Tom Herman got his dream job, while Longhorns fans have been dreaming about returning to college football relevance. A little over a year ago, Texas was being declared back in business after a thrilling victory over Notre Dame at the start of the 2016 season. There were loads of tweets like this one.

To tweak a famous Mark Twain quote, reports of Texas’ resurrection were greatly exaggerated. Charlie Strong was never able to help Texas make the next step, and was replaced with Herman.

The former Houston coach became a hot coaching name after the Cougars rose to national prominence. Houston picked up wins over Oklahoma and Louisville as Herman was able to get his squad to play lights out in marquee games.

The climate at Texas is different. The Longhorns are not a pesky underdog, but one of the most historic programs in college football. Despite being passed in recent years by in-state rivals like Texas A&M and TCU, Texas has high expectations going into every season.

There is a reason the Longhorns sneak into Heavy’s top 25 rankings despite finishing just 5-7 last season. Quarterback Shane Buechele took his lumps during his freshman season, but also showed plenty of promise. Buechele completed over 60 percent of his passes for 2,958 yards, 21 touchdowns and 11 interceptions.

Buechele had a solid summer winning the quarterback challenge at the Manning Passing Academy. The camp features a number of top quarterbacks as counselors at a high school quarterback camp. Herman had success at Houston elevating the play of dual-threat quarterbacks like Buechele.

Collin Johnson is one of the best wide receivers you likely have not heard about. Johnson did not exactly put up eye-popping numbers his freshman year with just 315 receiving yards and three touchdowns.

However, Johnson is 6’6″ with great hands, and has all the tools needed to develop into the Longhorns top receiver this season. Here’s a taste of what you can expect from Johnson this season.

Collin Johnson 2016 HighlightsTexas freshman WR Collin Johnson 2017-06-10T22:20:18.000Z

One of the most underrated aspects of Herman’s Houston teams was the defensive talent he was able to attract. While there were exceptions to the rule, most of Herman’s teams were full of fast and athletic defensive players.

One example was Herman signing five-star defensive tackle Ed Oliver, a rarity for a Group of Five team. Linebacker Malik Jefferson will serve as the anchor for Herman’s new-look Longhorns defense.

The success of Texas depends on two factors. First, how fast can Herman turn things around and re-build Texas back into a premier college football destination. Finally, the play of the rest of the Big 12. The conference is as wide open as any other conference, and could help short-circuit Texas’ turnaround if the Longhorns find their footing early.

Texas Longhorns Schedule 2017

DATE OPPONENT TIME Sept. 2 Maryland 12 p.m. ET FS1 Sept. 9 San Jose State 3:30 p.m. Longhorn Network Sept. 16 at USC 8:30 p.m. FOX Sept. 28 at Iowa State 7:30 or 8 p.m. ESPN Oct. 7 Kansas State TBD Oct. 14 Oklahoma (in Dallas) TBD Oct. 21 Oklahoma State TBD Oct. 28 at Baylor TBD Nov. 4 at TCU TBD Nov. 11 Kansas 6 p.m. Longhorn Network Nov. 18 at West Virginia TBD Nov. 24 Texas Tech 8 p.m. FOX

Vegas Baby, Vegas

According to South Point Sportsbook, Vegas has set the over-under for Texas’ win total at 7.5. Texas should be favored against Maryland, San Jose State, Iowa State, Kansas State, Kansas and Texas Tech. Baylor and TCU could be toss up games depending on how the teams perform at the beginning of the season.

Texas faces an uphill battle against the state of Oklahoma. Vegas has the win total for Oklahoma at 10 wins and Oklahoma State at 9 wins. Texas faces the two teams in back-to-back weeks in October. It is the most difficult part of the season for Texas, and the Longhorns will enter both matchups as underdogs as things stand now.

Heavy likes the over on the point total as 8-4 gives the Longhorns a realistic outcome in 2017. Texas has enough talent to see a slight uptick as they look to move back into the Big 12 race in future years.

Heavy’s Prediction: Texas goes 8-4 in 2017.

College Football Preseason Power Rankings 2017: Texas at No. 24

Here’s a look at our preseason college football power rankings. The official polls will be released towards the end of August. Heavy has Texas sneaking into the top 25. Big 12 teams are listed in bold.

1. Alabama

2. Ohio State

3. Florida State

4. USC

5. Washington

6. Penn State

7. Oklahoma

8. Oklahoma State

9. Clemson

10. Michigan

11. Louisville

12. Wisconsin

13. LSU

14. Georgia

15. Miami

16. Florida

17. USF

18. Auburn

19. West Virginia

20. TCU

21. Stanford

22. Virginia Tech

23. Tennessee

24. Texas

25. UCLA