You want to know the best way to view the Spring Portal if you're a Texas football fan?
Honesty, there's only one thing you truly need to know.
The Longhorns went into last week as one of the best and most talented teams in college football and a favorite for the national championship and departed the week better in all three phases of the game.
As someone who has stressed the importance of Texas being able to address a number of needs going into last week's opening of the Portal, all I can do on this Easter weekend is applaud the gusto with which Steve Sarkisian and Co. attacked the opening of the window. Consider the talent that Texas had locked up by Friday afternoon while the rest of the nation was still trying to determine who to bring in for visits:
* It landed an instant starter and the best tight end available in the spring Portal window in California standout Jack Endries, who returns in 2025 as the No. 2 tight end among the four power conference players at his position that return from a year ago (only new Ohio State transfer Max Clare (685 yards) had more 2024 receiving yards.
* It landed a possible starting wide receiver in Stanford's Emmett Mosley V, who was by all objective measures one of the top true freshman wide receivers in the sport last season.
* It answered its significant question at place-kicker by replacing last year's starter (Bert Auburn), who connected on only 64% of his attempts and 43% of his effort from 40+ yards last season with a replacement (Texas State's Mason Shipley) who has connected on nearly 90% of his career attempts (88.6%) and made 84.6% of his efforts from 40+ yards in his career.
* It landed depth at defensive tackle depth in Lavon Johnson that was probably good enough to start in the Big 10 this season at a time when many of its peers are shopping outside of power conferences for interior defensive line help.
All of this was done by the end of happy hour on Friday.
For months, I've reported that my sourcing was relaying to me that Texas would be "all-in on 2025" in the same fashion Ohio State was all-in on 2024 and we got a chance to see what that would look like in its execution this week. Texas wasn't just ready to strike in the Portal market. It was ready strike, pounce and maim.
We can debate (and we might for the rest of the off-season) whether Texas should have been better prepared for the December Portal period when the program was juggling 100 things at once, but it's very hard to nitpick the efforts in the April Portal. For all of the angst about the presence of the Portal, the truth of the matter is that it continues to be very good for the Texas program, it has likely produced starters at wide receiver, tight end, (at least one) defensive tackle, punter and place-kicker for this season, while also adding added depth at defensive tackle and a possible impact performer at linebacker.
This is how you make good teams better teams. This is how very good teams can become borderline great teams. It's how borderline great teams can become great.
The only real questions I have left are the following:
a. How many guys will depart the Texas roster by the end of the Portal?
b. What are the final areas of focus for the coaches with the remaining available slots?
There are indications that another wide receiver/special teams ace and defensive tackle could be in the works. I would still offer that added help could be used at running back, tight end, interior offensive line and possibly at cornerback (see below).
As the resident nitpicker-in-chief, there's not a lot to nitpick. Texas needs to forever be aggressive in the Portal and I don't know how anyone could argue that it hasn't been the most aggressive program in the sport in the last week. None of this happens without outstanding planning. None of this happens without tremendous execution. None of this happens without money.
You guys have to know if I thought the Longhorns were laying an Easter egg in the Portal, I'd be the first to go out hunting with critical words about the approach. I love me some second-guessing. I'm intoxicated by the construction of a championship team, which means that I can often get lost in the chase of perfection.
All I have for Sarkisian and Co. this morning is flowers. I'm impressed.
No. 2 - The bottom line ...
If this happened to be a fantasy football trade, the commish of the league would have to step in and veto the sucker.
Texas Departures (13)
* Projected back-up, but possible starting wide receiver Johntay Cook
* Projected back-up, but possible starting tight end Amari Niblack
* Projected rotation-level defensive tackle Sydir Mitchell
* Projected back-up kicker Bert Auburn
* Projected non-rotational defensive tackle Tia Savea
* Projected non-rotational defensive tackle Jaray Bledsoe
* Projected non-rotational defensive tackle Aaron Bryant
* Projected 3rd-string tackle Malik Agbo
* Projected 3rd/4th string wide receiver Freddie Dubose Jr.
* Projected 3rd-string linebacker Derion Gullette
* Projected 3rd-string linebacker Tausili Akana
* Projected 4th-string cornerback Jay'Vion Cole
* Projected 3rd-string edge Justice Finkley
Traded For ...
Texas Arrivals (9)
* Projected starting tight end Jack Endries
* Projected starting wide receiver Emmett Mosley
* Projected starting punter Jack Bouwmeester
* Projected starting place-kicker Mason Shipley
* Projected starting defensive tackle Cole Brevard
* Projected rotation-level defensive tackle Travis Shaw
* Projected rotation-level defensive tackle Hero Kanu
* Projected rotation-level defensive tackle Lavon Johnson
* Projected rotation-level linebacker Brad Spence
No. 3 - Saying a quiet thing out loud ...
