There’s truly no such thing as an easy win in the SEC, as the Texas Longhorns are finding out the hard way.
Not only did the Longhorns barely escape Kentucky in overtime last week, but they now find themselves trailing the Mississippi State Bulldogs – who haven’t won an SEC game in nearly two years – 24-14 at halftime. For a team that’s struggling to really get going, trailing by 10 at halftime against one of the weaker teams in the conference is not a good look.
Not only did the Longhorns’ same problems rear their ugly head, but so did some new ones.
Oct 25, 2025; Starkville, Mississippi, USA; Mississippi State Bulldogs tight end Sam West (87) runs after a catch for a touchdown during the first quarter against Texas Longhorns defensive back Graceson Littleton (29) at Davis Wade Stadium at Scott Field. Mandatory Credit: Petre Thomas-Imagn Images / Petre Thomas-Imagn Images
The Longhorns started the game about as well as they possibly could’ve, as after forcing a three-and-out, Ryan Wingo took a screen pass from Arch Manning 60 yards down to the Bulldogs’ 3-yard line. On the very next play, Manning ran it in for a touchdown, his sixth on the ground this season, to give Texas a 7-0 lead.
After that, the two teams struggled to get much going on offense for much of the first quarter, until Bulldogs quarterback Blake Shapen found tight end Sam West for a touchdown with just over four minutes to go in the quarter.
The Longhorns and Bulldogs then traded touchdown drives early in the second quarter, with Manning hitting Parker Livingstone for a one-yard score and Bulldogs backup Kamario Taylor hitting Seydou Traore for a one-yard score of his own. However, the end of the half was an absolute disaster for Texas.
That nightmare began with just under six minutes left, as Manning’s pass bouncing off Livingstone’s hands and into the arms of Bulldogs defensive back Kelley Jones, who took it back to the Longhorns’ 40-yard line. They were able to hold the Bulldogs to just a field goal, but after a three-and-out with a fumble and a sack, they couldn’t do it again.
The Bulldogs put together an excellent two-minute drill, with Shapen finding a wide-open Brenan Thompson for a 23-yard touchdown to put them up by 10.
Manning completed 12 of 19 passes for 99 yards, one touchdown and one interception. The Longhorns’ run game once again struggled to do much of anything, as they had just 31 rushing yards on 1.8 yards per carry.
For the Bulldogs, Shapen completed 13 of 23 passes for 186 yards and two touchdowns. Thompson had three receptions for 59 yards and the aforementioned score. Mississippi State out-gained Texas 281-130 in the half.
The Longhorns will get the ball to start the second half.