Texas spent weeks escaping its flaws, and Oklahoma exposed all of them in Red River

Arch Manning’s late interceptions and persistent special teams breakdowns finally caught up to the Longhorns, who now face five straight ranked opponents with serious offensive questions looming

DALLAS — The script for every Texas game has gone about the same. There are a few quarters of brilliance, mixed with several drives of mess. The defense tries to bail them out. There's a special teams miscue and plenty of penalties. For four weeks, that sequence has ended with a 4-0 record and No. 1 national ranking, including a dramatic win against Ohio State. But at the State Fair of Texas, every ghost chasing the Longhorns came to a head during a 27-24 loss to struggling Oklahoma. Texas was a heavy favorite heading into the Cotton Bowl as Oklahoma reeled on offense, scoring a combined 23 points in two Power Four games.

Against Texas, though, the Sooners didn't need much. Texas handed them a first-half touchdown on a blocked punt in the end zone for a touchdown. In the second half, they got more points from an errant Arch Manning pick-six. Oklahoma also scored its first offensive touchdown in three years of Red River after defenders committed multiple penalties to extend drives. Oklahoma also confused Texas with an apparent fake-punt attempt that forced them to burn a timeout. Instead, they notched a 53-yard field goal that proved vital in the closing minutes, another mistake from Sarkisian and special teams coach Jeff Banks. And then, Manning threw a brutal interception