Steve Sarkisian Extremely Pleased With Texas Longhorns Secondary in Fall Camp

The Texas Longhorns' championship expectations in 2025 heavily rest on the backs of their defense, which is projected to be one of the best units in all of college football, ranking as high as the No. 2 defense in the country by Pro Football Focus.

The one defensive unit in particular that will need to anchor the Longhorns' defense is the secondary, which will need to contain some of the high-powered passing attacks in college football that Texas will have to face. And after Tuesday's practice, Steve Sarkisian pointed out some players in the secondary who have been standing out in practice.

"We've got some guys that we've been working hard on defense about playing the ball even better than we have in the past," Sarkisian said. "In the last two days, Malik Muhammad has had a couple of picks, which have been really good plays. Jelani McDonald had a nice play today, and Warren Roberson. So we're playing the ball in my opinion better in the air than we have in the past."

What's the State of the Longhorns Secondary Headed into 2025

Texas Longhorns defensive back Jaylon Guilbeau (3) celebrates a defensive play | Sara Diggins/USA TODAY Network via Imagn Images

The Texas secondary last season allowed 173.8 passing yards per game, which ranked as the seventh-lowest passing yards per game allowed in the country, and was tied for first in college football in interceptions, finishing the season with 22. The secondary will be losing two big pieces of the puzzle in Jahdae Barron and Andrew Mukuba, who combined for 10 of the Longhorns' 22 interceptions, both of whom moved on to the NFL.

The Longhorns return a key piece in All-American safety Michael Taaffe, who returned to the Forty Acres for his final year of eligibility and will undoubtedly be the leader of the secondary unit. Aside from Taaffe, Texas will need big steps in terms of production and leadership from their returning pieces in the secondary, particularly from projected starting cornerbacks Malik Muhammad, who enters year three, and fourth-year defensive back Jalylon Guilbeau.

Other players with multiple years of program experience who could find roles in the secondary rotation, such as third-year players Warren Roberson or Derek Williams Jr., who returns from a season-ending injury in 2024, and junior Jelani McDonald, all three could be entrusted with more playing time due to their experience.

Texas's secondary also features a lot of second-year talent who could carve out a role in the Longhorns' secondary, with players like Wardell Mack, Xavier Filsaime, Jordon Johnson-Rubell and Kobe Black. Texas also brought in a number of highly touted prospects with their 2025 recruiting class, beginning with five stars Jonah Williams and Kade Phillips. The 2025 class also brought in Zelus Hicks and Graceson Littleton, who have been turning heads in fall camp.