Quinn Ewers leads No. 11 Texas to upset of No. 3 Alabama - ESPN

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Quinn Ewers finished what he started last season, passing for 349 yards and three touchdowns to lead No. 11 Texas to a 34-24 victory over third-ranked Alabama on Saturday night in a huge win for a program trying to climb back into national championship contention.

The Longhorns (2-0) delivered the biggest victory under coach Steve Sarkisian in a game that slipped away last season after a red-hot Ewers exited because of a first-quarter shoulder injury. He was back and with another big playmaker in wide receiver Adonai Mitchell. This amounted to a welcome-to-the-Southeastern Conference moment for a program set to join Alabama & Co. next season.

«Even when it got dicey… I love the response and the grit and perseverance our guys showed,» Sarkisian said.

It didn't come without a fight from the Crimson Tide (1-1), who have now seen three games slip away late in the past two seasons. Alabama had its 21-game home winning streak snapped along with a 57-game regular-season streak against nonconference teams dating to Nick Saban's debut season in 2007.

Mitchell delivered big against Bama — again. The Georgia transfer caught touchdown passes of 7 and 39 yards in the fourth quarter. As a freshman, Mitchell's 40-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter of the national championship game against the Tide gave Georgia the lead and the first of back-to-back titles.

He caught the winner against Ohio State in the semifinal as well. Then Mitchell headed to Texas and another showdown with Alabama.

Sarkisian, a former Alabama offensive coordinator, came into the game 14-12 at Texas and with just two wins in nine tries against ranked teams. He left with a doozy of a win over his former boss. Texas fans lingered, sometimes