Texas Longhorns: 5 Players to Watch in 2026
By George Somerville
Such are the mega aspirations of the Texas Longhorns faithful in Austin; the 2025 college football season was a huge disappointment.
Texas Longhorns Head Coach Steve Sarkisian has set the bar high, and in return, those fine folks in Austin demand nothing less than a National Championship. That’s the level of expectations right now, and Sarkisian will feel the heat this season if progress in the playoffs isn’t made.
With 23 players drafted to the NFL in 2026, there’s going to be change to the starting lineup this year in Austin. But Texas also has a roster – experienced players and a stellar recruiting class – which is built to cope with the demands placed upon them.
Can the Texas Longhorns deliver that long-awaited National Championship? Time will tell, but here are five reasons why the Texas Longhorns will be challenging at the end of the season.
It is not hyperbole to say that the eyes of a nation are on Arch Manning this year. And I don’t just mean Longhorn Nation. Talk is cheap, but sports talk shows are already filled with chatter of the New York Jets tanking this season to secure the services of the latest member of the Manning dynasty.
However, there is a lot of football to be played before then, and Manning knows he has to deliver on many fronts this year for the Texas Longhorns.
Last season was mixed for the preseason favourites and their Heisman favourite QB. However, despite an inauspicious start, Manning, like the rest of his teammates, finished strongly. Manning ended his season throwing for 3,163 yards with 26 touchdowns and seven interceptions. He ran for an additional 403 yards and 11 touchdowns, which was not the disastrous season many called it.
So there is hope for a stellar year before he rides off into the NFL sunset!
As I write this, Manning is recovering from season-end surgery on his right foot. Manning played through the pain during the season, with a decision made at the end of the year to correct it with surgery.
This, however, is just enough to throw some caution towards the expectations that Manning will be firing all cylinders from the get-go, although to be clear, Texas expects its QB to be fully fit long before the season starts.
Such is the pressure on Manning and the Longhorns, but this is business as usual for Texas.
If Manning is to achieve half of everything the fans want from him, then his Offensive Line will need to be elite! Sadly, that was the one word that was not used to describe last season’s O-line.
Connor Robertson returns at Center for his final year of eligibility, meaning Sarkisian will rely heavily on the experience Robertson has gained during his time in Austin. Last season, Robertson replaced established starter Jake Majors, who moved to the NFL to play with the Philadelphia Eagles. It was a baptism of fire for Robertson.
However, despite a shaky start, including a game to forget in the Red River Rivalry, Robertson’s late-season form at Center was one of the key reasons the Longhorns mounted a surge, narrowly missing out on a Playoff spot.
This season, expectations are high in Austin, and Robertson will be literally at the centre of them. Robertson was not a highly rated recruit for the Longhorns, but despite other offers, he decided to stay in his home state and wait his turn. Robertson’s patience has paid off. Now he and his offensive line colleagues need to deliver on the potential everyone saw towards the end of last season.
ESPN ranked Auburn Wide Receiver as the #2 player in their Transfer Portal rankings, and rightly so. Coleman was hot property as soon as he announced his decision to transfer away from the Auburn Tigers. An announcement which shook Tigers fans to their core.
Everyone wanted Coleman, including in-state rivals Alabama – although the thought of Coleman travelling West to Tuscaloosa might have been too much for Tigers fans.
However, the thought of a 6’3″, 201lb wide receiver joining forces with Arch Manning should have the rest of college football shaking in their (cowboy) boots.
In his two seasons on the Plains in Auburn, Coleman was a menace to SEC defences. Totalling 93 receptions over the two seasons, accumulating 1,306 yards (average 14.4 yards per catch) and 13 touchdowns, Coleman was a threat in a team which, frankly, rarely posed a threat. Of note, Coleman’s production dipped in year 2, which is most likely why he elected to jump into the portal.
New Tigers Head Coach Alex Golesh must have wished he could have retained Coleman as he builds the Tigers from the bottom up. But you can see why the Alabama native chose to ride West to Texas. And teaming up with superstar wide receiver Ryan Wingo, Texas fans must be beside themselves at the thought of Manning having these two targets this season.
Disappointment for you, defensive-minded geeks who are looking to see who will stand out in defensive coordinator Will Muschamp’s new look defence. Sorry to disappoint, but I’m going to stay on the offensive side of the ball as it is on offense, which will likely make or break the Longhorns season.
A total of four Texas running backs hit the transfer portal at the end of last season, meaning this positional group will look completely different this year under new running backs coach Jabbar Juluke, who moved from Gainesville to Austin to work. Despite such great change, the Texas running back room this year is exciting with Hollywood Smothers transferring from NC State, Raleek Brown coming from Arizona State and Freshman running back Derrek Cooper, who ESPN named the #1 back in the 2026 recruitment class.
This is shaping up to be a strong room for the Longhorns, but it is Smothers who catches the eye most. Smothers left NC State for Alabama and was actually in Tuscaloosa before flipping his commitment to Texas.
Smothers is an explosive back, especially after contact, and boasts an impressive average of 4.3 yards after contact per carry during his time in Raleigh. In 2025, Smothers amassed 160 carries, rushing for 939 yards (5.9 yards per carry) and 6 touchdowns.
After talking about the targets that Manning has at receiver, just think of the damage the Texas Longhorns can do with Smother and Brown in the backfield.
Great news for Texas, less so for the rest of college football. Horns Up!
Ok, ok – let’s move to the defensive side of the ball. It’s a mixed bag on the defense for Will Muschamp in his first season back at the Longhorns since he left in 2010 to join Florida.
Texas remains pretty solid in the trenches, but it is unclear at this stage who will win the starting battle in the secondary.
While Defensive End Colin Simmons is the standout on the defense, Rasheem Biles, a transfer from Pitt, is a hugely interesting prospect for the Longhorns’ defense and certainly one to watch.
Muschamp loves a player who can be used as a Swiss Army knife, and Biles fits this bill to a tee. Biles arrives in Austin as the No.2 linebacker in PFSN’s early 2027 NFL Draft rankings.
At 6’1″, 220 lbs, Biles may be considered a little underweight for the linebacker role, but he demonstrates elite speed and great ability to navigate traffic efficiently, making him an elite blitzer. While he is rightly considered a Linebacker analysts highlight that he has “movement skills and athleticism of a strong safety” meaning he has the ability to help out and take the pressure off of the secondary when required. This will be extremely helpful for Muschamp if his secondary needs some time to bed in early in the season.
While there is no doubt Biles has a successful NFL career in front of him, he will be an exciting player to watch wearing the burnt orange this season.
George Somerville
COLLEGE FOOTBALL Writer
George is a long standing fanatic of life in the Deep South and writes his weekly column titled “It’s only SEC” for the touchdown.
He is also co-host and one third of the College Chaps Podcast, the UK’s original podcast dedicated solely to the college gme.