The Texas Longhorns’ schedule for 2024 is almost perfect

The days of multiple losses and not qualifying for the college football playoffs are long gone. The Texas Longhorns have a nearly perfect schedule for the 2024 college football season. Here’s why, and how losing two or even three games will help them make the playoffs.

No. 1: Strength of the Texas Longhorns

According to various publications, several teams in the SEC have arguably one of the ten most challenging schedules. Texas differs from teams like Florida, whose schedule is so challenging that a 10-2 result would be difficult.

On the other hand, the Longhorns have a top-50 ranking and their strength shows that it is neither easy nor difficult. Most publications have ranked Texas between the 50th and 40th most challenging football schedule among the 134 FBS teams for the 2024 season.

No. 2: Balanced non-conference schedule

Reason number two is a very balanced non-conference schedule. The Longhorns play Colorado State at home, a team from the Mountain West Conference. They are projected to finish in the top five of their conference and play in a bowl game this season. They are a team the Longhorns should beat at home, but it also looks like a decent win for their record.

Texas then travels to Michigan, the defending national champions, in week two. Unlike last season, the Wolverines lost a ton of talent to the NFL Draft, and the Longhorns should be able to get the road win and improve their playoff record with a win over the currently 9th-ranked Michigan Wolverines.

The Longhorns then host UTSA, who are projected to finish second in the American Athletic Conference preseason poll and even received four first-place votes. They are ranked first according to ESPN’s Power Index and could secure the 12th seed in the College Football Playoff this season. However, if Texas wins this game at home, it could look even better on their CFP resume than their win against CSU.

The last non-conference game is against the UL Monroe Warhawks of the Sun Belt Conference. This should be a very easy game for the Longhorns, with Arch Manning playing more than half the game and some of the reserve players and even third basemen getting some playing time before Texas enters the SEC Conference.

No. 3: Trade Fair Conference Schedule

The SEC has done the Longhorns a favor by not giving them difficult road games. Yes, they play Oklahoma, as they always play on neutral sites, and yes, they play at Texas A&M, but their road games are at Arkansas and Vanderbilt, which are very winnable. The Longhorns will face three teams in the conference every year in the current situation. Those three conference rivals are the Aggies, the Razorbacks, and the Sooners.

Overall, their conference schedule is considered easier than most SEC teams. For example, CBSSports has the Longhorns’ schedule ranked 14th in terms of strength of play. SI.com has the Longhorns’ conference schedule ranked 14th as well. The CFP committee will not penalize Texas for having a less difficult conference schedule than other teams because the Longhorns have little control over their conference schedule.

Texas’ top-ranked opponent on their schedule, No. 1 Georgia, is at home. Their other conference opponents, Kentucky, Florida and Mississippi State, who they face at home, should help Texas get wins.

The Longhorns will play four top 20 teams, seven home games and four away games. Their off week is between games against Mississippi State and Oklahoma and again between games against Vanderbilt and Florida.

This season’s challenging but fair schedule provides Texas with an opportunity to prove their worth and earn a spot in the College Football Playoff. Their success will depend on their ability to perform well on the field and overcome challenges. Their schedule is nearly perfect for the goal of making the 12-team College Football Playoff this season, as many are predicting.