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Texas football vs San Jose State Preview, predictions, how to watch Longhorns vs Spartans

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Texas football vs San Jose State Preview, predictions, how to watch Longhorns vs Spartans

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Texas football vs San Jose State
Texas football vs San Jose State

Texas football entered the season as the nation’s unanimous No. 1 team but left the season opener at Ohio State with a 14-7 loss and a bevy of concerns.

What’s wrong with quarterback Arch Manning, who kept missing open receivers against the Buckeyes? Why couldn’t the vaunted Texas defense get a single sack or at least one takeaway? And why does the offense continue to struggle in the red zone? The No. 7 Longhorns will try to answer those questions in the home opener against San Jose State 11 a.m. Saturday at Royal-Memorial Stadium.

San Jose State, which competes in the Mountain West Conference, won’t offer as much of a challenge as defending national champion Ohio State. Heck, the Spartans many not provide much challenge at all considering the disparity between the two programs.

But San Jose State has a history of springing the occasional upset, and the team was ranked by The Associated Press as recently as 2020. The Spartans’ version of the run-and-shoot offense — which head coach Ken Niumatalolo likes to call the “spread and shred” — will provide a different kind of test for the Texas defense, and more struggles from Manning and the Texas offense would cause plenty of rumbling in the home stands.

Here’s a full scouting report for the Texas Longhorns vs. the San Jose State Spartans:

Texas (0-1) vs San Jose State (0-1) 

When: 11 a.m. Saturday

Where: Royal-Memorial Stadium 

TV/radio: ABC, 1300, 98.1, 105.3 (Spanish)

Weather: Warm with highs in the low 90s and slight chance of a passing rain shower

Texas vs San Jose spread, betting odds

Line: Texas is favored by 36½ points

Over/under: 52½ points

Texas history: San Jose State

All-time: Texas leads series 1-0

Last meeting:  Texas 56, San Jose State 0 (Sept. 9, 2017)

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Most memorable meeting:  Texas 56, San Jose State 0, 2017.

This meeting may be the most memorable by default considering the abbreviated history between the schools, but the lopsided win did serve as a notable moment in program history. It gave former head coach Tom Herman his first victory with the Longhorns, and it marked the burnt-orange debut for quarterback Sam Ehlinger. A local product from Westlake High School who ranks second in program history in both passing yards and passing touchdowns, Ehlinger threw for 222 yards and one touchdown while starting in place of the injured Shane Buechele. He’d remain the starting quarterback the next four years.

Know the foe: San Jose State

Last week: Lost to Central Michigan, 16-14

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Players to watch: QB Walker Eget gives the Spartans a savvy and sturdy presence in the pocket. The 6-foot-3 redshirt senior threw for 308 yards on 24-of-43 passing last week, including two touchdowns and two interceptions.

WR Receiver Danny Scudero, a San Jose native, returned to his hometown as part of a revamped receiving corps after one season at Sacramento State. The shifty 5-9, 174-pound slot receiver led the team with nine catches for 189 yards and one touchdown against Central Michigan.

MLB Jordan Pollard anchors the defense. The senior recorded career highs in tackles (115), tackles for loss (14), pass breakups (3) and sacks (2) last season and picked up where he left off with 15 tackles against Central Michigan.

Central Texas connections: None, but reserve defensive back Larry Turner-Gooden played two seasons at Texas before transferring to Ohio State in 2024.

When Texas has the ball

Texas has a decided size edge in the trenches, but tackle Trevor Goosby and his fellow starters on the Longhorns’ offensive line could have their hands full with a slanting, stunting San Jose State front. Last season, the Spartans ranked 16th nationally with 93 tackles for a loss. DT Gafa Faga earned all-conference honors in 2024, and DE Quincy Likio excels at eluding bigger tackles and wreaking havoc in the backfield.

The Spartans have a plethora of experience at the linebacker spot, including Pollard and fellow seniors Noah McNeal-Franklin and Taniela Latu. Don’t expect many blown assignments from that trio, which means Texas coach Steve Sarkisian — the team’s play-caller — may try to keep things simple. Central Michigan did just that a week ago while running for 247 yards on 50 carries and throwing 13 times.

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When San Jose State has the ball

Niumatalolo favored the triple option at Navy before taking over the San Jose State program in 2024, but he’s allowed offensive coordinator Craig Stutzmann to implement some old-school run-and-gun tenets. The Spartans like to go fast and they rarely huddle, which may limit the Longhorns’ mass defensive substitutions fans saw against Ohio State last week. If Eget gets hot, look out; he threw for 446 yards and three touchdowns against No. 13 Boise State last season

Special teams proved costly for the Spartans in their loss to Central Michigan. Kicker Denis Lynch, who once started at USC, missed a pair of late field-goal attempts in the loss, including one tipped at the line of scrimmage and another that sailed wide on a 56-yard try. But those miscues likely won’t impact the San Jose State play-calling, since Lynch made 10 of his 14 field-goal attempts in his last season at USC in 2023.

Texas vs San Jose State key matchup

San Jose State CB Jalen Bainer vs. Texas WR Ryan Wingo

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Bainer may be in his first season as a starter, but he’s still the most experienced cornerback for a questionable Spartan secondary. He’ll likely get tested by Ryan Wingo, the former five-star recruit who had a quiet debut as a starter for Texas with two catches for 35 yards. Sarkisian wants to find a rhythm for Manning and his receivers, and Bainer stands in the way.

Texas vs Ohio State predictions

Danny Davis: Texas. There’s no need to panic, Texas fans. There’s also no need to read too much into what happens Saturday (or the following weeks against UTEP and Sam Houston). This is a better San Jose State team than the one that visited Austin in 2017, but the Longhorns will still roll past their guests from the Mountain West Conference.

Thomas Jones:  Texas 45, San Jose State 7. Texas has the athletes in the secondary to stifle the Spartan receivers, which leads to plenty of three-and-outs for San Jose State. And expect plenty from Arch Manning, too, at least until the most discussed player in the country takes a seat with a big lead at some point in the second half.

David Eckert: Texas 51, San Jose State 7. Steve Sarkisian said it himself — the Spartans are going to throw the ball a ton on Saturday. That’s going to give an elite Texas defense opportunities to force mistakes and keep time on the clock for the Longhorns’ offense to produce an explosive performance. 

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