It has now been over three months since the Michigan football team raised the national championship trophy back in January at NRG Stadium in Houston. It was a season to remember in college football as it was the last year of the four-team College Football Playoff, and it was also the last year of the Pac-12. There are going to be a lot of changes next season, and there have also been a lot of changes in this offseason already in terms of coaching moves and the transfer portal. Now, spring football is well underway, and a sense of hope has returned to college football fans. Texas football had their spring game last week, and Longhorns fans can't wait for the season.

Spring football is a special time of year as fans across the country get to see their new team in action for the first time. It's hard to tell much about a team from spring practices, but it's still fun to see the teams on the field competing against each other, and football fans are all eager for the new season to roll around. The first few months of the offseason are tough to get through and the football season seems so far away. Now, the weather is warming up, and you can sense that the new season is nearing. There is still a ways to go, but it's coming.

This next season of college football is going to be an exciting one, and there are a ton of reasons to be looking forward to it. There are a lot of changes coming to the game like rule changes, coaching changes, conference changes and playoff changes. Perhaps the most intriguing part of the new season will be the new conferences. The Pac-12 is gone, and the Big Ten and SEC are going to be loaded. They both seem to be on the verge of forming super conferences.

The SEC will be welcoming Texas and Oklahoma to the conference next year, and the Big Ten is getting a good crop of Pac-12 teams as USC, UCLA, Oregon and Washington are all joining the conference. Both the Big Ten and the SEC are going to be absolutely loaded next year, and it seems like more schools will potentially join the conferences in the future.

Next season, the College Football Playoff will look different as well as it is expanding to 12 teams. There will also be first round games on college campuses. More teams will have a chance to make the CFP, and there will be more games. It's going to be fun.

Texas football has national title aspirations for this upcoming season

The Texas football team is back. The Longhorns finally put together the type of season that their fans expect each year in 2023, and they are expected to come back even stronger next year. Steve Sarkisian led his team to a Big 12 title last season and a trip to the College Football Playoff. Their semifinal matchup against Washington came down to literally the last play, but the Longhorns came up just short and failed to make it to the national title game. Still, it was a great season for Texas, and they are expected to be one of the best teams in college football in 2024.

A big reason why Texas football is expected to be so good is because of their quarterback. Most people expected Quinn Ewers to depart for the NFL after last season, but he decided that he wants to play for the Longhorns for one more season. He was one of the best QBs in college football last season, and with a lot of the others leaving for the NFL, Ewers has a shot to be the best of the best this season.

This Texas football roster is loaded with weapons, it isn't just Ewers coming back that makes them a dangerous squad. He is going to have a lot of talent to work with offense, and the defense is returning a lot from last year as well. However, the Longhorns only have so many starting spots that can be filled. This is a good problem to have. Anytime there is a team that is this loaded, it can be difficult to figure out who the best options are at each position. The spring game showed us a lot about where things stand, but there is still a lot of offseason left. Here are some position battles to pay attention to before the season arrives.

Quarterback

Texas Longhorns quarterbacks Arch Manning (16), left, and Quinn Ewers (3) throw passes while warming up ahead of the Longhorns' spring Orange and White game at Darrell K Royal Texas Memorial Stadium

© Sara Diggins/American-Statesman / USA TODAY NETWORK

The Texas football team had one of the best QBs in the country last year in Quinn Ewers, but everyone is going to want to keep an eye on this competition because of Arch Manning. Ewers has earned the starting job with the Longhorns, but that doesn't mean that he can't lose it. Ewers is a very good QB, but it's clear that Manning has a ton of talent, and it was on full display in the spring game as he was 19-26 for 355 yards and three touchdowns.

Arch Manning is one the of most hyped college QBs that we have ever seen and he hasn't even been a starter yet. He is hungry to get on the field and beat out Ewers, and there is a chance that he can do it. Just because Ewers was the starter last year doesn't guarantee that he'll be the starter this year. Whoever gives the team the best chance to win football games will be the QB.

Secondary

The secondary is a big area to keep an eye on as well. There will obviously be multiple players that earn starting spots, but this is a part of the game that the Longhorns need to improve, and there were a lot of big plays through the air during their spring game. That needs to get cleaned up.

One player to keep an eye on in the secondary is transfer Andrew Mukuba from Clemson. He should provide the defense with a big spark and he should definitely earn a starting role. This is a crucial part of the game for Texas football and they need to be sound for this team to have the season that they want.

This Texas team certainly has some things to improve this offseason, especially on defense, but they should end up being one of the best teams in college football next year.