09/07/26 04:16:00
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09/07 16:14 CDT Texas braces for rematch with No. 1 Ohio State after previous
close losses to the Buckeyes
Texas braces for rematch with No. 1 Ohio State after previous close losses to
the Buckeyes
By JIM VERTUNO
AP Sports Writer
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) --- Hero Kanu has seen both sides of the Texas-Ohio State
rivalry, in shades of scarlet and burnt orange.
Kanu was a Buckeye defensive tackle when Ohio State beat Texas in a 2024 season
College Football Playoff semifinal on the way to the national championship.
Then he was a Longhorn when the Buckeyes beat Texas again in the 2025 season
opener. That loss proved critical when the preseason No. 1 ultimately missed
the playoff.
So here he is again, waiting for another Texas-Ohio State matchup on Saturday
night when the Buckeyes become the first No. 1 team to visit Austin since
Alabama in 2022. Texas is No. 5.
"I'm not going to make this game personal," Kanu said Monday. But he quickly
acknowledged how big the game is for college football.
A Longhorns-Buckeyes matchup may seem routine of late, but it has been rare in
the history of the sport. Ohio State has been playing college football since
1890 and Texas since 1893. Saturday will mark just the sixth meeting across
that gulf of time.
"I think this is the game everybody is the country is looking forward to," Kanu
said. "This is a playoff-caliber type game."
And one that Ohio State was better prepared to handle the last two years.
"They owned the moment better than we did last year," Kanu said.
The big moments of both recent games certainly swung Ohio State's way.
In 2024, Texas was driving for a tying touchdown late in the fourth quarter
when Jack Sawyer sacked Quinn Ewers, scooped the fumble and ran 83 yards for
the game-clinching TD. The play set off wild celebrations as Kanu and his
teammates cheered Sawyer all the way down the sideline.
Last season's matchup in Columbus left Kanu with nothing to cheer about. The
Buckeyes won 14-7 and pushed the Longhorns around most of the day. Texas
quarterback Arch Manning's Heisman Trophy campaign all but ended, and Ohio
State quarterback Julian Sayin's was just starting.
Kanu said he still has friends on Ohio State. But he made it clear there won't
be any friendly chatter this week.
"We don't talk this week," Kanu said. "We can chat after this week."
Last season's matchup hurt Texas more than just a battered ego. It was the
first of three losses that ultimately kept Texas out of the playoff despite a
strong finish.
A win in Columbus last year could have changed a lot for Texas. Longhorns coach
Steve Sarkisian said he won't try to project the impact of this week on the
Decembers playoffs.
"I don't need to spend so much energy and time on ?what does this game mean?'
As a competitor, we get to play the No. 1 team in the country, a team we've had
two battles with the last two years," Sarkisian said.
"We've got 10 other games to go play," to determine the season's ultimate
destination, Sarkisian said.
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