Texas Football: Dream and Nightmare results for 2018

Before week 1 shows up on our doorstep, we take a look at the realistic best and worst case scenarios for the Longhorns in 2018.

A new season means a clean slate and most everything from last year is wiped clean.

There’s been a lot of hype around the Longhorns as Tom Herman enters his second year at the helm. But, we’ve heard the hype before and the Longhorns have fallen short in those years.

The mixture of returning talent and a tough schedule in could produce a plethora of results for Texas.

The Dream:

What is the best possible outcome for this year’s team?

In a realistic sense, a Big 12 title, 10 wins and a New Year’s 6 bowl bid appears to be as high as the Longhorns can go on paper.

The Horns are on their way up. Herman pulled in another stellar recruiting class, which will provide a decent supplement to this year’s team and those in years to come.

Looking at the offensive line, including tight end Andrew Beck, five of the six starters from 2017 return. None are more important than junior center Zach Shackelford and senior guard Patrick Vahe. Both have been staples on the Longhorn’s offensive line and will provide much needed experience for either Elijah Rodriguez or Patrick Hudson at right guard. Rodriguez has made just four starts in his career while Hudson has played in just two games with no starts.

It also helps when two of the three starting receivers return to the Longhorn’s offense this year.

Lil’Jordan Humphrey and Jerrod Heard will provide a big threat as inside receivers. Collin Johnson, standing at 6-foot-6, returns as a major deep threat for the Longhorns.

On defense, Texas returns nine starters, including their entire defensive line and secondary. On paper, that experience could wreak havoc on opponents and spell success for Texas.

Breckyn Hager and Charles Omenihu will likely terrorize backfields in 2018 and in the pass-heavy Big 12, doing that could be the difference between winning a title or not.

If the front seven for the Longhorns can’t get to the backfield, there is that veteran secondary highlighted by senior corner back Kris Boyd and senior safety P.J. Locke III.

That secondary group picked off 16 passes last year. The biggest question will be if they can contain opponent’s passing games more than the 258 yards per game they allowed a year ago.

The Nightmare:

Mediocrity. Another season where the Longhorns under-deliver.

If things don’t go as planned, the Longhorns could be staring at another six or seven-win season and another trip to a bowl equivalent to the Texas Bowl.

The biggest thing that could hinder the Longhorns is their quarterback situation.

Sam Ehlinger and Shane Buechele are both capable QBs in their own right. But one will have to step up and give the Longhorns that consistency and quality play they’ve missed since the Colt McCoy-era.

If they don’t get that consistency, it’s hard to argue the Longhorns will have a successful season.

The Longhorns also need a running back to step up and give an added dimension to their offense.

With Daniel Young and Toneil Carter leading the way last year, the Longhorns put up a dismal 139.6 yards per game rushing. That mark ranked 95th among the 129 FBS programs last year.

A new season can be tricky. Unforeseen things happen that could help or hinder a team. Time will tell which way the Longhorn’s season goes, which may not be either of these scenarios.