Big win at The Big House.
Massive one.
But not for the host Michigan Wolverines in NCAA football action Saturday.
The No. 3 Texas Longhorns laid a lickin’ on the No. 10 Wolverines, leaving Ann Arbor with a no-doubt 31-12 victory.
“Super proud of our team,” Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian told reporters post-game. “For our players to come in and play with the poise and composure that they played with but also the physicality and the toughness they had (is great).”
Magnificent, really.
It’s another early-season statement win for Texas — just as it was a year ago in an upend of the Alabama Crimson Tide. That one announced the Longhorns as contenders — finally — for the national championship. This one confirms they are there again in the title fight.
Especially since it was a takedown of the reigning NCAA kings …
And in their own backyard, for that matter.
“This is a tough place to come and win,” Sarkisian said. “(Michigan) had won 23 in a row here. This is a quality opponent.”
Michigan certainly didn’t like look it in this one.
The home side answered three Texas touchdowns in the first three quarters with just a pair of field goals, in falling behind 24-3 at halftime and 31-6 after the third frame.
Really, only the Ohio State Buckeyes have brought that kind of visitors’ domination to The Big House in the last decade.
Mostly, the Wolverines were out-physicalled in the trenches — something that just doesn’t happen if you’re Big Blue.
Meanwhile, quarterback Quinn Ewers looked Heisman Trophy-worthy, with a 24-of-36, 246-yard, three-touchdown effort for the Longhorns.
“I felt like we played really well up front,” added Sarkisian. “I felt like we were re-establishing the line of scrimmage. We were moving people. We were giving our runners running lanes.
“This is who we are. This is how we know how to play.”