The Horns have had an incredible offseason that bodes well for Texas entering the ever-looming SEC.
However, when the spring transfer portal opened on April 16 and closed a short two weeks later, the Longhorns had lost some star power from their roster.
While no guaranteed starters disappeared from the ranks, head coach Steve Sarkisian allowed a few talented players to slip through the cracks while only bringing one spring transfer to Austin.
As Texas creeps closer and closer to the perennial powerhouse of the SEC, where do the Horns stand in the conference power rankings after the spring transfer portal closed?
The Commodores frequently find themselves at the back of the SEC power rankings.
As head coach Clark Lea continues to work on turning the program around, Vanderbilt has struggled against its formidable conference opponents.
Vanderbilt gained a lot of three-star and four-star talents including Maryland’s Cade McConnell and Memphis’ Maurice Hampton.
However, the Commodores lost eight three-star transfer players Josh Palmer, Deago Benson, Quantaves Gaskins, and Jameson Wharton.
While the Bulldogs brought DeAgo Brumfield into Mississippi State’s program, the team lost nine three-star players to the portal.
Jeff Lebby put in a lot of work during the transfer portal immediately following the end of the 2023 season which is keeping the Bulldogs from being dead last on this ranking.
However, losing 10 players to the spring portal and bringing in just one additional talent to Starkville was a disappointing performance by Lebby and Mississippi State.
Devastatingly, the Gamecocks didn’t bring any fresh faces to the South Carolina roster from the spring portal.
Impressively, head coach Shane Beamer only lost three players to the portal in April including four-star Keenan Nelson Jr. as well as three-star players Sidney Fugar and Kelton Henderson.
South Carolina has had an impressive few seasons despite not being one of the perennial powerhouses the Gamecocks share a conference with. Still, the spring transfer portal was not one of the team’s best performances.
Unfortunately for the Razorbacks, Sam Pittman watched as Lorando Johnson, Max Fletcher, Jacolby Criswell, and others committed their talents to other programs.
Pittman, heading into his fourth season with Arkansas, brought in quite a few talented players to replace the depleted roster.
Larry Worth and Rodney Hill are talented additions to the Razorbacks alongside a much-needed offensive tackle added to the team in Joe More.
D.J. Waller Jr. was a massive pickup for the Wildcats during the spring transfer portal.
However, Jaremiah Anglin Jr. is heading to Pitt and eight other Kentucky players have entered their names in the portal since April 16.
Losing Da’min Green and Jordan Robinson, two stellar cornerbacks for the Wildcats is a massive fallout for Kentucky’s secondary.
The Tigers and Hugh Freeze did extremely well in the spring portal. Two of Auburn’s bigger pick-ups were USC transfer Isaiah Raikes and Penn State transfer KeAndre Lambert-Smith.
Wesley Steiner, Jay Fair, Colton Hood, and Brenton Williams were some of the more disappointing losses for Auburn.
While Hood is heading to the Colorado Buffaloes while Fair is taking his talents to the USC Trojans, the Tigers are definite winners after the close of the portal.
After the Gators brought Jameer Grimsley, Asa Turner, and a few others during the January portal, Billy Napier seemed to hit the brakes during the spring portal.
Napier didn’t bring in any new talent during the two-week April transfer period but also maintained almost his entire roster.
The only Gator who entered his name into the portal was four-star cornerback Ethan Pouncey.
Another newcomer to the SEC but not new to the Longhorns, the Oklahoma Sooners gained three-star offensive lineman Branson Hickman from SMU and three-star defensive lineman Jermayne Lole from Louisville during the spring portal.
The Sooners lost four-star cornerback Jasiah Wagoner to the California Golden Bears along with three other players to the spring portal.
To put it in layman’s terms, Texas should once again be just fine when the team plays Oklahoma on October 12.
The Aggies are some of the biggest winners for this year’s transfer portal and the spring window story was no different.
Texas A&M snagged Kolinu’u Faaiu, Solomon DeShields, and Shane Calhoun (all three-star) during the two-week portal.
The seven Aggies who entered their names in the portal since April 16 have yet to find new homes. One big loss for the team will be four-star safety Jacoby Matthews.
Unsurprisingly, the Volunteers didn’t make the most out of the transfer portal this offseason.
Tennessee has only gained eight transfer commitments since January and brought zero in during the spring portal.
While four Vols entered their name into the mix of the spring window, Tennessee is nearly guaranteed to have an impressive 2024 season and the team should be able to handle itself well like the Volunteers have over the past few years.
The Missouri Tigers didn’t see a whole of movement during the spring transfer portal window.
Just one player, three-star offensive Marcus Bryant, is a newcomer from April and only five players tossed their names in the transfer portal hat.
After a surprisingly good previous season, the Tigers are set to once again take the SEC by storm and should have another standout year in the SEC.
Despite losing Heisman-winning quarterback Jayden Daniels to the NFL, the Tigers will undeniably have a good year during the 2024 season.
Unfortunately for the Tigers, LSU had nine players enter their names into the portal during the two-week stretch.
The biggest loss for the Tigers was five-star running back John Emery Jr. who has yet to announce a commitment.
Kalen Deboer scored big when he convinced five-star offensive tackle Kadyn Proctor to bring his talents to Tuscaloosa.
The Crimson Tide, despite having a new head coach and losing a lot of players to the portal since January, are going to be a indomitable force in 2024.
Alongside Proctor, the Tide picked up safety Cameron Howard from Charlotte and kicker Graham Nicholson from Maryland.
Notably, Alabama had nine additional players enter the transfer portal in April, bringing the team's total to 38 since December.
According to 247Sports, the Rebels had the best transfer portal performance in the nation with an overall team score of 76.19 (well above the Texas A&M Aggies who are in second).
Jacory Croskey-Merritt from New Mexico and Henry Parrish from Miami (FL) are the two latest additions to Ole Miss' roster and are both highly talented running backs.
Cornerback Amorion Walker left Ole Miss for Michigan and Joshua Harris is taking his talents to UNC for two of the bigger losses for the Rebels' in April.
Five more Rebels entered their names into the portal during the spring window but have yet to commit to a new program.
Sarkisian and the Horns amassed a large pot of wealth from the transfer portal this offseason but the goods were light for Texas in April.
Defensive lineman Bill Norton, a three-star transfer, committed to Sark after an impressive after an impressive season at Arizona and four prior years at Georgia.
Texas had a couple of big losses in April including four-star cornerback Terrance Brooks along with seven three-star talents.
With Quinn Ewers returning to the starting lineup and many talented defensive players sticking around, the Horns will be just fine as they enter their conference.
Kirby Smart did well in April when he brought in four-star quarterback Jaden Rashada from the Arizona State Sun Devils.
Even more impressive, Smart and the Bulldogs only lost two players during the month of April: wide receiver Tyler Williams to Minnesota and running back Andrew Paul who has yet to commit elsewhere.
After falling just short of the College Football Playoffs last season, due to a loss to Alabama in the SEC championship game, Georgia will be out for blood in 2024.
Smart and the Georgia Bulldogs are ready to once again reign supreme over the perennial conference of the SEC.