Texas Football: Former Georgia Tech OT Parker Braun thinking Horns?

Possibly the most fruitful transfer prospect to hit the market for the Texas football program comes from Georgia Tech, offensive guard Parker Braun.

This is the time of the off-season where the transfer market is going to heat up as National Signing Day is about to come and go on Feb. 6. The Texas football program has to know the value, and the detriment, that the increasingly impactful transfer market brings each off-season. The 2019 off-season started out with a bang for Texas football with the host of transfers it had.

However, the good news for one of the biggest positions of need for Texas football entering spring camp was that transfers leaving the program didn’t really affect the offensive line at all. It’s all the departing seniors from the offensive line that is really going to hurt the depth for offensive line coach Herb Hand.

Some help could be on the way for the offensive line depth for Texas football this off-season. With how abundant the graduate transfer market is at this point, Texas football can turn to a prospect like the former Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets offensive guard Parker Braun to fill some key needs.

The interior offensive line spots need a lot of help due to some of the departing seniors leaving voids that could hurt the ground game and passing game if head Texas football coach Tom Herman doesn’t find a solution. But, that solution for Herman could be visiting the Forty Acres soon.

According to the Atlanta Journal Constitution, Braun is planning some official visits after hitting the transfer market before the final year of his eligibility starts for the 2019 regular season. Some of the schools that Braun is reportedly looking to visit include the Florida Gators, Ohio State Buckeyes, Miami Hurricanes, and Texas Longhorns.

The report that Braun has interest in newly hired head coach Manny Diaz and Miami football came from 247Sports. It appears as if most of the competition for Braun will come out of the state of Florida. Miami has a ton of momentum in the transfer market right now and Florida has a bright outlook for the next few years under former Mississippi State Bulldogs head coach Dan Mullen.

As a three-star offensive guard recruit from the 2016 class, Braun held 26 offers but mostly had interest in schools on the east coast. The final set of 247Sports Crystal Ball Predictions gave the Duke Blue Devils the edge to land his commitment and letter of intent. But, Braun is a native of Hallsville, TX, so he has the local ties for Texas football in-state.

Moreover, Braun also had a host of offers from programs in and around Big 12 country. A few of those schools included the Rice Owls, West Virginia Mountaineers, Arkansas Razorbacks, and Mizzou Tigers. Getting back closer to that area of the country wouldn’t be a bad move for Braun.

And, among all the offensive linemen that hit the NCAA Transfer Portal this off-season, Braun has to be one of the most sought after. He’s a two-time All-ACC selection and has dozens of starts under his belt. This type of experience and talent doesn’t hit the graduate transfer market all that much, even with the portal now taking center stage this off-season.

What Braun would bring to the table for the Horns is an immediate answer at left guard along the offensive line that has the proven experience to move this offense one step forward. The offensive line made a lot of progress under Herman and Hand last season, and that could continue by bringing in a lineman like Braun.

With Georgia Tech for the past few seasons, Braun played at left guard. Braun was also named to the All-ACC Second Team by Pro Football Focus for the 2018 season. A host of honors, and the proven numbers to back his play on the field, makes Braun an ideal transfer prospect for the Horns. The initial college football transfer rankings for the 2019 off-season from 247Sports ranks Braun as the No. 7 player on the market, as of Feb. 2.

You can view the entire list of reported and sourced names in the NCAA Transfer Portal for the 2019 college football off-season, thanks to 247Sports, here.