Texas Longhorns Finalize Season Opener vs. UTEP
On Sept. 12 the Longhorns originally planned to travel down to Baton Rouge and face the defending champion LSU Tigers. Now the Longhorns will officially open the season in Austin against the University of Texas at El Paso on the same date.
Darrell K Royal Texas Memorial Stadium is currently looking into plans to host 25% capacity of its overall 100,119 seating stadium. Newly appointed UT President Jay Hartzell explained the reasoning behind the change from the previous standard of 50%:
“The analysis of this new crowd size target is a reflection of the consistent change and uncertainty that has come with the COVID-19 pandemic… As rates in Austin and throughout Texas continue to ebb and flow, we must be agile and work consistently to develop strategies to protect the safety of our student athletes, coaches, staff members, students and all who visit our campus for athletic events.”
Texas is opening the season with some new faces on both sides of the ball, including a new offensive coordinator Mike Yurcich and a new defensive coordinator Chris Ash.
On paper, Texas should be able to take care of business pretty easily. UTEP went 1-11 for the second straight season under head coach Dana Dimel. The Miners, who hold the the No.130th spot in ESPN’s preseason rankings, will be returning only nine starters for the 2020 campaign.
Advancing carefully through this turbulent time, the Longhorns have resumed fall camp with the plan to begin the season in less than a month.
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