Mississippi State quarterback Kamario Taylor is questionable for Saturday’s game against Oklahoma. Texas defensive end Colin Simmons is out. The updates touch several Southeastern Conference and Big 12 programs with postseason stakes still in play.
Texas will be without Simmons for Saturday’s 7:30 p.m. ET matchup against Ole Miss on ABC, according to USA Today. Longhorns running back Hollywood Smothers remains uncertain for the same game, a status that leaves Texas’ offensive and defensive plans unsettled heading into kickoff.
Confirmed Absences Versus Uncertain Statuses
The clearest confirmed move on this week’s injury ledger belongs to Simmons, who is out for the Ole Miss game. Smothers’ situation is murkier. His availability is uncertain, which is a step below a confirmed absence but still a real question mark for Texas’ backfield.
Mississippi State QB Kamario Taylor is questionable for Oklahoma, a 2:30 p.m. kickoff Saturday. He played through an injury in Week 5 against Alabama but sat out Week 7 against LSU, a game Mississippi State lost 31-0 with backup Parker Puckett at quarterback.
Who Replaces Taylor If He Sits
If Taylor cannot go against Oklahoma, Puckett is the direct backup option. His lone start this season, in the LSU shutout loss, offers Mississippi State fans limited evidence of what a Puckett-led offense looks like under game conditions. No official word from Mississippi State has named a starter beyond Taylor’s questionable tag.
On the Oklahoma side of that same game, two offensive players moved in the opposite direction. Running back Tory Blaylock and wide receiver Parker Livingstone were both upgraded from questionable to probable, according to Sports Illustrated. A third Oklahoma back, Xavier Robinson, moved the other way, shifting from questionable to out.
Season Context For The Players Involved
Taylor has completed 66.2% of his passes for 1,450 yards with 17 touchdowns against four interceptions through five games in 2026, numbers that explain why Mississippi State’s offense changes shape without him. The 31-0 loss to LSU in his absence, detailed in Total Apex Sports’ earlier report on Kamario Taylor’s injury status, underscored how much the Bulldogs rely on him. Blaylock dealt with a hamstring injury in fall camp and logged a season-high seven carries in Oklahoma’s loss to Kentucky despite the questionable tag.
Livingstone missed that Kentucky game outright but has caught six passes for 51 yards in his first season with the Sooners when healthy. Robinson has managed just 50 rushing yards all season and has now missed Oklahoma’s last two games.
What’s Next
Texas hosts Ole Miss Saturday at 7:30 p.m. ET on ABC, while Mississippi State and Oklahoma kick off at 2:30 p.m. the same day. Official game-day inactive lists will clarify whether Taylor, Smothers and the Oklahoma trio of Blaylock, Livingstone and Robinson are available, with updates expected as each program releases its final status reports closer to kickoff.
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