Texas Longhorns & Ohio State Legends Mack Brown & Urban Meyer Make Week 1 Predictions

When the Texas Longhorns and Ohio State Buckeyes play in Week 1, both legendary coaches, Mack Brown and Urban Meyer will find themselves on opposite sides as fans.

9/8/07 Texas Head Coach Mack Brown gives NO. 25 Jamaal Charles a High five after scoring a touchdown late in the fourth quarter of the game against UCF at Bright House Networks Stadium on Saturday September 15, 2007. | Ricardo B. Brazziell/American-Statesman file / USA TODAY NETWORK

Even as the start of the season is still 34 days away, there is never a time too early to start making predictions. After all that part of the offseason where there is nothing but predictions and preseason rankings is called "talking season."

Yet, as the Texas Longhorns gear up for their season-opening contest versus the Ohio State Buckeyes, everyone is getting their thoughts in on the upcoming marquee matchup. That includes former Buckeyes coach Urban Meyer and Longhorns' coach Mack Brown.

During Brown's recent guest appearance on the Triple Option Podcast, co-hosted by Meyer, both gave their predictions for the game. However, while they are both now just analysts of the game, neither has put aside their biases.

“They have Jeremiah Smith, the best player in college football, and I don’t think it’s really that close,” Meyer said in his prediction of the Buckeyes winning. “You can roll up on him, you can double him, and you can slow him down. But you can’t stop him."

Meyer goes on to mention that while they have Smith, who will undoubtedly be a tough task to slow down, the Buckeyes do have other playmakers. Like returning junior, Carnell Tate, or the transfer portal addition of former Purdue tight end Max Klare, Ohio State certainly isn't without offensive firepower.

But the same thing can be said of Texas. And in the opinion of Brown, the biggest separator in this College Football Playoff rematch is that the Longhorns have quarterback Arch Manning and the Buckeyes don't.

"You have that young quarterback at Ohio State, and this is Arch Manning’s really big deal and it’s gonna be in front of millions of people," Brown said. "I like Texas because they’ve got Arch back and Ohio State’s inexperienced at quarterback. And I like the fact that it’s at noon for Texas. I played at 8 o’clock at night (in 2005)."

Despite sitting behind Quinn Ewers for two seasons, Manning did see time on the field leading Texas. Of his 12 appearances over two years, Manning made his first two career starts last season in the absence of the then-injured Ewers.

That prior experience is a big reason why Brown believes that, despite this being the season opener, the Longhorns have an edge.

"I didn’t like that it’s the opening game for either team, especially when one loses in the [College Football Playoff] semifinals and one wins the national championship and loses its quarterback,” Brown said. “We had Louisiana-Lafayette the week before we went to Columbus and to the Shoe (in 2005), so we had a warmup and won 60-3."