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Texas enters today 2-0, including a resounding win last week against the defending national champion Michigan Wolverines in Ann Arbor. But I still think Texas can get better in 2024. Sure, part of that is even better execution. But some of it is also indoctrinating and weaving in additional players into the rotation, particularly on offense. We’ve yet to see a steady dose of Silas Bolden, Johntay Cook and Amari Niblack. I believe all three of those players can offer a little something extra to the offense, weapons the Horns can use come conference play. ** Another thing to look for today? More production from special teams. Texas got one…

Here we go! It’s Gameday no. 4 for the Longhorns of the 2024 season. Arch Manning gets his first start of his Texas career. It should be yet another blessed day to be a Longhorn. ** Some early season highlights: The Defining game: The dominance of Michigan has been the highlight of the season thus far. It wasn’t just that Texas went into Ann Arbor and defeated the defending national champs, it was just how convincingly the Longhorns did it. The game was never really in doubt from midway through the second quarter. Offensive MVP: Quinn Ewers has been nothing short of outstanding. The third-year starter has been on fire. He’s improved in increm…

Almost every Texas football season I remember can be summed up into two parts. What happens before OU. And what happens after. That’s what this game so often means. It’s the ultimate measuring stick of both programs. Texas either has momentum rolling into the rest of October and beyond, or the team has to pick itself up off the canvas after losing as emotional a game as can be played. There is rarely any middle ground to be had. Of course, both teams could still have “good” seasons with a bad outcome in this contest. Texas proved that a year ago by advancing to the College Football Playoff. Even so, something about last season left …

Rain showers are moving through Nashville right now. They’re expected to clear off in the next hour, leaving us with a cool temp at kickoff of 70 degrees. ** As we look at Texas right now, even at 6-1, there is so much left to prove, an inordinate amount for a team with their record and ranked in the top 10. First and foremost, Texas has to prove its quarterback play is befitting of the ranking. Quinn Ewers and/or Arch Manning need to get back on track. It doesn’t matter which one. Ewers will clearly get the first crack. But there are smaller issues that are concerning me down the stretch. Texas continues to have a makeshift RB room. With the inju…

What could have been? That’s the inevitable question that comes from last night’s game. The Horns had first and goal on the Ohio State 1-yard line late in the fourth quarter but failed to score. In some ways, the red zone woes of this team are well documented, so the failure to score at the end seems almost fitting. Yet it doesn’t, not completely. Why? Because it doesn’t tell the whole story. Despite working through issues like the red zone problems, field goal kicking or a third quarter malaise all season long, the Horns have also been a resilient, successful bunch the entire season. They’ve always seemed to find ways to overcome any shortco…

I hope you guys get a chance to watch or listen to the Saturday Conversation sometime today. It’s with Tim Brewster, the former Longhorn assistant known for recruiting Vince Young and a host of other Longhorns, including our Rod Babers. Coach Brew not only talks about his time at Texas but also the current landscape of NIL from a coach’s perspective. ** One week from today will be the Horns’ biggest junior day of the year. In preparation for that, Texas coaches spent some time in the state of Texas on Thursday and Friday but also traveled West, including spending time in California and Hawaii. As expected, the reception Texas is getting from …

I spoke with senior draft analyst Lance Zierlein of NFL.com specifically about the Longhorns in the NFL draft. The link is below. Several interesting pieces. The Isaiah Bond discussion was particularly revealing IMO. ** Duane Akina was hired on Monday of this week and is already in Austin working alongside fellow secondary coaches Mark Orphey (corners) and Keynodo Hudson (nickels). The group, as are all Texas coaches, are prepping for spring ball which begins March 26. Couple of notes: - The safety room that Akina inherits is particularly talented. Not only does Michael Taaffe return, but so do Jelani McDonald and Derrick Williams. Young players X…

Recruiting has always been an interesting topic to me. It could be getting more interesting these days, not less. The advent of an effective salary cap could - if everyone plays by the same rules - make recruiting more strategic and nuanced than ever before. Previously, it was the same goal for every team: Load up as much as you can every year, fill your needs, and move on to the next cycle. Now, it is much more of a multi-year look. If you sign a high-priced wide receiver or two in year one, it may be difficult to justify doing so the next. Or if you have a big-time player coming off the books and graduating to the NFL at a certain position, it a…

