Texas football: 5 best seasons in Longhorns history
By Ethan Lee
3. Texas football is perfect in 1969
Under coach Darrell K. Royal, the Texas Longhorns had a perfect season in 1969. The season featured just about everything anyone could ask for: an undefeated record, a conference championship, rivalry wins, and a victory in the Cotton Bowl over another college football powerhouse to finish the year off.
After starting 3-0 with wins over California, Texas Tech, and Navy, the No. 2 Longhorns face No. 8 Oklahoma in Dallas. The OU Sooners proved to be Texas’ most difficult foe up to that point, but all that means is that Texas only beat Oklahoma by 10 points.
Texas then claimed dominant wins over Rice, SMU, Baylor, and Texas Christian before going into College Station and beating the Aggies by 37 points.
With a 9-0 record, No. 1 Texas was set to meet up with the toughest opponent it would face all season. The No. 2 Arkansas Razorbacks, also undefeated at the time, were facing Texas for a chance at the Southwest Conference championship, and Arkansas nearly won the game and that conference title.
Texas was able to overcome a 14-0 deficit, winning thanks to a 15-point fourth quarter, sealing up the Southwest Conference for Texas and sending the Longhorns to the Cotton Bowl with an undefeated record.
In the Cotton Bowl, No. 1 Texas met the No. 9 Notre Dame Fighting Irish. The Fighting Irish proved to be a difficult opponent for the Longhorns, but Texas came out on top, winning 21-17 and finishing the year 11-0 with a claim to the national title that season.