It's April. The 2026 season hasn't kicked off. Spring practices are still wrapping up across the country. And yet, ESPN's Mark Schlabach has already drawn the blueprint for what this year's college football offense could look like at its absolute best — and it reads like a Texas tourism ad with a few guest appearances.
Schlabach's 2026 Way-Too-Early Offensive All-America team is out, and it's bold, it's conference-diverse, and it's absolutely dominated by burnt orange. Five Longhorns landed on this list — quarterback Arch Manning, wide receiver Cam Coleman, offensive tackle Trevor Goosby, and a unit that is quietly being built into something lethal. Add in a Miami freshman who led the FBS in receptions as a 17-year-old, a Cincinnati guard with elite PFF grades, and a Missouri running back who's long overdue for national recognition, and you've got a list that's going to generate real conversation from now until kickoff.
Let's break it down.
The Manning Era Starts for Real
Arch Manning's 2025 season was never going to be perfect, and it wasn't. He threw for 3,163 yards with 26 touchdowns and seven interceptions, adding 399 rushing yards and 10 more scores on the ground in a 10–3 campaign. But there was a visible growth arc across the season — from the shaky opening loss at Ohio State and a two-interception stumble at Florida, to a composed Red River Rivalry performance against Oklahoma, to sealing the Citrus Bowl against Michigan with a 60-yard touchdown run. Multiple analysts noted that Manning posted a QBR of 92 or above in four of his final five games, giving every reason to believe he'll carry that momentum into 2026.
He enters this season with a full year of SEC film, a loaded offensive line, and — crucially — Cam Coleman catching passes out wide. Schlabach himself noted that Coleman showed elite potential at Auburn, and that now catching passes from Manning, "the sky seems to be the limit." The Longhorns missed the CFP in 2025, a fact that still stings in Austin. Manning returns motivated, refined, and with enough weaponry around him to make a serious run at the whole thing.
The heir to the most celebrated quarterback bloodline in football history is no longer warming up. He's the main event.
The Longhorn Five — And What It Says About Texas
It's not just Manning and Coleman. Offensive tackle Trevor Goosby also earned a spot, providing continuity on the blind side. Goosby's return means Manning's protection should be more secure in 2026 — and at 6-foot-7 and 312 pounds, there's plenty of frame to add strength with another year of development. Five All-Americans from one program isn't just dominant — it's a statement that Steve Sarkisian has assembled a roster built to compete for a national championship, not just a conference title.
@CFBAlerts_ on X: "ESPN's Mark Schlabach has FIVE Texas Longhorns on his 2026 Way-Too-Early Offensive All-America team. Arch Manning. Cam Coleman. Trevor Goosby. The Longhorns missed the CFP in 2025 — they're coming back hungry. 🤘 #Texas #CFB"
Texas football in 2025 was a program that showed all the ingredients without quite baking the cake. In 2026, with more experience at QB, elite transfer additions, and a returning unit hungry to prove a point, the Longhorns are positioned to be the most complete offense in the country.
The Portal's Fingerprints Are All Over This List
One of the most fascinating elements of Schlabach's team is how deeply the transfer portal shaped it. Houston guard Shadre Hurst arrived from Tulane, and Cam Coleman came over from Auburn. This is the new college football economy in real time — elite talent flowing to programs where it fits best, and Schlabach's list reflects that reality honestly.
Shadre Hurst at Houston is a name the casual fan might not know yet, but they will. The interior of an offensive line doesn't generate Instagram highlights, but it dictates everything about how an offense functions. His presence gives Houston a legitimate weapon in the trenches, and his inclusion on this list is Schlabach's way of saying: pay attention to this program.
Meanwhile, Kewan Lacy at Ole Miss and Ahmad Hardy at Missouri represent the running back contingent — two backs who do their damage in completely different ways. Lacy flashed his explosiveness with a 73-yard touchdown run for Ole Miss, but it's the consistency and yards-after-contact that make him a legitimate All-American candidate through a full 2026 season. Hardy at Missouri has been one of college football's best-kept secrets, a physical runner who thrives between the tackles and creates chunk plays when the defense thinks it has him stopped.
