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Fans of No. 4 Texas are likely still celebrating after the Longhorns’ victory on the road last week at Alabama. Steve Sarkisian’s signature win over former employer Nick Saban snapped the Crimson Tide’s 21-game home winning streak and handed Alabama just its second nonconference home loss in the Saban era. Now ranked in the top five in the AP Top 25 and riding a wave of momentum, Texas is back at home in Week 3 to conclude nonconference play against Wyoming.
The Cowboys started off the 2023 campaign with a bang in Week 1, overcoming a 17-0 deficit to defeat Texas Tech in a double-overtime thriller at home before soundly defeating Portland State in Week 2. Now it’s on to Austin, Texas, for what is the sixth meeting between the Cowboys and Longhorns dating back to 1974. Texas has won all five previous meetings, most recently a 37-17 home victory in 2012. A win on Saturday would give Texas its first 3-0 start since that 2012 campaign.
All eyes will be on Quinn Ewers come Saturday to see how the second-year Longhorns quarterback follows up what was arguably his best performance yet in a Texas uniform. Ewers ended the night with 349 yards passing and three touchdowns against the Crimson Tide, and more of that would almost certainly earn him a spot in the Heisman conversation.
How to watch Texas vs. Wyoming live
Date: Saturday, Sept. 16 | Time: 8 p.m. ET
Location: Darrell K. Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium — Austin, Texas
TV: Longhorn Network | Live stream: ESPN+
Texas vs. Wyoming: Need to know
Longhorns in a new spotlight: Is Texas … back? It’s too early in the season to answer that question with a definitive “yes” or “no,” but the Longhorns’ triumph last weekend in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, looked like anything but a fluke. As a result, Texas finds itself in the top five of the AP Top 25 rankings for the first time since 2010 with few immediate threats on the schedule other than perhaps its annual rivalry game against Oklahoma in early October. This much is clear: The Longhorns have a great chance to run the Big 12 during its final season in the league and reach the College Football Playoff if performances like that against Alabama are the norm rather than the exception.
Quinn for the win: Inconsistent play from Ewers limited coach Steve Sarkisian’s offense from reaching its full potential in 2022, and a shoulder injury that forced him to miss multiple games didn’t help any either. But the former No. 1 overall recruit in the country looked far more like the player he was advertised to be against Alabama. A confident and composed Ewers wasn’t afraid to throw the deep ball and was free of turnovers on a night where he made the big plays in the moments that mattered. It’s one game, but given the opponent, the Longhorns star signal-caller appears to have made considerable strides from a year ago. A big game against Wyoming would only add to the buzz around Ewers before Big 12 play arrives the following week at Baylor.
Cowboys look to stun Big 12 again: In traveling to Texas, Wyoming is already facing its second Big 12 opponent just three games into the season after rallying to beat Texas Tech at home in Week 1. If you really want to put things into context, the Cowboys will end the regular season playing more Big 12 schools from Texas than Big 12 member Oklahoma State, whose only opponent of such is Houston. The talent gap is obviously much greater in this one than it was for Wyoming against the Red Raiders, but coach Craig Bohl’s group isn’t lacking momentum with a win against a power conference opponent already in hand. For all of its talent, Texas also sits in a potentially vulnerable position coming off the emotional high of beating Alabama on the road. If the Longhorns haven’t fully shifted their focus past that victory, Wyoming could expose that early.
Texas vs. Wyoming prediction, picks
Odds via SportsLine consensus
It’s a bit jarring to think that it’s been more than a decade since Texas made it three games into the season unscathed, but the Longhorns’ talent edge is too significant here for them to botch this one, especially on home turf. Now, will it be comfortable from start to finish? That’s hard to promise after Texas let Rice, of all teams, hang around for a half in Week 1 before pulling away. Taking the Longhorns to cover as 28.5-point favorites feels like a bit of a tossup, and the over/under (48.5 points) could also easily go either way. Still, Texas should absolutely win this one by multiple scores. Prediction: Texas -28.5
Which college football picks can you make with confidence in Week 3, and which underdogs will win outright? Visit SportsLine to see which teams will win and cover the spread — all from a proven computer model that has returned more than $2,500 in profit over the past seven-plus seasons — and find out.
