Finally, the SEC has adopted the nine-game conference schedule they should’ve been playing all along. It kicks in next year in 2026. I guess all it took was Arch Manning to push it over the cliff it had been dangling on forever? [Sign up for Inside Texas TODAY and get the BEST Longhorns coverage!] The […]
Finally, the SEC has adopted the nine-game conference schedule they should’ve been playing all along. It kicks in next year in 2026. I guess all it took was Arch Manning to push it over the cliff it had been dangling on forever?
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The proposition to stay at eight games or upgrade to nine always reminded me of the Will Ferrell as Harry Caray line: “Would you rather be the top scientist in your field or get mad cow disease?”
Staying at eight was uninteresting, boring, and cowardly. Thankfully, we don’t have to worry about that anymore.
The SEC’s press release outlined what the new format will look like. So let’s take a guess at what Texas’ 2026 schedule might be.
First, who will be the Longhorns “three annual opponents (which are) focused on maintaining many traditional rivalries”?
The word many gives me some pause—like maybe the Razorbacks get hog tied and roasted over an open flame while their dream of playing Texas every year goes up in smoke. How funny would it be if LSU was taken from the Aggies only to be given to the Longhorns annually? Meanwhile, Texas A&M is left with Texas, Vanderbilt and Mississippi State (a neutral site game in Mobile) every year.
But that won’t happen. The Longhorns’ three opponents will be Oklahoma (in Dallas), Texas A&M, and Arkansas. I’ll let the readers prognosticate on the other teams three permanent rivals in the comments.
Let’s also assume the Longhorns won’t play any of the conference opponents in 2026 who they faced under the eight-game format in 2024 and 2025. That rules out Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi State, Vanderbilt and Florida.
It leaves them Alabama, Auburn, LSU, Missouri, Ole Miss, South Carolina and Tennessee. But one of those teams will be left out since the schedule only has room for four more.
So who gets the cut? It won’t be Ole Miss—there’s no way Greg Sankey and ESPN pass on sending a Manning quarterback to Oxford for the inevitable Archie-and-Eli photo op. Same with Tennessee and Peyton Manning. LSU has also been waiting to host Texas ever since the Baton Rouge game was canceled in 2020 due to Covid-19.
That leaves Alabama as the odd team out. Texas just played a marquee home-and-home with the Tide in 2022 and 2023, and the league will likely spread those games out.
Things won’t be easy for the Longhorns. Ohio State comes to Austin in September and Texas also hosts GJ Kinne’s rising Texas State program and Jeff Traylor’s UTSA—two Group of Five teams who could be pushing for a playoff spot in 2025.
It’s going to be a grind for Steve Sarkisian and company, but fans in Austin will get their money’s worth. With Texas as the “road” team in Dallas, there’s a strong chance DKR sees seven home games in 2026.
Here’s one prediction of what the full 12-game slate might look like:
- Game 1 – Texas State
- Game 2 – Ohio State
- Game 3 – UTSA
- Game 4 – @ Ole Miss
- Game 5 – Oklahoma (Dallas, Texas is the “road” team)
- Game 6 – Auburn
- Game 7 – @ LSU
- Game 8 – South Carolina
- Game 9 – @ Arkansas
- Game 10 – Missouri
- Game 11 – Tennessee
- Game 12 – @ Texas A&M
That’s just a stab at what it will look like. There will be ramifications to the College Football Playoff format and future scheduling effects for sure. But those are topics for another time.
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What do you think, Horns fans?
Category: General Sports
