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Texas Receives Big News on Wednesday

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Max Escarpio | Last updated Jan 15, 2025 6:29 PM ET

The Texas Longhorns have now had back-to-back College Football Playoff appearances, falling just short of a national championship opportunity.

Texas finished the 2024 college football season with a 13-3 record and a 7-1 mark in SEC play.

While they fell short of reaching the national title game after a loss to Ohio State, the Longhorns defeated Clemson and Arizona State en route to becoming one of the last four teams standing.

Following the season, as head coach Steve Sarkisian and the staff head back to the drawing board, the team has lost a flurry of starters to the NFL draft.

Despite losing stars like Quinn Ewers and Kelvin Banks, the Longhorns received massive news on Wednesday.

Starting offensive guard DJ Campbell will return to the Longhorns, seemingly serving as an anchor on the offensive line set to protect quarterback Arch Manning.

Starting guard DJ Campbell will return for the 2025 season #HookEm https://t.co/oJnMdw8DVh
— HornSports (@HornSports) January 15, 2025

Campbell has been with the Longhorns since 2022. In 37 games at Texas, Campbell has started 30. He is a Joe Moore Award finalist in 2024 and was a Joe Moore Award semifinalist in 2023, an honor given to the best offensive unit in college football.

The Texas native originally committed to the Longhorns as the No. 1 interior offensive lineman and No. 10 overall player in the class of 2022, per 247Sports.

Campbell has been one of the leaders on the offensive line the last few years. He's an experienced player who should give Manning clear security on his strong side.

Manning enters the scene having recorded 13 total touchdowns and 1,054 yards with a 66.3 completion percentage in two years as Ewers' backup.

The Longhorns may be turning the page, handing Manning the keys to the offense, but he'll have a major aid to walk him through the process with Campbell in his corner.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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