Texas ranked No. 12 in preseason Coaches Poll

The Texas Longhorns will open the 2023 season against the Rice Owls on Sept. 2 in Austin ranked as the No. 12 team following Monday’s release of the preseason USA TODAY Sports AFCA Coaches Poll.

Texas is the highest-ranked team in the Big 12 entering its final season in the conference and one of four teams in the poll. After finishing as the national runner-up last season, TCU is ranked No. 16, followed by Kansas State at No. 17, Oklahoma at No. 19, its lowest start in the poll since 2015, and Texas Tech at No. 24, its first appearance in the preseason poll since 2008.

Alabama, the Week Two opponent for Texas in Tuscaloosa, is ranked No. 3, behind Georgia and Michigan, and received four first-place votes.

The Longhorns started the 2022 season ranked No. 19 in the Coaches Poll and finished at No. 25 following the Alamo Bowl loss to the Huskies.