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The Longhorns are officially back coming off their first Playoff appearance and best overall season since Colt McCoy’s shoulder exploded in the Rose Bowl. Next: Ending a 19-year title drought.
The vibes are good, the talent is better, and crown-jewel quarterback Quinn Ewers is on schedule to fulfill messianic expectations in his third year as the starter.
Texas opens the year ranked No. 4 in the AP and No. 2 in my projected SEC finish, even with key injuries devastating the running back room.
It’s not exactly now or never, considering crown-jewel-in-waiting Arch Manning is still on deck to extend the championship window into 2025, at least. But you know, now would be nice, before the vibe shifts into defining Steve Sarkisian’s tenure by the one big looming box he hasn’t checked rather than the ones he has.
Longhorns at a Glance …
2023 Recap: 12-2 (9-1 Big 12; Lost Sugar Bowl; 3rd AP)
Best Player: QB Quinn Ewers
Best Pro Prospect: OT Kelvin Banks Jr.
Best Addition: WR Isaiah Bond (Alabama)
Best Name: Edge Justice Finkley
Most Grizzled: OL Jake Majors (5th year; 41 career starts at center)
Emerging Dude: Sophomore CB Malik Muhammad
Biggest strength: Ewers made a big leap from Year 1 as a starter to Year 2 and there’s no reason to believe his ceiling is within sight.
Nagging concern: Edge rushers were nonentities in ’23. Instead, the pass rush came primarily from the interior, via departed All-Americans Byron Murphy II and T’Vondre Sweat. Both starting bookends are back, but hopes are higher for UTSA transfer Trey Moore and 5-star freshman Colin Simmons.
Looming question: Is there a big dog at the skill positions? Last year’s top 4 receivers all left for the draft (most notably first-rounder Xavier Worthy and his record-breaking speed), as did leading rusher Jonathon Brooks, the first RB taken in the draft. Their heir apparent in the backfield, 5-star sophomore CJ Baxter, is likely out for the season due to a knee injury. Someone from a touted but mostly unproven group of transfers and underclassmen needs to emerge.
The schedule: So much for SEC grind, right? Texas’ conference slate is widely viewed as friendly. The Longhorns avoid Alabama, Ole Miss and LSU and face just 3 SEC teams ranked in the top 20. They travel to Vandy and Arkansas. Love the trip to Michigan in Week 2, a chance to bank a high-profile road W against a rebuilding outfit battling a championship hangover. Back-to-back October dates against Oklahoma and Georgia, on the other hand, woof. Texas will be a clear favorite in every other game, although the long-awaited renewal of the blood feud with Texas A&M isn’t being taken for granted by anyone, trust me.
RELATED: Predicting every Texas game in 2024
The upshot
The baseline talent level, the trajectory under Sarkisian, and the presence of a maxed-out Ewers all point to a deep Playoff run. There will be more chances to win it all in the future, but probably none better than Texas’ debut season in the SEC.
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Matt Hinton, author of 'Monday Down South' and our resident QB guru, has previously written for Dr. Saturday, CBS and Grantland.
