4 diamonds in the rough Texas football can find in the portal

Jaren Handy, EDGE

A potential portal target for the Longhorns that could actually compete for starting reps right away is the former Auburn Tigers and Indiana Hoosiers redshirt junior edge rusher and former blue-chip recruit Jaren Handy. If he’s able to find a firm landing spot out of the portal this offseason where he is a good fit on and off the field, Handy should be a great value add for some program.

Handy might be the best true pass rusher remaining available in the transfer portal at this point of the offseason. But the reason for that looks to be due to his suspension from the Indiana program thanks to multiple violations of team rules last year.

Depending on how the Texas coaching staff evaluates the fit for Handy within the culture of this program, it could be worth looking into what he could bring to the table.

I’ve mentioned this before, but if Handy checks out after the coaching staff does a thorough evaluation of the culture fit here along with what went wrong at Indiana, he could be a nice addition to this defensive front. He could surely fill a big need for the Longhorns in terms of adding a true pass rusher that could make an impact right away.

Handy showed plenty of flashes of what he could become in the last few seasons playing for Auburn and Indiana. He has nearly two-dozen quarterback pressures, four tackles for loss, and 1.5 sacks in his collegiate career to date.

And if the 6-foot-5 and 260-pound Handy can actually find traction with his next school, watch out for him to be a dangerous edge rusher for years to come.