Texas football enters 2023 season ranked No. 12 in coaches poll
While Texas fans may enter this season with dreams of winning the Big 12 and contending for a spot in the College Football Playoff, the nation’s coaches seem a bit more pessimistic about the Longhorns' chances.
Texas is ranked No. 12 in the USA Today Sports AFCA preseason college football coaches poll released Monday. It marks the seventh consecutive season in which the Longhorns have been ranked in the preseason coaches’ poll, and it’s the highest preseason ranking in the poll for Texas since the 2019 squad entered the season No. 10.
The Associated Press preseason Top 25 is scheduled to be released Aug. 14.
More: Best of the Big 12: Breaking down coaches, intangibles as we rank all 14 conference teams
Texas welcomes back 10 starters on offense and six on defense from a team that went 8-5 a year ago and lost to Washington in the Alamo Bowl. The coaches think experience and talent makes Texas the favorite to win the Big 12, since the Longhorns rank higher than any other Big 12 team. However, they're a distant 12h behind No. 11 Washington.
TCU is the next Big 12 team in the poll at No. 16 while Kansas State ranks No. 17. Oklahoma (No. 19) and Texas Tech (No. 24) complete the poll’s Big 12 contingent.
More: Bohls: Texas offensive line returns intact and bigger, but needs a sense of urgency
Back-to-back national champion Georgia topped the poll after receiving 61 of a possible 66 first-place votes.
Texas kicks off the season Sept. 2 against visiting Rice.
More: Texas tight end Ja'Tavion Sanders is 'ready to show the world what I'm really capable of'
Coaches poll
The preseason USA TODAY Sports AFCA Coaches Poll Top 25 with team's records from last season in parentheses, total points based on 25 for first place through one point for 25th, ranking in last year’s final poll and first-place votes received.
Rank | School (record) | Points | Last year’s final rank | First-place votes |
1 | Georgia (15-0) | 1,643 | 1 | 61 |
2 | Michigan (13-1) | 1,510 | 3 | 0 |
3 | Alabama (11-2) | 1,489 | 5 | 4 |
4 | Ohio State (11-2) | 1,485 | 4 | 1 |
5 | LSU (10-4) | 1,294 | 15 | 0 |
6 | USC (11-3) | 1,228 | 13 | 0 |
7 | Penn State (11-2) | 1,181 | 7 | 0 |
8 | Florida State (10-3) | 1,145 | 10 | 0 |
9 | Clemson (11-3) | 1,078 | 12 | 0 |
10 | Tennessee (11-2) | 991 | 6 | 0 |
11 | Washington (11-2) | 941 | 8 | 0 |
12 | Texas (8-5) | 848 | 25 | 0 |
13 | Notre Dame (9-4) | 841 | 18 | 0 |
14 | Utah (10-4) | 839 | 11 | 0 |
15 | Oregon (10-3) | 820 | 16 | 0 |
16 | TCU (13-2) | 655 | 2 | 0 |
17 | Kansas State (10-4) | 440 | 14 | 0 |
18 | Oregon State (10-3) | 365 | 17 | 0 |
19 | Oklahoma (6-7) | 320 | NR | 0 |
20 | North Carolina (9-5) | 315 | NR | 0 |
21 | Wisconsin (7-6) | 309 | NR | 0 |
22 | Mississippi (8-5) | 303 | NR | 0 |
23 | Tulane (12-2) | 225 | 9 | 0 |
24 | Texas Tech (8-5) | 200 | NR | 0 |
25 | Texas A&M (5-7) | 196 | NR | 0 |
This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Coaches rank Texas football No. 12 entering season
