Top 25 in 25: Texas Football Season Preview

Photo via on3.com

We’re counting down the final 25 days before the college football season by previewing every one of our preseason top 25 teams! On the final day before week zero, we finish our previews with my No. 1 team in the country – the Texas Longhorns.

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Projected Record: 11-1 (7-1)

Ceiling/Floor: 12-0/9-3

Projected Wins: Ohio State, San Jose State, UTEP, Sam Houston, Oklahoma, Kentucky, Mississippi State, Vanderbilt, Florida, Arkansas, Texas A&M

Projected Losses: Georgia

Most Intriguing Game: at Georgia (Week 12)

Texas is my No.1 team in the country heading into this season, and I’m not the only one who thinks that. The Longhorns are once again loaded with talent in every position on the field, and head coach Steve Sarkisian has now proven he can win at the highest level as well, bringing Texas to back-to-back semifinal appearances in the playoff. But Sark has yet to win a national championship, so will he be able to get over the hump and do that in 2025? They’re my favorite to do so heading into the season, but I don’t think they’re well above the rest of the contenders.

Everyone already knows about Arch Manning and the hype he’s received this offseason. It seems like everyone either thinks he’s going to be the next great Manning the minute he steps out on the field, or he’s going to be a complete bust who will be benched halfway through the season. Personally, I’m more in the middle, where I think he’ll be a good player at least and maybe even a Heisman contender, but I don’t think he’ll be the best QB in the country. Outside of Manning, CJ Baxter will return in the backfield after missing all of 2024, but with the offensive line replacing four starters, the run game may take a few games to get going. Sophomore wide receiver Ryan Wingo is set to take on the WR1 role this fall, and could end up being one of the best wideouts in America by season’s end.

The Longhorns may have the best defense in the country in 2025, where they finished 2nd last year according to the SNAP Model. DE Colin Simmons, LB Anthony Hill Jr. and DB Malik Muhammad may be the best trio of defenders in America, and anchor all three levels of the elite defensive unit. There’ll be some shuffling in the secondary, especially with the loss of Jahdae Barron to the NFL, so that may be something to keep an eye on this season.

We’ll get to see what this Longhorn team is made of right away, as they travel to Ohio State in what will be a top three matchup in week one. Whoever wins that game will likely be ranked No. 1 and the early national title favorite.

I can’t believe it, we made it through another offseason. College football is back, no more talking about what teams could potentially do, it’s time to spot the ball and decide things on the field!

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