After finishing the 2022 season ranked No. 7 in the final SP+ rankings, the Texas Longhorns slot in at No. 9 in the preseason rankings released by ESPN on Tuesday, a week after head coach Steve Sarkisian’s team came in at No. 19 in the returning production metric.
The projection is for the Texas offense to improve from barely inside the top 30 last season to the No. 14 attack with the defense almost precisely maintaining its position around the top 15.
Before diving deeper into why the Longhorns remain a favorite of advanced metrics, a few notes on 2023 opponents.