After silencing Kyle Field and defeating Texas A&M 17-7, the Texas Longhorns secured a spot in the SEC Championship in their first season in the conference.

Before the Lone Star Showdown game, it was known that the winner of the match would face the Bulldogs, whose participation in the championship game was already confirmed.

Georgia traveled to Austin in late October for a top-five matchup and one of the most anticipated games of the season. Texas, then ranked No. 1, suffered a shutout in the first half and went into halftime scoreless. Although the Horns staged a small comeback in the second half, it wasn’t enough to defeat Kirby Smart and the Bulldogs.

Since that game, Texas has been on a winning streak again, beating Vanderbilt, Florida, Arkansas, Kentucky and most recently Texas A&M. Georgia beat Florida, lost to Mississippi and returned to its winning ways in the rivalry weekend against Tennessee, UMass and an eight-overtime win against Georgia Tech.

No. 3 Texas will be 11-1 heading into the title decider, while the No. 7 Bulldogs are 10-2.

The Texas defense has improved significantly since that home loss and established itself as one of the best in the country. Against Texas A&M, the defense prevented the Aggies from taking full advantage of a one-yard play, and head coach Steve Sarkisian was pleased with what he saw.

“We played really well defensively and we continue to do that,” Sarkisian said. “I thought we did a good job of limiting the quarterback in his scramble. I thought we kept the ball in front of us. I thought we tackled really well tonight. So all in all, we’re kind of like that, and every game takes on a challenge, a life of its own.”

While the offense is still making some unforced errors, Sarkisian believes they are “playing their best football right now.”

Sarkisian played against both Quinn Ewers and Arch Manning at certain points in the game, with Manning scoring a touchdown just seconds after the first touch of the ball.

Texas and Georgia already know each other, and that can be an advantage and disadvantage for both teams. Going back to the first half of the regular season game, Texas should know exactly how not to play, and this defense should be more than capable of stopping Carson Beck and the Georgia offense.

“We knew when we had the slip-up at the beginning of the season that we had to win to get back into a championship game, we deserved that,” said Sarkisian. “We all know that Georgia is a great team and we will prepare very well to try to come out as winners.”

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