Baby Jesus and the Freshman Who Broke the Record Books
If there's one name on this list that should have every fan doing a double take, it's Malachi Toney of Miami. Toney led the entire FBS with 109 receptions and ranked fifth with 1,211 receiving yards, also throwing two touchdowns and totaling 298 yards on 23 punt returns — and he did all of that as a teenager. He'll be 18 when the 2026 season kicks off.
ESPN's analysts put it plainly: with a year of experience and a full offseason for Miami's coaches to find new ways to use him, the future is scary for "Baby Jesus." That's not hyperbole. That's pattern recognition. Toney's 2025 was one of the most remarkable freshman seasons in recent memory, and Schlabach's inclusion of him here isn't a reach — it's math.
Trending on X: "109 catches. 1,211 yards. As a freshman. Malachi Toney isn't a prospect. He's a problem. #Canes #CFB"
The Hurricanes were a national championship contender in 2025, and Toney was a massive reason why. If the offense can replace some departing pieces around him, he's going to put up numbers that get Heisman conversation started before the season even kicks off.
The Trenches Don't Lie
Any legitimate All-America team lives and dies in the trenches, and Schlabach's list gives the offensive line serious respect. Beyond Goosby and Hurst, Evan Tengesdahl of Cincinnati anchors the interior. Cincinnati's offensive line ranked second in the FBS with just eight sacks allowed in 2025, and Tengesdahl earned a PFF overall grade of 85.4 with a run-blocking score of 89.7 — second nationally at his position. The Bearcats don't get the national spotlight Ohio State or Texas does, but Tengesdahl is exactly the kind of player who makes scouts and analytics departments take notice.
Iowa's Kade Pieper rounds out the interior. With three starters departing from Iowa's Joe Moore Award-winning offensive line, Pieper's decision to return for another season provides the Hawkeyes with a crucial piece of continuity. Iowa's offense often gets overlooked in favor of the defense, but Pieper is a legitimate NFL prospect playing at a very high level.
Indiana's Carter Smith earns the other tackle spot — a fitting nod to a Hoosier program that just won a national championship and still has pieces in place to compete in 2026.
Special Teams: Ole Miss Kicks in a Big Spot
Lucas Carneiro's inclusion as the team's kicker might be the quietest pick on this list, but it's earned. Carneiro made 31 of 35 field goals in 2025, including 9-of-10 from beyond 40 yards and 5-of-7 from 50 or more — and he made a 47-yarder to put Ole Miss ahead of Georgia 37-34 in a CFP quarterfinal at the Sugar Bowl. That kick wasn't a routine make. That was a moment — the kind of pressure situation that separates specialists from gamers. Carneiro is the latter.
What It All Means
This list isn't just a fun February exercise. It's a roadmap. It tells you which programs are loaded, which players are carrying legitimate breakout momentum, and which storylines are going to define the 2026 college football season before the first whistle blows in September.
Texas is the team to beat — at least on paper. The Longhorns have the quarterback, the weapons, the line, and the motivation of a program that knows it left a championship on the table. Ole Miss has weapons on both sides of the ball. Miami has a generational receiver and a Heisman-worthy quarterback transfer in Darian Mensah. And the portal keeps reshuffling the deck every offseason.
Schlabach's team is a prediction. College football is a sport that loves burning predictions to the ground. But if this group plays to its potential — if Manning takes the next step, if Toney keeps doing what Toney does, if the offensive linemen from Cincinnati to Iowa hold the line — then this could be the most complete offensive All-America class in recent memory.
Season hasn't started yet. The hype has.
Follow CFB Alerts on X at @CFBAlerts_ and on Instagram at @cfbalerts for 2026 college football coverage all offseason long.
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