With the SEC announcing a conference schedule change from eight conference games to nine, the league will also require teams to schedule one nonconference game with a team from the Big 10, Big 12, or ACC. Or Notre Dame.

Although Texas already has Ohio State, Michigan, Notre Dame, and Arizona State on the schedule for future seasons, the Longhorns won’t have to worry about fulfilling this requirement for some time, but they could get a head start.

Here are three nonconference home-and-home matchups that Texas should schedule. These options are based on competitiveness, excitement, and the history that Texas has with these opponents, whether that be plenty of history or none.

USC

When college football fans think of Texas-USC, most of them probably think of the 2006 Rose Bowl National Championship game, the game in which a fourth-down Vince Young rushing touchdown with 19 seconds left secured a 41-38 Texas win.

Two more games have took place between the Trojans and the Longhorns since that matchup, with a home-and-home occurring in 2017-2018. Texas went 1-1 in that series, but secured the 37-14 win in the last game that took place in Austin.

Although recent history shows that Texas is the better team, four matchups took place previous to those, taking place in 1955, 1956, 1966, and 1967. In those four games, the Longhorns lost all four by a combined margin of 90-46.

Both teams are in completely different places than last time; Texas had some down years but has now made back-to-back College Football Playoff semifinal appearances, whereas USC is currently facing some struggles but seems to be going uphill now.

A series of games between these two now would reignite excitement and memories. The Coleseum and DKR would both sell out and get rocking, and regardless of the outcome, it would be prime college football entertainment for any fan.

Miami

Hailing from the ACC, and on the other side of the country, are the Miami Hurricanes. Miami is a team that has faced the Longhorns four times, but many fans from both sides may not remember the games, given that the last game took place in 1991.

The memory of the 1991 game may not have just been forgotten by Texas fans, but possibly suppressed, considering that the Hurricanes beat Texas 46-3 in the Cotton Bowl, a disappointing performance for the Longhorns and their fans.

The last matchup between the two came 10 years before that, when the Longhorns beat the Hurricanes 14-7 in Austin. There was then a home-and-home in 1972-1973, when the Longhorns went 1-1. So there is currently a 2-2 tie all-time between the two.

Miami is not currently seeing the success that it once was, but it seems to be building to that point. The Hurricanes are consistently improving and coming off a 10-3 season that followed with quarterback Cam Ward being drafted No. 1 overall to the Titans.

Hard Rock Stadium has been seemingly struggling to sell out seats for the Hurricanes, but this could be the answer. This would likely be a top-10 matchup in the consecutive years that the home-and-home would be played, and it would be exciting for any college football fan, taking some back to the early 2000s, when both teams were near the top.

Clemson

The battle of the orange, that’s what this matchup could be called. It would be a matchup that would get people talking and get fans feeling like they’re already in the midst of the College Football Playoffs.

Texas and Clemson faced each other for the first time this previous year when they faced off in Austin in the First Round of the College Football Playoffs, a game in which the Longhorns dominated the run game and won 38-24.

Although the home-and-home would take place later in the future, both teams are currently headed into the 2025 season with National Championship potential and ranked top-5 in the country.

Whether Clemson has the true Death Valley is up for debate, but the point is that they have a Death Valley, and to see a top-ranked matchup between Clemson and Texas in Death Valley would be all that college football is meant to be.

It would be an exciting matchup between two great teams with great coaches, players, and history. The battle of the orange would have all eyes around the country on it and the games would unforgettable matchups for many years to come.