College football returns to Austin on September 5, 2026, when the Texas Longhorns open their new season against the Texas State Bobcats at DKR-Texas Memorial Stadium.
Kickoff is scheduled for 2:30 p.m.
CT, with the game televised nationally on ESPN, according to the official Texas football schedule.
It will be the first game of the 2026 campaign for both programs and the beginning of two very different journeys.
For Steve Sarkisian and Texas, the opener comes after another double-digit-win season.
The Longhorns finished 2025 at 10–3, closing the campaign with a 41–27 victory over Michigan in the Cheez-It Citrus Bowl.
It marked Texas’ third consecutive season with at least 10 victories.
Texas began fall camp on August 5, giving Sarkisian and his staff roughly a month to prepare the roster for opening day.
Arch Manning enters the spotlight again
Much of the attention will naturally center on Arch Manning, who returns after completing his first full season as Texas’ starting quarterback.
Manning started all 13 games in 2025, completing 248 of 404 passes for 3,163 yards and 26 touchdowns.
He also demonstrated his ability as a runner, recording 399 rushing yards and a team-high 10 rushing touchdowns.
His final performance of the season provided an impressive conclusion.
Against Michigan in the Citrus Bowl, Manning passed for 221 yards and two touchdowns while rushing for a career-high 155 yards and two more scores, helping Texas secure the 41–27 victory.
Manning enters 2026 on the Maxwell Award preseason watch list, while Texas also placed five players on the Walter Camp Preseason All-America teams.
Those honors underline the amount of established talent Sarkisian has available as the Longhorns begin another demanding schedule.
Texas State arrives with momentum
Texas State, however, will not arrive in Austin without its own reasons for confidence.
The Bobcats finished the 2025 season 7–6 and ended their campaign by defeating Rice 41–10 in the Armed Forces Bowl.
The victory gave Texas State a third consecutive bowl win and a third straight season with at least seven victories.
Quarterback Brad Jackson is one of the biggest players to watch.
Jackson threw for more than 3,200 yards and 21 touchdowns in 2025 while adding 744 rushing yards and 17 touchdowns on the ground.
Like Manning, Jackson has been included on the 2026 Maxwell Award preseason watch list.
Texas State is also beginning an important new chapter under head coach GJ Kinne.
The 2026 season will be the Bobcats’ inaugural football campaign in the Pac-12, adding further significance to their opening test against Texas.
How to watch Texas vs. Texas State
For Longhorns fans, September 5 will provide the first real look at how the 2026 roster performs in meaningful competition.
For Texas State, the game represents an opportunity to test a returning group against a Texas program coming off three consecutive 10-win seasons.
The quarterback matchup alone gives the opener an intriguing storyline: Manning returns after accounting for 36 passing and rushing touchdowns in 2025, while Jackson comes back after producing 38 through the air and on the ground for Texas State.
The essential viewing information is straightforward: Texas Longhorns vs. Texas State Bobcats, Saturday, September 5, at 2:30 p.m.
CT at DKR-Texas Memorial Stadium in Austin, with national television coverage on ESPN.
The offseason countdown is getting shorter.
Football is almost back in Austin — and Texas’ 2026 season begins with an in-state matchup against a Texas State team carrying plenty of momentum of its own.
