The No. 6 Texas Longhorns were searching for the win that would likely seal their College Football Playoff fate, while the No. 21 LSU Tigers were simply trying to stay alive.
And amid all the things the Longhorns did to set themselves back on the road in Baton Rouge on Saturday, they came through in the biggest moments, led by quarterback Arch Manning, and escaped with a 22-21 victory.
Inside the five-yard line with six seconds on the clock, Manning connected on a screen pass to running back Raleek Brown, who took it into the end zone for the go-ahead score in the fourth quarter.
With the win, Sarkisian is now 3-2 in head-to-head matchups against his good friend Lane Kiffin, who falls to 6-4 in his first year at the helm with the Tigers.
Sarkisian and Kiffin’s Postgame Handshake
Sarkisian celebrated the emotional win, and Kiffin certainly looked stunned by how the game unfolded, but both coaches showed nothing but respect when they met at midfield.
ESPN’s Kirk Herbstreit, who was on the call, said, “emotional… you know both teams left it out there, man. There boys,” as Kiffin and Sarkisian shook hands and hugged.
Check it out:
Texas rallies to beat LSU and Lane Kiffin https://t.co/uhARdz2iFR
— gmannVOLS (@gmannVOLS) November 15, 2026
College Football Fans React on Social Media
Both Kiffin and Sarkisian are two of the more polarizing coaches in college football. And fans didn’t hold back on either one after the Longhorns’ dramatic win.
“I can’t stand either one of these clowns,” one fan harshly said.
Someone else added, “Lane Kiffin looking silly again.”
Another person wrote, “Steve Sarkisian is a fraud, but Lane Kiffin is a bigger fraud.”
“Lane Kiffin is the Steve Sarkisian of Matt Rhules,” a fan posted.
“Steve Sarkisian just embarrassed Lane Kiffin tonight. Texas got MANHANDLED tonight and they crawled back into it. What a coaching masterclass,” another fan said.
Postgame Handshake Between Steve Sarkisian, Lane Kiffin Catches Attention