Now that the calendar has flipped to July, the SEC can officially welcome the new neighbors into the neighborhood. Texas and Oklahoma, two of the main instigators of this recent conference realignment, can now proudly don the SEC logo across any and all platforms. That now gives the SEC 16 teams.
The SEC was already one of the most prestigious and competitive brands in all of college football before Oklahoma and Texas even thought about defecting from the Big 12. But the addition of the Sooners and Longhorns just makes SEC football that much greater now, as the competition will be at an all-time high.
Looking at the history of both programs, they should have near seamless transitions, or at least that's the thought. Both are coming in off successful seasons with winning records, with the Longhorns going as far as winning the Big 12 conference and then making it to the semi-finals of the College Football Playoff. Both teams have also recruited well, traditionally and through the transfer portal.
But transitions aren't always easy, especially in what was already a gauntlet of an in-conference schedule for the previous 14-team league. Now what's to be expected with these blueblood schools coming in? We'll start with the Longhorns.
Predicting Texas Football in 2024
If Texas football was still in the Big 12, they'd be the clear favorite to repeat as Big 12 champions. But this isn't the Big 12, and the Longhorns are set now for their greatest challenges in the upcoming 2024 season.
Texas has the fifth toughest schedule in the country this season, according to Pro Football Focus. That's right behind SEC favorites, the Georgia Bulldogs, who, ironically enough, will travel to Austin, Texas, this season to face the Longhorns in what is now SEC conference play.
The week before the Longhorns host the Bulldogs, they'll face their biggest rival, the Sooners, in the Red River Showdown. But who can forget Texas' one major out-of-conference game when they have to go to Ann Arbor to face Michigan in Week 2?
Still, overall, the SEC schedule is favorable to them. They host Mississippi State, Florida, and Kentucky and travel to Vanderbilt, Arkansas, and finally renew their longtime former Big 12 rivalry with Texas A&M to end the regular season.
Texas brings back 10 starters, five on each side of the ball, with quarterback Quinn Ewers being the biggest returning piece. The team also has the No. 5 overall 2024 recruiting class ranking, meaning they've not only recruited traditionally well but through the transfer portal as well.
Also, ESPN's College Football Power Index (FPI) rankings, which is a predictor of a team's performance going into the season, ranks Texas third on the list. These projections give Texas a record of 10-2.4 with a 24.2 percent chance of winning the SEC, a 67.8 percent chance of making the College Football Playoff, and a 20.6 percent chance of making the National Championship.
This seems like a fair prediction for Texas football in 2024. Coming into the SEC off their most successful season in nearly two decades was massive. But the challenges of a tougher conference, albeit by their own addition, will be a tough task. However, anything short of a playoff berth for the Longhorns will have to be deemed a disappointment, SEC gauntlet or not.
Record: 10-2
SEC finish: 2nd
Predicting Oklahoma Football in 2024
Oklahoma football apparently good enough last season to extend head coach Brent Venables to a six-year extension for a payout of nearly $50 million. Venables' first year in Norman was less than stellar, finishing 6-7 with a bowl loss. But 10-3 was much better, even with a second consecutive bowl loss.
Now all that the Sooners have to do is head into the SEC with the 13th toughest schedule in the country with hopes of improving once again.
This would be a tough task for any team but especially one with a young quarterback like true sophomore Jackson Arnold. For better or worse, he'll have a completely new offensive line unit in front of him as well, with the offense as a whole returning just two starters. A lot of that line comes from their impressive portal work from this spring.
The defense, on the other hand, which is Venables' specialty, has six returners and includes one of the best secondaries in the country.
As mentioned, the Sooners didn't get the shaft as far as scheduling goes for the 2024 season. Their home schedule in particular includes Temple, Houston, Tulane, and Maine out of conference. But then they bring in Tennessee, South Carolina, and Alabama. The road schedule is much tougher when they face Auburn, Ole Miss, Missouri, and LSU.
ESPN's FPI rankings actually have the Sooners as the fourth-best in the SEC. They're projected for a record of 8.2-3.9 with only a 5.1 percent chance of winning the SEC, a 36.6 percent chance of making the playoff, and a six percent chance of making the National Championship.
Arnold's talents at quarterback will be a huge determining factor in how far the Sooners go in 2024. Having such a young quarterback on the road in games at Auburn and LSU especially could signal trouble, not to mention what could be tough home games against Tennessee and Alabama.
Record: 8-4
SEC finish: 5th
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