AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — The good news for Texas: There are opportunities to improve the next three weeks after its loss at Ohio State, just not against elite competition.

The Longhorns dropped from preseason No. 1 to No. 7 in this week’s AP Top 25, and they do not face another Power Four opponent until a trip to No. 13 Florida on Oct. 4. First come home games against San Jose State on Saturday, UTEP and Sam Houston.

Senior defensive back Michael Taaffe, an Associated Press preseason first-team All-American, sounded like a coach describing how the Longhorns must play to a standard regardless of the opponent.

“You take it as the faceless opponent,” Taaffe said this week. “So whether it’s Ohio State, whether its Colorado State week one, whether it’s Michigan or whether it’s San Jose State week two, you treat it all the same. That’s just what you have to do as a competitor.”

The Longhorns struggled with recurring problems against Ohio State, including scoring in the red zone — 0 for 2 — and converting short-yardage plays. There was the ineffectiveness of first-year starting quarterback Arch Manning.

Manning completed 10 of 17 passes for 170 yards with one touchdown and an interception against a strong Ohio State defense. He missed some open receivers, sometimes badly. He and coach Steve Sarkisian acknowledge technical issues Manning exhibited under pressure, including faulty footwork that resulted in a side-arm delivery. He did pass for 132 yards in the fourth quarter as Texas kept it close in the 14-7 loss.

“I gotta start faster,” Manning said. “Get completions, get it to my guys in space. I didn’t do that well.”

Missed kicks and picks

San Jose State lost 16-14 to Central Michigan last week after Spartans kicker Denis Lynch missed on two field goal attempts in the final 1:13. The first was from 33 yards, the second from 56 as time expired.

Coach Ken Niumatalolo said quarterback Walker Eget assigned himself blame for the defeat. Eget completed 24 of 43 passes for 308 yards and two touchdowns, but he also threw two interceptions, one in the Central Michigan end zone in the first quarter.

“He’d be the first to tell you he didn’t play very well,” Niumatalolo said. “He texted me at 1:30 in the morning on Saturday taking accountability for the loss. Shows you the type of kid this kid is. I still have the most faith in Walker.”

Finishing runs

Texas rushed for 166 yards with an average of 4.5 per carry at Ohio State. Quintrevion Wisner gained 80 on 16 tries. Sarkisian said the Longhorns could have performed better on some plays.

“We weren’t bringing our feet the way I would have liked, and we were kind of falling off blocks,” Sarkisian said. “Where we felt like we were going to have runs for 8, 10, 12 yards, we were getting three, four and five yards. We’ve got to finish a little better.”

Hot hands for San Jose

Danny Scudero isn’t large for a college receiver, but he had big game against Central Michigan. The 5-foot-9, 174-pound sophomore caught nine passes for 189 yards — both career bests — and a touchdown in his first game for San Jose State. Scudero’s touchdown covered 45 yards. He had another reception for 46. Scudero had 53 receptions for 667 yards and five touchdowns for Sacramento State last season.

Pretty salty defense

The Longhorns were pleased that they limited Ohio State to 203 yards and 3.8 per play, but disappointed that they did not force any turnovers. Last season, Texas forced 31 turnovers, which ranked No. 1 nationally.

“We weren’t good enough with the second tackler in attacking the ball,” Sarkisian said. “When the first guy had him wrapped up, we really pride ourselves on the second guy punching and stripping the ball.”

Another big target

Texas quarterback Quinn Ewers had valuable tight ends the past two seasons, both now in the NFL, Ja’Tavion Sanders with Carolina and Gunnar Helm with Tennessee.

The starter this season is Jack Endries, a 6-4, 234-pound junior transfer. Endries had 56 receptions for Cal last season and had four for 50 yards at Ohio State. One covered 30 yards along the left sideline.

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