What Texas football's 2024 roster will look like after all the recent comings and goings
Coaching rumors. Portal news. NFL declarations.
It’s been a wild two weeks since the Texas football team lost to Washington 37-31 in a College Football Playoff semifinal in New Orleans. However, the portal window is now closed — except for teams like Alabama or Washington that have recently lost their head coach — until the spring, and the deadline to declare for the NFL draft is Monday. That means next season’s roster has taken shape, with just a smattering of exceptions.
Let’s take a look at who'll be back, who won't and who’ll be new at each position for the 2024 Texas team.
Bohls: Steve Sarkisian picking Texas over Alabama keeps the Longhorns a CFP contender
Quarterback: Quinn Ewers is back for more
Who’s back: Quinn Ewers, Arch Manning; Who’s gone: Maalik Murphy (portal), Charles Wright (portal); Who’s new: Trey Owens (recruit)
Ewers will enter his third season as the Longhorns’ starter as a Heisman Trophy contender after throwing for 5,656 yards and 37 touchdowns in his first two seasons as Texas' starter. Manning, now a redshirt freshman and the most famous backup in college football, moved up a notch on the depth chart with the departure of Murphy.
Running back: Committee approach coming?
Who’s back: CJ Baxter, Jaydon Blue, Savion Red, Tre Wisner; Who’s gone: Jonathon Brooks (NFL), Keilan Robinson (NFL); Who’s new: Jerrick Gibson (recruit), Christian Clark (recruit)
Texas hardly missed a beat after Brooks went down with a season-ending knee injury Nov. 11 against TCU. Both Baxter and Blue turned in 100-yard rushing performances after Brooks got injured, and the pair combined for 25 receptions in those four games.
Wide receiver/tight end: Targeting new faces
Who’s back: WR Johntay Cook II, WR DeAndre Moore Jr., TE Gunnar Helm; Who’s gone: WR Xavier Worthy (NFL), WR Adonai Mitchell (NFL), WR Jordan Whittington (NFL), TE Ja’Tavion Sanders (NFL), WR Casey Cain (portal), WR Isaiah Neyor (portal); Who’s new: WRs Matthew Golden (portal), Ryan Wingo (recruit), Aaron Butler (recruit), Freddie Dubose (recruit), Parker Livingstone (recruit)
No position will undergo a bigger overhaul, and the work may not yet be done as Texas heavily courts Alabama receiver Isaiah Bond, who has entered the portal after the retirement of Nick Saban. Worthy, Mitchell and Whittington combined for 162 of the 172 catches by wideouts this past season, and Sanders ranked third on the team with 45 catches. Golden gives the group a veteran presence after two productive years at Houston.
Offensive line: Veteran group back almost intact
Who’s back: LT Kelvin Banks Jr., LG Hayden Conner, C Jake Majors, RG Cole Hutson, RG DJ Campbell, RT Cam Williams; Who’s gone: RT Christian Jones (NFL); Who’s new: OT Brandon Baker (recruit)
Jones is the only departed starter, and Williams garnered some valuable experience in his spot with one start. Baker, a five-star signee from California, has drawn some comparisons to Banks — who also was a five-star prospect — and he’s the rare freshman who could garner significant snaps up front.
Defensive line: New faces in line inside
Who’s back: DE Barryn Sorrell, DE Ethan Burke, DT Alfred Collins, DT Vernon Broughton, DT Sydir Mitchell, edge Justice Finkley, edge J’Mond Tapp; Who’s gone: DT Byron Murphy II (NFL), DT T’Vondre Sweat (NFL), DT Trill Carter (portal); Who’s new: Edges Trey Moore (portal), Colin Simmons (recruit), Zina Umeozulu (recruit)
Texas must replace All-American DTs Murphy and Sweat, but the program has had success in plugging in veterans into the interior, which bodes well for Collins and Broughton. Moore arrives from UTSA as one of the top pass rushers in the nation, and the five-star Simmons should see action early and often. Both should add juice to the pass rush.
Linebackers: Veteran group despite loss of Ford
Who’s back: David Gbenda, Anthony Hill Jr., Mo Blackwell Jr., Liona Lefau; Who’s gone: Jaylan Ford (NFL), Jett Bush (eligibility); Who’s new: Tyanthony Smith (recruit)
Texas will miss Ford, a two-time all-Big 12 defender and one of the team’s locker-room leaders. Fortunately, Gbenda and Blackwell provide veteran leadership while Hill looks like one of college football’s rising stars after earning the Big 12’s defensive newcomer of the year award.
Defensive backs: Revamping an area of concern
Who’s back: NB Jahdae Barron, CB Malik Muhammad, CB Gavin Holmes, CB Terrance Brooks, CB Jaylon Guilbeau, S Michael Taaffe, S Derek Williams Jr., S Austin Jordan, S Jelani McDonald; Who’s gone: CB Ryan Watts (NFL), safeties Jerrin Thompson (portal), Jalen Catalon (portal) and Kitan Crawford (portal); Who’s new: S/CB Andrew Mukuba (portal), S Xavier Filsaime (recruit), CB Kobe Black (recruit), CB Wardell Mack (recruit)
No unit took a bigger hit from the portal, which drew in two safeties — Thompson and Catalon — who entered 2023 as the starters. Texas fortified the spot with Mukuba, the Austin native who started three seasons at Clemson and will likely play safety after Barron said on Saturday that he will return for a fifth season. The Longhorns also are trying to reel in Washington cornerback Jabbar Muhammad, the older cousin of Malik Muhammad who entered the portal after Huskies coach Kalen DeBoer took the Alabama job.
Special teams: Revamping an area of concern
Who’s back: K Bert Auburn, K Will Stone; Who’s gone: P Ryan Sanborn (eligibility), PR Xavier Worthy (NFL), KR Keilan Robinson (NFL); Who’s new: P Michael Kern (recruit), PR/KR Matthew Golden (portal)
Auburn returns as one of the nation’s elite kickers while Golden gives the team an experienced return man. Keep an eye on the spring portal to see if the coaches bring in any competition for Kern, a scholarship freshman in line to start at punter.
This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: What does the roster look for the Texas Longhorns football team?
