Texas Opens the Season with a 59-7 Statement — But Saturday’s Real Story Was the Heat
No. 5 Texas kicked off its 2026 season Saturday the way it wanted to: dominant, efficient, and never in doubt.
The Longhorns blitzed Texas State 59-7 at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium, scoring on six of their first seven drives in front of 102,738 fans.
But by the end of the first quarter, the score wasn’t the thing everyone was talking about.
A Brutal 2:30 P.M. Kickoff
With temperatures pushing toward the 100-degree mark at kickoff, the early-afternoon slot turned Royal-Memorial Stadium into something closer to a survival test than a football game. The concourses filled up fast — not with concession lines, but with fans abandoning their seats entirely to escape direct sun, packing into the shade along the stairwells and tunnels instead.
One fan captured the scene as it unfolded, posting on X:
The description matched what other accounts from the stands described — medical staff moving through the crowd repeatedly as fans crammed into any available shade.
Despite the alarming scene in the stands, the game was never delayed or paused.
Play continued straight through as paramedics worked the crowd throughout the afternoon, with reports of stretcher after stretcher being carried in as temperatures climbed.
Texas Never Slowed Down
If the heat had any effect on the Longhorns, it didn’t show up on the scoreboard.
Senior quarterback Arch Manning was sharp from the opening drive, matching a career high with four passing touchdowns while throwing for 305 yards on 20-of-27 passing before exiting in the third quarter with the outcome well in hand. He spread the ball around, connecting with eight different receivers, including touchdown throws to Ryan Wingo, Cam Coleman, and Hollywood Smothers.
The Longhorns didn’t need the air attack alone. Running backs James Simon and Raleek Brown both found the end zone on the ground, and sophomore defensive back Graceson Littleton turned a Texas State fumble into a 59-yard scoop-and-score — Texas’s longest fumble-return touchdown in over two decades. By the time the dust settled, Texas had piled up 516 total yards of offense and forced three turnovers.
Texas State, playing its first meeting with Texas since a 1930 shutout loss, managed only a late fourth-quarter touchdown to get on the board. Bobcats quarterback Brad Jackson finished 15-of-23 passing for 150 yards but also lost a fumble and threw an interception, while Texas State’s kicker missed two field goal attempts in a game that was effectively decided by halftime.
The Bigger Picture
For Texas, the win extends the program’s 39-game non-conference winning streak against in-state opponents and sets up a marquee matchup next Saturday against No. 1 Ohio State at DKR — this time with a 6:30 p.m. kickoff on ABC, conveniently avoiding the worst of the afternoon sun.
Still, Saturday’s opener reignited a familiar conversation in college football: whether early-afternoon start times still make sense for season openers in Texas.
The final score wasn’t in question for long, but the images from the concourse — fans packed shoulder-to-shoulder in whatever shade they could find, paramedics working through the first quarter — may end up being the more lasting memory from this one.
The Ross Fire held steady over the weekend at 90,400 acres and 44% containment, but Texas A&M Forest Service officials say the historic blaze — now the largest summer wildfire in Texas since statewide records began in 2005 — has entered a mop-up phase, with Saturday marking the agency’s final daily video briefing on the incident that has destroyed more than 160 structures across Palo Pinto and Jack counties.
Key Numbers:
- 90,400 acres mapped
- 44% contained in the latest WFIGS record
- 167 structures destroyed, including 18 occupied residences
- 95 structures damaged
- 453 structures saved
- 486 personnel in the latest federal incident record
A small 11-acre fire is burning in Burnet County.
As of the latest update at 11:40 p.m. last night, the Olive Branch Fire has burned 11 acres with 5% containment in Burnet County.
In Malone, a 25-acre blaze has had its forward progression stopped.
WEATHER
SATURDAY’S HIGH / LOW TEMPERATURES
AUSTIN-BERGSTROM INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT
CAMP MABRY
SATURDAY WAS AUSTIN’S 38TH DAY OF 100-DEGREE TEMPS THIS SUMMER
5-DAY FORECAST / AUSTIN, TEXAS
On this week’s edition of REAL TEXAS, Michael Quinn Sullivan and State Sen. Kevin Sparks talk about the controversial statewide transmission line project, ineffective power sources, and the value of being a good neighbor. They also discuss the government’s responsibility in healthcare affordability.
This week on Texas Matters: Will it be harder to vote in Texas in the coming midterm elections? We hear from Democratic candidate for Lt. Governor, Vikki Goodwin. And the Texas Gulf Coast is home to the nation’s petrochemical industry. Is this the economic boon that was promised?
