Head coach Ryan Day and tight end Nate Roberts walk off the field after the game. Ohio State lost to Texas 24-23 on Sept. 12. Credit: Cassandra D’Angelo | Sports Photo Editor.

It’s said everything is bigger in Texas.

On Saturday, that included No. 1 Ohio State’s collapse.?

The Buckeyes led No. 4 Texas by 20 points entering the fourth quarter, but the Longhorns scored touchdowns on each of their final three possessions while Ohio State went scoreless, stunning the Buckeyes 24-23 in Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium.?

“Today we really played well for three quarters and then didn’t play well enough in the fourth quarter,” Ohio State head coach Ryan Day said. “That’s the bottom line.”

In the first half, the Buckeyes could do no wrong.

Ohio State controlled the time of possession, with 17:35 minutes, forced two turnovers and took the energy out of the building in the final seconds of the half after a 19-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Julian Sayin to wide receiver Jeremiah Smith to go ahead 20-3 at the break. Smith had 110 receiving yards at the half, while Texas had 97 total yards.

Ohio State entered the fourth quarter with a 23-3 lead and it appeared the Buckeyes leave Austin triumphant and improve to 26-1 under Day in the month of September during his career.??

But the momentum soon shifted and the Longhorns came alive.?

Texas’ fourth-quarter drives totaled 15 plays for 91 yards, 13 plays for 72 yards and 12 plays for 73 yards, all resulting in touchdowns, and the final score left 25 seconds on the clock, with Texas up by one.?

The Longhorns converted on two fourth-down attempts during the touchdown-scoring possessions.

After producing 240 yards of offense in the first half, Ohio State ran just 12 plays and scored no points in the fourth quarter.

A field goal attempt by kicker Connor Hawkins at 4:16 left in the game that would have likely sealed the win, putting the Buckeyes up two possessions, went wide left.?

“They sustained some drives, and then converted those fourth downs, kept us on the field on defense,” Day said. “Then, certainly had the chance to kick the field goal and make it a two-score game and didn’t do that. This one hurts.”

Safety Jaylen McClain rejected fatigue as an explanation for the fourth-quarter collapse.

“I wouldn’t use gassed, just execution,” McClain said.

Sayin said Ohio State simply failed to respond when Texas changed its approach.

“They made adjustments, we made our adjustments and we just didn’t execute,” Sayin said.?

For Day, the fourth-quarter collapse marked the largest blown lead in his head-coaching tenure.?

“That’s the biggest part of the season; we have to win in the fourth quarter, especially on the road,” Day said.