckeyes. He moved from linebacker to defensive end in the spring. Hicks did not start against Texas but made three tackles.

Credit: David Jablonski

Defensive stops: Texas attempted five fourth-down conversions and converted one.

The biggest stop by the Buckeyes came on 4th-and-1 at the Ohio State 1-yard line with 6:40 left in the game. They stuffed Manning on a quarterback sneak, preserving a 14-0 lead.

In the previous game against Texas on Jan. 10 in the Cotton Bowl, Ohio State had a similar goal-line stand. Texas had 1st-and-goal at the 1 but failed to score on three straight plays. The drive ended with the scoop and score by Ohio State’s Jack Sawyer.

“I think we showed the country that we didn’t go anywhere and we’re still the best defense in the country,” Ohio State cornerback Jermaine Mathews said. “I think it was our test to show the world what we can really do.”

Credit: David Jablonski

Run game struggles: CJ Donaldson Jr. ran for a one-yard touchdown on 4th-and-1 in the second quarter to give Ohio State a 7-0 lead. That was one of the few bright spots for the ground game.

Ohio State gained 77 yards on 34 carries, an average of 2.3 yards per attempt. Donaldson gained 67 yards on 19 carries.

Late in the game, with Ohio State’s defense dominating, the Buckeyes stuck to safe run calls. They gained a total of 16 yards on two drives after the touchdown by Tate but ran more than seven minutes off the clock.

“Lots of credit to Ohio State,” Sarkisian said. “They played a really disciplined game: zero turnovers; only two penalties. They took advantage of their opportunities when they got them.”

Credit: David Jablonski

Big picture: Ohio State kept several streaks alive with the victory.

• The Buckeyes have won 25 straight season openers. That’s the longest active streak in the country.

• The Buckeyes improved to 5-0 against Southeastern Conference teams at Ohio Stadium.

“We went into this game with no expectations,” Tate said. “It was just by any means necessary. Go out there and go win. We don’t care who gets the ball, as long as it was a win. A lot of Week 1 match-ups all across the country have had a lot of interceptions, turnovers, and ball security, so we knew we had to go out there and win by any means.”