The hype for Texas Longhorns linebacker Malik Jefferson was quite high during his freshman year in 2015, but he managed to deliver. The former five-star linebacker finished the year as a Freshman All-American and is already starting to draw praise from NFL scouts.

A lot was expected of Jefferson during his first season, and those expectations have only been scaled up for his sophomore season. In fact, they're about as high as possible with Sporting News projecting Jefferson as a first-team All-American.

Here's what Sporting News had to say about Jefferson:

It’s a big year for Charlie Strong at Texas, and Jefferson is a reason for that optimism. He stepped in as a freshman with 61 tackles and 2.5 sacks. Jefferson is an instinctive linebacker who can deliver the big hit. Will he help elevate the Longhorns’ defense to something more as a sophomore?

It's a big jump from freshman All-American to first-team All-American, but Jefferson seems ready to at least attempt the leap. The Mesquitte product is the clear leader of the Longhorn team, and Texas needs Jefferson to play at an elite level to make a jump back into the national picture.