Three keys to a Texas win over Georgia in the SEC Championship

Conference championship week is here, and for the second year in a row, the Texas Longhorns are a part of the action. Things are a little bit different this year, as Texas isn’t participating in the Big 12 Championship but rather the SEC Championship in Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Ga.

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The opponent for Steve Sarkisian’s program? The only team that defeated the Longhorns in 2024: Georgia.

Texas lost 30-15 to the Bulldogs in a ballyhooed weekend in Austin on October 19. Since then, the Bulldogs are 4-1 with a loss to Ole Miss. Texas, on the other hand, is 5-0.

Protect the football

Turnovers (and water bottles) defined the first matchup. Texas had three fumbles and lost all three of them. Plus, Quinn Ewers threw a second quarter interception as part of a four-turnover night.

Meanwhile, Texas intercepted Carson Beck three times, with two from Jahdae Barron and one from Andrew Mukuba.

Georgia scored 17 points off those turnovers. The Longhorns turned those three turnovers into seven points.

Converting points off turnovers will be key, but both of these teams are looking to maintain possession of the ball and ensure that each possession ends in a kick (PAT, field goal, or a punt).

Texas has five turnovers in its last four SEC games. In their last four games, which includes Georgia Tech, UMass, Tennessee, and Ole Miss, the Bulldogs had three versus the Rebels and one in the remaining three contests.

Texas is No. 5 in the nation in turnovers gained with 26. Georgia is No. 67 with 16. Keeping this part of the game as close to the statistical average as possible and away from what made October’s matchup 30-15 is key for Texas in Mercedes-Benz Stadium.

Make special teams a draw at least

Texas Longhorns special teams have not been of the same quality of Steve Sarkisian‘s first three seasons leading the burnt orange and white. Sarkisian often talks about how important special teams are for his program and has expressed in recent weeks the belief that his third phase will get things turned around.

Those words have not led to the needed action. The Longhorns remain No. 117 in special teams SP+, an abysmal ranking that’s reflected in the simple eye test. Texas had a punt blocked at Texas A&M that forced a goal line stand. Bert Auburn has not hit his field goal attempts at the same, accurate clip as last year.

And Michael Kern, who didn’t punt versus Georgia during the first matchup, has been part of the regression for Jeff Banks‘ side of the ball.

Speaking of that first matchup, Georgia special teams were critical in the Bulldogs’ win in October. Peyton Woodring hit three field goals of distances of 33, 48, and 44 yards. Texas didn’t attempt one.

Anthony Evans had two punt returns for 21 yards in October, with one of them going 19 yards. Silas Bolden had two returns for negative yardage. Brett Thorson had four punts and averaged 54 yards in Austin. Ian Ratliff averaged 10 fewer yards.

All the signs from the first matchup point to special teams being an advantage for Georgia. If Texas can at least make it a stalemate, and a clean one at that, then that would bode well for the Longhorns’ efforts.

A time at tackle

Georgia tallied seven sacks and 10 tackles for loss in the previous matchup. While most of those sacks were not attributable directly to the offensive line, there were moments where Kelvin Banks looked human and Cameron Williams looked like a first-year starter.

Banks remains questionable entering the SEC Championship after suffering an ankle injury last week against Texas A&M. Should he be unable to go, the Longhorns will ask Trevor Goosby to offer a repeat of his standout performance in College Station.

If he’s able to go, Banks will look to improve upon his first outing. He was assessed responsibility for two pressures and committed a penalty. That’s a good game for most tackles, but for Banks it was an outlier.

Williams struggled greatly against Georgia. Five pressures and two penalties were on his resume from October 19.

Goosby, in 74 snaps against the Aggies, had one blemish in a penalty.

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Jalon Walker, Mykel Williams, Damon Wilson, Daylen Everette, and Nazir Stackhouse are all going to look to make it a horrible sequel for the Longhorns. Preventing that from taking place is what Texas needs in order to score more than 15 points.