State of the Program: Culture, development help Texas avoid portal defections
On the latest video episode of On Texas Football’s State of the Program, Inside Texas’ Bobby Burton and Eric Nahlin get us caught up on the happenings with the Longhorns’ football team, including a look at the lack of movement out of the program in the transfer portal.
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There have been few defections from the Texas program since the Orange-White Spring Game, an indication that there is a sense of development from the players within the program and trust built from two-plus years of the Steve Sarkisian era. The most recent transfer portal opened April 15 and closes on May 1.
“To me, no news is good news,” said Nahlin, the publisher of InsideTexas.com. “We’re hearing that there’s not going to be many other departures, and maybe none. We’re not expecting anybody as of right now.
“I know there’s a lot of talk out there, about (quarterback) Maalik Murphy, and we had an offensive lineman that we were paying close attention to. I think both you and I heard that that offensive lineman is going to stay, and Maalik has been pretty clear behind the scenes he intends to stay.”
Texas is at the limit with 85 current scholarships, which means – unless they have more attrition – it’s not going to have an opportunity to add in the portal, either.
“That being said I still I think you and I believe that at some point, it’s just out of 85 guys, there’s gonna be some natural attrition somewhere along the way here that might open up a spot,” Burton opined.
Why is Texas being so successful right now in keeping its players?
“It’s part NIL probably, it’s part the University of Texas, it’s part Sark and the culture he’s developed,” Burton said. “It’s all of those things mixed together.”
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Nahlin said the trend goes back to the observations he made after Texas went 5-7 in 2021 in Sarkisian’s first year on the 40 Acres
“You would think after 5-7 people would want to leave left and right,” Nahlin explained. “Really the only people that wanted to leave were the ones that Texas had to have tough conversations with because maybe they weren’t conducive to the culture they were trying to cultivate.
“Guys don’t want to leave, coaches don’t want to leave, Texas players don’t want to leave Texas. It’s just a really good situation. I think it’s a combination of everything you said. You know, it’s easy to get these kids here and sometimes the grass is greener on the other side. But I think the grass is so green at Texas right now that the players have no interest in leaving and they’re just not listening to some of the pitches that kids are getting all over the country.”
Burton and Nahlin also gave their respective takes on the selection chances of the six players from Texas that hope to have their names called during the NFL Draft Thursday-Saturday.
Running backs Bijan Robinson and Roschon Johnson, defensive linemen Moro Ojomo and Keondre Coburn, linebacker DeMarvion Overshown and defensive backs D’Shawn Jamison Anthony Cook are the Longhorns’ who will be sitting by the phone waiting.
You’ll have to watch the video in its entirety to get that info, but it’s well worth your while.
