Arch Manning falters, OL turnover, and Texas interior highlight potential concerns for the Longhorns entering the 2025 season

The Texas Longhorns head into the 2025 college football season with a lot of expectations, and optimism for what they could accomplish. There are many reasons for that, including the continued program ascension under head coach Steve Sarkisian, offensive fire power, and deep defensive unit. The team looks very good on paper. 

Like any team, however, there is a possibility they end up underachieving. There are several key areas that could be the reason for disappointment. Let’s take a look at the potential hurdles that the Longhorns could be facing. 

Arch Manning falters 

The expectations are extremely high for Manning heading into the 2024 season, and they should be. Manning might get over analyzed because of his last name, but nobody can question that he is very talented. At 6-4 and 220 pounds, Manning is an extremely athletic quarterback with loads of arm talent. He’s also been able to sit and learn for two seasons, and should be very prepared for this opportunity. 

Common sense says that Manning will excel under the playcalling of head coach Steve Sarkisian, but what if he doesn’t? With an inexperienced offensive line in front of him, and some new weapons in the passing game, a lot is going to be expected of Manning. If he isn’t what people think he is, Texas could falter under the lofty expectations they have set. 

Offensive line turnover 

The three most important positions up front for an offensive line are left tackle, center, and right tackle. You can argue over the order of importance but those are the spots most irreplaceable. The Longhorns, unfortunately, have to replace all three this offseason after losing Kelvin Banks Jr., Jake Majors, and Cameron Williams to the NFL. 

There is certainly talent in that room, and many people are excited about the prospects of Trevor Goosby and Brandon Baker taking over at offensive tackle, but it is a concern until proven upside. Manning, and the talented running backs, are going to have a very inexperienced offensive line in front of them outside of guard DJ Campbell. 

Interior defensive line 

The Longhorns have done a tremendous job pumping out quality defensive tackles in recent years. Going from Byron Murphy and T’Vondre Sweat to Alfred Collins and Vernon Broughton was very impressive. Due to lack of proven depth, Texas had to hit the transfer portal this offseason, and hard. They brought in five defensive tackles via the portal, including Travis Shaw, Cole Brevard, Maraad Watson, Hero Kanu, and Lavon Johnson. 

The best teams prefer homegrown talent up front. Having that much turnover on the interior is not a good thing, especially on one offseason. A potential drop off inside is something to monitor closely.