The Texas coaching staff likes its group of cornerbacks,
They like Malik Muhammad. They like Kobe Black. They like Warren Roberson. They like some of their younger guys.
Heck, they really, really like Jaylon Guilbeau.
One of the things that continues to be whispered around the program in the last month, whispers that have existed since last season, is that the Longhorns don't love any of their cornerback options. With an incredibly high bar in place to judge the players against, there's a sense that Longhorns have a bunch of players that are good, but maybe not first- or second-day NFL Draft kind of good.
It needs to be said that this conversation is less about Guilbeau than the others. Just like Jahdae Barron a year ago, there seems to be a sense that Guilbeau has elevated himself above the rest of his peers, but the rest of that cornerback group falls into a category of player that hasn't quite flipped the switch on being great.
If ... IF ... the right player entered the Portal ... I think the coaches would love to have someone come in and push Muhammad for one of the starting spots. They want one of the group of Black, Roberson, Wardell Mack and Santana Wilson to emerge as that kind of player and while they have all flashed signs of being very good players, they aren't yet at a level that would place them truly in a neck and neck battle with Muhammad for a starting role.
When we talk about position groups to watch this summer, highlight this one. There's a lot of competition taking place and the coaches want even more in the name of hitting levels that aren't quite being hit yet.
No. 4 – Saying more quiet stuff out loud ...
One of the amazing things about last year's defense is that the interior of the defensive line on one of the nation's best defenses was partly comprised of parts from the Island of Portal Misfit Toys.
Whatever the likes of Jermayne Lole, Bill Norton, Tia Savea were as Portal prospects, they were not wanted by other schools around the nation the way the likes of Trey Moore, Isaiah Bond and Andrew Makuba were. They were just solid puzzle pieces that ended up working out pretty well when coupled with the emergence of Alfred Collins and Vernon Broughton.
The state of the defensive tackle position before Kenny Baker arrived to coach the group means that the Longhorns are going to have to do the whole Island of Portal Misfit Toys all over again. Oh, and it's harder to find top-end talent at the interior defensive line positions than any other position in the sport. Teams do everything they can to make sure their good to decent to great defensive linemen don't go anywhere.
It's left the Longhorns in a position where they have brought in four defensive tackles through the Portal thus far (and might not be done), but there's still a sense of uncertainty that exists that is different than the way everyone will feel about the tight end position with the single addition of Jack Endries.
Check out the way the defensive tackles that the Longhorns have nabbed thus far have been ranked by the three major recruiting services:
* Cole Brevard - Rivals (No. 92 overall/No. 4 DT), 247 (No. 100 overall/No. 15 DT), On3 (No.103 overall/No.4 DT)
* Travis Shaw - Rivals (No. 161 overall/No. 7 DT), 247 (No. 112 overall/No. 17 DT), On3 (No.173 overall/N0.13 DT)
* Hero Kanu - Rivals (No. 385 overall/No. 27 DT), 247 (No. 205 overall/No. 31 DT), On3 (No.372 overall/No.27 DT)
* Lavon Johnson - Rivals (Not yet ranked), 247 (No. 207 overall/No. 32 DT), On3 (Not yet ranked)
None of these guys look like first- or second-day NFL players in the making. Brevard was pretty good at Purdue. Shaw was decent at UNC. Kanu and Johnson both showed promise at Ohio State and Maryland, respectively.
The Longhorns will hope that the foursome can be coached up in a way that makes them a serviceable unit on a potentially dominating defense, but it's a major work in progress. None of these guys are stars. There also might not be a Collins/Broughton on the roster to supplement the transfers the way that duo did a year ago.
Personally, I think the Longhorns are going to be ok. Good enough that the defense will be one of the best in the nation.
Yet, the position is an unanswered question at this point. It's going to be discussed as a concern. It's important that everyone understand the whys.
No. 5 - Texas Football Scattershooting ...
... The Longhorns are up to nine incoming Portal additions and that number will grow by at least two. Almost all of the players brought in will either start or contribute significantly. The No. 1 ranked 2025 recruiting class might produce half the number of immediate contributors. It cannot be stressed enough how important this element is in terms of program-building and it's only growing.
... Steve Sarkisian definitely has a type in the portal. Outside of the kicker Mason Shipley, here is the list of schools for the other eight transfers Texas has taken this off-season: Stanford, California, Purdue, North Carolina, Ohio State, Maryland, Arkansas and Utah. All power conference players. Four from the Big 10. Two from the ACC. One from the SEC and Big 12. Sark does not like to slum the smaller schools for talent. Personally, I'd like to see him take an occasional flyer on small school players, but I understand why his instincts tell him not to ... most of these guys will fail and if Sark is going into the Portal for someone, he wants a guarantee on the box more than he wants a lotto ticket.
