Through the first half, Hutzler's plan looked genius. The Bulldogs held the Longhorns to an abysmal 3.6 yards per play and carried a 24-14 lead into the halftime locker room, positioned to secure their first SEC win since 2023 and hand Texas a loss that would deal a death blow to the Longhorns' College Football Playoff aspirations.

Caldwell found his way to Austin as Texas’ backup quarterback at the last minute. He entered the transfer portal out of Troy during the post-spring transfer window and didn’t commit to Texas until early May, landing with the Longhorns less than four months before the season started.