College Football News predicts upset for Texas in Week 1

According to CFN, the Longhorns are on upset alert in Week 1.

In what could be the most dangerous first game imaginable, considering there will be a new coaching staff and new players sliding into starting roles all over the field (especially at quarterback), the Longhorns are tasked with hosting Louisiana.

The Billy Napier coached Ragin’ Cajuns are one of the best, if not the best Group of Five team in the nation. After finishing 10-1 last season, including a win over Iowa State, the Ragin’ Cajuns are not only returning practically all of their starters from last season, but they added multiple Power Five transfers in the process.

Steve Sarkisian will not get a cupcake game in week one to usher in the Longhorn’s new culture, but rather, Texas will be facing off against a Louisiana team that will be nationally ranked. It’s a matchup that College Football News does not find favorable, as they predicted 21 of the top college football Group of Five over Power Five upsets.

The week one matchup for the Longhorns and Ragin’ Cajuns was ranked No. 15.

Louisiana 31, Iowa State 14. Yeah, it really did happen to start the 2020 season – even if the rankings refused to acknowledge the victory all season long – and the 2021 Ragin’ Cajuns come back loaded. This isn’t the layup the Steve Sarkisian era might need or want to kick things off.

Regardless of who wins the starting job at quarterback, or how high Texas is ranked going into the season, the Longhorns cannot overlook Louisiana by any means. Sarkisian will look to break the curse of former Texas head coaches that were unable to win their first game.

College Football News predicts upset for Texas in Week 1

According to CFN, the Longhorns are on upset alert in Week 1.

In what could be the most dangerous first game imaginable, considering there will be a new coaching staff and new players sliding into starting roles all over the field (especially at quarterback), the Longhorns host Louisiana.

The Billy Napier coached Ragin’ Cajuns are one of the best, if not the best Group of Five team in the nation. After finishing 10-1 last season, including a win over Iowa State, the Ragin’ Cajuns are not only returning practically all of their starters, but they also added multiple Power Five transfers in the process.

Steve Sarkisian will not get a cupcake game in Week 1 to usher in the Longhorns’ new culture, but, rather, Texas will face a Louisiana team that will be nationally ranked. It’s a matchup College Football News does not find favorable: It predicted 21 of the top college football Group of Five over Power Five upsets.

The Week 1 matchup for the Longhorns and Ragin’ Cajuns was ranked No. 15.

Louisiana 31, Iowa State 14. Yeah, it really did happen to start the 2020 season – even if the rankings refused to acknowledge the victory all season long – and the 2021 Ragin’ Cajuns come back loaded. This isn’t the layup the Steve Sarkisian era might need or want to kick things off.

Regardless of who wins the starting job at quarterback, or how high Texas is ranked going into the season, the Longhorns cannot overlook Louisiana. Sarkisian will look to break the curse of former Texas head coaches that were unable to win their first game.

College Football News predicts upset for Texas in Week 1

According to CFN, the Longhorns are on upset alert in Week 1.

[mm-video type=video id=01fb2var4zznkabf02tb playlist_id=01eqbz52bnpekkafqb player_id=none image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01fb2var4zznkabf02tb/01fb2var4zznkabf02tb-3ed766a5fc024414b538a5da48bb5daa.jpg]

In what could be the most dangerous first game imaginable, considering there will be a new coaching staff and new players sliding into starting roles all over the field (especially at quarterback), the Longhorns host Louisiana.

The Billy Napier coached Ragin’ Cajuns are one of the best, if not the best Group of Five team in the nation. After finishing 10-1 last season, including a win over Iowa State, the Ragin’ Cajuns are not only returning practically all of their starters, but they also added multiple Power Five transfers in the process.

Steve Sarkisian will not get a cupcake game in Week 1 to usher in the Longhorns’ new culture, but, rather, Texas will face a Louisiana team that will be nationally ranked. It’s a matchup College Football News does not find favorable: It predicted 21 of the top college football Group of Five over Power Five upsets.

The Week 1 matchup for the Longhorns and Ragin’ Cajuns was ranked No. 15.

