Steve Sarkisian Expects Nearly 20 Million Viewers For Texas-Ohio State

AUSTIN, Texas — Texas Longhorns coach Steve Sarkisian expects close to 20 million people to watch Saturday night's game against the top-ranked Ohio State Buckeyes at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium. Sarkisian gave the figure Monday during a press conference previewing the Sept. 12 matchup. Ohio State-Texas is the kind of game Sarkisian wants to be part of, and he counted the staff, the players, and the fan base as fortunate to get it. 'We get an opportunity to go against the best. How are we gonna perform against the best?' Sarkisian said. 'Because our best is gonna be needed, and our best is gonna be needed for four quarters. That's what excites me. I'm not so consumed with what could be down the road. We got 10 other games to go play that will contribute to that. This is about the life of a competitor and putting yourself in the arena and performing what would deem stressful conditions, right? Because if you're wrong, they can hurt you. But if you're right, we can hurt them. That's the exciting part of preparing for that at DKR, in front of our crowd, with I bet there's close to 20 million people that watch this game. That's pretty cool when you think about (the game) that way.' Kickoff is set for 6:30 p.m. CT on ABC. ESPN's College GameDay broadcasts from the Texas campus from 8 a.m. to 11 a.m. CT. Texas opened the season fifth in the AP Top 25 and Ohio State opened first. The Longhorns beat Texas State 59-7 on Saturday afternoon in front of 102,738 at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium. Arch Manning completed 20-of-27 passes for 305 yards and 4 touchdowns with 1 interception before Texas pulled him in the third quarter. Ohio State beat Ball State 56-3 at Ohio Stadium on Sept. 5. Julian Sayin completed 21-of-25 passes for 320 yards and 3 touchdowns. Jeremiah Smith caught 8 passes for 151 yards and 2 touchdowns in the first half and did not play after halftime. Twelve ESPN staff members published preseason College Football Playoff predictions in August, and Texas appeared on all 12 ballots. Jake Trotter was the only voter who put the Longhorns at No. 1. Andrea Adelson had Texas ninth, the lowest any voter ranked them, and eight voters placed Texas among their first five teams. Texas opened the season fourth in the US LBM Coaches Poll. Saturday will be the sixth meeting between the programs and the third in consecutive seasons. Ohio State leads the series 3-2 and has won the last two. The Buckeyes beat Texas 28-14 in the College Football Playoff semifinal at AT&T Stadium on Jan. 10, 2025, then won 14-7 in the season opener at Ohio Stadium on Aug. 30, 2025. Texas has scored 21 points across the two games. Texas finished 10-3 last season, went 6-2 in the SEC, beat Michigan in the Citrus Bowl, and missed the College Football Playoff. Ohio State finished 12-2, lost to Indiana in the Big Ten championship game, and lost 24-14 to Miami in a Playoff quarterfinal at the Cotton Bowl. Smith has 2,709 career receiving yards, seventh in Ohio State history, and 29 touchdown catches, fifth in school history. He was a unanimous All-American last season and finished sixth in Heisman Trophy voting. Sarkisian is in his sixth season at Texas. Ryan Day is in his eighth at Ohio State. This article first appeared on Dallas Sports Journal and was syndicated with permission.