Texas Football: 4 early transfer targets for Longhorns next offseason

Raymond Cottrell, WR

Another boundary receiver that entered the transfer portal before the traditional December window opened due to a head coach firing is the former Texas A&M Aggies true freshman wide receiver Raymond Cottrell. The 6-foot-3 and 210-pound wideout Cottrell entered the portal after Texas A&M fired head coach Jimbo Fisher on Nov. 12.

The firing of head coaches allows players on that team a 30-day window subsequently where they can enter the portal regardless of their graduate/undergraduate status.

Cottrell was one of the first Texas A&M players to hit the portal after Fisher was fired a couple of weeks ago. And he has already heard from multiple FBS programs since entering the portal on Nov. 12, including the Longhorns.

It’s worth mentioning that just because Texas and Cottrell have made initial contact since he entered the portal earlier this month, the Longhorns will prioritize his recruitment as a transfer prospect. But it is significant that the Longhorns are already on the prowl for wide receivers on the transfer market, which was to be expected from Sark and wide receivers coach Chris Jackson.

Moreover, Cottrell would be more of a depth addition to the Longhorns roster at boundary receiver than an immediate impact starter. Cottrell only took a handful of live-game reps for Texas A&M on offense this fall.

Cottrell needs more development before he would be ready to compete for a starting job in the Texas receiving corps, which would probably mean a couple of years before he’s impact-ready.

If Texas loses multiple boundary receivers to the portal and/or the NFL Draft in 2024, adding Cottrell as a depth piece to potentially compete for a backup job makes sense. Otherwise, I don’t know how good of a fit he is at Texas.