Kirk Herbstreit finalized numerous preseason predictions on Friday evening as part of his annual “Herbie Awards” show on ESPN.
He went with Florida as his “sleeper” pick in the SEC, but is predicting Texas will eventually win the conference with Arch Manning under center.
Herbstreit specifically singled out several Texas players and alluded to UT’s narrow shortcomings in the College Football Playoff semifinals in 2023 and 2024.
“I’m buying into Texas,” he said. “I think Arch Manning and all that hype, but more importantly guys like Michael Taaffe, [Colin] Simmons, [Anthony] Hill … They’ve come so close the last 2 years. I think Texas has what it takes to be able to climb the mountain and win that difficult conference and win the SEC.”
Texas hadn’t reached the College Football Playoff in its history until Steve Sarkisian finally brought the Longhorns there in 2023. Texas then made it back to the semis again last winter before falling to eventual champion Ohio State.
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Now with Manning poised to contend for the Heisman Trophy, the Longhorns are entering the 2025 campaign as the preseason No. 1 team in the country. Texas is a consensus +275 favorite to win the SEC this year, per the latest SEC Championship odds.
Texas will have to its hits stride from Day 1 of the 2025 season. The Longhorns are going on the road to face the Buckeyes on Aug. 30 in Columbus.
Spenser is a news editor for Saturday Down South and covers college football across all Saturday Football brands.
