AUSTIN — The Texas Longhorns will go into the 2024-2025 college football season with high expectations. This comes after a historic season where the Longhorns made their first College Football Playoff in program history. The expectations were elevated on Monday during SEC Media Days as coaching legend Nick Saban picked Texas to be in the SEC Championship versus Georgia next season. Saban cited the Texas offense and QB depth as reasons for picking the Longhorns.

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“I think Texas, if their defense comes through and they can replace some of the interior people that they lost that were high draft picks and all that, they’re really good offensively,” Saban said on SEC Network. “And even though their quarterback has missed time — [Quinn] Ewers has missed time in the last couple of years — Manning was lights-out in the spring game. Arch was like 21 for 25 for 347 yards. That depth at quarterback is probably really important for them because Ewers has missed time the last couple of years, a game or two, which could affect where you end up. So, I like Texas.”

-Nick Saban on why he likes Texas

This prediction may come as a surprise since Saban previously expressed skepticism about the Longhorns joining the SEC, stating that they would be unable to run the conference. What is not surprising is Texas picking up more preseason love from the media, as the Longhorns are seen as one of the favorites to win the SEC in their first season in the conference. Texas returns one of the best rosters in the country, ranked third in the ESPN Football Power Index.

Even if Saban’s projection doesn’t come true, fans will still get to see the Longhorns take on the Bulldogs in the regular season on October 19 at DKR Stadium.

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