Spring practice officially kicked off Monday for the Texas Longhorns, signaling the start of a new chapter on the Forty Acres. The buzz surrounding the football program aligns with a fresh era for Longhorn basketball, as newly hired head coach Sean Miller begins his tenure in Austin.
Texas enters the spring under a national spotlight, with ESPN releasing its Way-Too-Early Top 25 rankings projecting how top programs may perform this fall. While the Longhorns sit among college football’s elite, key questions remain as they prepare for their second season in the SEC and the first season under Arch Manning as QB1.
According to ESPN’s Dave Wilson, Texas brings plenty of upside — along with areas that could cause growing pains.
Strength: Impact Defenders
“Between edge rushers Colin Simmons and Trey Moore, linebackers Anthony Hill Jr. and Liona Lefau, and safety Michael Taaffe, defensive coordinator Pete Kwiatkowski will disrupt offenses while new players fit into place,” Wilson wrote. Despite losing star defensive backs Jahdae Barron and Andrew Mukuba, the defense remains a potential cornerstone for the team this fall.
Weakness: Growing Pains
Wilson also highlighted the overhaul in the trenches as a potential concern. “Steve Sarkisian centered his Texas rebuild around the need for ‘big humans,’ and the Longhorns’ offensive and defensive lines were strengths during their past two playoff runs,” Wilson wrote. “Both will see wholesale makeovers this year, with one full-time starter returning on the OL and just two scholarship interior defensive linemen coming back.”
With a season-opening road test at Ohio State and a daunting SEC slate ahead, development will need to come quickly. Texas will face off against the defending national champions, the same Ohio State team that led to their demise in the semifinals of the 2025 College Football Playoff. If anything is for certain, all Longhorn fans have waited for this moment: the Arch Manning era at Texas begins now.
This article originally appeared on Longhorns Wire: Texas beings spring practices with high expectations and goals
