Where Athlon Sports ranks Texas in their early 2021 rankings

The Longhorns 2020 season was filled with highs and lows. Where does Athlon Sports predict that they will fall in 2021 early rankings?

Longhorns ranked too low

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Let’s be quite frank, ranking the Longhorns at No. 24 isn’t anything to make a fuss about in the grand scheme of things. However, when you look at who is ranked ahead of them, that’s where some of the eyebrow raising begins.

Texas is ranked as the fifth team in the Big 12, with Oklahoma and Iowa State atop the conference. There’s no issue with either of those programs, considering that their Red River Rivalry counterparts have won the Big 12 title for six consecutive seasons. An argument can be made for Iowa State as well since they defeated Texas again last season. Plus, they return their head coach Matt Campbell, quarterback Brock Purdy and top running back in Breece Hall.

The issue that raises that eyebrow is seeing Texas Christian at No. 20 and Oklahoma State at No. 21. The Longhorns did lose to TCU, but I am going to chalk that up to terrible game management and boneheaded blunders. The Frogs aren’t a much better team than the Horns. OSU lost to Texas this past season and they are losing Chuba Hubbard and Tylan Wallace from their 2020 team.

Just my two cents, but the 20’s range is right where they should be. The fray comes from TCU and OSU being ahead of a talented Texas team who now will have an advantage on the offensive side of the ball with Sarkisian calling the plays.