Texas is back!!! Yes, this tired old joke gets wheeled out every single season but what if we told you that the Longhorns might honestly be back as a relevant force in college football this fall? Our Texas season predictions explain why there’s reason for optimism in Austin ahead of the 2023 college football campaign.
Texas Season Predictions: Predicting the Game-By-Game Results
Using groupthink, College Football Network analysts have painstakingly gone through every game for every team in the Big 12 and across the country.
Find every Big 12 Season Prediction per team: Baylor | BYU | UCF | Cincinnati | Houston | Iowa State | Kansas | Kansas State | Oklahoma | Oklahoma State | TCU | Texas | Texas Tech | West Virginia
Picking these games straight up with a projected score using the rosters as up-to-date as the last spring practice, the Texas season predictions indicate what fans can possibly expect for the Longhorns in 2023.
Week 1 – Texas vs. Rice: Win, 43-10
Texas hasn’t scored less than 30 points against Rice this millennium and has scored 40 or more in eight of the 11 games since then. The Longhorns are on a 15-game win streak against the Owls, and with an offense brimming with firepower, they shouldn’t have any difficulty extending either the winning or point-scoring streaks mentioned above.
Week 2 – Texas @ Alabama: Loss, 21-22
Texas nearly defeated Alabama at home last fall, and many believe that without the injury to quarterback Quinn Ewers, they likely would have toppled the Crimson Tide. This is undoubtedly the marquee game on the Longhorns’ 2023 college football schedule as it pertains to their relevancy as a potential College Football Playoff force.
As reflected in our score prediction, the game should mirror last fall in terms of the closeness of the competition. With several question marks following the departure of Bryce Young, the Texas offense likely has an edge over the Alabama offense. However, the strength of the Crimson Tide could be their secondary, limiting Texas’ scoring chances.
Week 3 – Texas vs. Wyoming: Win, 42-12
Having been held to a relatively low score by Alabama, the Wyoming Cowboys fail to tame the stampeding Longhorns in Week 3. Although Craig Bohl’s Wyoming teams have been historically good on defense, they don’t have enough star talent to withstand the offensive onslaught that Texas will dish out to many teams during the 2023 college football season.
Week 4 – Texas @ Baylor: Win, 28-17
While Texas should run up 30+ points against most teams this season, don’t sleep on the legitimacy of their defense. There’s star talent from front to back, and they added a key contributor in the secondary in the form of downhill enforcer Jalen Catalon. The Baylor defense is capable of being strong against most offenses, so it’s the Texas defense that helps deliver a win here.
Week 5 – Texas vs. Kansas: Win, 32-24
The last time Kansas came to Austin, we were treated to one of the greatest college football upsets of recent times. While the Longhorns got their revenge in a beatdown last fall, we’re expecting a closer clash when they meet in Week 5. Ewers and Jalon Daniels are two of the most talented QBs in the conference, but the Texas passer outguns his opponent here.
Week 6 – Texas vs. Oklahoma: Win, 42-38
The 2022 Red River Rivalry was a ludicrously one-sided indictment of how difficult last season was for the Sooners. We’re expecting better things from Oklahoma in the second year under Brent Venables, and that’s reflected in a tight game with a one-score prediction for this storied matchup. However, at this moment in time, Texas looks to still be the stronger team.
MORE: Big 12 QB Rankings 2023
Week 8 – Texas @ Houston: Win, 35-22
New Houston QB Donovan Smith gave Texas fits last fall when he was the driving force behind a 37-35 Texas Tech victory over the Longhorns. While there’s no denying Smith’s ability to take over a game, the Cougars lost a ton of playmaking talent from both sides of the ball ahead of their inaugural season in the Big 12. Texas should come away with the road win.
Week 9 – Texas vs. BYU: Win, 31-17
BYU has proven to be a thorn in the side of the Longhorns historically, carrying a 4-1 winning record over Texas into this Week 9 clash. Although the Cougars boast one of the top offensive tackles in the nation and had their offense bolstered by the addition of Kedon Slovis and Aidan Robbins, Texas has an advantage in the trenches in this game.
Week 10 – Texas vs. Kansas State: Win, 33-23
Texas has beaten Kansas State in six consecutive seasons. Meanwhile, they haven’t lost to the Wildcats in Austin since 2011. The reigning Big 12 champions lost a significant amount of talent from their roster in the offseason, including their most productive players at multiple positions. Texas arguably got stronger. The result is another Longhorns win.
Week 11 – Texas @ TCU: Win, 31-26
Although the Longhorns are often considered the best team in Texas, TCU has beaten their in-state rivals seven times in their last 10 meetings. That said, the departure of talent from the Horned Frogs might make adding another victory to that tally a hill too high to hop over. TCU gave up the most passing touchdowns last fall, leaving Ewers and his WR duo to feast.
Week 12 – Texas @ Iowa State: Win, 31-22
Texas hasn’t scored 30 points or more against Iowa State since 2015. However, this isn’t the Cyclones’ defense that we’ve come to expect during the Matt Campbell era, and the Longhorns’ offense has more than enough weaponry to cause Iowa State some serious problems. Hunter Dekkers showed flashes under center last season, but he can’t engineer a win over Texas.
Week 13 – Texas vs. Texas Tech: Win, 33-31
According to our season predictions, Texas Tech could still be in with a shout of a Big 12 Championship Game appearance when they travel to Austin in Week 13. However, the Longhorns have enough talent on both sides of the ball, plus home field advantage, to tame one of the in-form programs in college football. Texas books a Red River rematch against Oklahoma.
