NCAA Basketball: 5 programs poised for resurgent years in 2020-21

Texas Longhorns

Wondering whether or not Texas will be “back” is seemingly an annual college football offseason tradition, but it also applies in the world of hoops as well. Tommy Penders jumpstarted the program in the 80s/90s with eight NCAA Tournament appearances in 10 years but Rick Barnes was the one that really took the Longhorns over the top.

While Texas never won the national title with Coach Barnes, he missed the Big Dance just once in 17 seasons at the helm and reached the Final Four in 2003.

Current head coach Shaka Smart took over before the 2015-16 season and Texas has not experienced the same level of success under his leadership. Still, there are extremely high expectations for this coming season thanks to an abundance of returning talent. The Longhorns ended this past campaign at 19-12 (9-9 B12) prior to the cancelation of the Big Dance and are bringing back every single key contributor.

These returnees include a strong trio of guards in Matt Coleman, Andrew Jones, and Courtney Ramey. Each of them averaged in double-figures per game during this past season and will look to reprise their roles in the backcourt. Additionally, Coach Smart is bringing in Greg Brown, a 6-foot-9 bouncy power forward ranked as the No. 9 overall recruit in the 2020 class. He should add even more athleticism to the Longhorns’ frontcourt.

Texas’ roster is absolutely loaded with talent – there should be no doubt about that. The biggest question will be if Coach Smart can help this group reach its fullest potential. He is on the hot seat heading into the campaign but there is plenty of talent for this team to not only make the NCAA Tournament but also make some noise near the top of the rankings if it all comes together.