Hollywood Smothers Has Quickly Become Texas' Most Reliable Weapon

The Texas Longhorns entered the 2026 season with a revamped roster, creating turnover at multiple key positions, filling them with some of the top transfer portal talent available in the offseason.

That includes Hollywood Smothers, the North Carolina State Wolfpack transfer who was required to inject life into a backfield that had been devoid of production during the 2025 season.

Smothers, now in the lead back role for the No. 1 team in the country, has been more than rejuvenation piece for the Longhorns, but the most consistent weapon on an offense that has the potential to be the best in the country.

The Numbers Tell a Bigger Story

Texas Longhorns running back Hollywood Smothers (2) runs against the Ohio State Buckeyes during the first half at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

One of the biggest knocks on the Longhorns' offense last season was the offensive line and the running game. The ground game, however, proved to be a critical misstep as it was crucial to running the style of offense that head coach Steve Sarkisian wants to run in Austin.

That's why Smothers was brought in, having proven himself as one of the top running backs in the country during his time with the Wolfpack. Now in Austin, he carries over that same talent and is finding similar levels of production with the Longhorns.

Through two games, he is the leading rusher on the team, with 144 yards on 31 attempts. Both attempts are the highest on the team, and he's also tied for the lead in the backfield with two rushing touchdowns, while also averaging 72 yards per game.

He has 10 more carries than his rotation mate, Raleek Brown, and in the midst of the chaos against the Ohio State Buckeyes, it was Smothers who had more than half the rushing attempts for the Longhorns, finishing with 21 of the 41.

At the surface level it looks like the lion's share of work, but it also is more than that, it's trust from the coaching staff to be the No. 1 option in an elite offense. He's earned that as well, taking over the role, and become an efficient runner.

According to PFF, he's the No. 28-ranked running back in terms of elusiveness, and is the No. 20-ranked running back in breakaway percentage, both are statistics used to measure the individual effectiveness of a running back.

It was no secret that Smothers was a talented running back, that was why the Longhorns pursued him so much in the transfer portal, but his ownership of the role in 2026, will continue to pay dividends for the program.

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