The 2024 season is a big one for Texas football. They are embarking on their first year in the SEC after years of competing and winning in the Big 12. They will need all hands on deck, including newcomers from high school and the transfer portal. Of those who arrived via transfer, edge rusher Trey Moore is poised to make the biggest impact for Texas in the 2024 season.
The Longhorns have gotten a taste of life in the SEC recently. They split two games with the Alabama Crimson Tide in the past two seasons. Their loss came on a game-winning Alabama field goal with little time left in the fourth quarter. Before that, they traveled to Fayetteville, Arkansas to take on the Razorbacks. Texas lost by a final score of 40-21.
Things are going to be different for Texas football in the SEC. The competition level will rise tremendously. But luckily, they retain a strong roster that made the College Football Playoff last year and added to it. Those additions, headlined by Moore, will make sure Texas' transition to a new conference will go smoothly.
Pass rush specialist
There were not many players in college football better at getting to the quarterback last season than Trey Moore. Moore was a star for Texas-San Antonio Roadrunners, where he racked up a gargantuan 14 sacks in 2023. That ranked third among all defensive players in college last season. Fourth place was UCLA's Laiatu Latu, who was the first defensive player to get drafted in April's 2024 NFL Draft.
It isn't just the sack totals that make Moore the menace that he is. He does it all. He forced and recovered a fumble last year with the Roadrunners and even intercepted a pass. Moore also makes an impact even when he doesn't get to the quarterback. He racked up 77 quarterback pressures and a 90.5 pass rush grade by PFF over his previous two seasons.
His tenacity, physicality, and speed rushing the passer shows up on tape as well. Moore is an absolute menace and will be a handful for SEC teams to deal with.
Everyone was after Moore when he put his name in the transfer portal. Luckily for the Longhorns, they made him one of their own, and not just because of how good he is as a player. Moore will help address a big need for Texas football in 2024.
Retool and reload
Texas' defense was one of the best in the Big 12 last season. They led the conference in sacks (32) and were tied for third in yards per attempt allowed (6.7). But this unit saw a couple of their star defensive linemen leave the program for the NFL.
One of those players was Byron Murphy II. He was the second defensive player to get drafted during the 2024 NFL Draft and was selected one pick after Latu got drafted. Murphy primarily lines up in the interior of the defensive line but that didn't stop him from being one of the best pass rushers in college football last year in his own right. His five sacks last year was tied for second on the team behind Ethan Burke.
T'Vondre Sweat also got drafted in April. He didn't go as early as Murphy did (16th overall) but Sweat (38th overall) was no slouch for Texas either. He's more of a run-stuffer than a pass-rusher, but he still made a big impact on Texas' front. The Longhorns had to find a way to replace at least one of those two.
They did with Moore. Moore brings another gear to Texas' pass rush on the edge that even those two couldn't generate. Everyone needs to be able to disrupt opposing offenses in the SEC. Moore can do that for the Longhorns in 2024 before he inevitably hears his name get called in the NFL Draft in the future.
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