* It feels like the Longhorns will go into the season with Ryan Wingo, Parker Livingstone, DeAndre Moore and Emmett Mosley as the top group of wide receivers going into the summer. Given that the Longhorns don't rotate a ton of receivers, it probably leaves room for one of the true freshmen to have a major 2025 impact. The smart money would be on Jaime Ffrench or Dylan McCutcheon.
* It's interesting to me to see the various levels of urgency that exist at a position like defensive tackle and the lack of by any means needed urgency given to the offensive line. I could/would argue that guard/center needs just as much urgency with regards to needed improved quality.
* Arch Manning has been outstanding this spring, even without most of the weapons he'll be relying on in the fall available to him. No one in the program wants to use the word "upgrade," but all of the words they use to describe his play sound a lot like it the words that describe an "upgrade."
* It sounds like Jack Bouwmeester has won the starting punting job and the players involved know it. I've heard that Michael Kern has had a good spring, but the coaches didn't bring Bouwmeester in to sit on the bench. It's a message Will Stone likely knows will exist at place-kicker.
* The Longhorns are sitting at 83 and have two to play with. They could use another departure or two. Or three.
No. 6 – OU doesn't understand what it is ...
So, let's be clear about Oklahoma Football in April of 2025 ...
* Only occasional elite national high school prospects dare to sign there.
* It can't afford to pay the occasional elite prospect that it does sign.
* It hired a general manager that specializes in finding under-the-radar talent
* It is shopping for DL help at SE Missouri State, TE help at Missouri State and WR help at Illinois State.
* It partly passed on the WR help from Illinois State because of NIL budget concerns.
Honestly, I'm at a loss for words over the state of the OU program. It is not handling this new NIL world well. It is not remotely ready to play high-level football in the SEC. It does not have a plan that looks doable as things currently stand.
The OU fan base doesn't know what it needs to focus on because there are so many things in a state of disaster that need focus. The fan base seems confused that a 2024 5-star defensive tackle would flinch over allegedly seeing his NIL money drop in half from one year to the next at a time when players at his position are earning half the national debt just by having a pulse. It seems confused at the notion that Texas was able to allegedly give Texas State kicker Mason Shipley a large enough NIL deal that he basically ghosted the Sooners after visiting. It seems confused about faking excitement over trying to bring in players from under rocks to compete against the titans of the sport in the titan conference of the sport.
That program is in an absolute free fall and I'm not afraid to call it out. What's happening in Norman is not what happens to the healthiest programs in college football.
It reminds me of what happened to Dirk Diggler in Boogie Nights once Little Bill committed a double murder and the 80s kicked in.
Maybe OU really is about to become Nebraska.
No. 7 - Texas Baseball handles its business ...
For most of what has been a fairytale season for the Texas Baseball team, true freshman Jonah Williams has felt like a 5-star mascot.
Although we know he's uber-talented, it just kind of felt like he was moonlighting as a baseball player this spring until the football part of his skill set would take over. Up until this weekend, Williams had seen a couple of at bats. He scored a run against Houston Christian.
It was a nice little unique story until this weekend when Texas coach Jim Schlossnagel turned the kid loose in left field and Williams became THE story of the weekend.
Over the span of two games against top-10 competition, Williams went 5-of-7 with 2 runs and 3 RBI. Every time he came up to bat, it felt like an event ... and then like a boss, he delivered.
It was intoxicating. It was an adrenaline rush. It felt like a wave of the future.
Has this baseball season been fun so for, or what?
No. 8 – BUY or SELL …
(Buy) Cole Brevard would be a starter if the season started today. They would love to find someone else to compete for a starter's job.
(Sell) lololololol
(Sell) I don't trust college officials with the power that comes with the spot foul. Fifteen yards needs to be the limit of the damage they can create.
(Buy) But, I have some serious doubts. I saw an ESPN list today that didn't even mention him as a candidate for an overall Top 100 list.
(Buy) Yes, that's kind of where I am.
(Buy) He's sooooooooo good at the game that involves pigskin. No offense to the sports using wood, cork and rubber cores wrapped in yarn and covered in cowhide.
(Sell) There's zero thirst for that at the top levels of the athletic department/university.
(Buy) I don't know the correct answer, but I can't think of any situation that is better than the current one Chris Del Conte has comprised.
(Buy) I'll say the number is three from here on out.
