Texas DB Jahdae Barron reacts to wild streak against Georgia: ‘It was crazy’

AUSTIN — On a night the Texas Longhorns would like to forget, Jahdae Barron had one of the best games of his career under the bright lights.

The Texas defensive end finished with two interceptions in a 30-15 loss to the Georgia Bulldogs in Austin on Saturday and was the star of a wild third-down drive that ended with a dump in the north end zone.

Late in the third quarter, Barron “committed” a questionable defensive pass interference penalty while tackling Arian Smith on the route against the sideline. Smith didn’t turn his head, allowing Barron to rise and easily catch Carson Beck’s errant pass before returning it to the Texas nine-yard line.

The initial flag appeared to take away from Texas’ excellent field position and turnover before the student retaliated by throwing bottles and other items, causing a delay that inadvertently allowed the officials to rethink and change the call.

The Longhorns found the end zone two plays later on a 19-yard touchdown catch by running back Jaydon Blue to cut the lead to 23-15 with 2:12 to play in the third. Barron’s interception and the chaos that had ensued had brought Texas to life, but ultimately it didn’t make much of a difference.

After the game, Barron met with the media and shared his thoughts on what he saw during the interception and subsequent delay.

“It was crazy, but the level of love we get from the fans, I mean, it’s tremendous. It’s unbelievable,” Barron said.

Barron said he knew he didn’t commit pass interference on what marked his second pick of the game. He had snagged a ball out of the hands of Georgia tight end Lawson Luckie in the red zone late in the first quarter, but it was his second out that grabbed the headlines.

“I mean, I knew it wasn’t (pass interference),” Barron said. “I asked the referee. (Smith) was pushing me, but yeah, I wasn’t thinking at all.”

Barron finished with four total tackles (two solo), one pass breakup and both sacks. He now has three interceptions this season and six for his career.

The Longhorns fell to No. 5 in the AP poll on Sunday and will visit No. 25 Vanderbilt this weekend.

“It hurts, but even when you lose, you learn something, you gain something,” Barron said of the loss. “So at the end of the day, we’re going to trust Sark, and we have a brotherhood here, and we’re going to come back, and we’re going to rebuild and go in the right direction.”