OTF Premium Ranking Texas' transfer portal classes under Steve Sarkisian

If you read Bobby Burton’s Monday post regarding trends emerging in spring practice, the first four had to do with the outstanding transfer class Steve Sarkisian and the organization reeled in during the portal window.

To continue the theme of highlighting a deep, talented group of incoming transfers, I wanted to rank the five previous transfer hauls from the most to the least impactful. If nothing else, it’ll help set the bar for what the 2026 group of Longhorn newcomers must accomplish to maximize what they collectively bring to the table.

1. 2024

11 Transfers: Kendrick Blackshire (LB), Silas Bolden (WR), Isaiah Bond (WR), Velton Gardner (RB), Matthew Golden (WR), Jermayne Lole (DL), Trey Moore (EDGE), Andrew Mukuba (S), Amari Niblack (TE), Bill Norton (DL), Tia Savea (DL)

Blackshire never played a snap for the Longhorns, while Gardner, Niblack and Savea didn’t make a dent in the program. Still, to get first-round (Golden) and second-round (Mukuba) draft picks, a game-changing return specialist (Bolden), an NFL wideout who contributed significantly when healthy (Bond), a formidable pass rusher who will be drafted (Moore) and two defensive linemen (Lole and Norton) who were key pieces of a national championship-caliber defense out of the rest of the group is an incredible hit rate for a transfer portal haul.

2. 2022

Seven Transfers: Jahleel Billingsley (TE), Quinn Ewers (QB), Agiye Hall (WR), Tarique Milton (WR), Isaiah Neyor (WR), Diamonte Tucker-Dorsey (LB), Ryan Watts (CB)

Despite getting little to nothing from the offensive skill players, Texas landed a franchise quarterback (Ewers) and a future NFL draft pick on defense (Watts) in Sarkisian’s second talent acquisition cycle. Considering when he got to the Forty Acres and what he did to solidify the most important position on the field, on top of making Texas an attractive option for skill position transfers, Ewers is the most important Longhorn acquired from the transfer portal since it launched in 2018.

3. 2023

Five Transfers: Trill Carter (DL), Jalen Catalon (S), Gavin Holmes (CB), Adonai Mitchell (WR), Ryan Sanborn (P)

The smallest portal haul of Sarkisian's tenure has a case to be ranked higher because of how important Mitchell and Sanborn were to a team that was good enough to win a national championship.

Catalon made plays until his body let him down and Holmes was a solid multi-year contributor in the secondary. Similar to when Texas took Milton in 2022, Carter was an insurance policy the Longhorns didn’t need to cash since it had arguably college football’s top defensive line rotation that season, with Byron Murphy and T’Vondre Sweat as the tip of the spear.

4. 2025

11 Transfers: Jack Bouwmeester (P), Cole Brevard (DL), Matthew Caldwell (QB), Jack Endries (TE), Lavon Johnson (DL), Hero Kanu (DL), Emmett Mosley V (WR), Travis Shaw (DL), Mason Shipley (K), Brad Spence (LB), Maraad Watson (DL)

If for no other reason, this group isn’t ranked higher because there’s a lot of football to be played before a proper verdict can be rendered. That said, it's borderline disrespectful to rank the group this low because of how important the one-year transfers were in 2025.

Texas wouldn’t have been a 10-win team if not for Caldwell and Shipley. Endries will be drafted later this month and Bouwmeester was an upgrade for a punt team that struggled in 2024.

While Brevard and Shaw were solid stop-gap linemen for one season, Kanu and Watson could leave the program as top-100 draft picks. Mosley and Spence are positioned to play a high percentage of high-leverage snaps this season and both of them have the tools to play at the next level.

5. 2021

Six Transfers: Ben Davis (EDGE), Darrion Dunn (CB), Ovie Oghoufo (LB), Devin Richardson (LB), Keilan Robinson (RB), Ray Thornton (EDGE)

Sarkisian’s first portal class did produce an NFL draft pick (Robinson). Although the efforts the six transfers made as Longhorns are appreciated, this group exemplified a roster in which the most talented players lacked experience and the most experienced players didn’t significantly raise the team’s ceiling.