Longhorns Way-Too-Early March Madness Predictions: Can Texas Make Another Deep Tournament Run?

AUSTIN, Texas -- The Texas Longhorns have yet to complete their roster restructuring less than two months removed from their exit in the Elite Eight. There's still some work to do leading up to coach Rodney Terry's first full season at the helm, but it wouldn't be an offseason without predictions for next year despite how incomplete the Longhorns and many other teams currently remain.

ESPN released its latest edition of the 2024 NCAA Tournament Bracketology, offering up March Madness seeding predictions for next season based on the trajectory of the country's top programs.

Despite suffering tough losses this offseason due to eligibility reasons, decommitments, and transfer departures, ESPN thinks that the moves the Longhorns have made over the past handful of weeks is enough to keep them in contention for a high-level seed in the tournament.

Adding four transfers in Max Abmas, Kadin Shedrick, Chendall Weaver and Ze'Rik Onyema along with retaining Dylan Disu for one more year earns Texas the No. 4 seed in the Midwest Region of the current bracket projections. Considering the uncertainty surrounding the team this offseason, earning a No. 4 seed a year removed from making it to the Elite Eight as a No. 2 seed would be a resounding success for Terry and Co.

Though it's even more impossible to predict matchups in the NCAA Tournament than it is to guess team seeding, the Longhorns are projected to square off with the No. 13 seed Indiana State Sycamores in the first round. Other teams in Texas' region of the bracket include the No. 1 Michigan State Spartans, the No. 2 UConn Huskies, the No. 3 Arkansas Razorbacks, the No. 5 Kentucky Wildcats and the No. 8 Baylor Bears.

If the bracket shakes out like this, the Longhorns will have their work cut out for them if they manage to get out of the first round. Potential matchups with the Wildcats, Razorbacks, and defending champion Huskies would make another trip to the Elite Eight a true uphill battle.

The Longhorns still have months of preparation and an entire regular season to get through before they can start thinking about March Madness again. But as of now, another appearance in the NCAA Tournament remains the expectation for a team that has gone through its fair share of adversity this offseason after powering through a 2022 campaign that was already filled with it.

You can follow Zach Dimmitt on Twitter at @ZachDimmitt7

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