Louisiana 31, Iowa State 14. Yeah, it really did happen to start the 2020 season – even if the rankings refused to acknowledge the victory all season long – and the 2021 Ragin’ Cajuns come back loaded. This isn’t the layup the Steve Sarkisian era might need or want to kick things off.

Regardless of who wins the starting job at quarterback, or how high Texas is ranked going into the season, the Longhorns cannot overlook Louisiana. Sarkisian will look to break the curse of former Texas head coaches that were unable to win their first game.

247Sports ranks Texas’ schedule as one of the toughest in the nation

According to 247Sports, Texas has one of the toughest schedules in the nation this season, take a look to see where they rank.

There are simply no gimme or cupcake games on Texas’ schedule for the 2021 season.

The Longhorns strength of schedule was rated in the top-25 last season, but this calendar year saw the strength of schedule rating jump to the ninth toughest schedule in the country according to 247Sports. Texas also has the second toughest schedule in the Big 12 behind…checks list… Kansas. The Jayhawks simply cannot catch a break as they go into 2021 with the third toughest schedule in the nation.

Typically teams in the Power Five start their season off with what can be considered a “cupcake” game in which they play a much smaller school just to shake off the rust and beat up on someone who isn’t their own team. For Texas, they will be battle tested by the time they dive into Big 12 play.

Let’s take a look at who 247Sports views as having the toughest schedule in the nation.

Beating up on a lesser opponent the first couple weeks is a luxury that the Longhorns will not have in 2021 as they open the Steve Sarkisian era against Louisiana, one of the best Group of Five teams in the nation who finished the 2020 season at 10-1 and 19th in the nation.

Texas also has to take on former Southwest Conference foe Arkansas and likely has one of the toughest stretches in the month of October where they will face TCU, Oklahoma, and Oklahoma State in consecutive weeks. In 2020, the Longhorns finished 1-2 against these three teams, only beating Oklahoma State in overtime.

247Sports definitely understands how competitive the Big 12 conference will be this season and believes that Texas will need to have a stellar year in order to meet the lofty expectations of fans and media members.

CBS Sports predicts Texas will be upset by two nonconference opponents

According to a few CBS Sports analysts, Texas and Steve Sarkisian will have a rough start to the 2021 college football season.

Steve Sarkisian’s tenure at Texas won’t get off to a hot start according to a few CBS Sports analysts. Continue reading “CBS Sports predicts Texas will be upset by two nonconference opponents”

247Sports ranks college football’s most intriguing Week 1 games, Texas is included

247Sports recently ranked the most intriguing college football matchups for Week 1. Louisiana at Texas was among the top five.

The Steve Sarkisian era at Texas will officially kick off on Sept. 4 at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium.

Sarkisian’s squad will be tested right off the bat with a rising Louisiana team. The Rajin’ Cajuns concluded the 2020 season with a 10-1 overall record, including the defeat of one of Texas’ primary Big 12 opponents in Iowa State.

Louisiana has appeared in many way-too-early top 25 rankings for the 2021 season, ESPN lists them as high as No. 16 overall. According to 247Sports, Texas and Louisiana will be one of the most intriguing games to watch throughout college football’s slate of Week 1 matchups.

Steve Sarkisian won’t start his Texas tenure with a loss to Louisiana, will he? One thing is for certain — the Longhorns won’t take the Ragin’ Cajuns lightly given what Billy Napier’s program has been able to accomplish over the past two seasons. An “upset” win over Texas would certainly make poll voters and the Playoff selection committee turns their heads toward the Group of 5 ranks and could go a long way in determining Louisiana’s New Year’s Six hopes.

Whether it’s the quality matchup in itself or the excitement surrounding the Sarkisian era in Austin, it will surely be an exciting atmosphere with no shortage of storylines.

Louisiana at Texas landed at No. 4 overall, while the top three matchups included Penn State at Wisconsin, Miami vs Alabama, and Georgia vs Clemson.

If the Longhorns hope to compete for a Big 12 title under a nearly entirely new coaching staff in year one, they cannot afford to lose any of their three nonconference games. On top of that, Texas will likely only be able to lose one conference game, at best, in order to stay atop the Big 12 rankings.

