While his team was on a bye this past Saturday, Texas football coach Steve Sarkisian received a text message.
After Georgia’s 41-21 win at Mississippi State, Georgia coach Kirby Smart shared that he sent Sarkisian a text message ahead of his Bulldogs’ 20-point triumph. Sarkisian confirmed that story Monday and surmised that Smart was just bored as his team traveled from Tupelo, Miss. to Starkville for the game.
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“We’re in a couple different group chats together, and Kirby and I do text periodically,” Sarkisian said. “He checked in with what I was doing. I said, ‘Well, I just got a workout and I have breakfast and (I’ll) watch you play, bud.'”
Texas Longhorns head coach Steve Sarkisian runs warmups ahead of the game against Vanderbilt at Darrell K Royal–Texas Memorial Stadium on Saturday, Nov. 1, 2025 in Austin.
Texas Longhorns head coach Steve Sarkisian runs warmups ahead of the game against Vanderbilt at Darrell K Royal–Texas Memorial Stadium on Saturday, Nov. 1, 2025 in Austin. Aaron E. Martinez/Austin American-Statesman
Sarkisian and Smart won’t need to text this Saturday. The coaches will have a face-to-face meeting instead. No. 5 Georgia (8-1, 6-1) and No. 11 Texas (7-2, 4-1) will play at Sanford Stadium in Athens, Ga. Texas and Georgia were picked to finish first and second in the SEC preseason poll back in June, but this meeting five months later features two teams that are fighting to remain in the chase for a conference championship.
Georgia is 5-0 since the start of October. Texas has won its last four games, but the Longhorns are also coming off a bye.
Texas and Georgia played twice last year. Georgia beat Texas by 15 points in Austin and then won the rematch in overtime in the SEC title game. Longhorns edge rusher Colin Simmons, however, dismissed a suggestion Monday that Texas owes Georgia after last year’s on-field results.
“Owe ’em what?” Simmons asked.
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Simmons wasn’t alone in those feelings. Texas players and Sarkisian insisted they are more focused on Saturday than revenge for last year.
“I just want to win Saturday night at 7:30 and try to get to 5-1 in conference play,” Sarkisian said. “That’s really the extent of it.”
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Said edge rusher Ethan Burke: “Last year’s in the past and they have a ton of new players. We have a ton of new players. It’s two completely new teams and new mentality for us and for them. So we’re focused on this week and being in the right now.”
Texas Longhorns quarterback Arch Manning (16) runs the ball during the game against Florida at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium on Saturday, Oct. 4, 2025 in Gainesville, Florida.
Texas Longhorns quarterback Arch Manning (16) runs the ball during the game against Florida at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium on Saturday, Oct. 4, 2025 in Gainesville, Florida. Aaron E. Martinez/Austin American-Statesman
What are the SEC tiebreaker rules?
If Texas wins out against a Georgia team that it’s not favored against, plus Arkansas (2-7, 0-5) and No. 3 Texas A&M (9-0, 6-0), that should surely be enough to secure the Longhorns’ a spot in the College Football Playoff bracket. As for the SEC championship game? That’s a different story.
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A&M and Alabama (8-1, 6-0) are still unbeaten in SEC play while Georgia (8-1, 6-1), Ole Miss (9-1, 5-1) and Texas (7-2, 4-1) all have one league loss. Sarkisian has said he believes a two-loss team isn’t getting to the SEC championship game this year — Georgia did just that last year — so either the Longhorns or Bulldogs could get removed from the title hunt this weekend.
But even if Texas survives its weekend in Athens, a return trip to the Peach State for the title game isn’t guaranteed. Due to the tiebreakers that the SEC adopted before the 2024 season, the Longhorns face an uphill climb if Alabama, Ole Miss and A&M continue to take care of its business.
According to the SEC, here are the conference’s six tiebreakers:
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1. Head-to-head competition among the tied teams;
2. Record vs. all common SEC opponents among the tied teams;
3. Record against highest (best) placed common SEC opponent in the conference standings, and proceeding through the SEC standings among the tied teams;
4. Cumulative SEC winning percentage of all conference opponents among the tied teams;
5. Capped relative total scoring margin per SportSource Analytics against all SEC opponents among the tied teams;
6. A random draw of the tied teams.
A lot of football still needs to be played and no wins are assured in the SEC. But what happens if Alabama remains unbeaten in SEC play while Ole Miss, Texas, Texas A&M are all 7-1 in the league? Texas would be eliminated by the second tiebreaker in this scenario since it would have gone 2-1 against Mississippi State, Florida and Arkansas teams that Texas A&M and Ole Miss both swept. The fourth tiebreaker would then likely decide whether A&M or Ole Miss, which did not play each other this season, heads to Atlanta.
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