Breaking down 3 new portal targets Texas is interested in this spring

Amarius Mims, OT

Among my favorite emerging transfer portal targets for the Longhorns this spring is the former elite five-star recruit and Georgia Bulldogs redshirt freshman offensive tackle Amarius Mims.

This caliber of offensive tackle just isn’t going to appear in the transfer portal all that often for the Longhorns. And given the fact that Sark, offensive line coach/offensive coordinator Kyle Flood and the Longhorns have already made contact with Mims just makes this recruitment out of the portal that much more important.

Moreover, Mims is a towering 6-foot-7 and 330-pound offensive tackle that is very proficient in a number of different ways in the trenches. He’s got overwhelming power, solid footwork, good hands, and the consistent ability to get to the second-level blocking for the run.

Mims 7-foot-2 wingspan and huge hands allow him to often manhandle his blocking assignment. And his insane athleticism helps him stay with some of the quicker defensive ends/edge rushers that might give some offensive tackles of his size more problems otherwise.

You can see on film since his days in high school that Mims has the quick feet and agility necessary to not only handle his blocking assignments off the line of scrimmage but also to quickly make his way through multiple levels of opposing defenses. He’s got this non-stop drive that allows him to finish blocks effectively, especially when facing undersized defensive linemen/linebackers.

In his first year really getting significant game reps for the Dawgs in 2021, Mims showed all the flashes of why he was a touted five-star recruit coming out of high school. In more than 40 snaps in pass blocking assignments, Mims allowed just one quarterback pressure and no hits and/or sacks.

He was also the fourth-highest-graded freshman offensive tackle in the SEC in run-blocking plays last season.

Mims does have the ability to play at either tackle spot. That is good for Flood and the Longhorns since neither offensive tackle spot is really set this year. Christian Jones and Andrej Karic are battling it out for one offensive tackle spot while the incoming freshman/elite five-star recruit Kelvin Banks is likely to win the opposing starting job here.

If Texas was able to nab a commitment out of the portal from Mims, he could fill a starting spot opposite of Banks. That would give Flood and the Longhorns a solid and very potent starting offensive tackle duo likely for at least the next two or three seasons.