Texas Longhorns Preview | Expert Predictions & Best Bets for 2024

Texas Longhorns Preview, Predictions & Season Win Total Pick

After falling short in the College Football Playoff semi-final in 2023, the Texas Longhorns will return with a vengeance in 2024. The Longhorns reloaded under head coach Steve Sarkisian and will be looking again to find themselves in the conversation for a national championship. Quinn Ewers returns as the starting quarterback, with Arch Manning continuing to wait in the wings. Can the Longhorns return to glory in 2024? Let’s dive in. 

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Texas Longhorns Preview

2023 Record: 12-2 (8-1); SEC Finish: 1st Big 12*
AP Poll: No. 4 | Coaches Poll: N0. 4 | PFF: No. 2
Head Coach: Steve Sarkisian 25-14 (17-10) | First Season | Overall: 71-49
Defensive Coordinator: Pete Kwiatkowski | Offensive Coordinator: Kyle Flood

Texas Longhorns Futures Odds (FanDuel)

National Championship Odds: +850 | CFB Playoff Odds: -225
SEC Championship Odds: +370
Regular Season Wins: OVER 10.5 +144 | UNDER 10.5 -178

Texas Preview: Why You Should Be Bullish

Despite losing some talent to the 2024 NFL Draft on offense, the Longhorns reloaded this offseason and are once again a force to be reckoned with on that side of the football. Quarterback Quinn Ewers will have his fair share of options to toss the pigskin to, headlined by Alabama transfer portal acquisition Isaiah Bond. Assuming Ewers can hold up his end of the bargain, and we have no reason to believe he can’t, the Longhorns should find themselves with a top offense again in 2024. We didn’t even mention their strong offensive line, which is a significant strength for this group. 

Texas Preview: Why You Should Be Bearish

With a team ranked in the top five in the nation, there aren’t many reasons to be concerned or bearish about this program heading into the season. Still, if there were one area we’d be slightly looking at, it’s the secondary and overall pass defense. The Longhorns had issues in their secondary last year, and although transfer portal acquisition Andrew Mukuba will help, we need more consistency in that area to be fully bullish on the Longhorns as a national title threat. 

Texas Breakout Player: TE Amari Niblack

Multiple options here can break out for the Longhorns in 2024. Alabama tight-end transfer Amari Niblack is a good bet. Niblack should quietly be a dark horse to take home the John Mackey Award in 2024, given to the most outstanding collegiate tight end. Although Niblack was quiet with the Crimson Tide last year, he’s set to play a much more impactful role with the Longhorns this time. 

Texas X-Factor: CB Malik Muhammad 

Malik Muhammad demonstrated a lot during his true freshman season. There’s a reason he was listed as a top cornerback recruit in his class, and that was highlighted in 2023. If the Longhorns hope to succeed and be crowned national champions in 2024, they’ll need Muhammad to continue toward greatness and lead a secondary that’s dying for a star talent. 

Texas Longhorns Schedule Analysis

As the Longhorns debut in the SEC, it’ll undoubtedly come with some challenges. The good thing for the Longhorns is there are also multiple games where they should be significant favorites. The hard parts of their schedule come in three waves. The Longhorns will ease into their schedule in Week 1, but in Week 2, they’ll clash with the defending national champion No. 9 ranked Michigan Wolverines. When we hit October, the Longhorns will visit No. 16 Oklahoma and host No. 1 ranked Georgia in back-to-back weeks. The Longhorns close their 2024 schedule with another edition of the Lone Star Showdown against No. 20 Texas A&M. 

Texas Prediction: OVER/UNDER 10.5 Wins

To win 11 games in 2024, the Longhorns can’t afford any missteps against their unranked competition or Oklahoma and Texas A&M. They’ll need to at least split their two big games against Georgia and Michigan. It’s a lot to ask of the Longhorns to be perfect and only slip up once during their schedule. We understand the juice on the number and are content riding with it. 

Texas Longhorns Preseason Pick

UNDER 10.5 (-178) (FanDuel Sportsbook)

Texas Longhorns Best Bets

Since there’s some real juice on the Under 10.5 wins, we’ll also look toward another top bet for the Longhorns in 2024. Quarterback Quinn Ewers threw for 22 touchdown passes after starting all 12 games for the Longhorns at quarterback in 2023. The Longhorns are still projected to be a run-heavy offense in 2024, but Ewers throwing for over 21.5 touchdown passes is listed at -114, and that’s a number we’re very comfortable getting behind.

SEC Previews: Alabama | Arkansas | Auburn | Florida |Kentucky | LSU | Mississippi State | Missouri | Oklahoma | Ole Miss| South Carolina | Tennessee  | Texas A&M | Vanderbilt

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