Texas Longhorns' defense is going to lean on one key breakout star player throughout 2024 college football season

After sending Byron Murphy II, T'Vondre Sweat, Jaylan Ford, and Ryan Watts to the NFL the Longhorns defense is going to look quite a bit different in 2024. Steve Sarkisian and the Longhorns are going to have to lean one some new faces this season if they want to improve upon their 116th ranked passing defense from a year ago.

When I spoke with multiple Texas defenders at the NFL Combine this spring they were all confident in the same young defensive star to step up as the next face of the Longhorns defense: Anthony Hill Jr., true sophomore linebacker. The coaching staff has shown nothing but confidence in him this off-season and he is about to breakout as the key to the Texas defense in 2024.

Anthony Hill Jr., Elite Linebacker

Last season as a true freshman Anthony Hill Jr. immediately stepped into the Longhorns' second linebacker role paired up with veteran Jaylan Ford as he tallied well over 500 snaps in his first collegiate season. He showed immediate high impact ability as a tackler, a pass rusher, and defender in coverage, so much so that top tier teammates expect him to be a first round NFL Draft pick one day.

Byron Murphy II told me and several others at the NFL Combine that he should be the defender to watch this year and when his time comes during draft season (as you can see in the post below).

Why is Byron Murphy so high on Hill? As a true freshman Hill racked up nearly 70 tackles, eight of them for a loss. He posted a pass rush pressure rate of nearly 20%. Then in coverage he only allowed 5.8 yards per reception. Hill was a near unstoppable force when he found himself anywhere near the ball.

Related: Three potential Texas Longhorns breakout players for the 2024 college football season

Now that he's a true sophomore with Jaylan Ford gone Anthony Hill Jr. will almost certainly lead in snaps, tackles, and the team to get everyone lined up in the right spot(s) pre-snap. As spring camp opened there seemed to be a bit of hesitation at first from Sarkisian to express too much confidence in Hill right away, but as the off-season progressed that flipped.

Sarkisian was quoted on multiple occasions this summer calling Hill Jr. the "most underrated linebacker in the country", despite the young stud having just won Freshman All-American honors for his efforts last fall.

Why the heel turn and complete confidence with Hill? Because all he did was absolutely ball out. And it wasn't always just at off-ball linebacker either. As you can see in the post below, Hill Jr. actually showed off his edge rushing skills in the spring game, wreaking havoc in the backfield.

Hill has apparently been showcasing his versatile skill set all off-season and well into fall camp looking like the best defender on the team. That should translate to on-field success here soon. And while there hasn't been much reporting in regards to his increase in strength (as we typically see from year one to year two in college), if he leaps forward there too he's going to be a problem.

As noted by several NFL Draft analysts this spring, Hill's ability to shed blocks and throw grown men to the ground with his uncanny strength as a true freshman popped off the film any time they were trying to watch other 2024 NFL Draft prospects (as you can see demonstrated in post below).

As Texas gets used to their new look secondary headed up by returning stud Jahdae Barron , and their new defensive front gels together with elite edge rusher Trey Moore now in the fold (UTSA transfer), Hill Jr. will likely be the glue that holds everything together. If he has the truly special breakout season many expect, Texas' defense may quickly become what carries them to greatness for the 2024 college football season.

Related: Predicting the entire Texas Longhorns' 2024 schedule results: Can Quinn Ewers thrive in the SEC?

Be looking for more Texas Longhorns coverage here at A to Z Sports all year long! Follow me (@FF_TravisM) and A to Z Sports (@AtoZSportsNFL) on X for all the latest football news!

And if you want to watch a great breakdown talking through Anthony Hill Jr. and his likely breakout year in 2024 check out the video below!