Steve Sarkisian took a not-so-subtle shot at the College Football Playoff selection process earlier this week when he proclaimed Texas’ Citrus Bowl win over Michigan might outrate some playoff games with TV viewership.
He’s right. Brands like the Longhorns and Wolverines are like catnip on New Year’s Eve afternoon. The ratings probably will beat several of the games from the playoff’s opening round, especially those that featured Tulane and James Madison.
By making that statement, Sarkisian is digging at the selection process that left a 9-3 Texas out of the field.
The reality is Texas missed the playoff despite earning the preseason No. 1 ranking for the first time in program history following back-to-back semifinal appearances.
There are schedule-based excuses to be made for Texas’ absence in the 12-team field. But the Longhorns finished behind four other teams in the SEC standings and came up short during a year the playoff was the expectation.
This leads to the question: What’s next?
Portal season has already been chaotic for Texas with most of the running back room choosing to exit en masse in addition to starting linebacker Liona Lefau and wide receiver DeAndre Moore.
NFL decisions will soon stress Texas, too. Those like star left tackle Trevor Goosby and defensive tackle Hero Kanu could choose to leave and open gaping holes on Texas’ depth chart. Those like All-American safety Michael Taaffe are also set to graduate.
Still, if I were a betting man, I’d put money on Texas being next season’s preseason No. 1.
There are only five seniors who were part of Texas’ regular starting 22 this season.
Arch Manning, who torched Michigan for 376 yards of offense and four touchdowns on Wednesday, is back. So is superstar edge rusher Colin Simmons. With a title window open in Austin, expect the Longhorns to go all-in with the transfer portal to build a legitimate contender for what projects to be Manning’s last season.
Ahead of a critical offseason on the Forty Acres, this is a look back at what went wrong and what worked in 2025 and what that means for the Longhorns’ offseason.
Expect Manning to be a preseason Heisman favorite
Yes, we did this already. Yes, Manning had some real stinkers during the 2025 season. But what you may have missed down the stretch of the season was Manning emerging as an elite college quarterback.
After being called the “first college football flop” by The Athletic, Manning threw for 13 touchdowns against just two interceptions in the regular season while completing 62% of his passes. Despite the slow start, he finished the year as a top 20 QB for PFF in terms of his season-long grade.
Given the strides Manning made in Year 1 as a starter and the overwhelming optimism of sources in the building about his future, you should expect a leap by Manning in 2026.
And given his last name and the attention around him … expect that to generate plenty of Heisman chatter this summer.
Changes around Manning are coming
Steve Sarkisian produced a 1,000-yard rusher in every stop he made between 2008 and 2024 as a play-caller or a head coach. That came to a hault this year when no Texas back cleared the 600-yard barrier.
Part of that was due to injury. But a lot of it had to do with a struggling offensive line and disappointing backfield production outside of Quintrevion Wisner, who is now the No. 3 running back in the 247Sports Portal rankings.
The running back room will need to undergo a complete overhaul in the portal. The only remaining scholarship players in the room are freshmen Christian Clark and James Simon, a pair that will soon be joined by four-star freshman Derrek Cooper.
Given the youth of the room, expect Texas to grab at least one high-profile back out of the portal, maybe even two. The Longhorns are expected to be active at the top of that market.
The same could be said for the offensive line, where the only real guarantee to return is right tackle Brandon Baker and potentially center Connor Robertson. Texas will be aggressive adding offensive line pieces in the portal to help bolster a unit that finished 112th nationally in pressure rate allowed in the regular season.
Oh yeah, don’t be shocked if Texas goes after a high-level wide receiver in the portal. A player like Auburn transfer Cam Coleman could change the tenor of the Longhorns’ offense. Texas will also likely at least grab a blocking-focused tight end.
A surprising defensive change
Defense wasn’t the issue for Texas this year. The Longhorns ranked 26th nationally in yards allowed per play, 25th in scoring defense and allowed only 26 points per game in Texas’ three losses.
Despite that, Sarkisian made the surprising change to move on from defensive coordinator Pete Kwiatkowski — who authored the nation’s No. 3 defense in 2024 — and hire Georgia analyst Will Muschamp.
It’s a reunion for Muschamp in Austin. A former head-coach-in-waiting for the Longhorns, Muschamp returns after 15 years away and stints as Florida and South Carolina’s head coach.
Does Muschamp still have his fastball as a defensive play-caller? We’ll see. But Sarkisian is clearly banking on Muschamp to be the CEO of that unit and make it an annual top 10 group.
As for what returns for Texas, the Longhorns will have arguably the best defensive player in the country next year in EDGE Colin Simmons, who posted 13.5 TFLs and 11 sacks in the regular season. There are also building blocks with players like Kanu (if he returns), freshman safety Graceson Littleton and sophomore DT Alex January.
Expect Texas to add to a couple of spots on defense via the portal. The Longhorns are aggressively pursuing linebackers and cornerbacks in the portal thus far, and it wouldn’t be a surprise to see them take a defensive lineman or an edge rusher as well.
Looking ahead
In retrospect the No. 1 ranking for Texas in the preseason was shortsighted. The Longhorns had holes across their offense and lacked the elite secondary play to be a truly dominant defense. Manning also struggled for stretches of his debut, and a suspect O-line and run game didn’t help matters.
Still, Texas finished with 10 wins, including over playoff teams — and arch rivals — Oklahoma and Texas A&M.
Ahead of next year with Manning and Simmons returning and an expected push in the portal, the Longhorns should once again be in the mix for preseason No. 1.
The title window is open in Austin. There’s an awareness of that for the staff. Expect them to make a push this offseason to reach that goal.
