There are plenty of different storylines heading into the Longhorns' first conference game of the season in Gainesville, FL on Saturday, but one in particular is extremely interesting. Who amongst Texas' 2025 recruiting class will officially be burning their redshirts this weekend.
There are only four true freshmen who have played in every single game in 2025, each of them contributing in a fairly large way on both sides of the ball. Though players like James Simon, Emaree Winston, Justus Terry and a couple others have played in three games, they still have another week to make a decision.
Here are the four freshmen Longhorns who are set to play against the Gators and officially relinquish their ability to redshirt in 2025:
WR Daylan McCutcheon
McCutcheon is in a pretty weird spot to be honest. He filled the role of No.4 wide receiver when DeAndre Moore Jr. was out, but has just seen work late in games to get some experience other than that. It finally "sounds" like Emmett Mosley V is getting back into the swing of things, so how much would the team actually need McCutcheon going forward in 2025? Ryan Niblett has also been playing a larger role in the offense as of late, so McCutcheon's one of the most experienced true freshmen that could be shut down this weekend and "saved" for 2026.
DB Graceson Littleton
Littleton is a 100% lock to burn his redshirt this weekend, as he's still the starting at Nickel. He's also been one of the best defensive backs on the team since the second he stepped foot onto the practice field in Austin.
DE Lance Jackson
Jackson has shown tons of potential and has developed into a key rotational piece for DC Pete Kwiatkowski's defense over the first third of the season. He's shown the technique and power to hold up incredibly well against the run and could be an even bigger piece of the 2025 defense once he develops a true pass rush plan. He's another player who'll be playing and burning his redshirt against Florida.
TE Nick Townsend
Townsend kind of came out of nowhere this season and has done a lot of the dirty work for Steve Sarkisian each week. He's been excellent as a blocker and has been running some legitimate routes over the past couple of weeks. As long as he continues to be valued as a lead blocker in run game, he should continue to see consistent playing time this year. Expect him to be the last one to burn the 'shirt in week 6.