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TAMPA, Fla. — Oklahoma QB John Mateer spoke to the media on Monday at 2026 SEC Media Days. Here's what he said as it pertains to Texas. How much was the hand a factor in the game against Texas and excitement for this year’s Red River Shootout? “Looking forward to another opportunity. I mean, I'm not gonna sit here and make an excuse. We lost, I lost, but even you can imagine, 17 days (to recover). I mean, there's a couple other quarterbacks that have done it. It's a little different, you know, Jared Goff was a little higher on his thumb. Drew Brees tore a ligament. He was out for a little bit. You can imagine, you know, it was difficult.” The decision to …

Tennessee Quarterback Race Still Looking for a Leader *** Texas opens its 2026 SEC campaign against Tennessee in Knoxville September 26th. It is the Longhorns' first ever trip to Neyland Stadium, with the three previous meetings all coming in Dallas, Texas with the most recent matchup between the two coming January 1, 1969. Of all of the Texas-Tennessee storylines to fixate on, the Manning family connection will be one beat to death by talking heads across the sport. But I wanted to focus more on the Tennessee quarterbacking situation for this article. As of today, the ongoing battle between redshirt freshman George MacIntyre and true freshman Fai…

The 2026 NFL Draft won’t break records for Texas, but a handful of Longhorns are expected to be selected in the coming days — a feat that shouldn’t be taken for granted considering that after this year’s draft the Longhorns will have had more players taken in the last four years than Texas had from 2011-2021 combined (31 if you were wondering). Depending on how this year shapes up, UT will have produced 33-35 or so pros. In the last two drafts alone, Texas has broken program records for players selected — 11 in 2024 followed by 12 in 2025. And not to get ahead of ourselves, but looking at 2027, it almost feels like a certainty that a program record will be br…

Texas' biggest out of state wins under Sarkisian The Friday commitment of 4-star cornerback Hayward Howard Jr. out of Edna Karr High in New Orleans got me thinking about the biggest out of state wins for the Longhorns in the Steve Sarkisian era. Florida There have been a few very big recruiting wins in the state of Florida for the Texas staff to date, with more on the way in the 2026 cycle. Cedric Baxter Jr., RB, Orlando/Edgewater (2023 class) This was a monster recruiting win at the time with Baxter being the No. 1 or 2 ranked running back in the 2023 cycle. The one-time FSU verbal was a strong signal of what was to come for Sarkisian and staff in Flo…

Speed has been the name of the game for the Texas offense this season. From Isaiah Bond to Jaydon Blue to Ryan Wingo to Matthew Golden and on and on and on, Texas is fast. As we have seen so far this season, you never know which Longhorn is going to be the one to hear their number called for a big play. As a defensive coordinator, that is pretty terrifying. According to the freshman WR Ryan Wingo, anyone on the team can be next up to see a splash play go their way. "I think everybody in our receiver room can make plays, even the running backs," Wingo told reporters after Texas' victory over UTSA Saturday night. "Everybody on our team can make big plays, even the…

Exposure to Previously Untraveled Areas Only to Help Longhorns in Recruiting *** ATLANTA, Georgia – Texas is set to play in Athens, Georgia for the first time in program history. No, really, the first time ever between two very historic, proud programs. Adding Athens to the list of Gainesville, Florida, Lexington, Kentucky, and Starkville, Mississippi for road destinations the Longhorns have traveled to this season, it's a lot of new pins in the map for a program whose logo knows no bounds. I asked Steve Sarkisian on Thursday if a game like this was an opportunity to plant the Longhorn Flag in new recruiting turf across the country. While he initially …

Texas two-sport athlete Jonah Williams will undergo surgery to repair an injured shoulder that he sustained diving for a foul ball recently, his father confirms to OnTexasFootball. Orangebloods' Anwar Richardson was first to report the news. The University confirmed the news, via press release on Monday afternoon. Williams is expected to be ready for the 2026 football season. Williams is playing in his second season with the Longhorns' baseball team after joining the program as an early enrollee last year. The former five-star football recruit was batting .306, with a .414 OBP and .391 SLG before suffering the injury. He hasn't played since Friday of the USC U…

Texas' path to back-to-back No. 1 classes Steve Sarkisian and staff have a path to back-to-back No. 1 classes after a strong last 20 days of July. There is only one thing that can currently keep Texas from making another run at the top class - if the Longhorns only sign 23 or 24 prospects. If Texas signs 26 or 27 in December, a top 3 class is a lock, and No. 1 will be in play. So the question is how can Texas ascend to challenge once again for the top spot. We take a look to begin Wednesday. August 12 could move Texas up two or three spots ... Four-star EDGE Jake Kreul (Orlando, Fla./IMG Academy) is set to announce his decision August 12. Texas is consi…

