DALLAS — Ryan Niblett returned a punt 75 yards for a decisive touchdown in the fourth quarter and Texas got a much-needed 23-6 win over sixth-ranked Oklahoma in the annual Red River Rivalry game on Saturday.
Arch Manning completed 21 of 27 passes for 166 yards and the go-ahead 12-yard TD to DeAndre Moore Jr. on the opening drive of the second half for the Longhorns (4-2, 1-1 Southeastern Conference), who were coming off a loss at Florida that knocked the preseason No. 1 team out of the AP Top 25.
“We learned how to fight today,” Texas coach Steve Sarkisian said. “We saw the true character of the men in that locker room.”
Texas retained the Golden Hat trophy and should get back into the next poll on Sunday. More importantly, the Longhorns avoided a loss that likely would have ended any realistic chance of getting into the College Football Playoff for the third year in a row.
John Mateer was 20-of-38 passing with three interceptions in his return to the lineup for Oklahoma (5-1, 1-1) only 17 days after surgery on his throwing (right) hand. He said his hand was fine.
“I just didn’t play good enough,” Mateer said.
Niblett worked up the sideline in front of the Texas bench, and after making a cut inside near midfield bounced off teammate Marshall Landwehr and continued his sprint to the end zone for a 20-6 lead with 9:59 left.
“I feel like he really helped me,” Niblett said. “Because I feel like if I would have went inside, I probably would have gotten tackled. So just him being able to hit me back outside, just display my speed, just felt great.”
When the Sooners gained 38 yards on three plays to the Texas 27 on the ensuing drive, Mateer had an incompletion before being sacked on consecutive plays and then had another incompletion on fourth-and-22. They finished with only 258 total yards.
“Today was a bad day but we still have a good football team,” Sooners coach Brent Venables said. “Couldn’t get any rhythm in the second half. They flipped the script. … This one hurts for all the reasons we had opportunities.”
