Bolden’s hustle produced a game-changing play that was reminiscent of the forced fumble by Jordan Whittington recovered by Xavier Worthy that helped change the win over TCU last year.
Dallas and Austin, Texas — For football coaches — the good ones, at least — the drill is to prepare for every possible game situation, but even under detail-oriented head coach Steve Sarkisian, the Texas Longhorns don’t practice recovering fumbles.
So when wide receiver Silas Bolden finished a 55.6-yard run with a fumble recovery in the end zone after blocking the trap cornerback for the Oklahoma Sooners on Saturday in the Cotton Bowl, that falls under the label of “culture play.”
With Texas leading 7-3 late in the second quarter, the Longhorns were still looking for some separation from the Sooners after a poor opening 15 minutes that resulted in only 13 total yards offensively. After a 44-yard completion by quarterback Quinn Ewers to wide receiver Ryan Wingo, running back Quintrevion Wisner broke a run off left tackle into the open field, threatening the end zone.
Instead of Wisner scoring, a hustle play by Oklahoma safety Robert Spears-Jennings forced the Texas running back to fumble at the 2-yard line, sending the ball tumbling into the end zone with the potential for a game-changing touchback.
Instead, Bolden’s speed allowed him to beat Sooners linebacker Danny Stutsman to the football, corralling the tumbling prolate spheroid in the back left corner of the end zone before it found white chalk.
Nothing but heart and hustle from @silasbolden_ pic.twitter.com/EGlHRZKOn8
— Texas Football (@TexasFootball) October 13, 2024
In typical Cotton Bowl fashion, the game-changing momentum broke open what eventually became a dominant win for Texas — two plays later, Anthony Hill forced Oklahoma quarterback Michael Hawkins Jr. to fumble, Wisner bounced back from his fumble with a 43-yard touchdown run on the sudden change, then Longhorns safety Derek Williams forced and recovered a fumble on the next Sooners play from scrimmage. Even though Texas wasn’t able to close the half with a score when Bert Auburn missed a 44-yard field goal, the Horns still took a 21-3 lead into halftime against a toothless crimson and cream offense.
At that point, the game was effectively decided.
So Bolden’s fumble recovery started a 14-0 run that included two forced turnovers by Texas that provided critical separation against Oklahoma. Considering the recent history between the two programs dating back to Bob Stoops going 9-6 against Mack Brown with four blowouts, the simple truth is that the Longhorns have struggled to make game-changing plays in the Cotton Bowl.
Sarkisian compared Bolden’s instantly-iconic fumble recovery to the hustle plays by Jordan Whittington and Xavier Worthy to force and recover a fumble against TCU in the narrow win over the Horned Frogs in late November, an instance of five-star players embodying the five-star Longhorns culture built under Sarkisian.
The comparison by Sarkisian during his Monday press conference was a reiteration of the point he made to his team during its weekly Good, Bad, and Ugly meeting earlier that morning.
“I’m always looking for plays to point out amazing effort and we take pride in the effort that we play with, but then I try to find those plays that I refer as culture plays,” Sarkisian said. “That to me, that was our culture that Silas has fit in beautifully, too. That, in my opinion, really kind of kick started us there in that second quarter.”
So Bolden’s fumble recovery was of a kind with the culture play by Worthy and Whittington that Sarkisian believes changed the complexion of the 29-26 win over TCU last year.
“I felt like the play Silas made Saturday on Trey’s touchdown run was another culture play, if you want to try to exemplify what this team is about, here’s a guy that blocks a corner, he’s in the backfield, and Tre’s about 20 yards ahead of him, and nowhere in there did he think to put his hands in the air and just let the guy score. I mean, he turned and was sprinting to get to the football, and ironically enough, that ball came out, and he was Johnny on the spot.”
As a consensus three-star prospect in the 2020 recruiting class ranked outside the top 1,000 players nationally in the 247Sports Composite rankings, Bolden wasn’t a pedigreed recruit like Worthy and Whittington, but with those rankings reflecting Bolden’s stature, the lack of respect from media and the colleges that didn’t recruit him helped drive Bolden to play with the heart and competitive courage that now defines him and in turn his immortal play.
It was also an imperative for Bolden to excel in those margins at his marginal size.
“You’re not a guy of his stature physically and have the success that you’ve had at this level, if you don’t have a huge heart, if you don’t play the game with an immense amount of courage and effort and resilience,” Sarkisian said. “And that’s what we got, we got a guy who plays that way — It’s maximum effort, exudes courage every chance that he gets and I think that’s what we see.”
Friday’s Red River Rivalry hype video, narrated by Longhorn Legend Colt McCoy, laid out the stakes in the Cotton Bowl.
“A lot has changed over the years, but one thing stays the same — this game, it’s where legends are made. The plays, the moments, the memories, they’re more than history. They’re immortal,” McCoy said.
Bolden’s play now stands among the immortal moments in the 120-game rivalry, making him an instant Longhorn Legend whose effort will never be forgotten by the burnt orange and white faithful.
Simply getting onto the field to have a chance at an effort play was a difficult journey for Bolden. As Sarkisian revealed in the post-game press conference at the Cotton Bowl, the transition to the Forty Acres hasn’t been completely smooth since arriving in Austin during the summer after spending six months working out at home in California.
After recording 54 catches for 746 yards and five touchdowns for Oregon State, leading the Beavers in receiving yards, Bolden had to adjust to a smaller role backing up Y wide receiver Matthew Golden, who has started strong with 19 catches for 246 yards and three touchdowns. Over the first five games, the 5’8, 160-pound Bolden only played 11 snaps against Michigan and four snaps against Mississippi State, sending him into an important bye week to practice better in order to earn his coach’s trust.
“Coach [Chris] Jackson and myself just continued to push him to stay positive, keep working. He probably had his best week of practice this week that he’s had since the regular season began and it showed in his play — he was playing faster, his effort was better, he was courageous,” Sarkisian said during his Monday press conference.
Bolden capped his performance with a 55-yard punt return, the longest of his Texas career halfway through his final collegiate regular season, and the second-longest of his career, flashing the explosive ability the Oregon State transfer has in that phase, even if his decision making on punt returns has pushed the edge of reliability with a fumble, some unnecessarily dangerous returns, and moments like his inability or unwillingness to field an eventual 51-yard punt over his head by Oklahoma that helped pin the Texas offense deep in its own territory at the 12-yard line.
The hope for special teams coordinator Jeff Banks is surely to smooth out those moments while still granting Bolden some freedom because of the game-changing ability he’s flashed on punt returns dating back to high school.
To find more snaps in a crowded wide receiver rotation, the practice habits have to continue at the Texas standard to earn opportunities to see the field and produce culture plays like the fumble recovery touchdown that made him an instant Longhorn Legend, immortalized on the split Cotton Bowl field.