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Majority of Texas’ SEC Opponents Have Relied on Backup QBs

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Majority of Texas’ SEC Opponents Have Relied on Backup QBs


With a tumultuous nonconference season officially in the books, the Texas Longhorns turn their attention to their SEC slate ahead.

They will kick things off against the Florida Gators on the road, which will be followed by their annual Red River Rivalry game against the Oklahoma Sooners in Dallas.

The quarterback on each of these opposing teams are currently dealing with injuries, making them questionable to appear in their matchups against the Longhorns. Texas faced backup quarterbacks in many of its SEC matchups last year, and it looks like they could start 2025 the same way.

Florida Gators quarterback DJ Lagwa

Sep 20, 2025; Miami Gardens, Florida, USA; Florida Gators quarterback DJ Lagway (2) passes the football against the Miami Hurricanes during the second quarter at Hard Rock Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-Imagn Images / Sam Navarro-Imagn Images

Sooners quarterback John Mateer made headlines earlier this week after the team revealed that he must undergo hand surgery to help repair a broken bone in his throwing hand. He broke the bone in the first quarter of Oklahoma’s game against the Auburn Tigers last Saturday.

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He played through the injury to help his team earn a 24-17 victory, but the quarterback is now looking at at least three weeks on the sideline. Healing in time for Dallas doesn’t seem to be entirely ruled out, but it seems like the indefinite injury timeline could mean that the current Heisman Trophy favorite won’t be back until later in the conference season.

In the event that he is unable to play, sophomore quarterback Michael Hawkins Jr. will take the field instead. 

As far as Florida quarterback DJ Lagway’s health goes, he was wearing a walking boot this week. but there’s not nearly as much concern as with Mateer.

If Lagway were to reaggravate the injury leading into the Texas game, true freshman quarterback Tramell Jones Jr. would take his place. Should this happen, this would be the second consecutive year Texas faced a Florida team forced to resort to its backup quarterback. 

Texas Longhorns vs. Oklahoma Sooner

Oklahoma’s Caleb Williams (13) drops back to pass during the Red River Showdown college football game between the University of Oklahoma Sooners (OU) and the University of Texas (UT) Longhorns at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas, Saturday, Oct. 9, 2021. Oklahoma won 55-48.

Ou Vs Texas

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Syndication The Oklahoman / BRYAN TERRY/THE OKLAHOMAN / USA TODAY NETWORK

Including the SEC Championship, the Longhorns played nine conference games last season. Depending on how one looks at it, between four and five of these matchups took place against backup quarterbacks. 

Here are those players from last season:

– Michael Van Buren Jr., Mississippi State
– Michael Hawkins Jr., Oklahoma
– Aidan Warner, Florida
– Cutter Boley, Kentucky (replaced Brock Vandagriff mid-game)
– Gunner Stockton, Georgia (replaced Carson Beck mid-game)

A discrepancy exists when deciding whether or not the second matchup against Georgia in the SEC Championship last season can fully be considered to be against a backup, given that starting quarterback Carson Beck played the first half before suffering an elbow injury. He was replaced by Gunner Stockton, who led the Bulldogs to a win in overtime.

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Either way, Texas has fared well in terms of facing backup quarterbacks since their entrance into the SEC ahead of the 2024 season. 

The Longhorns’ already daunting defense has been let off the hook in this way against several impressive teams, and depending on how Mateer heals, their lucky streak could continue in the weeks to come. 



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Texas A&M vs. Louisville volleyball final score, stats highlights

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Texas A&M vs. Louisville volleyball final score, stats highlights


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After dropping the first two sets, No. 3 seed Texas A&M (25-4) stormed back to beat No. 2 seed Louisville (26-6) 3-2 in the NCAA women’s volleyball tournament Friday night.

Texas A&M moves on to play Sunday against either No. 1 Nebraska or No. 4 Kansas, who play at 9:30 p.m. ET Friday night. Here’s how the Sweet 16 heavyweight match played out:

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FINAL: Texas A&M wins 3-2, taking final set 15-12.

No. 3 Texas A&M completed a reverse sweep against No. 2 Louisville to advance to the regional final for the first time since 2001 after winning the fifth set, 15-12. The Aggies were able to swing the momentum of the game with their blocking ability, led by Ifenna Cos-okpalla’s 12 total blocks.

Texas A&M’s Logan Lednicky (20 kills, 10 digs on .245 hitting), Kyndal Stowers (16 kills, 11 digs on .282 hitting) and Emily Hellmuth (12 kills on .226 hitting) each recorded double-digit kills.