I think some folks are starting to catch on. If Texas really wants a player, is willing to battle to the very end, then Texas has a pretty good shot in that recruitment. Yet if another team makes an out of range NIL offer, Texas simply won’t chase. Two wrongs don’t make a right, not when you’re trying to juggle adding elite players to your roster while also satisfying those already on it into the next season. That means - for Texas at least - it’s not a perfect hit rate for top-notch players. But it’s better than most and, more importantly, it strikes the right balance and builds the team the most intelligent way possible. ** I continue to think t…

Hollywood, Fla., running back Derrek Cooper announces his decision tomorrow evening at 6pm CT. Cooper, one of the nation's top players, has it all. From size to speed, from toughness to elusiveness, he has the makings of a special running back. He even has good hands out of the backfield. Cooper says he is deciding among Texas, Miami, Georgia, Ohio State and Florida State. Of course, dozens of schools put their name in the hat before Cooper narrowed his choices. With about 36 hours to go, we believe Texas remains in the pole position. However, things can and do change quickly in this era of college football recruiting, so we'll keep our ears to the ground t…

Texas will hold its fourth practice of training camp later today. It’s scheduled to begin at 6:30pm, just like last night. The first two practices were held in the mid-afternoon of the Texas heat. They’re meant to get a team prepared for the worst conditions. The team got a real feel for that. One Texas player was severely dehydrated and subsequently missed the next couple of practices (yes, I know who it is, but, no, I’m not going to name them). Bottom line, the message from coaches is clear: stay hydrated, get your rest and treat your body right because this is an extremely taxing sport, especially in the middle of summer. ** There’s a little po…

The first scrimmage of fall camp gets going here in the next couple of hours. Scrimmages last roughly two hours. Under Sark, the team typically starts with special teams (punts and kickoffs) when they’re inside DKR like they will be this morning. Then they typically go 1s vs 2s to start things off before moving to 1s vs 1s and 2s vs 2s, each in multiple eight-play spurts. After that, it’s time for 1s vs 1s and 2s vs 2s. As part of that session, they focus on situational pieces, including red zone before closing with kicking. Again, that’s the “typical” order of operations for a Sark-led training camp scrimmage. But he’s also known to change it up at ti…

Steve Sarkisian will meet with the media immediately following this morning’s scrimmage. It’ll be interesting to see exactly what Sark reveals. After all, there is an open competition for the back-up QB role. There’s a group of players contending for a various combination of roles in the secondary (I heard yet again about Graceson Littleton’s ascent last night). And then there’s the health of the team, particularly the sidelining of Stanford transfer Emmett Mosley V most of the last week. In other words, there are a lot of open questions, questions that scrimmages are specifically designed to answer. We’ll see if the head coach decides to give us any o…

Trevor Goosby’s hand injury has been the talk of the last week. Will the newly minted starting left tackle actually be able to start against Ohio State? After a couple of days off, the prognosis has been day-to-day. Things seem to be moving in the right direction though. As of now, he should be able to go against the Buckeyes. But that “should” also factors in continued healing at the current pace and no setbacks in the interim. Goosby js a key piece to this offense. He is the blindside protection for Arch Manning. ** I spoke with Tim May earlier for the Saturday Conversation. May is the most senior sportswriter covering Ohio State. Tim is origina…

I woke up with a headache this morning. But Mike Elko and every Aggie you know woke up with a bigger one. Why? Because they know they have to play Texas every year. And, despite a multitude of rumors and insinuations otherwise over the past two months, neither Arch Manning nor Steve Sarkisian will be going anywhere but to College Station this same time next year. ** The Longhorns’ regular season was anything but a straight-line. A splatter chart of their offensive and defensive performances throughout the year might better resemble 5-7, not 9-3. But the Horns, after floundering on offense for the first half of the year, and on defense in…

Failing forward. The Penn State AD, who was surreptitiously recorded during a meeting with players spouting all sorts of nonsense and juvenile double talk, literally fell into a great situation. The Nittany Lions hired Matt Campbell away from Iowa State yesterday. But the very idea that the AD had a dozen other candidates on his wish list ahead of Campbell in the first place tells me all I need to know. Sometimes schools get lucky. I think Penn State did just that with their new head coach. Maybe not so much with their AD. ** Iowa State moved quickly to hire Washington State’s Jimmy Rodgers as its new coach. That leaves the Cougars with an op…

What I want to see vs UTEP... * Other than a 5-minute stretch against San Jose State, we've seen a somewhat bottled up Texas offense to this point Against UTEP, the Texas offense needs to inch closer to letting it loose. We need to see repeated, consistent scoring, not just once every third series. And we need to see big plays coming from within the regular scope of the offense, not just deep passes downfield which can be too hit or miss. * Better third-down conversion. And furthermore, Texas setting itself up for better third-down conversions. The average yards-to-go on third downs this season has been 7+ yards. That's essentially averaging third…

