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In head coach Steve Sarkisian’s first season on the Forty Acres, the Texas Longhorns will start the season at No. 21 following the release of the AP Top 25 preseason poll, the fifth-straight season the Horns begin the year ranked.
Texas opens the season at home against No. 23 Louisiana on Sept. 4 at 3:30 p.m. Central on FOX. The Ragin’ Cajuns went 10-1 last season and won the Sun Belt after opening the campaign with a resounding 31-14 win over the Cyclones in Ames.
The following weekend, the Horns travel to Fayetteville to face off against the improving Razorbacks in head coach Sam Pittman’s second season at Arkansas.
So Sarkisian’s team will have to quickly prove itself worthy of the preseason ranking in a season that features five games against opponents that won bowl games last season. Once again, however, Texas won’t have to leave the state often — nine of the 12 games are in the Lone Star State.