“We just weren’t finishing the last end of the set,” said an emotional Lednicky, who was three blocks away from a triple double. “We’re like, we’re not letting them sweep us. We know how to grind, we know how to dig it. We saw it in the TCU match and we did just that last one.”

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Tensions boiled over in the fifth set. Louisville head coach Dan Meske earned a yellow card for swatting the ball because he thought the referee missed a carry call during a long rally Texas A&M won to go up 12-10.

Louisville’s Chloe Chicoine finished with a game-high 26 kills hitting .300 in the loss.

No. 3 Texas A&M took a 17-8 lead after holding No. 2 Louisville to a -.143 hitting percentage to start the fourth set with its defensive prowess. The Aggies stretched their lead to as many as nine points, but Louisville went on a 7-1 run to come within three points of Texas A&M. The Aggies didn’t relinquish the lead this time. Texas A&M finished the fourth set on a 4-0 run to force a decisive fifth set.

Texas A&M held Louisville to .000 hitting in the fourth set. The Aggies hit .267 and recorded nine blocks. Texas A&M’s Logan Lednicky (18 kills on .333 hitting), Kyndal Stowers (14 kills on .243 hitting) and Emily Hellmuth (10 kills on .200 hitting) each have double-digit kills. Ifenna Cos-okpalla is up to 11 blocks.

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The Aggies are going for the reverse sweep, the team’s first since September 2024.

No. 3 Texas A&M head coach Jamie Morrison said his team needed to do a better job at finishing at the end of the set if they wanted to extend their season against No. 2 Louisville after giving up leads in the first two sets. The Aggies did just that in a third set that featured 15 ties and five lead changes.

The Aggies had a 23-21 lead in the third set before Louisville tied it up at 23-23 following back-to-back kills from Chloe Chicoine. Texas A&M’s Kyndal Stowers responded with a pair of kills herself to give the Aggies the set, 25-23.

Texas A&M’s Logan Lednicky (14 kills on .333 hitting), Stowers (11 kills on .259 hitting) and Emily Hellmuth (10 kills on .261) each have double-digit kills as the team is collectively hitting .292.

Meanwhile, Chicoine is up to 19 kills on .405 hitting. Cara Cresse added seven blocks.

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New set, same scenario. Much like the first set, Texas A&M was the first team to reach 15 points. The Aggies had a 21-16 lead in the second set, before Louisville staged another comeback. The Cardinals went on a 9-1 run to take the lead and clinch the second set, 25-22, to take a 2-0 lead over Texas A&M.

Louisville capitalized on 14 total blocks and three aces. Chloe Chicoine (11 kills on .400 hitting) and Payton Petersen (10 kills on .563 hitting) led the Cardinals in kills.

Logan Lednicky has nine kills, while Emily Hellmuth and Kyndal Stowers each have seven kills for Texas A&M.

No. 3 Texas A&M had control of the first set and was the first team to 15 points, but No. 2 Louisville went on a 5-0 run to tie it up at 17-17. Five more ties ensued before Louisville ultimately created some separation to take the first set, 25-23. Louisville hit .457 and had two players with six or more kills — Payton Petersen (seven kills on .778 hitting) and Chloe Chicoine (six kills on .600 hitting).

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NCAA volleyball tournament regionals schedule

All times Eastern

Friday, Dec. 12

Saturday, Dec. 13

Sunday, Dec. 14

  • TBA | No. 1 Texas vs. No. 3 Wisconsin
  • Regional final, TBD

NCAA women’s volleyball bracket

Find the full NCAA women’s volleyball tournament bracket on the NCAA website.

The USA TODAY app gets you to the heart of the news — fastDownload for award-winning coverage, crosswords, audio storytelling, the eNewspaper and more.

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UConn vs. Texas Prediction, How to Watch, Odds, Channel

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UConn vs. Texas Prediction, How to Watch, Odds, Channel


This page may contain affiliate links to legal sports betting partners. If you sign up or place a wager, FOX Sports may be compensated. Read more about Sports Betting on FOX Sports.

The No. 5 UConn Huskies (9-1) will attempt to continue a five-game winning streak when they host the Texas Longhorns (7-3) on Friday, December 12, 2025 at PeoplesBank Arena. The contest airs at 8 p.m. ET on FOX.

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Keep reading to get all you need to know ahead of wagering on the UConn-Texas matchup.

