A large portion of the Texas fan base believes that 2016 dual-threat quarterback commit Shane Buechele could be the next great Texas Longhorn quarterback.

The 6’1″, 185 pound commitment from Arlington Lamar confirmed early Friday via Twitter that he plans to graduate early, and enroll at Texas next January.

The road to graduating early begins! — Shane Buechele (@BGShaneBuechele) April 24, 2015

This is huge news for a program that is still desperately seeking a quarterback position that can lead them back to the upper echelon of college football.

Of course, Buechele will have quite a bit of competition ahead of him.

Tyrone Swoopes and Jerrod Heard are obviously in a battle to start for the Longhorns this fall.

Incoming freshman Kai Locksley, who will be in Austin this summer, has loads of talent but is widely considered to be a project at the QB position. Most believe that he will redshirt next season.

Fans would love nothing more than for any of the above players to succeed as the team’s undisputed starter for the next few years, but as we all know, it’s not exactly easy to find the next “Colt McCoy” or “Vince Young.” At this point, Texas fans would settle for anyone that can protect the ball and put points on the board.

If none of the quarterbacks on the 2015 roster can step up and definitely stake his claim as leader of the offense in the next year, Buechele very well could have a chance to see the field sooner rather than later.

While it’s always preferable for a freshman quarterback to redshirt his first year, the Longhorns currently do not have that luxury.

If there are still questions surrounding the position this time next year, the fact that Buechele will likely be enrolled in January and able to participate in spring football could be huge for a Texas program that has struggled to find its offensive identity.