Expectations are sky high for the Texas Longhorns heading into 2026. The team is ranked No. 5 in the AP Top 25 preseason rankings, and quarterback Arch Manning is an early Heisman Trophy favorite and a projected top-five pick in the 2027 NFL draft. But the Longhorns were in a similar situation last preseason, and they stumbled out of the gate against Ohio State and spent the rest of the season trying to make up ground in a loaded SEC.
The addition of five-star receiver Cam Coleman — a dynamic weapon capable of making plays anywhere on the field and scoring with the ball in his hands (something UT didn't really have last year) — will surely help Texas’ case, but if the team isn’t in the national championship picture after the SEC Championship Game, Steve Godfrey of Yahoo Sports believes it will definitely turn up the heat on head coach Steve Sarkisian. His first two years were rocky and he was barely above .500 (he had a 13-12 record), but he’s turned things around the last three years, winning double-digit games in all of them. But the Longhorns didn’t make it to the 12-team College Football Playoff last year (Manning’s first season as the starter) after doing so previously with Quinn Ewers under center.
With as much talent as Texas has this year — the team could have five or more first-round picks in next year’s draft — anything less than the CFP semifinals will presumably be considered a failure in Austin, and it could start getting people asking what kind of job security Sarkisian has.
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