Navigating a season that could see Texas play Georgia more than once

February 17, 2024
The Texas Longhorns and Georgia Bulldogs will play in Austin on Oct. 19. It may not be the only time they play in the 2024 season.
Texas and Georgia are viewed by many, including those close to the Georgia program, as the primary contenders for the SEC championship. What does that mean for the Longhorns? It could mean two battles against the top team in college football over the past three seasons.
If Texas is to make the College Football Playoff in 2024, there’s a strong possibility it will have to face Georgia twice to get there. That’s to say nothing of the possibility of a third game should the two teams advance far enough in the postseason.
Many view Georgia’s road trip to Austin as the Longhorns’ biggest game of the season. After all, it could position Texas for its first No. 1 ranking since Oct. 26 of the 2008 season prior to its upset loss to Texas Tech. But do the Longhorns sell out to beat the Bulldogs in Austin or do they save their best play calls for a more meaningful rematch?
Like it or not, Texas was dependent on scheme over the past season. It was dependent on head coach Steve Sarkisian’s offensive ingenuity to go 12-2. But how much of his Georgia game planning do you want to expend in Round 1, and do you hold anything back for a potential national title game against the Bulldogs?
The above questions are those Texas might wrestle with, or they may trust that other weaknesses will present themselves before a rematch. But this team is constructed to win a national title, and those opportunities have been few and far between in recent seasons.
Texas has a playoff quarterback in Quinn Ewers who returns a playoff offensive line and running back room. It brings in two playoff transfer receivers in Alabama’s Isaiah Bond and Amari Niblack with several key returning players from a playoff defense. It’s a golden opportunity to win it all. How Sarkisian plays the season could have a role in how far the team advances.
Sarkisian has built a national title contender, and to win one he might have to beat Georgia. But does he have the depth of creativity to beat them twice?