As you can see in the chart below, the 2008 and 2009 seasons were excellent seasons for the Longhorns, and the last four have been either below average or near average to the rest of the "league". For more details on the Longhorn's production performance, feel free to read the season by season results below.
2013
The Longhorn's finished the regular season at 8-4 and are bowl bound to play in this season's Alamo Bowl against the University of Oregon Ducks. Texas played against an "average" strength of schedule (SOS). A team has an average SOS if their calculated SOS is within absolute value one standard deviation of the "league" average SOS. The Longhorn's best game (win over highest ranked team using the model) was against their Red River rival #30 Oklahoma and their worst game (loss to lowest ranked team using the model) was to #66 ranked BYU toward the beginning of season. The Longhorns finished the regular season as the #57 ranked team in total production with the #67 ranked offense and the #48 ranked defense at the time of head football coach Brown's resignation.
2012
While Texas finished at 9-4 and played against a "tougher" SOS, in terms of production they took another step back this season finishing as the #53 ranked team in total production, with the #37 ranked offense and the #64 ranked defense. Texas' best game was against #21 ranked Oklahoma State and their worst loss was to #63 ranked West Virginia.
2011
The Longhorns improved this season, but not by a large amount. They finished the regular season at 7-5 and won their bowl game against #57 ranked California to finish at 8-5. Texas played against an average SOS and their best win was over #28 ranked BYU and their worst loss was to #60 Kansas State. Texas finished as the #46 ranked team in overall production and had the #64 ranked offense and the #27 ranked defense.
2010
Texas took a giant Texas two step backwards from the previous two seasons finishing the regular season at 5-7 and bowl ineligible, while playing against an average SOS. Texas' best game by a large margin was their defeat of #16 Nebraska. Their other four victories in 2010 were against teams in the bottom half of the Complex Invasion College Football Production Model rankings. The Longhorns worst loss was against #108 UCLA. Yes, Texas lost to a team that finished 13 spots from the worst team in the "league". The Longhorns finished as the #70 ranked team in overall production, with the #87 ranked offense and the #30 ranked defense. All large declines from the previous two years.
2009
The Longhorns finished the regular season undefeated at 13-0 and played in the "National Championship" game against the #2 ranked University of Alabama Crimson Tide, losing that game 21-37 to finish 13-1. Texas played against an "average" SOS and finished the season 3-1 against team ranked in the top 25. The Longhorn's best game again was a victory in the Red River Rivalry over #8 ranked Oklahom, and of course the only loss was to #2 Alabama. Texas finished as the #5 ranked team in overall production with the #6 ranked offense and the #11 ranked defense. Texas remained steady in overall production and defense as compared to the 2008 season and improved their defense. Overall, another excellent season for the Horns.
2008
For this season, the Longhorns finished at 12-1, playing against a "tougher" SOS than the league on average. Texas' best game was a 45-35 win over the #3 Oklahoma Sooners in the Red River Rivalry, and their worst game (only loss of the season) was a 33-39 loss to #10 Texas Tech. In terms of overall production, the Longhorns were the #5 team in the nation, with the #6 offense and the #30 defense in all of the Football Bowl Subdivision. Texas was 4-1 against teams that finished in the Top 25 of the Complex Invasion College Football Production Model. Other than one game and one play, this could have been a team that played in the National Championship game.
Analysis of 2013 NCAA FBS Head Coach Changes
Washington and Steve Sarkisian
Wake Forest and Jim Grobe
Wyoming and Dave Christensen
Eastern Michigan and Ron English
Florida Atlantic and Carl Pelini
Miami of Ohio and Don Treadwell
UConn and Paul Pasqualoni
USC and Lane Kiffen