AUSTIN – The college football season kicks off in full this weekend, with teams like Texas, Texas A&M and Houston are among those who open Saturday with high hopes.
Columnists Kirk Bohls and Cedric Golden discuss some major issues in college football as the season begins.
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1. What two areas must Texas football improve the most to have a killer season?
BOHLS: Steve Sarkisian must upgrade his offensive line and be in the top 30 for fewest penalties. Those are the most critical factors entering 2026. The line should be better unless Trevor Goosby’s bone bruise is worse than everyone thinks and transfers Melvin Siani, Laurence Seymore III and Dylan Sikorski are less than advertised. All will play Saturday. Texas ranked 132nd in penalties with 108 last year and had 102 the year before. National champion Indiana ranked second and previous champs Ohio State and Michigan ranked 16th and third.
GOLDEN: First, the run game needs to pop like a hot bag of Act II on its second minute in the microwave. And if that happens, quarterback Arch Manning will supply the butter in what could be a special season. Texas averaged 4.1 yards per carry last season, which ranked a pedestrian 90th in the country. This roster doesn’t house a Bijan Robinson but newcomers Hollywood Smothers and Raleek Brown will provide the big-play element behind a retooled offensive line.
Arch Manning begins his second season as Texas’ starting quarterback with a home game against Pac-12 newcomer Texas State in the program’s first matchup since 1930. (Jason Fochtman/Houston Chronicle)
2. Which Longhorn will play the biggest role in Saturday’s opener against Texas State?
BOHLS; It starts at the top. Arch Manning will go off. He has said multiple times this summer he needs to get off to a fast start, unlike last year. So put him down for four touchdowns, one on the ground, in a 45-14 romp over the Bobcats.
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GOLDEN: Look no further than QB1. The Texas State secondary struggled at times against the pass last season as opposing quarterbacks completing 66% of their passes against the Cats with 23 touchdowns and only nine interceptions. Expect wideouts Cam Coleman and Ryan Wingo to combine for three touchdown catches while Manning goes over 300 yards in a 44-17 win.
Before he coaches a game in Baton Rouge, Lane Kiffin has run afoul of the SEC and much of the college football establishment as he tries to bring players cut from NFL teams to his LSU roster. (Hilary Scheinuk/Hilary Scheinuk/The Advocate via)
3. Has LSU’s antics made Lane Kiffin Public Enemy No. 1 and will it hurt or galvanize the Tigers?
BOHLS: Kiffin may be public enemy Nos. 1, 2 and 3. Maybe 4. Where’s Urban Meyer when you need him? I think they will hurt his LSU team because Lane can’t help himself. He has to be in the spotlight, and that is rarely good.
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GOLDEN: There is an argument that can be made that Kiffin’s actions will create some sort of bunker mentality entering the season opener against Clemson but I don’t buy it. This rage against the NCAA machine is pointless and if anything, it has served to take away from college football fans’ enthusiasm surrounding a huge opening weekend. Kiffin’s action are those of a wannabe antihero. This narcissistic approach is creating unnecessary noise that can only hurt his team.
4. What surprise team could crash the CFP party and win it all?
BOHLS: Going to go way out on a limb and say BYU. The Cougars hung onto head coach Kalani Sitake despite Penn State’s flirtations, tout top returning quarterback Bear Bachmeier (3,033 yards) and running back L.J. Martin (1,305 yards as the Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year) and have one of the easiest schedules with only Notre Dame at home and no Texas Tech or Houston on the slate.
GOLDEN: I wouldn’t sleep on the Virginia Cavaliers in the ACC. The Cavs went 11-3 last season and finished with seven straight wins. Quarterback Beau Pribola debuted last week with a relatively quiet 155 yards and a pair of touchdowns in the 34-8 blowout of North Carolina State but there is a feeling in Charlottesville that the Cavaliers are poised to do damage this fall.
If Texas A&M’s rivalry with Texas needed any more fuel, Marcel Reed added to the powderkeg with his comments in a USA Today interview this week. (Brett Coomer/Houston Chronicle)
5. Did A&M’s Marcel Reed do himself any favors by spouting off about Texas?
BOHLS: Of course not, but it will matter little when it comes to Turkey Week. An Aggie quarterback hates Texas? Shocker. Not exactly breaking news. It might even be good if it stokes his own confidence after going 0-2 against the Bevos. Besides, the Longhorns will already be riled up anyway.