A little Texas high school football news to start your Saturday morning. - Texas commitment Jermaine Bishop of Willis absolutely shredded The Woodlands last night. Bishop rushed for 301 yards and four TDs on 26 carries in 42-30 win. Bishop also threw for another score. As a reminder, Bishop has done most of the work in his high school career as a receiver. He’s just 54 yards away from the Greater Houston all-time record of 3,533 receiving yards, according to the Houston Chronicle. If there’s a category for “production” when evaluating a recruit, Bishop would be atop any list. He is slightly undersized but he is electric, hard-nosed and can make pl…

We’re here at the Fair so early this morning that I don’t even smell the fried food or stale beer quite yet. But in a couple of hours, this place will be packed with Longhorns and Sooners alike. I’ve said all week I think the Longhorns find a way to pull out a victory. I don’t know exactly how, but just call it a feeling. ** Texas fans should harbor no illusions today. Arch Manning was hit hard and often in Gainesville. The Gators racked up 35 pressures and six sacks. You can bet the Sooners will likely have similar success. But remember, Texas also scored 21 points in Gainesville. Texas may not be an offense that moves the chains, …

Weather shouldn’t be much of a factor today. There’s a steady breeze here in Lexington this morning that is expected to continue throughout the day and into the evening. But it’s not overwhelming. Listening to the local weather forecast, any precipitation is expected to hold off until tomorrow. ** A lot of orange has made its way to Lexington. But make no mistake, this is a home game for the Big Blue. I spoke to some Kentucky fans at the hotel this morning. They expect the Longhorns to win, but they are definitely here for the party. It’s a night game, so I expect some real crowd noise. ** With CJ Baxter ruled out, the Texas run gam…

Either they are or they aren’t. Texas is either good enough as a team to go into Starkville today and beat Mississippi State or they aren’t. Yes, Texas has been less than stellar this year. The offense is a clear work in progress that seems to have regressed more recently. Whether that’s on the O-line, the QB, or the play-caller, it’s irrelevant. The defense and special teams have largely carried the team to a 5-2 record. Furthermore, Mississippi State is no longer the worst team in the conference, even though they’ve lost 15 consecutive conference contests. They beat Arizona State in Starkville earlier this year and took Tennessee to overtime as well. They…

Not sure how many of you watched the OU-Alabama game last night. The Sooners lost 34-24 after going up 17-0. Quarterback John Mateer was the focal point of an OU offense that scored just seven points over the final 40 minutes of the game and threw a pick six that completely changed the complexion of the game. ** So this is what I want to discuss this morning: If you were the GM of OU, would you bring Mateer back for 2026? Mateer led the Sooners to a 10-2 regular season record and into the CFP. And he could return to Norman next season. On the other side of the coin, guys like Sam Leavitt of Arizona State and Brendan Sorsby of Cincinnati …

I wrote yesterday morning that there is no magical offensive guard in the portal who is slated to become a starter for Texas. That if such a person enters, it’ll have to come from the rosters of either Miami or Indiana. Yet about an hour later, we learned that Georgia OL Jamal Merriweather was on campus. Many folks assumed this was a big deal. It wasn’t. Merriweather, in his third year at Georgia, saw the 13th most snaps of all Georgia OLs in 2025. He was a potential depth piece for Texas or any major school. Nothing more, nothing less. He committed to Miami later in the day. My point is this: Texas will continue to comb the transfer por…

I sat down with Jaxon Shipley for this morning’s Saturday Conversation. Often overshadowed by his older brother Jordan, Jaxon forged his own path at Texas. Jaxon is third all-time in career receptions at Texas, and he, believe it or not, has the highest passer rating in UT history (he was 4-4 with three TDs, including one to Blaine Irby against the Aggies). But more than that, in his answers you’ll hear and sense an incredibly humble, earnest and kind person who is very much still a Longhorn fan at heart like all of us. Hope you enjoy it. ** Texas softball survived. I’m not sure there’s a better word for it. Multiple times last night, it appe…

When a recruit in any sport goes to Texas, they take on an obligation, one that often goes unconsidered. When a recruit goes to Texas, they take on the idea that they must want to win a national championship. It truly doesn’t matter what sport, they all want to win it all. I think that’s one of the things that is different at Texas than other colleges and programs across the country. Every single athlete on campus in Austin is there to help win a championship, at the highest level, and in whatever sport they choose. Some schools may be good in football or basketball or lacrosse. But precious few set their sights so high across the board. And not only i…