By SCOTT FELTS
The Opponent: Texas Longhorns
When: Saturday, September 26th, Noon EST (ABC or ESPN)
Where: Neyland Stadium, Knoxville
The Southeastern Conference opener for both teams also will be Texas’ first-ever trip to Knoxville and their first time playing on General Neyland’s field.
It’s also the first regular-season meeting between the Longhorns and the Vols. All three of Texas’ previous meetings with Tennessee were played at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas: in 1951, 1953, and 1969. Texas leads the series 2-1.
On paper, this looks like the story of a championship favorite taking on a hungry underdog. Texas is expected to contend for the SEC and the College Football Playoff title, while Tennessee is hoping to secure a signature win that helps propel them toward the playoffs.
Entering the 2026 season, the Texas Longhorns are ranked consistently in the top 5 across major preseason polls, sitting at No. 5 in ESPN’s Way-Too-Early Top 25 and No. 4 in several other rankings.
Coach Background
Steve Sarkisian enters his sixth year as Texas head coach with a solid track record of elevating the program, though 2025 ended with a 10-3 mark and a CFP miss. He’s a sharp offensive mind who’s built a real title contender.
Sarkisian is 48–20 (.706) overall in his first five seasons at Texas, with a 30-13 conference record — which includes the Longhorns’ final years in the Big 12. He’s taken the program from mediocrity to consistent top-tier contention, with two playoff appearances and a Big 12 championship under his belt. Entering year six, the expectations in Austin are sky-high.
Staff Facts
Offensive coordinator Kyle Flood is in his sixth season calling plays and coaching the O-line; he’s a 30 year coaching veteran with ties to Greg Schiano — a name Vol fans remember — at Rutgers, where Flood actually succeeded Schiano as head coach from 2012-15. He’s spent many years coaching with Sarkisian at both the pro and college level and also coached under Nick Saban at Alabama.
On defense, Will Muschamp takes over as defensive coordinator after time at Georgia, where he spent five years after getting fired at South Carolina. He previously coordinated Texas’ defense under Mack Brown from 2008-2010 and brings SEC head coaching experience from Florida and the Gamecocks, where he finished with a 56-51 record. A better coordinator than he is a head coach, Muschamp often has wielded one of the best defenses in the country and been a coordinator for multiple National Championship teams: LSU in 2003, and Georgia in 2022 and 2023.
Quarterback Preview
Arch Manning returns for his third year at Texas after taking over as the full-time starter prior to the 2025 campaign. Last season, the junior threw for 3,163 yards and 26 touchdowns with seven interceptions while adding 399 rushing yards and 10 scores on the ground. He capped the year as Citrus Bowl MVP in a win over Michigan. He’s one of the preseason favorites in odds to win the Heisman Trophy.
Key Offensive Player
Wide receiver Ryan Wingo (6-2, 215 lbs.) is a big-play threat who hauled in 54 catches for 834 yards and seven touchdowns as a sophomore, earning second-team All-SEC honors. Against Mississippi State last season, Wingo had a career-high 184 yards on just five receptions (36.8 avg), including a 62-yard bomb. That was his most explosive performance and it came on the road. Look for him to keep stretching the field and make big plays in 2026.
Wingo is big, explosive, and excels at deep and vertical routes. His long strides and elite top-end speed — clocked at 22.0 MPH, in the top five nationally — allow him to stack defenders and blow past coverage, especially on go routes, posts, and deep overs. He led Texas in targets 20+ yards downfield (21) and thrives creating separation vertically.
Key Defensive Player
EDGE rusher Colin Simmons (6-3, 240) dominated in 2025 as the SEC sack leader with 12.0 sacks and was a first-team all-conference performer; his pass-rush presence should only grow as a junior.
His most impressive game last season came against Arkansas on Nov. 22, where he had five tackles including two solos, with a sack, 0.5 tackle for loss, a forced fumble and four quarterback hurries. This performance was part of a late-season tear where he sacked the quarterback at least once in each of the final five regular-season games.
Simmons is one of the most polished and explosive pass rushers in college football, blending elite athleticism with advanced technique. He creates instant advantages off the snap, often beating tackles before they can set. He does tend to draw penalties from over-aggression, and at 240 pounds, he can get bullied inside by massive guards on reduced alignments, so edge work maximizes his strengths.
X-Factor
The Manning family connection looms large given Arch’s uncle is Peyton Manning and the game is being played in Knoxville. The true X-factor though is the legs of Arch, a much more dangerous runner than either of his uncles ever were in college. His career rushing totals through two seasons sit at 514 rushing yards and 14 rushing touchdowns on 120 carries. His uncles combined for 278 carries, for negative 316 yards and 17 total rushing touchdowns. The Manning pocket-passer genes clearly skipped a generation on the running side.
The Schedule
Texas sandwiches an early season battle against Ohio State at home around games against Texas State and UTSA before heading to Neyland. That game with the Buckeyes, even in a friendly environment, is pivotal after Texas lost in Columbus to kick off last season.
In 2025, Texas went 2-2 in SEC road games. Even the wins didn’t come easy: a 16-13 overtime victory at Kentucky and a 45-38, double-OT win at Mississippi State. Texas’ third loss last season came in the opener at
By the way, that Buckeye defense that beat Texas 14-7 last September? New Tennessee defensive coordinator Jim Knowles had a hand in building it, spending 2022-24 at Ohio State.
How Texas Can Win
Sark’s crew simply shows up and plays like the talented, well-paid players that they are. Texas leans on Arch’s dual-threat magic, lets Wingo cook in space, and turns Simmons loose to harass whoever the Tennessee QB is. If Texas avoids penalties and special teams gaffes, the Longhorns can dictate tempo and make Neyland feel uncomfortably quiet by the end of the game.
How Texas Can Lose
The Longhorns overthink it, treat the trip like a vacation, and get caught looking past a hungry Tennessee team in its home SEC opener. A slow start, a couple of turnovers, and suddenly the “what if” narratives about road woes and another CFP near-miss will write themselves while the Vols pull off the shocker.
Prediction: Texas 31, Tennessee 24.
This one stays competitive into the fourth quarter thanks to the raucous Neyland crowd and Tennessee’s home energy, but Texas pulls out the win late. Close, gritty, and exactly the kind of SEC battle that leaves everyone talking.
Pundits will talk about how Texas, who could have wins over Ohio State and Tennessee in a three-week span, is well on the road to a national title. They’ll also be talking about how well Tennessee played and just came up a little short with a new young starting QB and new defensive staff.
Predicted Vols Record: 3-1 (0-1)