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GOLDEN: Nothing says confidence like calling out an opponent that owns you and A&M’s 0-2 record against the Horns over the past two seasons suggests he should have taken the high road. Reed is very bright but he should have sat this one out. A blood rivalry speaks for itself and while the folks in College Station probably had zero problems with him saying “We don’t like Texas, I don’t like Texas,” there isn’t much to gain from poking the state’s resident grizzly.
Colin Simmons is arguably the biggest star on Texas’ defense, but could he become a rare defensive player to win the Heisman Trophy? (Jason Fochtman/Staff photographer)
6. Name a real Heisman Trophy dark horse
BOHLS: Bear with me but Texas edge rusher Colin Simmons could join Travis Hunter and Charles Woodson and become the third true defensive player to win the award if he can explode with 20 sacks on a top-10 defense.
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GOLDEN: They aren’t talking about USC quarterback Jayden Maiava, who threw for 3,711 yards and 24 touchdowns last season while leading the country with a 91.2 quarterback rating. His mentor Lincoln Riley coached three Heisman winners – Baker Mayfield and Kyler Murray at Oklahoma and Caleb Williams at USC – by the way. Maiava will be directing an offense that’s built around the pass and will have plenty of opportunities to dazzle against big-name opponents Ohio State and Oregon.
7. Which top-10 team struggles this week and fails to cover the spread?
BOHLS: I love Ole Miss this year, but Louisville could be a real CFP contender. The Cards have one of the best one-two punches in the backfield with Isaac Brown – whom Texas pursued in the portal – and KeyJuan Brown and Ohio State transfer Lincoln Kienholz at quarterback. Remember, Louisville beat Miami last year. I think the Rebels could have their hands full and won’t cover the 6 ½ point spread but will win 27-24.
GOLDEN: I’m picking the Oregon Ducks to win the national title but Pac-12 favorite Boise State will hang around for a while. Oregon quarterback Dante Moore will do absolutely nothing to hurt his early Heisman case with three touchdowns and his Ducks will win going away but won’t cover the 24-point spread in a 44-24 decision.
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8. Who will be this year’s NFC and AFC offensive and defensive rookies of the year?
BOHLS: Give me Cowboys safety and former Buckeye Caleb Downs and Seahawks running back Jadarian Price, the Notre Dame ex, in the NFC. I’ll take Texas Tech edge rusher David Bailey with the New York Jets and former Aggie wide receiver KC Concepcion with the Cleveland Browns for the AFC.
GOLDEN: In the AFC, I’ll take Heisman winner Fernando Mendoza from Indiana after Kirk Cousins gets knocked out within four games and former Virginia Tech cornerback Mansoor Delane of the Kansas City Chiefs. As for the NFC, give me Philadelphia wideout Makai Lemon of USC and former Miami defensive lineman Rueben Bain of Tampa Bay.
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9. What team is everyone sleeping on that could have a breakthrough year?
BOHLS: May be really off-base, but I like the hire of Alex Golesh at Auburn. The return of 10 starters and an influx of transfers like USF quarterback Byrum Brown, four best receivers and two starting linemen could make for a quick fix for a program coming off five straight losing seasons.
GOLDEN: I like BYU to give Texas Tech all it can handle in the race for the Big 12 crown. Coach Kalani Satake decided to stay and will return for an 11th season with a veteran roster. Sophomore Bear Bachmeier will be better than his debut season when he produced over 3,500 yards of offense and 26 touchdowns. Better yet, they play only two teams that were ranked in the preseason – No. 4 Notre Dame and No. 21 Utah. While the 23-4 record over the past two seasons echoes nice success, breaking through would mean making it to the playoff. This is BYU’s best chance.
10. Which of the 34 new coaches has the best chance of becoming Curt Cignetti 2.0?
BOHLS: I’m very impressed with Will Stein, the boy wonder at Kentucky who may do what predecessor Mark Stoops did at Lexington but make the Wildcats even more nationally relevant. Stein knows quarterbacks and should juice up the ‘Cats even more.
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GOLDEN: Pete Golding served three seasons as Kiffin’s defensive coordinator at Ole Miss but he has a great chance to take the program to the next level due to walking these SEC streets for eight seasons which included five under the legendary Nick Saban at Alabama. This league is no joke but Golding has the confidence and the fearlessness needed to compete for championships in college football’s biggest minefield.
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This article originally published at Weaknesses for Texas, A&M’s QB sounds off and 2026 dark horses | A Texas take on college football.
