
Episode #182
Camp Intel/ Texas Longhorns LIVE 114
Texas Longhorns LIVE 114 – Camp Intel Hosts: Matthew Miller & Thomas “Tommy” Breese TexasVOCFB / Voice of College Football Sponsored by FanDuel Intro & Playoff Odds (0:00–1:40) Welcome to the 114th edition of Texas Longhorns Live. FanDuel: Texas -175 to make the playoff (worst odds among teams with minus money). Alabama is plus money. Tommy on fairness: Schedules for Texas and Ohio State are absolute nightmares. Realistic path to 9-3 exists for both; loser of the Week 2 matchup could easily be on the outside looking in if other results don’t break right. Hosts expect at least one 9-3 team to make the CFP this year (possibly the loser of Texas-Ohio State if losses are competitive). Texas Tech sits right above Texas despite an easier schedule — market doesn’t fully buy Tech yet. Fall Camp Intel – Arch Manning (1:40–6:00) Biggest early story: Arch Manning’s confidence and leadership. Last year’s mental flip happened around the Mississippi State game (more aggressive, freer, trash-talking). That swagger is showing up much earlier in 2026 fall camp. Hosts emphasize the weight Arch carries (name, expectations, previous foot surgery). Staff has allowed him to just play football, which has slowed the game down for him. Arch is the de facto leader of the locker room — critical for a team that needs to play for its quarterback. Positive vibes around mechanics and decision-making post-injury. Will be the No. 1 thing to watch once games start (even vs. Texas State). Offensive Line (6:00–11:50) Overall tone is positive and improved from last year’s issues. Trevor Goosby : Best OL on the roster; dominating reps (walking people down except Colin Simmons). Melvin Siani (portal addition): Playing with needed edge/nastiness, especially in the run game. Big for physical matchups (Georgia-type games). Brandon Baker and Connor Robertson a year older and solid. Left guard remains the question mark. Candidates: Lawrence Seymour (Tommy’s favorite to win the job once pads are fully on), Cole Hudson (23 starts in the system — safe Week 1 option if no clear winner), Jaden Chapman, Jackson Christian, Dylan Sikorski. Consensus: Floor is higher than last year. Even if Cole Hudson starts early, the position group is better. Left side (Goosby-Hudson/Seymour-Robertson) should have cohesion advantages. Still needs to become “substantially better,” not just improved, for title contention. Defensive Line & Overall Defense (11:50–16:00) Clear story of camp so far: Interior DL looks excellent. Justice Terry : Breakout candidate with highest confidence from Tommy. Up to ~290 lbs, special, stealing snaps. Expect him and Alex January to essentially split the backup DT role behind Hero Canoe; Terry may take the job as the season progresses. January still a draft pick either way. Hero Canoe and Alex January are known quantities. Full group (edges + interior: Colin Simmons, Terry, Canoe, January, Zeno Mosolo, etc.) projects as one of the better units in the country — right there with Oklahoma, Ohio State, Notre Dame, Georgia (maybe a half-step behind Oregon). Wide receivers also look the part (Cam Coleman catch highlighted from recent practice video). Defense slightly ahead of offense (normal for early camp). Not one-sided, which is ideal. Scrimmage at end of the weekend will be a key measuring stick. Will Muschamp hire already showing intensity/aggression benefits that the OL will have to match. Rasheem Biles expected to be excellent at LB; Justin Cryer and Ty Anthony Smith also in the mix. Offensive Stat Projections (rough estimates) (16:00–27:00) Tommy’s numbers (emphasized as rough guesses): Arch Manning Completion %: 66%+ (key number; last year ~61.5%) Passing yards: ~4,000 (would break Colt McCoy’s school record of 3,800 from 2008) Passing TDs: 34 INTs: ~10 (more aggressive/free play style) Rushing: 400–500 yards, ~8 TDs Running Backs Hollywood Smothers: Leading rusher, ~850–900 yards, 6–7 TDs (more shared workload than his NC State year) Relique Brown: ~1,000 total yards (heavy receiving component, Jaden Blue-type role), ~700 rushing, 8–10 total TDs Derek Cooper: ~350 yards, 4 TDs (CJ Baxter/Jared Gibson-type freshman change-of-pace role) James Simon, Michael Terry, others factor in lightly. Three-headed monster with Cooper getting more late-season work. Wide Receivers Cam Coleman: ~1,100–1,200 yards (primary target, red-zone and all-around) Ryan Wingo: ~1,000 yards, ~8 TDs (elite complementary piece; improved consistency) Emmett Mosley: ~600 yards (injury history keeps projection conservative; upside higher) Trio expected to dominate the target share; depth (Kalik Locke, Jermaine Bishop, etc.) fills in. Tight Ends No true Gunnar Helm-level TE1. Committee of Nick Townsend, Spencer Shannon, Michael Masunis, Emery Winston. Group: ~800 yards, ~8 receiving TDs (Townsend leads both categories, ~4 TDs). Good blockers, lots of rotation. Townsend projects as the long-term TE1 (2027+). Team Offense ~38.5 points per game (could be higher, but defense should allow more balanced/clock-control games rather than pure shootouts). Top-10 unit expected. Improved efficiency and run game should reduce forced throws. Not 2019 LSU or 2020 Alabama numbers, but special and CFP-capable. Defense projections deferred to next week. Top 3 Offseason Gambles for Sarkisian & Staff (28:00–end) Portal aggression level (especially OL/LB). They pursued big targets (Michigan guards, Joe Brunner from Wisconsin, Christian Aliago/Kay Uvele at LB, etc.) but didn’t land every one. Floor raised significantly, but left guard still open and some high-ceiling pieces (e.g., Nick Brooks to Alabama) left. “Did they do enough?” will be judged by results. Retaining Kyle Flood as OL coach . Last year’s issues weren’t purely talent (eyes, technique, assignments). Flood has a strong resume (Joe Moore Award at Alabama), and the talent upgrade + continuity should help, but another year of the same problems with better players would be costly. Keeping him meant no new OC either — Sark is betting on himself as play-caller one more time. Replacing PK with Will Muschamp as DC . Biggest structural change. Muschamp brings intensity, physicality, and program-culture impact (even if his pure play-calling rust is real). Hosts view it as a foundational hire more than a pure 2026 championship bet. Defense was already solid; changing the approach while largely keeping the offense the same raises the stakes. Overall tone from hosts: Sarkisian made the right aggressive bets to turn “good” into “great.” Everything is lined up for a title run if the gambles pay off. Execution on Saturdays (starting with Ohio State) will decide it. Arch Manning as a Heisman finalist is very much on the table. Closing notes : Scrimmage upcoming. Pads and full contact will clarify OL and other battles. Matthew had Wi-Fi issues and was mostly out. Back next Tuesday. Hook ’em. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

