The No. 4 Texas Longhorns (2-0) begin their second season on Saturday. With the exception of Oklahoma, this season involves facing lesser brands that boast lesser players.
Texas kicks off its post-Alabama slate with the Wyoming Cowboys (2-0) who have a signature win of their own. Wyoming opened the season with a stunning overtime victory over Texas Tech (0-2) who I had playing in the Big 12 championship opposite Texas.
If both teams give their best effort, the Cowboys will lose by 20 points or more. Whether or not Texas gives its best effort in this game and any other remaining game is the question.
Let’s be perfectly clear: If Texas can beat Alabama 34-24 in the fashion it did last Saturday, the team can, and probably should, go 12-0. That’s simply not how things have worked for the Longhorns over the past decade. Lethargy and false sense of confidence have pervaded the program in the past when things have gone well.
This group seems different.
There appears to be a winning culture in the Texas locker room. There’s leadership from the players who have earned the necessary respect of their teammates to lead. The next ten games will reveal whether or not that notion is true.