Oklahoma and Texas always have each other circled on the calendar.
This year will be no different.
The Sooners and Longhorns battle on Oct. 11 at the Cotton Bowl, per usual. Texas got the better of last year’s matchup, winning 34-3.
Here’s what to know about Texas:
Texas had its most successful season under coach Steve Sarkisian last year.
The Longhorns finished the regular season 11-1, losing only to Georgia. They lost to the Bulldogs again in the SEC Championship game but still made the College Football Playoff as the No. 5 team.
Texas comfortably beat Clemson in the first round of the playoff before taking down Arizona State in double overtime in the quarterfinals. The Longhorns’ season ended in the semifinals when they lost 28-14 to eventual national champion Ohio State.
The Longhorns had one of college football’s best defenses throughout the season, finishing third nationally in both scoring defense and total defense.
QB Arch Manning (So.), RB Quintrevion Wisner (Jr.), WR Ryan Wingo (So.), LB Anthony Hill Jr. (Jr.), DE Colin Simmons (So.), DE Trey Moore (Sr.).
DL Maraad Watson (Syracuse), DL Cole Brevard (Purdue), DL Travis Shaw (North Carolina), TE Jack Endries (Cal), DL Hero Kanu (Ohio State).
Like always, Texas is one of college football’s most athletic and talented teams.
That hasn’t always panned out for the Longhorns. But it has recently, as they’ve reached the College Football Playoff two years in a row.
Particularly, the Longhorns’ front seven should be scary. They return productive players like Hill, Simmons and Moore, and four of their top five transfer portal pickups are defensive linemen.
Manning’s sample size is small at quarterback, but he’s been impressive when he’s played. He started twice last year and appeared in 10 games, completing 67.8% of passes for 939 yards, nine touchdowns and two interceptions.
As much potential as Manning has, most of his work last year came in special formations, and both of his starts came against middling teams (UTSA and Mississippi State).
He certainly showed flashes of brilliance in his outings backing up Quinn Ewers, but starting every week in the SEC is no slouch, and it’s hard to say he’ll immediately be a Heisman candidate.
Manning’s weapons will also be much different in 2025 with wide receivers Matthew Golden and Isaiah Bond and tight end Gunnar Helm either entering the NFL Draft or graduating. But Wingo will be a wideout to watch for the Longhorns after compiling 472 yards and two touchdowns on 29 catches as a freshman last year.
Texas will almost certainly be favored — and the Longhorns are a trendy pick to win the 2025 national championship.
With so much talent and returning production, Texas will be good.
OU has a high ceiling and a low floor.
So much of the Sooners’ 2025 success depends on how the offense clicks under new offensive coordinator Ben Arbuckle and quarterback John Mateer.
If that duo creates the explosive offense that Sooner fans expect, the game at the Cotton Bowl could be a classic. If not, it could be another long day for OU.
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