(Buy) I'm all-in on 2026. That feels like THE year.
(Sell) I'm going to say he doesn't quite hit those heights in baseball.
(Sell/Buy/Sell) I think Nick Brooks could have something to say about a day one starting job at left tackle for Ojo, but a lot depends on what happens at both tackle spots from now until December. I've got Ryan Wingo leading the team in receiving yards.
(Buy) I keep telling you guys over and over and over that the conversations that go on behind the scenes make for very few secrets.
(Buy) That seems completely fair. Not making it to Omaha would mean losing at home two out of three times to someone worse than the teams Texas has been beating all season at home.
(Sell) I just wanted to thank you. No matter how much work I put in and how few days I take off, you sometimes need a reminder of the stuff you don't get done. Thanks for the reminder! Happy Easter to you, too!
No. 9 – Scattershooting all over the place …
... They might have to re-name this trophy after Chris Del Conte when it's all said and done.
... Texas Softball handled its business this weekend by taking two of three from LSU on walk-offs. It's never boring in the SEC.
... OU has a national title gymnastics team and the Longhorns don't have a gymnastics team. That seems messed up.
... When Russell Westbrook hit a clutch 3 late in the fourth quarter against the Clippers on Saturday, it was the first go-ahead 3 inside of the final 30 seconds of a fourth quarter or overtime in his entire playoff career. Marinate on that for a moment.
... Sorry, Mavs fans, but this is going to live on for a while...
... Memphis might need to be relegated from the NBA after Sunday. There has to be a consequence for losing in the opening game of the playoffs by 51.
... The National League currently has six team playing better than .600 ball through 20+ games. There are only 3 such teams in the American League.
... Premier League randomness: Three more points, Liverpool, three more points. Holly hell, Aston Villa! That was one hell of an impressive performance and it has turned the race for top 5 spots on its heads with teams 3-7 in the league separated by 2 points. No pressure on Monday, Forest ... We might look in five weeks at the Pedro Neto winner on Sunday as either a season-saver for Chelsea or the only happy moment of the spring ... the margins are really fine. Bournemouth, Fulham, Brighton and Brentford are all separated by 2 points in the standings, which feels about perfect. Man United is 2 points from 17th place through 33 games. lolololololololololol
... Wrestlemania Night 1 thoughts: Did Paul Heyman steal the entire event because he definitely stole the show on Saturday night? I still don't get the Jey Uso thing, but I think I enjoyed watching him take the belt to open up Saturday night. LA Knight got done dirty.
... Holy moly, looks like I need to get out to a movie theater soon!
... Which one of these guys was the good cop and which one was the bad cop? I get the sense that both of these guys might have pistol-whipped a guy or 10. Also, who knew that Mexia was so gangster back in the day?
No. 10 - The List: Top 10 Matt Damon ...
I caught Damon in a couple of movies over the course of the last week ... Oppenheimer and Good Will Hunting. I found myself wondering two things ...
a. Where would Oppenheimer rank in his Top 10?
b. Will any movie ever challenge Good Will Hunting for the top spot?
Let's sort things out.
Honorable mention: The Informant!, School Ties, The Good Shepherd, Air, The Last Duel, Courage Under Fire, Dogma, Syriana, Interstellar, True Grit and Contagion
10. Ford vs. Ferrari
It might be the best Father's Day movie made in the last decade. All dads love it.
9. Ocean's 11
The entire trilogy doesn't make this list for me ... just the first one.
8. Rounders
Maybe this movie makes my top 10 because I love poker and John Malkovich as an Oreo-eating Russian gangster, but that's good enough for me.
7. Oppenheimer
I'm slotting this seventh because he's a supporting character and there are other movies that he starred in that warrant ranking higher, but as a film ... it belongs in his top 3-5.
6. The Talented Mr. Ripley
Some will argue that this should be closer to the top spot. It speaks to the quality of films/performances that are in the looming top 5.
5. The Martian
Maybe his greatest pure superstar acting performance. It's just him on screen for most of the movie doing some pretty benign things, but he's all charisma and the movie shines because of it.
4. Saving Private Ryan
The end scene where he asks his wife if he's done enough in his life to warrant the heroics of the men he is remembering that day gets me every single time.
3. The Departed
One of two Best Picture winners on the list and an argument could be made for at least one more.
2. The Bourne Series
All four of the films he's made as Jason Bourne are worthy of Top 10 consideration as standalone films. He completely changed the action movie genre in this role.
1. Good Will Hunting
One of the best movies ever made. It gets better and better with each passing year. A rock star cast doing rock star things inside of a movie that packs an emotional power punch with every watch. This is the scene of his life.
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