Hallelujah: Longhorns find way to reduce penalties and it worked

Let’s be honest, something had to be done. 

It came as a shock against Clemson when late in the third quarter Texas was called for their first penalty. I turned to the gentleman next to me in the shoulder-to-shoulder packed press box. My head was tilted like a German shepherd. My eyebrows scrunched. I said, “Wait, was that Texas’ first penalty of the game?” 

“Yes, it was,” he replied with the same surprise in his voice.

During the post game press conference I wanted to know, “How was this possible? How did Texas only have two penalties?” Other than Texas playing extremely well, the fact that they had just two penalties was monumental, a game changer.

“What did Texas do in the break since the SEC Championship game against Georgia?” We did not get the chance to ask Sarkisian during the post game. The question stayed swirling in my head all weekend.

Texas played excellent football against Georgia in the SEC Championship game. Frankly the penalties really hurt them. Texas had 11 penalties for 94 yards, almost twice their average.

Penalties had become routine for Texas throughout the season adding up 85 penalties for 698 yards averaging 53.7 yards per game. 

Against Clemson Texas had two penalties for a total of 10 yards.

We finally got to ask Sarkisian what made the difference. During the Chic-Fil-A Peach Bowl press conference via Zoom, we got our answer to what changed for Texas. We were selected to ask the first question and it was straight to Sarkisian. His response was epic.

Listen to Texas Longhorns Football head coach Steve Sarkisian explains the strategy he used to reduce the penalties..

If Texas continues playing exceptional football, every team left in the CFP will struggle to beat Texas. They must also reduce the penalties.

Hallelujah: Texas found a way to reduce their penalties. Let’s sing!

Texas will be in Atlanta for the Chic-Fil-A Peach Bowl on Jan 1, 2025 with a kickoff time of 1 pm