(Episode from September 5, 2026)
The week after Labor Day, in a desperate attempt to shore up their flagging support and fundraising, Donald Trump is bringing his gaudy sideshow to Dallas in the form of a very rare midterm Republican convention. Perfect timing for the Trump/Epstein Memorial Reading Room to arrive in Big D as well – this terrific and meticulously-crafted exhibit highlights the decades-long friendship between Donald Trump and Jeffrey Epstein, and tells the stories of the Epstein survivors who are still denied justice in an active governmental coverup.
(Episode from September 5, 2026)
Recently the slavery exhibit was removed at Independence National Historical Park, The Pride flag was removed at Stonewall National Monument and at the Smithsonian references to President Trumps impeachments were taken down. We hear from Jason Stanley, the author of “Erasing History – How Fascists rewrite the Past to Control the Future.”
The latest UT/Texas Politics Project Poll found very mixed expectations among Texas voters about the expected impact of data centers in different domains.
(Episode from September 3, 2026)
This week on Eye on Politics, we have different angles to analyze the Texas Senate race between James Talarico and Ken Paxton. Plus, how former president George W. Bush and Laura Bush will honor the Sept. 11, 2001, milestone this month.
SPORTS
COLLEGE FOOTBALL: Texas kicked off its season in dominant fashion on Saturday, blowing past Texas State 59-7 in front of 102,738 packed into DKR-Texas Memorial Stadium.
The Longhorns jumped out to a four-score lead early and never slowed down, scoring on eight of nine possessions and forcing three turnovers. Arch Manning put on a show with 305 passing yards and tied a career high with four touchdown passes, spreading the wealth across eight different receivers with scoring tosses to Ryan Wingo, Cam Coleman, and Hollywood Smothers.
The win moves Texas to 1-0 and extends a incredible streak: 39 straight non-conference wins over in-state rivals going back to 1968. (Texas Longhorns)
TEXAS A&M / TEXAS TECH / HOUSTON
ON THE SCHEDULE
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 12
The Texas Longhorns welcome the Ohio State Buckeyes to Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium on Saturday for what’s shaping up as the biggest nonconference game of the 2026 season, with kickoff set for 6:30 p.m. CT.
Both programs enter the year as favorites to win the national championship, and ESPN’s Football Power Index gives Ohio State the highest national title odds in the country, with Texas sitting close behind.
It’s a rematch of last season’s opener, when Ohio State beat Texas 14-7 in Columbus behind a defense that held Arch Manning scoreless for three quarters. Manning and Ohio State’s Julian Sayin are both back for year two as full-time starters, though the rest of both rosters have been largely reshaped since then.
Texas A&M returns to Kyle Field Saturday to host Arizona State, kicking off at 11 a.m. as the Aggies look to build on last week’s 50-0 rout of Missouri State.
Up in Lubbock, Texas Tech welcomes Oregon State for a 6:30 p.m. matchup, with the Red Raiders coming off a 33-10 win over Abilene Christian.
Meanwhile, Houston stays home at TDECU Stadium for a 6 p.m. kickoff against Southern, fresh off an upset road win over the same Oregon State team that now heads to Lubbock.
All three programs are off to unbeaten starts as Big 12 and SEC play looms on the horizon.
MLS: Austin FC drew 1-1 against San Jose Earthquakes on Saturday night at Q2 Stadium, thanks to an equalizer deep into second half stoppage time by Guilherme Biro. (Austin FC)
ON THE SCHEDULE
MLB: Both Texas teams stumbled Saturday night, and it barely moved the needle in an AL West race that’s already slipping away from both of them.
The Astros fell 4-3 to the Diamondbacks at Minute Maid Park, blowing a chance to build separation atop the division, while the Rangers were beaten 6-3 by the Rays at Globe Life Field, dropping their third straight in that series.
Houston still leads the AL West at 73-70, with Texas one game back at 70-73 — but both clubs are fading fast, with the Mariners lurking six and a half games behind Houston at 66-77.
The real story, though, is above them: Milwaukee (88-55), the Dodgers (85-57) and Tampa Bay (85-57) are all running away with their divisions, which puts extra pressure on Houston and Texas to either win the West outright or scrap for a Wild Card spot down the stretch. With roughly three weeks left in the season, neither Texas team can afford many more nights like Saturday.
Join the Texas Longhorn Band as they step-off for DKR Texas Stadium before yesterday’s Texas State/Texas season opener.
