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Texas Football: 5 reasons to believe Longhorns will make the Playoff

By Andrew Miller

AUSTIN, TX - OCTOBER 13: Collin Johnson #9 of the Texas Longhorns is congratulated by teammates after a first half touchdown against the Baylor Bears at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium on October 13, 2018 in Austin, Texas. (Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images)
AUSTIN, TX - OCTOBER 13: Collin Johnson #9 of the Texas Longhorns is congratulated by teammates after a first half touchdown against the Baylor Bears at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium on October 13, 2018 in Austin, Texas. (Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images) /
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AUSTIN, TX – SEPTEMBER 22: Markell Simmons #3 of the TCU Horned Frogs reacts as Collin Johnson #9 of the Texas Longhorns points skyward after a touchdown reception in the third quarter at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium on September 22, 2018 in Austin, Texas. (Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images)
AUSTIN, TX – SEPTEMBER 22: Markell Simmons #3 of the TCU Horned Frogs reacts as Collin Johnson #9 of the Texas Longhorns points skyward after a touchdown reception in the third quarter at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium on September 22, 2018 in Austin, Texas. (Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images) /

2. Championship caliber talent emerged

One famous moment for Tom Herman previous to the start of the season involved him calling out the lack of championship caliber “difference makers” he has on the roster this year. Or at least that’s what he envisioned at the time. The storyline there completely changed over the course of this season up until now.

We all knew the talent was there for the Horns even dating back to the days of Charlie Strong. But, Strong never recruited at the exact level that Herman is at right now. Given nothing falls off before the Early Signing Period comes about in December, Texas should be able to rake the second top 10 ranked class in the nation under Herman.

As it pertains to the team now, the Horns even had some standout freshmen emerge such as running back Keaontay Ingram and safety Caden Sterns. Texas should be able to ride this added depth and renewed energy from this injection of talent for the 2018 campaign for at least three years. Just no one expected for this group of true freshmen to make this type of impact this fast, in potentially helping the Horns contend for a Playoff berth.

For players that emerged beyond the true freshmen, the impact was felt almost immediately this season. Ehlinger has a realm of weapons surrounding him including Lil’Jordan Humphrey and Collin Johnson out wide and Ingram out of the backfield. On defense, linebacker Gary Johnson and Sterns emerged to lead the way in both stopping the run and shutting down opposing passing attacks.

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