Texas is coming off of a 2023 CFP appearance and entering their first year in the SEC. Yes, there is a lot of talk of "Texas isn't ready for the SEC." My thoughts on that are, show me what you got. Steve Sarkisian is entering his fourth year in the program and coming off his most successful season yet. Along with Sark, Kyle Flood (OC) and Pete Kwiatkowsi (DC) are becoming more established and also entering their fourth year at Texas. The Longhorns will have somewhat of a different look this year as a good amount of 2023 starters are now in the NFL.
Quinn Ewers will lead the Longhorns and be making his case to be the first Texas QB to win the Heisman Trophy. While his top targets Xavier Worthy, Jordan Whittington, Adonai Mitchell, and Ja’Tavion Sanders won’t share the field with him this year. The offense is still in great shape up front with four returning offensive linemen. Kelvin Banks Jr. will continue to dominate the trenches along with Hayden Connor, DJ Campbell, and center Jake Majors.
On the receiving end, Johntay Cook II is entering his sophomore season and ready to have more of a primary role in the lineup. Johntay was a five-star coming into his freshman year and will be seeing a lot more time on the field in 2024. Matthew Golden is a transfer from Houston and is prepared to have even better numbers this year with Ewers tossing him the rock. Five-star WR Ryan Wingo, will be looking to make an immediate impact to start his collegiate career. Isaiah Bond is entering his first year at Texas. The Alabama transfer can replace the speed of Xavier Worthy as the WR is already eager to break Worthy’s record in the 2025 NFL Combine. Along with Bond, Amari Niblack transferred to Austin from Tuscaloosa. Niblack will line up at TE for the Longhorns and matches the size of now NFL TE, Ja’Tavion Sanders at 6’4 245 lbs, adding even more fuel to this burnt orange fire.
Running back is another level of the offense Texas is deep at. CJ Baxter Jr. is coming off a hot 2023 season and is ready to reach even more success in 2024. Jaydon Blue will be CJ’s partner in crime as they will be sharing touches. When more playing time opened up for Blue, he emerged to be a top performer in the already elite Texas offense.
The Texas defense will have their hands full this season with lots of talent on their schedule. The defense had some key players enter the NFL draft in T’vondre Sweat, Byron Murphy II, Jaylan Ford, and Ryan Watts. Barryn Sorell and Ethan Burke will be returning to the ends of the defensive line. Burke led the team in sacks last year and will be looking for more in the SEC. Also getting some DE action for Texas is UTSA transfer Trey Moore. Moore broke the UTSA season sacks record in 2023 and won the AAC Defensive Player of The Year. The edges of the defensive line appear to be in good hands. Jermayne Lole will be one of the reinforcements for the interior of the line along with Alfred Collins who is coming into his fifth year at Texas and will have more of a lead role on the defensive line this year.
At linebacker, Anthony Hill Jr. is coming off of a great freshman season and is already one of the best linebackers in all of college football. Coming into this season he will have one thing he didn’t have last year which is collegiate experience. Hill Jr. will be accompanied by veteran David Gbenda who has the experience to keep the poise together for the entirety of the Texas defense. Jahdae Barron and Terrance Brooks will be back and great mentors for the younger members of the secondary in Malik Muhammad, Clemson S transfer Andrew Mukuba, incoming five-star freshman Xavier Filsaime, and others.
The Longhorns will not have an easy path to success during their first year in the SEC. They will have some big tests in Michigan and Georgia and big rivalry games are back for Texas with Arkansas and Texas A&M both on the road. With Sark increasing his win total every year and being very established now going into year four. Quinn Ewers and the new-look Longhorns are my number-one squad coming into the season. Texas will look to fight their way into the SEC championship and who knows, could win the conference in year one, securing themselves a first-round bye in the newly expanded CFP. This 2024 team will be electric and a lot of fun to watch, get the popcorn ready and hook ‘em.
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