Three significant players at critical positions of need on both sides of the ball have been added by Texas football since the December window began for underclassmen to access the NCAA Transfer Portal a few weeks ago.
Portal pledges from former Houston Cougars sophomore wide receiver Matthew Golden, Clemson Tigers junior safety Andrew Mukuba, and UTSA Roadrunners redshirt sophomore edge rusher Trey Moore have been added by Texas and head coach Steve Sarkisian. This week, all three of those Longhorns’ portal commits put pen to paper.
Each of Golden, Moore, and Mukuba fills a specific positional need for which the Longhorns had to use the transfer portal in order to add an impact starter before the offseason. Golden provides Texas with an instantaneous, dynamic receiver. Moore is an incredibly effective edge player who improves the pass rush right away. Additionally, Mukuba can start at nickel or safety right away.
Texas most certainly hasn’t finished searching the web for impact players who can strengthen the team at critical positions where it needs help. Here are five possible portal targets for the Longhorns that can improve the team in spots that are in need of improvement on the Christmas wish list.
As a side note, this list is mostly names who could upgrade the roster for Texas in areas of need, not necessarily players who the Longhorns are targeting already.
Among the position groups the Longhorns are looking at in the portal on offense heading into the offseason is tight end. Texas is looking for an impactful tight end with proven Power Five experience who can block and post a threat as a receiver in the portal, with All-Big 12 junior tight end Ja’Tavion Sanders expected to enter the NFL Draft next spring.
Texas returns one tight end who has taken a significant number of live-game reps this season, junior Gunnar Helm. But Helm doesn’t have the receiving threat portion to his game anywhere close to what Sanders does against opposing defenses. Helm is a great blocking tight end, but Texas would be looking to add a more more viable receiver threat at the position who could pose more of a matchup issue against opposing defenses.
Among the tight ends currently in the transfer portal, the best available (in the 247Sports Composite and On3 transfer rankings) is the former Maryland Terrapins senior starter Corey Dyches. The 6-foot-2 and 220-pound Dyches is a proven receiving threat and a decent blocker in pass pro and run schemes.
Dyches is an explosive receiving threat who can be lined in the flex spot or out wide. He’s got the speed and acceleration to burn opposing cover guys over the top or down the seams. Dyches led all Big Ten tight ends in deep receiving yards (over 350) and deep TD catches (four) in the last two seasons.
And he’s a pretty developed route runner who could work between the numbers in the short and intermediate passing game.
The downside to pursuing a potential portal target at tight end such as Dyches would be his smaller frame. He would be limited regarding the matches he could take in pass pro and run blocking in the SEC, considering he’s just 220 pounds.
