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The Texas Longhorns are set to play their first game in the Southeastern Conference (SEC) this September after being invited to join the organization alongside the Oklahoma Sooners. 

 

This deal was originally agreed upon in 2021, with both teams slated to join in 2025. However, an agreement was struck in February 2023 that would see them joining a year early in 2024. 

 

The SEC is a big step up from the Big 12, which both Texas and Oklahoma formerly played in. Now that they’re set to join the SEC early, an important question to ask is: are they ready? As Bram Welch points out in this article about TX sports betting sites, football is already the most popular college sport to bet on, despite the fact the Texas Longhorns basketball team has played in the NCAA Division 1 for several years. 

 

So, with the college’s football team now playing in a more competitive and exciting league, crypto sports betting on the Texas Longhorns will likely increase. 

 

Ahead of the season, the Texas Longhorns currently have the third shortest odds of all the teams playing in the next SEC. So, betting on the Longhorns wouldn’t be the most lucrative bet you could make. 

 

Title-winning odds are currently at +750, which suggests that the Bookies are in stronger favor of the Longhorns winning than the Oklahoma Sooners, whose odds are +4,000. However, there’s a lot of risk in betting on any new team that’s not yet competed in a league such as the SEC. 

 

In terms of how the Texas Longhorn team is shaping up, returning players such as Quinn Ewers, who has a scouting grade of 95, will definitely give them the strength they need to take on the SEC teams. 

 

Plus, Steve Sarkisian will serve as the Longhorns’ head coach. CBS recently ranked Sarkisian #3 in their list of the best coaches in the SEC, despite the fact the Longhorns have yet to play. Sarkisian already has a big reputation in this particular conference, having coached for Alabama during the 2019-2020 series. This former job will have given him sufficient SEC experience, which will no doubt prove to be a huge asset to the Longhorns. 

 

Some of the biggest sports betting days in the state will come when the Longhorns face off against their rivals – namely, Texas A&M and Arkansas, who both already compete in the SEC. Not only will these clashes sell tickets and keep bookmakers busy, but the need to prove themselves as the best college team in Texas could push the Longhorns toward victory. 

 

The Longhorns are shifting to the SEC off the back of an incredibly successful final season in the Big 12. The team claimed their first Championship Title since 2009 following a victory over Oklahoma State Cowboys in December of 2023. 

 

By the end of the season, they were also ranked 10th in the country on ESPN’s College Football Preseason Power Rankings. Earlier this year, they were ranked third in an Associated Press poll, their highest ranking since 2009. 

Overall, this would suggest that the Longhorns are ready to take on the bigger teams competing in the SEC. The Longhorns will face Mississippi State on September 28 at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium in their first match of the competition.