“I said what I said”

AUSTIN – Texas Longhorns true freshman linebacker Colin Simmons took center stage in Saturday’s 34-3 win over the Oklahoma Sooners.

After Texas’ 35-13 win over Mississippi State on Sept. 28, Simmons expressed his opinion and previewed the Red River rivalry, saying the Longhorns would “dominate” the Sooners.

“They have a good squad this year. A lot of people on her team that I know. I feel like we’re going to dominate them,” Simmons said after the game against Mississippi State. “But at the end of the day we just have to trust our coaching.”

After sitting on those comments during the bye week, Texas did just that in Dallas.

Simmons and the defense were the main reasons for this. He finished the game with five total tackles and 1.5 tackles for a loss, both of which were second on the team behind Anthony Hill Jr. Through the first six games of his college career, Simmons has recorded four sacks.

After the game, Texas Longhorns on SI asked Simmons about his comments toward Oklahoma. And while he has understandably left the issue somewhat aside, it is clear that there are no regrets.

“It was a great game. It was a fantastic game. Great game,” Simmons said. “I mean, I said what I said at the end of the day.”

While the offense got off to a slow start, Simmons, Hill Jr. and the Texas defense kept things under control. The Longhorns remained steady despite Oklahoma getting few fields on the game’s first drives. But once the offense really got rolling, the Texas defense managed to inflict the pain on Sooners quarterback Michael Hawkins Jr., who was sacked five times while completing 19 of 30 passes for 148 yards and no touchdowns.

Despite being a young man among veterans like Jahdae Barron, Alfred Collins, Andrew Mukuba and others, Simmons has brought another layer of swagger to the defense. He entered the game leading the team in sacks and had a lot of confidence as a result.

So far this season, Simmons has totaled 23 tackles, four sacks, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery.

He’ll need to continue to be at his best when Texas hosts the Georgia Bulldogs in Austin on Saturday at 6:30 p.m. CT.