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Texas Transfer Portal Rumors: Longhorns firm up secondary

January 7, 2026
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We are officially in the meat of the transfer portal window and the Longhorns news is heating up as well. Yesterday, much like every day thus far in this window, Texas got some great news and got some not so great news. We will start with the major names before getting into the nitty gritty, but the Longhorns did extend their streak to three straight days with a portal commitment yesterday. 

Let’s jump in and catch up with what was a busy day five in the portal: 

Raleek Brown – RB Arizona State

There is not a major piece of news to announce here as I’d hoped there would be. However, Juluke did visit Brown yesterday and today, Brown will make his way to Austin for a visit. The Longhorns seem to be in a great position here, with Indiana as the main competition. If the Longhorns don’t lock up a commitment from Brown today, I’d say it’s fair for some concern to set in. 

Cam Coleman – WR Auburn

This one is going to take some time. There were conflicting reports about whether or not Coleman was in Tuscaloosa visiting Alabama yesterday, but it seems he wasn’t. Today, he will make his way to Lubbock to check out what the Red Raiders have before possibly visiting the Crimson Tide. This is the hardest recruitment to pin down. Seemingly every team feels optimistic about their position, which likely means Coleman and his agent, David Mulugheta, are being smart about this. A commitment should come by the end of the weekend, but it’s anyone’s guess where Coleman is leaning right now. 

Bo Mascoe – CB Rutgers 

This is the commitment Texas was able to pick up yesterday. Bo Mascoe was in Columbus visiting Ohio State yesterday before committing to the Longhorns. This is the perfect fit for a CB room that needed help on the outside. It frees up Graceson Littleton to play more nickel back with Wardell Mack and brings strong experience opposite Kade Phillips. Mascoe has great ball skills and despite being undersized, adds in the run very well. The CB room will be a rotation heavy room in 2026, outside of Littleton and Phillips. Mascoe is the perfect rotational fit alongside Kobe Black and Warren Roberson.

Derek Williams – DB Texas

This is the reason Bo Mascoe might be enough for portal secondary additions. Derek Williams has officially withdrawn his name from the portal and returned to Austin. Seemingly, Will Muschamp views Williams as the starter needed next to Jelani McDonald, and I tend to agree. Williams was never fully healthy this season and I believe 18 months removed from his injury, he will be the gamechanger he was his freshman season. This not only fills a void, but makes the concerns around losing Michael Taaffe’s communication skills at field safety much less worrisome. 

Cade Uluave – California LB

Moving on to the player to watch today and moving forward, Cade Uluave might top that list. Texas is looking to add multiple LBs, likely at MLB to free up Ty’Anthony Smith and Brad Spence to be the playmakers they can be. Uluave was an All-ACC selection this season and would bring experience and toughness to the middle of the defense, not to mention would give Tyler Atkinson a great mentor to learn from. 

Christian Alliegro – Wisconsin LB 

As I said, Texas might look to add multiple true MLBs and Alliegro is the other name to watch. Like Bo Mascoe, he was in Columbus yesterday and the hope is he follows Mascoe’s lead. This will be a major fight with Ohio State set to lose Sonny Styles to the NFL, but the intensity and toughness he brings to the table is incredible. A decision should come soon and if the Longhorns can lock him up, the concerns surrounding the LB room will subside substantially. 

OL Musical Chairs 

This is where Longhorn fans want to see fireworks as soon as possible. They’ll have to wait a bit longer because Jake Guarnera, a top OL target for Texas out of the portal, has decided to return to Michigan for 2026. That left Texas still searching for their first OL addition to the portal class, not to mention Daniel Cruz entering the portal yesterday. 

So where does that leave Texas? Seemingly, there are two major names to watch. Andrew Sprague is the other Michigan OL Texas was recruiting heavily. There were reports that he and Guarnera might be a package deal, but that could change according to Inside Texas’ Eric Nahlin. Locking up Sprague would likely give Texas a new starter at RT and push Brandon Baker inside to OG, but that’s a discussion for another day. 

The other name to know is Joe Brunner, former Wisconsin OG and an All-B1G honorable mention this season. Texas will be competing with Indiana for his services, so it’ll be a fight, but these players are quickly becoming must-haves. We will see if Texas can lock up a visit from Brunner and if they do, you can’t let him leave without putting pen to paper. 

Former Longhorns Commitments: 

Parker Livingstone commits to Oklahoma: This was the news that lit Longhorn Nation on fire yesterday, rightfully so. Parker Livingstone has committed to the Sooners, the first Longhorn to do so since Brenen Thompson in 2023. The Red River Rivalry always has plenty of energy, but 2026 likely just got turned up a couple of notches. 

Nate Kibble commits to Baylor: One of the OL that found their way out of the Longhorns program didn’t go too far to find his new home. Kibble committed to the Baylor Bears and it seems to be a perfect landing spot. He’s likely to get starting-level snaps and be able to show his ability.

This article originally appeared on Longhorns Wire: Texas Portal Rumors: Longhorns sure up secondary, OL search continues

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