Just eight months ago Garrett Gilbert was an unknown figure on the college football landscape.
But after throwing for 186 yards and two touchdowns against the vaunted Alabama defense in the national championship game because of an injury to Colt McCoy, Gilbert is fast becoming the face of the Longhorns.
He will have to live up to high expectations as Texas comes in at No. 4 in the alligatorSports' college football preseason poll.
The Longhorns lost college football's all-time winningest quarterback in McCoy and their top wide receiver in Jordan Shipley, but the offense is ready for a new era.
Coach Mack Brown brought in five four-star receivers in Mike Davis, John Harris, Chris Jones, Darius Terrell and Darius White to help fill the void left by Shipley.
Sophomore receiver Marquise Goodwin, who accumulated 279 receiving yards last season, is expected to increase his production in 2010. The speedster, which is also on Texas' track and field team, will likely be one of Gilbert's main targets in the passing game until the sophomore quarterback gains confidence in the group of talented freshmen.
The running game is still lacking a star, but sophomore Tre' Newton, who led the Longhorns with 552 rushing yards in his freshman season, will be looked upon to help balance an offense which will rely heavily on its aerial attack.
On defense, the test will be to replace NFL draft picks Earl Thomas and Sergio Kindle.
Thomas, who led a secondary that racked up 25 interceptions last season, will be missed. His free safety spot is up for grabs between sophomore Kenny Vaccaro and junior Christian Scott.
The hole Kindle left could open the door for the emergence of Texas' top recruit from its 2010 class, five-star defensive end Jackson Jeffcoat.
The Longhorns lost six players within the first four rounds of the NFL Draft, but they are still expected to finish atop the Big 12 and vie for another national championship.
