Texas athletic director Chris Del Conte told reporters on Wednesday night that he expects the Longhorns to continue scheduling marquee out-of-conference games in the future.
The SEC is said to be considering moving to a 9-game league schedule. And in the immediate aftermath of last season’s College Football Playoff selection — when Alabama, Ole Miss, and South Carolina were notably excluded — plenty was made about the role schedule strength would play in the future. Alabama’s athletic director, Greg Byrne, said the Crimson Tide would need to “evaluate” their nonconference schedule going forward.
Texas leadership sang a different tune on Wednesday.
“Our brand should play the greatest brands in college football because we are the best,” Del Conte said, per Inside Texas.
The Longhorns are scheduled to play Ohio State on the road in 2025. The Buckeyes will make the return trip to Austin in 2026. After that, Texas hosts Michigan in 2027, has a home-and-home series with Notre Dame in 2028 and 2029, and a home-and-home series with Arizona State in 2032 and 2033.
Texas has played a marquee nonconference game every year under coach Steve Sarkisian so far. The Longhorns traveled to Michigan in 2024. They played a 2-game series with Alabama in 2022 and 2023. And they played at Arkansas in 2021.
Excluding the COVID-impacted 2020 season, Texas has played at least 1 out-of-conference game against another power conference opponent every year since 2009. In some seasons, Texas played multiple power conference teams prior to the start of league play. At least recently, the Longhorns have been unafraid to schedule exciting games.
Next season’s matchup between Texas and Ohio State in Columbus could very well be a matchup between the top teams in the AP poll. Ohio State is the defending national champion. Texas will be coming off a second straight CFP semifinal appearance and opening the Arch Manning era. The 2025 matchup will kick off the new season on Aug. 30. Ohio State is a 3.5-point favorite in that game, according to an early lookahead line from bet365.
Leave a Reply