Longhorns Country

'All Gas, No Brakes': Texas Focused On 2023 Season, Blocking Out '24 SEC Noise

The Texas Longhorns are not looking ahead to its Southeastern Conference schedule, but rather its 2023 opponents next season.

Casey Smith

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There was a certain picture of a schedule making its rounds on social media Wednesday getting posted by Texas Longhorns coaches and players.

No, it wasn't the highly anticipated initial look at the Longhorns' 2024 Southeastern Conference schedule. Instead, it was Texas' 2023 schedule — its last season in the Big 12 before its departure for the SEC in 2024.

"All Gas, No Brakes!!" Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian tweeted Wednesday evening with a pair of "Hook' em Horns" emojis.

The message of winning the Big 12 before the Longhorns head to the SEC has certainly resonated with Texas' players as well.

Quarterbacks Quinn Ewers, Arch Manning and Maalik Murphy, wide receivers Xavier Worthy and Adonai Mitchell and linebacker Anthony Hill Jr. were among the over 35 players who posted the same photo of the 2023 schedule to their Instagram stories.

This is Texas' final chance — and arguably its best shot in years — to win the Big 12, and Sarkisian has remained focused on that as opposed to playing soon-to-be conference games against Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi State, Arkansas, Vanderbilt and its rivalry return with Texas A&M.

“I love all the talk about the SEC, where we’re going, and what all that looks like,” Sarkisian said at the Touchdown Club of Houston luncheon April 26. “I think the reality of it is, and I think we all would agree, that nothing would be sweeter and nothing would be better than to be hoisting that trophy in Arlington in early December as the Big 12 champion.”

It's a critical message, as Texas is looking to clean the slate — a muddy one that has lost at least five games in three of the past four seasons and has only made one conference championship appearance since its return to the Big 12 in 2017.

You can follow Casey Smith on Twitter @casey_smith2419

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Casey Smith
CASEY SMITH

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