247Sports ranks college football’s most intriguing Week 1 games, Texas is included

247Sports recently ranked the most intriguing college football matchups for Week 1. Louisiana at Texas was among the top five.

The Steve Sarkisian era at Texas will officially kick off on Sept. 4 at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium.

Sarkisian’s squad will be tested right off the bat with a rising Louisiana team. The Rajin’ Cajuns concluded the 2020 season with a 10-1 overall record, including the defeat of one of Texas’ primary Big 12 opponents in Iowa State.

Louisiana has appeared in many way-too-early top 25 rankings for the 2021 season, ESPN lists them as high as No. 16 overall. According to 247Sports, Texas and Louisiana will be one of the most intriguing games to watch throughout college football’s slate of Week 1 matchups.

Steve Sarkisian won’t start his Texas tenure with a loss to Louisiana, will he? One thing is for certain — the Longhorns won’t take the Ragin’ Cajuns lightly given what Billy Napier’s program has been able to accomplish over the past two seasons. An “upset” win over Texas would certainly make poll voters and the Playoff selection committee turns their heads toward the Group of 5 ranks and could go a long way in determining Louisiana’s New Year’s Six hopes.

Whether it’s the quality matchup in itself or the excitement surrounding the Sarkisian era in Austin, it will surely be an exciting atmosphere with no shortage of storylines.

Louisiana at Texas landed at No. 4 overall, while the top three matchups included Penn State at Wisconsin, Miami vs Alabama, and Georgia vs Clemson.

If the Longhorns hope to compete for a Big 12 title under a nearly entirely new coaching staff in year one, they cannot afford to lose any of their three nonconference games. On top of that, Texas will likely only be able to lose one conference game, at best, in order to stay atop the Big 12 rankings.

Five reasons Texas’ struggles will continue this season

After some optimism, there is always room for pessimism. Here are five reasons Texas will continue its struggles during the 2021 season:

Texas fans have been in this situation before. An offseason full of expectations, hype, and wishful thinking. Then, once the season begins, disappointment and downright embarrassment take place. Since the 2010 season, it has been a constant cycle.

Steve Sarkisian has taken over and will be hoping to change the narrative surrounding the program. It will be easier said than done, especially with how the Big 12 opponents are expected to fair this season.

After some optimism surrounding Sarkisian’s first season, there is always room for pessimism. Plenty of problems are still in front of Texas, even with the newfound hope. Here are five reasons Texas will continue its decade long struggles during the 2021 season:

ESPN FPI rankings for every opponent on Texas football’s schedule in 2021

ESPN’s FPI rankings show that Texas has one of the toughest schedules in college football.

Earlier this week, ESPN released their updated FPI rankings for the first time this offseason. Continue reading “ESPN FPI rankings for every opponent on Texas football’s schedule in 2021”

College Football News lists a potential trap game for Texas football

College Football News believes that one of Texas’ nonconference opponents could be a trap game for first-year head coach Steve Sarkisian.

Upsets happen quite often in college football. It’s what makes the sport interesting, as long as you’re not on the losing end.

Either a team has overlooked their opponent altogether, or the game is sandwiched between two more important contests. Great football teams find a way to win these type of games.

While Texas’ 2021 football schedule looks fairly favorable for first-year head coach Steve Sarkisian, College Football News believes they’ll get tested right off the bat. They chose the Longhorns season opener against Louisiana as the potential trap game of the year.

Letdown/Sandwich Game: Louisiana, Sept. 4
Game Before: None
Game After
: at Arkansas

Ask 2020 Iowa State about how much fun it is to play Louisiana at home to open up a season. The Steve Sarkisian era opens up with game after game after game with an interesting hook. At Arkansas, the in-state games against Rice, Texas Tech and TCU, and the Oklahoma showdown will all be a big deal, but the Ragin’ Cajuns are going to be a problem, too.

There are no ‘easy’ games in the world of college football, but there’s certainly battles that a team should feel confident in winning due to overall talent on the roster. Texas’ season opener is one that cannot be overlooked.

The Rajin’ Cajuns concluded the 2020 season with a 10-1 overall record. Their lone loss was to No. 12 Coastal Carolina by three points.