Texas' top 2028 QB target to visit this weekend American Heritage High (Plantation, Fla.) 2028 quarterback Neimann Lawrence is scheduled to be in Austin this weekend for Texas camp per a source close to the 4-star++ prospect. The 6-0.5, 205-pound natural passer has risen to the top of the Texas quarterback board in the 2028 cycle following a standout sophomore campaign for Miami Northwestern High. Texas quarterbacks coach AJ Milwee was by American Heritage in May to make sure Lawrence understands Texas' level of interest. This will be a third known visit to Texas by Lawrence. Along with in-state schools, Notre Dame has also become a program to know i…

The SEC has set the kickoff time for the Longhorns' trip to The Swamp on October 4th. Texas and Florida will begin their contest at 2:30 p.m. CT. In regards to the trip to Gainesville, Sarkisian is aware of the challenge The Swamp will pose, and will begin the game prep this week. "Going to The Swamp, there's people who would argue it's the toughest place to play in the country," Sarkisian said Monday during his weekly press conference. "We've got two coaches in our office that have coached there before and have said it's the loudest place they've been." The Longhorns avoid playing under the lights, which should be considered a break for Sark's squad.…

While it’s easy to forget considering we’re now entering the 6th year of the Steve Sarkisian era, it’s important to remember just how big of an impact Torre Becton and his strength and conditioning program has had on the turning around of Texas. Yes, the Longhorns are recruiting different types of players in different regions than the Tom Herman staff was, but the current staff is also developing these players in both the weightroom and on the turf, which is something you couldn’t consistently say was true between 2017-2020, and even prior to that. That said, with full pads set to come on tomorrow and offseason gains set to be showcased in the form of full cont…

Compared to years past, Texas is off to a hot start in the 2027 recruiting cycle and already holds 11 pledges ahead of June official visits. The Longhorns already have a good balance of high-dollar difference makers and less-expensive developmental prospects, but the class will continue to grow and should double in size by the time Ohio State makes it to Austin for what should be a huge recruiting weekend. So with nearly a dozen prospects already in the boat, who are the most coveted remaining targets? Hank South and I teamed up to provide those answers below. (Prospects listed in positional order) Richmond Randle four-star RB Landen Williams-Callis …

The 2021 Texas recruiting class that ranked 15th according to experts has already produced four draft picks in the 2024 draft, all early entrants following their junior years. The class was supposed to be a transition class for Steve Sarkisian but clearly provided more punch than many expected. Draft picks from the 2021 Recruiting Class so far: - Bryon Murphy - Xavier Worthy - Jonathon Brooks - JT Sanders Possibilities from the 2021 class for next year: - Barryn Sorrell - Gunnar Helm - Hayden Conner ** The class was clearly buoyed by the relatively late addition of Worthy. But a ranking of 15th overall would sti…

The 2024 recruiting class with portal transfers added A member of the OnTexasFootball community made a post about what the 2024 recruiting class would look like with two 2024 recruits added that have transferred to Texas. Those two additions would be Freshman All-American Maraad Watson and freshman starter at Stanford Emmett Mosley V. The Texas 2024 recruiting class when signed was ranked No. 5 or 6 depending on the service. While Watson and Mosley V were ranked as high 3-star's coming out of high school, the additions of both to the program make the class look even deeper with future NFL Draft picks and starters/two-deep players headed into year two. The…

The 2025 Recruiting Board The Texas Longhorns are hosting three mid-week defensive back visitors, and will then welcome 17 official visitors over the weekend to close out a fast moving month of June. And if one thinks June was fast paced, July is going to be wild with many top targets of the Longhorns expected to commit next month. OnTexasFootball takes a look at the recruiting board headed into the stretch run. Quarterback (1) K.J. Lacey, QB, Saraland (Ala.) High #AllGasNoBrakes OnTexasFootball ranking: 4-star+ Running back (2) Rickey Stewart, RB, Tyler (Texas) Chapel Hill #AllGasNoBrakes OnTexasFootball ranking: 4-star Jam…

This is my All-Texas Sark-Era Team. Who do you have? Any changes? Offense QB - Quinn Ewers (does Arch supplant hin in 2026?) RB - Bijan Robinson RB - Jonathan Brooks (love Roschon, Wisner and Blue but Brooks was terrific) WR - Xavier Worthy WR - Matthew Golden WR - Jordan Whittington (this was a somewhat difficult decision; possibly replaced by Coleman and/or Wingo after 2026) TE - Gunnar Helm (over JT Sanders for me) OL - Kelvin Banks OL - Trevor Goosby OL - Jake Majors OL - Hayden Connor OL - Cam Williams (the fifth one was a tough call; Siani and Baker could move ahead, and DJ Campbell would have bee…

It has been a fun topic of discussion (sometimes) on twitter over the past few days and I wanted to bring it up again here. As someone who has a poster of the movie War Dogs in their living room, consider me an arms dealer for the ammunition I will provide here when it comes to loading up for your next debate regarding the Texas schedule. *** Why Texas Has an Easy Schedule The best course of action here is to go off of the ESPN FPI for an understanding of the level of competition Texas is set to face in 2024. Of course, it is very funny and convenient how the narrative around an SEC schedule has flipped once Texas entered the fold. First, it was Texas canno…

