After struggling to get consistency from their offensive line last season, the Longhorns believe they've found answers from various new additions.
While kickoff is still a few months down the road, football has started to make an appearance again in Austin.
The Longhorns are making their way back to the practice facilities, alongside some brand new faces. Texas hit the transfer portal hard in the offseason looking to tighten up some key positions that struggled last season.
One piece that is anything but new to Longhorns faithful is Arch Manning. He is returning for his second season as the starter under center.
With Manning and a plethora of familiar and new weapons for him to work with, Texas looks poised to spearhead one of the most potent units in the SEC and across the nation. Well, that is if the Longhorns can give Manning time to operate.
One of the major issues last season for Texas was woes all along the offensive line. This led head coach Steve Sarkisian to focus heavily on improving the depth of the position to ensure the best from his upcoming squad.
So far through the spring showcases, Sark has been impressed with several of these lineman and singled out a handful that have really caught his eye in the early part of the offseason.
One of those is Dylan Sikorski, a skilled interior lineman transfer from Oregon State that has showcased his talents at both center and guard for Texas. He is expected to provide pivotal depth throughout the interior for the Longhorns.
Moving further down the line, former Texas A&M exterior lineman Jonte Newman got a nod from his former rival-turned-head coach. As an underclassman, Newman isn't expected to get a lot of time on the field, but the team has been optimistic about his potential, especially learning behind their star tackle Trevor Goosby.
While these new pieces look to make a difference this season, some existing Longhorns have started to make their presence known. Duo Jaydon Chatman and Jordan Coleman were lauded by Sarkisian, especially Coleman.
"You see the physical ability. When he does it right, it's like whoa. He can pass set guys and move people in the run game, now it's just the consistency factor. We've been very encouraged by where he's at," explained Sarkisian.
Following their aggressive acquisitions in the transfer portal and underclassmen starting to round into form, Texas appears to have transformed from one of the weaker offensive line groups into a unit that could be one of the deepest across the nation.
While solving this one problem won't magically make everything click this season for the Longhorns, it can definitely go a long way in helping Texas turn things around later in the fall.