This Running Back Is the Biggest Wild Card on the Longhorns’ Offense

The Texas Longhorns lost their character last season. The offense that head coach Steve Sarkisian had implemented was nearly unrecognizable.

No quarterback during the Sarkisian era had a lower percent of pass attempts come from play-action, and the Longhorns’ 32.8 rush attempts per game were the fewest. The 2026 season will be about rediscovery as Sarkisian and Texas get back to what made the team great in the past.

One player who could break games open for the Longhorns’ offense is transfer portal addition, Hollywood Smothers. Forming one of the best running back duos in the SEC, he and Raleek Brown will be crucial for Texas in 2026.

How Hollywood Smothers Can Transform the Texas Offense

North Carolina State Wolfpack running back Hollywood Smothers and offensive lineman Matt McCabe celebrate a touchdown. — North Carolina State Wolfpack running back Hollywood Smothers and offensive lineman Matt McCabe celebrate a touchdown during the second half of the game against the Virginia Cavaliers at Carter-Finley Stadium. | Jaylynn Nash-Imagn Images

What makes Smothers the perfect transfer portal pickup for Texas is that he matches the offense Texas wants to run. At NC State, he showed that he was not only an explosive playmaker but also able to handle different types of running schemes and make an impact in the passing game. He could be in for a big redshirt junior season.

Last season, Texas struggled to run the ball. Whether it was the offensive line or inconsistency and injuries in the running back room, the Longhorns set new lows in nearly every category during Sarkisian’s time as head coach.

Sarkisian acknowledged this during the season. “We couldn’t run it tonight even when they didn’t know we were going to run it … we just cannot be a one-dimensional team,” Sarkisian said in October 2025 after the loss to Florida when Texas had 52 rushing yards on 26 carries.

“The ability to make a guy miss in tight quarters in the open field is something we had the luxury of the first few years here,” Sarkisian said in March. “We were very fortunate to have that aspect of our team the first four years here that maybe we didn't have a year ago.”

North Carolina State Wolfpack running back Hollywood Smothers carries the ball past the Pittsburgh Panthers. — North Carolina State Wolfpack running back Hollywood Smothers carries the ball past Pittsburgh Panthers defensive lineman Joey Zelinsky during the second quarter at Acrisure Stadium. | Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

This is one area where Smothers can immediately make a difference. Last season, he forced 49 missed tackles on 160 rushing attempts — a ratio of 0.306 missed tackles per attempt. Excluding Arch Manning, the Longhorns' running backs forced a combined 59 tackles on 284 rush attempts, a rate of .208.

Similarly, Smothers has the speed and explosiveness to be a home-run threat on any carry. Texas had 29 carries of 10+ yards from its running backs last season (10.2%). Smothers had carries of 10 or more yards on 24 carries (15.0%). Brown and Smothers both bring a dynamism that Texas lacked in 2025 but defined the early Sarkisian era.

Another area where Smothers can immediately contribute is as a pass-catcher. Smothers did not record a drop in his NC State career. With 59 career targets, he has proven he is a reliable playmaker in the passing game.

He has 453 receiving yards and three receiving touchdowns in the last two seasons. Sarkisian’s offenses have often incorporated running backs as a primary pass-catcher, and Smothers could post career-high numbers in 2026.

In 2025, Tre Wisner led all Texas running backs in receiving production with 22 catches. His 146 yards were the sixth-most on the team. In the past, running backs have been among the team leaders in production, and Smothers could fit that role.

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