3 last-minute transfers Texas football can target this spring

Johnny Bowens, DL

Another recent Oregon transfer on the defensive side of the ball that is a possible addition from the portal this spring for the Longhorns is freshman defensive tackle Johnny Bowens III. The former blue-chip recruit from Converse (TX) Judson High School was a Texas target on the trail in the 2023 class, before he committed to Oregon over the Longhorns and Texas A&M Aggies.

Like DeCambra, Bowens has all four years of eligibility remaining after he took just a handful of snaps for the Ducks defense in 2023. Bowens played just under a dozen defensive snaps over three games during the 2023 regular season.

It's noteworthy that there's already been reported early interest for Texas in this portal recruitment. Texas was kicking the tires on the idea of pursuing Bowens in the portal late this spring to fill a long-term depth need at defensive tackle.

But the Longhorns short-term depth need at least was filled at defensive tackle by flipping grad transfer Jermayne Lole from the Oklahoma Sooners last week.

If Texas decided to ultimately pursue Bowens in the portal late this spring, it would be because they view him as a valuable long-term piece for the interior defensive line rotation in the SEC. Texas only signed two high school defensive tackles in the 2024 class, so Bowens could help backfill some of that need at the position for future years.

Texas's pursuit of Bowens will probably be known in the next few weeks if they ultimately want to get him in the boat in this portal class, since the start of summer classes is in early June.