Fall camp for Texas football begins in a little over two weeks, and we've gotten a pretty good idea of how things have started to shake out throughout spring and summer practices. Regarding the team's three-deep on defense, there could be some surprises at a couple of key positions this fall.
Though the first unofficial depth chart hasn't been released yet, we're going to lay out how it could look heading into Week 1 against Ohio State on August 30th.
As of right now, here is what Texas' three-deep on defense most likely looks like:
* indicates true freshman
JACK: Ethan Burke, Colton Vasek, Lance Jackson*
NT: Cole Brevard, Travis Shaw, Hero Kanu
DT: Maraad Watson, Alex January, Lavon Johnson/Justus Terry*
BUCK: Colin Simmons, Zina Umeozulu, Smith Orogbo*
SAM: Trey Moore, Brad Spence, Marshall Landwehr
MIKE: Anthony Hill Jr., Brad Spence, Elijah Barnes*
WILL: Liona Lefau, Ty'Anthony Smith, Jonathan Cunningham*
CB: Malik Muhammad, Jaylon Guilbeau, Jordon Johnson-Rubell
CB: Kobe Black, Wardell Mack, Warren Roberson
FS: Michael Taaffe, Derek Williams Jr., Graham Gillespie
SS: Jelani McDonald, Jonah Williams*, Xavier Filsaime
The Longhorns had a really good recruiting class in 2025 when it comes to the defensive side of the football, with six true freshmen making the three-deep and three of them being on the defensive line.
Lance Jackson, Justus Terry, and Smith Orogbo all have the ability to see rotational snaps in year one, as long as Orogbo maintains and adds some weight to his frame. Terry also has the positional flexibility to play inside and out for Texas.
Much like at the running back spot on offense, defensive tackle is extremely deep for the Longhorns this season. It wouldnt be surprising to see DC Pete Kwiatkowski use a 5-man rotation along the interior defensive line in 2025.
Linebacker, cornerback, and safety are very strong spots for Texas this season with five starters returning and two experienced players stepping into starting roles in Kobe Black and Jelani McDonald.