The first year of the expanded 12-team College Football Playoff bracket will see multiple former Texas football players potentially face the Longhorns this postseason. In this day and age of college football with NIL and the transfer portal has allowed talented former Texas players to see their careers flourish at other schools around the power conferences.
Ex-Texas football transfers at multiple schools now competing in the College Football Playoff in 2024-25 in the 12-team bracket
Head coach Steve Sarkisian and the Longhorns staff have utilized the transfer portal to their benefit over the past few years. But the transfer portal is a two-way street, meaning the Longhorns have lost some talented players who have developed in key roles at other FBS teams and P4 conferences.
Seeing former Texas transfers succeed elsewhere gives the Longhorns faithful addition players to root for from past UT teams in the postseason. Here are three former Longhorns transfers who will be competing in key roles in the College Football Playoff in the 12-team bracket.
Zac Swanson, DL (Arizona State)
After a couple of years at Texas at the beginning of his career in college, defensive lineman Zac Swanson transferred to join head coach Kenny Dillingham and the Arizona State Sun Devils in the Big 12. Swanson has emerged as a key contributor to the No. 4 ranked defense in the Big 12 this season, playing a career-high 12 games in Arizona State's defensive tackle rotation.
It sounds like Swanson definitely has a chip on his shoulder with Texas possibly on a collision course with Arizona State in the College Football Playoff path.
Swanson said in an interview earlier this week that he wants to face Texas in the second round of the 12-team College Football Playoff.
"That's a team who kicked me out and said I was never going to be good enough to play there."Zac Swanson
Texas possibly defeating Clemson in the first round of the College Football Playoff on Dec. 21 at DKR in Austin would give Swanson what he is looking for with a rematch against his former team in the second round.