Texas Holds Off No. 7 Ole Miss 34-27 in Austin After Blowing a 21-Point Lead

Texas nearly lost a third straight game after leading by double digits — and this time the Longhorns held on. No. 19 Texas beat No. 7 Ole Miss 34-27 at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium on Saturday night, building a 24-3 halftime lead, surrendering it completely in the second half, and winning it back late. Arch Manning threw a touchdown pass and ran for his first two rushing scores of the season, finishing 18 of 30 for 212 yards, and Raleek Brown rushed for 157 yards to carry the closing drives.

The comeback started with a fumble. Early in the second half, Manning was hit from the blind side and Kam Franklin recovered the loose ball in the end zone for an Ole Miss touchdown, and Trinidad Chambliss threw two touchdown passes to Horatio Fields — from 6 yards and then 27 — to tie the game 24-24 early in the fourth quarter. Texas answered the way it had to: Brown broke a 47-yard run, and Manning fooled the defense on a fake handoff and walked in from a yard out for a 31-24 lead. A 28-yard Brown run then set up Gianni Spetic's 33-yard field goal with 2:25 left, pushing the margin to 34-24.

Even that was not the end of it. Lucas Carneiro's 39-yard field goal with 1:22 left cut it to 34-27, Emmett Mosley IV could not hold the onside kick and Ole Miss recovered, and the Rebels drove to the Texas 29 before Chambliss's final pass into the end zone was intercepted by Jelani McDonald on the last play. Chambliss finished with 250 passing yards, two touchdowns and three interceptions. Texas (5-2, 2-2 SEC) was flagged 14 times for 121 yards, both season highs, and still snapped its two-game losing streak; Ole Miss falls to 5-2 and 3-2. Texas hosts Mississippi State next Saturday in the last of three straight home games, and Ole Miss hosts Auburn.