Texas Longhorns Preview 2024
Remember a few years ago when everyone thought Texas was insane to join the SEC?
(Hand raised high and waving on that one.)
Oklahoma was the star of the Big 12, Texas was sputtering along with just one ten-win season from 2010 to 2022 - OU had ten over that span - and then a funny thing happened …
It started to work.
Forget for a moment that Texas should’ve beaten Washington in the College Football Playoff semifinal - the almost-miraculous comeback in the Sugar Bowl has been shockingly swept aside - but call that a step back to potentially make a giant leap forward.
Did that remind you of anyone? Superpower program, the better team, didn’t quite play like it should’ve in the CFP?
No, 2024 Texas won’t be 2023 Michigan - for a variety of reasons - but even in defeat the team showed just how dangerous it’s going to be over the next several seasons. It’s like it got the misfire out of the way, and now it’s time to act the part of a potential national champion.
Head coach Steve Sarkisian cranked up the talent level fast, the NFL talent and speed are all over the place, and the program might have just done it. It really did get up to an SEC level in a few seasons.
But that means there can’t be any hiccups.
The Big 12 can play a little football, too, but the nastiest conference game last year for the Longhorns was Oklahoma, or the Big 12 Championship against Oklahoma State, or the fight against Kansas State.
Georgia. The Big 12 didn’t have one of those last year, and Texas has to deal with that on October 19th.
If you thought Texas was the circle game on everyone’s calendar in the Big 12, wait and see how everyone takes their respective games up several notches this year.
It’s an expanded College Football Playoff year. There’s no excuse - and that includes the schedule; more on that in the end - for Texas to not get to at least 10-2 and take another cut.
And to think, after being 5-7 two seasons ago, Texas is in the SEC.
Texas Preview 2024: Offense
- That was what the Texas offense was supposed to be. Scoring-wise it was relatively consistent, but more than that, it was adaptable. There were times when the passing attack was a bit off - like in the tough win over Kansas State - but the ground game picked up the slack, and vice versa.
But as good as it was, there were a few too many turnovers, it wasn’t good enough in the red zone and the pass protection could’ve been better. There’s some work to do after a few key losses, but …
- Having two quarterbacks in Quinn Ewers and Arch Manning can make everything a lot better. Arch will be great, but Ewers is the 1. There might be a little bit of a rotation here and there, but the offense needs the experience of Ewers thanks to a receiving corps that’s replacing just about everyone.
The top four pass catchers are gone. Including the quirky plays to the defensive tackles, and just three of the 25 touchdown catches from last year are back.
The staff went to the portal to get Isaiah Bond (Alabama) for the outside, Silas Bolden (Oregon State) for the inside, and Matthew Golden (Houston) and TE Amari Niblack (Alabama) to round things out - and to go along with a few decent veterans ready to step up and shine.
- QB is the team’s biggest strength. The offensive line might not be terribly far behind. Again, being better in pass protection will matter, but this group is loaded with talented veterans among the starting five with great young prospects to build up the depth. Kelvin Banks is an NFL starting left tackle hanging out in college for one more year, and the interior will be a rock.
The 1-2 rushing punch of CJ Baxter and Jaydon Blue should combine for well over 1,500 yards. They can both catch, too.
Texas Preview 2024: Defense
- The addition of Johnny Nansen to the defensive coaching staff makes an already good situation better. The former Arizona defensive coordinator will combine with Pete Kwiatkowski to do even more for what was one of the nation’s best against the run. That starts with getting the tackles right.
You don’t get better after losing Byron Murphy and T’Vondre Sweat, but there’s a nice mix inside of good-looking underclassmen to work behind the big veterans. Nansen getting Tiaoalii Savea to come along from Arizona to handle the nose spot will help ease the transition. But …
- Can there be a bit more of a pass rush? Yup, a lot more. Ethan Burke is back in the hybrid JACK position - he led the team with 5.5 sacks - along with veteran Barryn Sorrell, but be disappointed if UTSA transfer Trey Moore isn’t the top playmaker in the backfield. Those are just the frontline parts - this bunch is deep.
They’ll all try to wreak havoc, while second-leading tackler Anthony Hill will be the one the linebacking corps works around. There’s some playing around with the alignment, and the Longhorns will be fine here in a hurry, but this is one area that should need fall camp to figure it all out. And …
- The secondary is the one area that needs a wee bit of work. Granted, teams had to throw to keep up, but the Longhorns got roasted for 285 or more passing yards in six of the last nine games. They lost two of them and three of the other four were decided by one score.
Jahdae Barron is an all-around playmaker of a safety, and landing Andrew Mukuba from Clemson solves any free safety concerns. The corner combination of Gavin Holmes and Malik Muhammad have to make more big plays, but the team is fine here - especially with Muhammad.
