CJ Vogel
Spring football kicks off in less than a week in Austin, Texas, meaning we will finally be getting our first look at what will eventually turn into the 2025 Texas Longhorns.
Offensively, the Longhorns are replacing up to nine starters depending on the game, but return players at several positions with key experience and plenty of snaps under their belts. As a result, I wanted to go position by position on the offense to breakdown what the expectations are and what might a starting 11 look like if there was a game occurring to begin the spring.
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Projected Lineup Entering Spring
This lineup takes into account the absences of RB CJ Baxter (knee) and WR DeAndre Moore (toe) who are both expected to be limited for most, if not all of spring ball.
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Quarterback
We have done it. The long awaited Arch Manning era has arrived. Entering year three as a Longhorn and year one as a starter, the whispers of a quarterback battle on campus won't be echoing through anyone's conversations this spring. For Arch Manning specifically, what will he look like commanding the huddle and the team? I think we all have a general idea, but to see it in action is going to be a fun revelation.
Behind Arch, let's see the steps taken by Trey Owens after a redshirt year and what kind of push early enrollee KJ Lacey can make after arriving in January. Texas has a very healthy room currently at the quarterback position.
Running Back
CJ Baxter would likely have been penciled into the running back spot if he was healthy, but again, he will be limited as he recovers from a significant knee injury that cost him his 2024 season. Fortunately, a 1,000 yard rusher in Tre Wisner returns. Sarkisian hinted at getting some veterans some rest during the spring – I would imagine Wisner fits that conversation.
Which means, this is a great chance for Jerrick Gibson to take a larger control of the carry splits. Freshmen Rickey Stewart and James Simon are in the building and as we have seen in each of the last two seasons, a true freshman back has played an eventual large role for the Horns in the fall. Christian Clark will be limited in the spring, but not fully. At some point, the expectation is to see Clark to at least some degree.
Wide Receiver
Ryan Wingo enters this spring as the only active Longhorn with a career reception at the wide receiver position for the Longhorns. That is a rather staggering statistic, but there is plenty of talent – well, young talent in the room. Parker Livingstone is the man next up based off of multiple conversations I have had about the spring and those sentiments were shared even dating back to the Playoff run. One unknown is what will Aaron Butler look like in the spring. At the moment, Butler will be one of the first three wide receivers out on the field with Manning and the first team offense, but can he fend off the freshmen? We will see.
Speaking of the freshmen, there is roughly 19 stars amongst four recent signees entering the fray of Chris Jackson's room. Michael Terry III and Jaime Ffrench have been the two who have made the most noise so far based off of what I am hearing. Terry's versatility has been well-documented, and he at the very least has a leg up on knowing what the day-to-day practice routine looks like. I am as excited to see and hear about Kaliq Lockett as just about anyone else. And as for Daylan McCutcheon, Texas pitched the DeAndre Moore role to him during his recruitment and without Moore active, the opportunities will be aplenty with the first and second groups.
One other nugget – I have heard all four freshmen have seen reps with the first group at some point this offseason. Oh, and let's see what Texas does in the portal this spring.
Tight End
A similar story to wide receiver where there isn't a single career reception at the position entering the spring. However, there is some optimism, specifically residing around Jordan Washington taking the leap. There are lofty expectations right now in regards to Washington, as he looks to fill the shoes of back to back historic seasons from a Texas TE. It feels like now or never for Spencer Shannon and fortunately, he has the necessary measurables to be effective for the Horns off the end of the line. The big question there is what else can Shannon prove to keep the 12-personnel package in the rotation for Sarkisian in 2025.
Emaree Winston is on campus and will participate in the spring, while Nick Townsend will arrive in June for the summer conditioning sessions.
Offensive Line
Perhaps the most solidified spot on the offensive line belongs to LT Trevor Goosby who stepped in for an injured Kelvin Banks and Cam Williams late in 2024. To the right of Goosby is where the mixing and matching will begin for Kyle Flood. The current projection has Neto Umeuozulu-Cole Hutson-DJ Campbell being the three leaders for the LG-C-RG positions this spring, but can they fend off a Nate Kibble, Daniel Cruz and Conner Robertson? That remains to be seen, for now at least. The other part of this is what type of identity does this OL take from this spring?
Can this unit truly become a people-moving pact? I like the makeup of the unit in terms of size and weight, but we will see. And at right tackle, the current favorite is Brandon Baker to fend off Andre Cojoe, but there has been some noise in regards to Cojoe being ready for the jump, so it could be a tighter contest than folks are giving it credit currently. Jaydon Chatman is one to keep an eye on as well, at RT, LT and LG.
One other name of mention is Nick Brooks, the early enrollee behemoth out of Georgia who has already figured into the two-deep with the Horns during the winter.