UConn vs. Texas How to Watch & Odds

  • When: Friday, December 12, 2025 at 8 p.m. ET
  • Where: PeoplesBank Arena in Hartford, Connecticut
  • TV: FOX
  • Streaming: FOXSports.com, FOX Sports App and FOX One (Try free for 7 days)

UConn vs. Texas Prediction

The Huskies are holding opponents to just 60.4 points per game while averaging 91, giving them one of the strongest scoring margins in the country. Their defense has been particularly sharp, limiting opponents to 37.4% shooting from the field.

Solo Ball and Tarris Reed Jr. continue to set the tone. Ball is averaging 15 points per game, and Reed Jr. has provided steady interior production with 14.8 points and 5.4 rebounds. Their consistency has been central to the Huskies’ early-season dominance.

The Longhorns have shown they can score, averaging 85.8 points per game, but their defense has struggled, allowing opponents to shoot 48.5%. That could be an issue against a UConn offense that moves the ball well and attacks efficiently.

UConn’s home court-advantage and Texas’s 2-2 road struggles tilt the matchup toward the Huskies.

  • Pick ATS: Texas (+16.5)
  • Pick OU: Over (145.5)
  • Prediction: UConn 81, Texas 69

Prediction provided by FOX Sports’ Sports AIDownload the FOX Sports App for free access to Sports AI.

UConn vs. Texas Betting Insights

Betting Line Implied Predictions

  • Based on the spread and over/under, the implied score for the matchup is Huskies 81, Longhorns 64.
  • The Huskies have a 95.9% chance to win this meeting per the moneyline’s implied probability.
  • The Longhorns have an 8.3% implied probability to win.

Key Spread Facts

  • UConn has compiled a 3-7-0 record against the spread this season.
  • Texas has won six games against the spread this year, while failing to cover four times.
  • UConn has covered the spread once this season (1-4 ATS) when playing as at least 16.5-point favorites.

Key Total Facts

  • The Huskies and their opponent have broken the 145.5-point mark four times this year.
  • Longhorns games have gone over 145.5 points on eight occasions this season.
  • The total for this matchup is 145.5 points, 23.4 fewer than the combined scoring average of the two teams.

Key Moneyline Facts

  • UConn has won six of seven games when the moneyline favorite this season (85.7%).
  • Texas has split the two games it has played as underdogs this season.
  • UConn has played as a moneyline favorite of -2326 or shorter twice this season, and won both.
  • Texas has not entered a game this season with longer moneyline odds than +1103.

UConn vs. Texas: Recent Results

Huskies vs Longhorns Recent Games
Date Favorite Spread Total Favorite Moneyline Underdog Moneyline Result
12/8/2024 Longhorns -1.5 141 -121 +101 76-65 UCONN

UConn vs. Texas: 2025-26 Stats Comparison

  UConn Texas
Points Scored Per Game (Rank) 79.8 (137) 89.1 (21)
Points Allowed (Rank) 61.7 (10) 73.2 (189)
Rebounds (Rank) 9 (234) 11.7 (49)
3pt Made (Rank) 7.7 (203) 8 (175)
Assists (Rank) 17.9 (38) 14.6 (179)
Turnovers (Rank) 8.8 (10) 11.5 (167)

 

UConn 2025-26 Key Players

Huskies Leaders
Name GP PTS REB ASST STL BLK 3PM
Solomon Ball 10 15 3.3 1.6 0.8 0.3 2
Tarris Reed Jr. 5 14.8 7.6 1.4 1.2 1.6 0
Alex Karaban 10 13.4 5.4 2.2 0.9 1.2 2
Silas Demary Jr. 10 10 4.5 5.1 1.8 0.2 0.3
Eric Reibe 10 9.6 4.6 0.3 0.3 1.3 0.3

Texas 2025-26 Key Players

Longhorns Leaders
Name GP PTS REB ASST STL BLK 3PM
Matas Vokietaitis 10 15.9 6.6 0.2 0.4 1.1 0
Dailyn Swain 10 15.7 6.9 3.5 1.6 0.3 0.7
Jordan Pope 10 12.5 2.1 3 0.3 0.1 2.4
Tramon Mark 10 9.9 2.8 2.5 0.7 0.6 1
Simeon Wilcher 10 9.4 2.4 1.9 0.7 0.5 1.6

FOX Sports used technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar to create this story.

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Texas Football Opt-Outs: Who’s Likely Playing and Who’s Out for the Citrus Bowl

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Texas Football Opt-Outs: Who’s Likely Playing and Who’s Out for the Citrus Bowl


At this point in time, opting out of bowl games is nothing new, but Texas is going to have more opt-outs in the Citrus Bowl against Michigan than many—self included—expected. This problem pales in comparison to what’s going on in Ann Arbor, but the amount of lost experience will be something for Texas to overcome, primarily on defense.



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