Jan. 20, 2026, 1:03 p.m. CT

It’s fair to say the Texas Longhorns will be a top five team when the official preseason rankings come out in July and August. USA TODAY Sports ranked Texas No. 1 in its very early preseason Top 25. Now, ESPN has put out its own extremely early ranking and ranked UT No. 2.

Certainly, a big reason to rank Texas high is the same as last year … Arch Manning. Although, after seeing what we saw unfold during the 2025 season, it feels more real this year.

“After missing the CFP, the Longhorns are going all-in for 2026, which might be quarterback Arch Manning’s final college season. After a slow start, Manning had a solid campaign in his first season as a starter, throwing for 3,163 yards with 26 touchdowns and 7 interceptions. The Longhorns added Coleman, the No. 1 receiver in the portal, to start opposite Ryan Wingo. Texas ranked 90th in the FBS in rushing in 2025, averaging 137.8 yards per game. The Longhorns have to become more physical on offense, which starts up front, and getting star tackle Trevor Goosby back will help. Brown and Smothers were upgrades in the backfield. Texas coach Steve Sarkisian fired defensive coordinator Pete Kwiatkowski and brought in former UT coach-in-waiting Will Muschamp, who was instrumental in helping Georgia win back-to-back CFP national titles in 2021 and 2022.” – ESPN Texas Longhorns 2026 outlook

Last season, everyone thought Manning was going to be the best player in college football and ranked Texas No. 1. But, logically, Manning struggled some at the beginning of the season. He struggled with the speed of the game, with more complex defenses and with the pressure of great expectation.

But around the Oklahoma game, Texas fans could see Manning figuring it out more and more. By the Texas A&M and Michigan games, he was ready to roll. In fact, IF Texas had made it into the college football playoff this year, Manning might have led the Longhorns to a title. It isn’t a farfetched notion.

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Now we know what we have in Manning, who is still going to improve. Texas also has the No. 1 transfer portal class in America. UT has signed big weapons like WR Cam Coleman out of Auburn and Hollywood Smothers from NC State at running back.

Are there areas of concern? Sure, but Texas should be stout in 2026.