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Texas Football: 5 Reasons Longhorns Will Be Better Against Notre Dame in 2016

By Tyler Brett

Sep 5, 2015; South Bend, IN, USA; Texas Longhorns quarterback Tyrone Swoopes (18) scrambles out of the pocket against Notre Dame Fighting Irish defensive lineman Romeo Okwara (45) at Notre Dame Stadium. Notre Dame defeats Texas 38-3. Mandatory Credit: Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports
Sep 5, 2015; South Bend, IN, USA; Texas Longhorns quarterback Tyrone Swoopes (18) scrambles out of the pocket against Notre Dame Fighting Irish defensive lineman Romeo Okwara (45) at Notre Dame Stadium. Notre Dame defeats Texas 38-3. Mandatory Credit: Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports /
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Sep 5, 2015; South Bend, IN, USA; Texas Longhorns quarterback Tyrone Swoopes (18) scrambles out of the pocket against Notre Dame Fighting Irish defensive lineman Romeo Okwara (45) at Notre Dame Stadium. Notre Dame defeats Texas 38-3. Mandatory Credit: Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports
Sep 5, 2015; South Bend, IN, USA; Texas Longhorns quarterback Tyrone Swoopes (18) scrambles out of the pocket against Notre Dame Fighting Irish defensive lineman Romeo Okwara (45) at Notre Dame Stadium. Notre Dame defeats Texas 38-3. Mandatory Credit: Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports /

Last year, Texas opened the year traveling to South Bend to take on the Irish. Things … went poorly. The Horns were blown off the field 38-3 in a wildly disappointing performance that effectively killed any positive preseason momentum the team had. Texas would go on to start the season 1-4 before finally rallying and finishing the year winning four of their final seven games.

In 2016, the Longhorns can’t afford another dud in their opener. Charlie Strong is entering his third year on the Forty Acres and has yet to post a winning record. If this team doesn’t start winning games and competing in the Big 12, Strong could find himself pushed out and the program would have to go through another tumultuous transition.

That’s why so much rests on Texas’ performance in the season opener. Not only is this a revenge game against an Irish team that embarrassed them last season, it’s an opportunity to defend their home turf on national television against a top-10 opponent. This is a chance for the Horns to announce definitively that they are once again a program to watch.

It certainly won’t be an easy game, but here are five reasons we believe things will be better against Notre Dame this time around.

Next: 5. Home Field Advantage

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