With fall camp on the horizon for last year's Big 12 champions, the Texas Longhorns enter summer practices with more hope than any team has had since Mack Brown left Austin. Texas enters a new era in the SEC, and have aspirations of becoming the best team in the conference.
Still, many question marks surround the team heading into camp, and kickoff versus Colorado State is nearly a month away. These are the biggest storylines heading into summer workouts here in Austin
Texas finds itself with one of the deepest wide receiver groups in the nation heading into 2024. With four notable pass catchers joining NFL teams after the 2023 season, outsiders would suspect the Longhorns regress in the passing game. But head coach Steve Sarkisian has worked through many different avenues to create a possible top receiving group in the country.
On the player development side, Texas brings back blocking tight end Gunnar Helm, who saw strides in pass catching in 2023, as well as rising sophom*ore wide receivers Johntay Cook II and DeAndre Moore Jr. expected to take major jumps in playing time and production (Moore had zero receptions while Cook had just eight in 2023). Redshirt freshman and speedster Ryan Niblett will likely be a step behind on the depth chart but could bring field stretching ability in a pinch.
In the transfer portal is where Sarkisian really made his mark. Texas brought in four pass catchers, including a pair of Alabama pass catchers who ranked first in their positions in 247Sports' portal rankings: WR Isaiah Bond and TE Amari Niblack. Matthew Golden and Silas Bolden, from Houston and Oregon State respectively, were each four-star transfers with a combined 52 yards per game and 13 total touchdowns in 2023.
Ryan Wingo headlines a fantastic group of freshman receivers and has received an ample amount of praise since joining the team in Austin. He will likely be the only contributor in 2024, but Parker Livingston, Freddie Dubose and top-200 recruit Aaron Butler are also waiting in the wings.
The big question for Texas is what do you do with this group? Seven wide receivers will be warranted meaningful playing time, but the average Sarkisian set usually uses just two or three on the field. If there were to be an alpha receiver it would likely be Bond, but Wingo has the best athletic build for the position at 6'2, 210 pounds. Bolden returns the most production, Bond was the most coveted transfer, and Cook and Moore have been waiting behind the scenes for a year. This may be the first time in Sarkisian's coaching tenure that he will use five or more pass catchers, something not as evident in the last three seasons at Texas
What Does One Offseason Do For the Secondary?
It's not a hot take to say the Longhorns upgraded on its 2023 secondary. Despite the surprise loss of cornerback Terrance Brooks, Texas added highly-regarded Austin native Andrew Mukuba from Clemson to play safety, while also adding Jay'Vion Cole from San Jose State to fill in the gaps Brooks left. The Longhorns also lucked out with nickel cornerback Jahdae Barron staying for an extra year, surging up a potential problem position.
But this group was by far the team's biggest weakness in 2023. Michael Penix Jr. and Rome Odunze solidified their spot as top-10 NFL draft picks after a 430-yard, 37-point performance in the Sugar Bowl. The Longhorns likely won't face a duo as good as that in 2024, but that cannot be how Texas plays against their biggest opponents in 2023.
On the bright side, this group is better. Malik Muhammad and Derek Williams gain a full off-season in Austin and are no longer true freshmen going against NFL-level talent. Mukuba will bring more production than now-Auburn Tiger Jerrin Thompson, but there are still question marks at boundary cornerback between Cole, Gavin Holmes, and potentially freshman Kobe Black.
The Longhorns are deeper and older in the secondary, now sporting five upperclassmen in the main rotation of seven guys, but that still might not be enough to get over the hump. Look out for players like Muhammad and Mukuba in camp, as they could be X-factors come November, December and potentially January.
In Texas' triumphant win against Alabama in week two of the college football season, two true freshmen stepped up to great lengths to secure the win. Running back CJ Baxter started the game but got hurt after 15 touches, while linebacker Anthony Hill put on the performance of the year, sacking Alabama QB Jalen Milroe twice as a part of a six-tackle night.
Texas has another huge week two out-of-conference matchup in 2024, traveling to Ann Arbor to take on the defending champion Michigan Wolverines. This Wolverines squad isn't the same as last year, losing its coach, quarterback, and offensive star, but Texas will need some surprise standouts to secure a game like this.
So what freshmen will earn playing time as early as week two? Hill and Baxter were fantastic in camp in 2023, and one would expect two names to shine for the Longhorns in 2024: Wingo and edge rusher Colin Simmons
Both players find themselves in crowded rooms, with the pass-rushing group featuring UTSA transfer Trey Moore, senior Barryn Sorrell, junior Ethan Burke and even a bit of Hill mixed in, but Simmons apparently has already made it into the rotation after spring practices. Wingo could be the hot hand in Michigan, and Simmons is likely the biggest defensive contributor on day one from the 2024 class.
A few other names could make waves early on as well. Top three offensive tackle recruit Brandon Baker will look to earn the backup tackle spot, which could be critical playing against a physical team like Michigan, while Black and fellow defensive back Xavier Filsaime is extremely talented, though possibly blocked off early in the season. Runningback Jerrick Gibson will also compete with Tre Wisner for the RB3 touches, a position Sarkisian does not shy away from using.
Summer workouts mean football is on the horizon, and Texas fans should be elated about the squad heading into 2024. A few question marks still remain, but expect a ton of contribution from new names, and some familiar faces, as the offseason heads to a close.