Texas Key To The Season
Keep being a bear against the run.
Again, it’s not easy to lose elite defensive tackles. Find an elite one and you have a defense that can do big things. Have two, and you have a run defense that allowed more than 155 yards once and gave up fewer than three yards per carry on the season.
Sweat and Murphy were special, but they weren’t alone. It’s a good defense that should be a brick wall, but to keep hammering this, to be last year’s run D is asking a lot. Texas allowed more than one rushing score in two games - five of the nine on given up on the year came in the two losses to Washington and Oklahoma. So …
Texas Key Player
DTs Tiaoalii Savea, Sr. & Bill Norton, Sr.
These two aren’t Sweat and Murphy, but the two Arizona transfers did just fine last season for a strong run defense. Norton is a bit bigger and made 32 tackles, but Savea might be the more dangerous of the two with his quickness. If these two are good, nothing stops.
Texas Top Transfer, Biggest Transfer Loss
Top Transfer In: EDGE Trey Moore
Texas loaded up with a slew of great transfers - the new receivers will all shine - but getting a pass rusher like Moore might end up making even more of an impact. He made 104 tackles with 22 sacks and 35.5 tackles for loss over the last two seasons at UTSA. He’ll be expected to star right out of the gate.
Top Transfer Out: CB Terrance Brooks
It’s a little too crazy to suggest that Maalik Murphy could turn out to be the best player in last year’s epic Texas quarterback room - he’s off to Duke where he’ll get every chance to step up and shine - but … nah.
The Longhorns will be okay without Brooks - he’s going to Illinois - but after a slow start he made a slew of plays with 20 tackles, three picks, and six broken up passes last season.
Texas Key Game
at Michigan, Sept. 7
Okay … OKAY … it’s Georgia on October 19th in Austin, if it’s not the Oklahoma game the week before, or Texas A&M to end the regular season. But first, Texas needs to flex a little muscle.
Let’s take a trip into the high-rent district for references. in Week 2 of 2005, Texas announced it would be a major player with a 25-22 win on the road against a loaded Ohio State. Week 2 last year? Texas went into Tuscaloosa and came away with double-digit win - that set the tone for the run to the CFP.
Go into Ann Arbor and hand defending national champion Michigan its second regular season loss since 2020, and there’s a little breathing room for those three monster SEC games.
Texas 10 Best Players
1. Kelvin Banks, OT Jr.
2. Jahdae Barron, S Sr.
3. Quinn Ewers, QB Jr.
4. Arch Manning, QB RFr.
5. Anthony Hill, LB Soph.
6. Trey Moore, EDGE Sr.
7. Andrew Mukuba, S Sr.
8. CJ Baxter, RB Soph.
9. Alfred Collins, DT Sr.
10. DJ Campbell, OG Jr.
Texas 2023 Fun Stats
- 1st Quarter Scoring: Texas 120, Opponents 50
- Penalties: Texas 92 for 731 yards, Opponents 63 for 485 yards
- Average Rushing Yards Per Game: Texas 188.4, Opponents 82.4
Texas 2024 Season Prediction, Win Total, What Will Happen
Texas isn’t the lock you probably think it is.
Oh it’s great. It’s probably SEC Championship/national title wonderful, but it takes three to screw this all up.
10-2 Texas gets into the expanded College Football Playoff. 9-3 doesn’t, and last year the Longhorns lost to Oklahoma and had to work WAY too hard to get by Houston, TCU, and Iowa State. Throw in the close call win over Kansas State, and what it took to get by Alabama, and it wasn’t always smooth.
This year’s Texas team will rip through the Vanderbilts and ULMs of the world, but again, lose three, and all the hype and expectations fizzle.
At Michigan, at Texas A&M, Oklahoma, Georgia. At least 100 other programs go 0-4 against that, and Texas has to be - at worst - 2-2, and can’t whiff against a Florida, or a Kentucky, or an Arkansas.
Overall the schedule isn’t horrible - six games against teams that didn’t go bowling and no Alabama, Auburn, LSU, Missouri, Ole Miss, or Tennessee to face - but the idea of Texas being “back” can’t mean returning to losing a bunch of games it shouldn’t.
It won’t - it’ll get into the new College Football Playoff - but it’ll take a lot of work to get there.
Set The Texas Win Total At … 9.5
Likely Wins: Colorado State, ULM, UTSA, at Vanderbilt
50/50 Games: at Arkansas, Florida, Kentucky, at Michigan, Mississippi State, at Texas A&M, vs Oklahoma
Likely Losses: Georgia
- Texas Schedule: 3 Things To Know
Most Popular
Comments / 0