AUSTIN – One school played its first football game in 1893. The other in 2011. Almost 130 years of tradition-rich history collided with not quite a dozen and from a crush of big bodies jersey No. 0 emerged, the UTSA quarterback with “210” tattooed on his left calf.
Frank Harris showed poise, grit and moxie on Saturday. He ran and passed the Roadrunners to a 17-7 lead over Texas, the 21st-ranked team in the nation, stunning Darrell K. Royal-Memorial Stadium into near I-can’t-believe-this-is-happening silence.
When Texas roared back, Harris looked downfield. When the Longhorns blitzed, Harris danced away. When defenders lunged, Harris escaped, carrying the hopes of Roadrunner Nation on his shoulders. But then receivers dropped balls and Harris threw an interception that was returned for a touchdown. As the game wore on, his pocket collapsed, and with it, the dream of a program-defining upset.
Before a crowd of 102,520 that bled two shades of orange, Texas won a game it was supposed to, 41-20. Harris dazzled for a half. And UTSA held on until Texas running back Bijan Robinson decided to take over and the Longhorn defense stiffened.
Robinson ran three yards for one score, 78 for a second, 41 for a third. He juked and spun, lowered his shoulder, knocked over defenders and broke into the open, out-sprinting corners and safeties to the end zone. Robinson gashed the Roadrunner defense, not strong against the run, for 183 yards on 20 carries. He added one reception for 19 and that wasn’t all.
After nursing a sore shoulder from the Alabama game, after undergoing an MRI and leaving some to wonder if he would play, Robinson electrified with sudden stops and change of direction and vaulted back into the race for the Heisman Trophy.
UTSA could not stop Robinson’s backup, either. Roschon Johnson bulldozed for 83 yards on the ground. He caught three passes for 23 more. He scored one touchdown. The Roadrunners showed as much Triangle of Toughness as anyone could expect, dropping Robinson for losses and holding him to short gains early in the game. In the end, they could not stop perhaps the best one-two running back combination in the nation.
“This is going to be a great game to learn off of,” said UTSA Head Coach Jeff Traylor, whose team fell to 1-2. “Unbelievable effort. We played a really great football team and went toe to toe with them as long as we could.”
The Roadrunners thought they could pull an upset. They drove north on I-35 to face a banged-up Longhorn team. Texas (2-1) lost starting quarterback Quinn Ewers to a collarbone injury against Alabama. Hudson Card, the backup, hobbled off the field with a leg injury. Robinson injured his shoulder. Texas lost a game it felt it should have won — by one point. And a question hung over the team: How could Texas get up for a Conference USA team after almost beating a squad ranked No. 1?
Whatever emotional or psychological edge UTSA might have held, the Roadrunners took advantage early. After forcing Texas to punt on its first possession, Harris drove UTSA downfield. He fired a 45-yard touchdown pass to Joshua Cephus only to have the score nullified by an illegal shift. Even so, a 12-point underdog took a 3-0 lead on Jared Sackett’s 24-yard field goal.
Though Texas regained the lead 7-3, Harris pushed UTSA back in control. He led them to two touchdowns, a 10-point lead, and, for a while, had Roadrunner Nation believing. Believing it could win the biggest game in program history.
Harris threw with laser-like precision early. Senior running back Brenden Brady provided strong support. He ran two yards for one touchdown and passed 35 yards to Zakhari Franklin for another. But it was Harris who kept UTSA in contention. He found receiver after receiver, often on the run, and threw a scare into the Texas crowd. Off-season LASIK surgery gave Harris 20/15 vision, and it seemed he saw every open man. Until the Longhorn pass rush intensified and he began taking hits.
“We got a lot of football left,” Harris said. “Of course we wanted to win this one. But we will watch the film and grow from this.”
Trailing 24-20 late in the third, Harris dropped back. He fired a pass, it was tipped, Jahdae Barron intercepted and returned it for a touchdown. When UTSA regained possession, the pocket began to collapse. Harris found himself on the turf, leveled by a DeMarvion Overshown tackle that was ruled targeting.
Harris left the game shaken up. He finished with good numbers, completing 24 of 35 passes for 222 yards. He rushed for 38 yards on 10 carries. The effort was strong, the performance valiant, but it wasn’t enough. Texas brought too much Bijan Robinson, too much defense, too much talent. And a game that once seemed breaking in UTSA’s favor, broke the other way.
