Texas is not back. Not on Saturday, anyway. Not without its burgeoning star QB, Quinn Ewers. Not on Nick Saban's watch. But for much of the 12 years since Texas last played Alabama — another game in which it lost its starting quarterback — the Longhorns have served as a national punchline, with «Texas is back!» the easiest joke in college football. (Though, credit to Texas for providing plenty of other material, from «OK, cool.
Hook 'em» to multiple losses to Kansas to an attack monkey trained to steal Halloween candy. It's been a wild a decade.) And yet, Texas was no joke Saturday.
It was a worthy competitor for a team many expect to win a national title. It was a team that, with Ewers — or, perhaps, a properly called safety in the end zone in the third quarter — might've pulled the upset.
Alabama escapes a safety after DeMarvion Overshown is penalized with a roughing the passer call on Bryce Young. Instead, it was still a loss, the seventh in the past nine games for Texas.