Texas hype has reached Waco. Legendary 365 Sports host David Smoak is predicting the Texas Longhorns as the top team in the Big 12.
Smoak has been cautious about picking Texas in the past and with good reason. More often than not over the past 14 seasons, the Longhorns have found ways to disappoint. This team appears to be different to those who primarily cover teams other than Texas in the Big 12.
Perhaps the most well-known voice of 365 Sports has the Longhorns battling with Kansas State, Oklahoma and Texas Tech for a trip to the Big 12 championship game. Those four teams appear to be the accepted top four in the league.
Here’s a look at some of the quotes from David Smoak, Craig Smoak and Paul Catalina on Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas State and Texas Tech.
4
Texas Tech Red Raiders
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Craig Smoak: “They don’t have a ton of questions, so I think that (No. 4 in the Big 12) is more than fair. There’s a lotta hype for them. … It almost seems like, you know, given the amount of hype this offseason, like they should be in the title game. But four is right on the cusp of that, so that’s fair.”
3
Oklahoma Sooners
Steve Sisney/For The Oklahoman
Craig Smoak: “I can’t believe the Big 12, like for anyone who wants to talk about the Big 12 and an axe, you know, to grind, show them (Oklahoma’s) schedule for the Big 12 year. They have to be better, I would think … the talent part of the equation, I think, is a bit of a mystery still. But they’ve hit that heavy, and, I mean, they’ve seemingly done all they can do to try and get on track.”
2
Kansas State Wildcats
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Paul Catalina: “I don’t see them slipping back very far. … On defense, I don’t see them missing a beat, even though they did lose a stud at defensive end. … I think that making up for Deuce Vaughn is going to be an interesting two-person shuffle, but if they can get close, that can help them … take some pressure off of Will Howard.”
1
Texas Longhorns
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David Smoak: Hype of all hype, but they really do have an enormous amount of-not just the talent-but they seem to have gained, last year, some grit especially on defense. The young, talented offensive line, a year older. Yeah, they will miss Bijan (Robinson) and Roschon (Johnson). I don’t care how many four- or five-star players they have back on the roster. … A lot of it’s because of the unknown with Oklahoma, so much loss with TCU. This is not a “yeah, but” (No. 1), I think they’re (No. 1). … This time it’s not just because their name is Texas.