I’m not sure if folks read the article in The Athletic yesterday. But for those who didn’t, an opposing coach basically went all-in on the Texas portal transfer class. And not in a good way. The coach questioned the running back additions, the addition of Rasheem Biles, the price paid for Cam Coleman and more. Every comment was ripe with skepticism. So here’s my response: Texas signed the best portal class in the SEC not named LSU. The coach mentioned Hollywood Smothers being “ok”, but failed to mention Raleek Brown. The coach mentioned Biles being a weak-side linebacker being asked to play in a 3-4 and bemoaned that Justin Cryer is a st…

With the NFL Draft coming up tonight, I'm thinking back to each of the Longhorns draft hopefuls, and what their individual best plays were as a Longhorn. It's my way of saluting them and what they did on the 40 Acres. Of course, many of them had multiple outstanding plays. But what was their very best? Here's my take (and by the way - this is a topic Rod, CJ and Coach Shipley are also going to tackle in this afternoon's The Winning Drive on YouTube): Byron Murphy - the fourth-down pass rush versus Kansas State was a thing of beauty. And it wasn't even so much of how fast he got into the backfield and disrupted the player. Rather, it was the fact that M…

Largely based on which team has a power four prospect or several for the future Longhorn to matchup with, OTF provides the best TXHSFB game to attend for each in-state commit. (Prospects listed in positional order) Smithson Valley QB Ty Knutson vs. Boerne-Champion on Oct. 23 Smithson Valley’s 10 game regular season schedule doesn’t feature much competition and I’d be surprised if the Rangers don’t win all 10 games by at least double digits. That said, I went with Boerne-Champion since they have Ryder Flugence, who could very well end up as the Lone Star State’s top QB prospect in 2029. Richmond Randle RB Landen Williams-Callis vs. Dallas South Oak Clif…

The Texas Longhorns have had boatloads of recruiting success since Steve Sarkisian arrived in Austin in January of 2021. So much so that of the 25 highest-rated all-time commits per 247Sports Composite (modern era goes back to c/o 1999), seven are players Sarkisian recruited. 14 were Mack Brown recruits. Three were Tom Herman’s (really two since Bru McCoy technically counts as a signee), and one was Charlie Strong’s. Sarkisian has almost doubled the amount of top-25 rated talents as the Strong/Herman eras that lasted seven seasons despite Sarkisian entering year six in Austin. Though recruiting is now an entirely different world than when the modern era be…

Ethan Burke's Case for Being Drafted Following His Texas Pro Day *** Tuesday's Pro Day at the Bubble provided the only time in the pre-draft process where all 32 NFL teams had a representative present to see edge rusher Ethan Burke in-person. Burke was snubbed from the NFL Combine in Indianapolis at the beginning of the month, so this opportunity was key for a strong showing as we head into the final stretch of NFL Draft conversations. Pro Days in particular are difficult to get accurate measurements and timings unless you don the logo of one of the NFL's 32 franchises on your chest, however, a source close to Burke's pursuit to the NFL shared with me …

With the addition of Kade Phillips and Smith Orogbo this week, let’s take a look at the 2025 recruiting class so far and make a few observations: QB - KJ Lacey RB - Rickey Stewart Jr RB - James Simon TE - Emaree Winston OL - John Mills OL - Devin Coleman OL - Jordan Coleman OL - Jackson Christian Edge - Lance Jackson Edge - Smith Orogbo LB - Bo Barnes CB - Caleb Chester S/CB - Kade Phillips I have a couple of thoughts percolating right now. * First, the quality. The overall quality of this group is extremely high. Find me a player, much less two or three, you don’t think belongs in this class. You …

Today marks the last day any player, on any team, can enter the NCAA transfer portal. Football players must submit appropriate paperwork by 11:59pm tonight in order to be eligible elsewhere next season. The NCAA grants a 48-hour grace period for schools to enter a player's name into the portal. While we have heard of multiple Longhorn players contemplating such a move, we have not heard of any paperwork officially being filed, at least not as of yesterday afternoon. So who are we monitoring? Well, a couple are fairly obvious and have been mentioned elsewhere. But until or unless that person enters their name into the portal, we're not going to go much …

Texas has taken no backseats to anyone in recruiting since Steve Sarkisian and his staff arrived in at the turn of the calendar in 2021. Coming from Alabama, where talent was basically like sand particles in a desert, to Texas where you essentially had to shake and tilt vending machines to get what you asked for originally, it was a bit of a shock for the staff. Of course, then there is the famous line from Steve Sarkisian in regards to the offensive line having almost half as many scholarship roster spots as wide receiver. Point being, there was work needed to be done and immediately so by the staff to get things to where they wanted to go. Though, as we sit he…