As Johntay Cook drama continues to unfold, the other eight Horns found new homes at Power Four programs.
Under Steve Sarkisian, the Texas Longhorns have been among the best programs in the country at securing and retaining top talent, shifting the narrative from the impact of players leaving to the outcomes for those who depart the Forty Acres.
So when former consensus four-star safety Larry Turner-Gooden transfers from Texas to San Jose State and plays 89 snaps or former consensus four-star safety BJ Allen transfers to North Texas and plays 63 snaps following an offseason criminal trespass charge, those outcomes represent outright recruiting misses by the Longhorns.
When a Tom Herman signee like wide receiver Dajon Harrison goes from Texas to UConn to not recording a catch at Utah Tech this season, it’s a ringing indictment about the state of that position room when Sarkisian arrived four years ago.
But when defensive lineman Zac Swanson leaves for Arizona State and becomes a rotation player for the Sun Devils after being told he wouldn’t play at Texas, it’s a simple case of a player who was recruited over leaving for a better opportunity to get onto the field.
With the post-playoff portal window closing for the Longhorns on Wednesday without any entrants following the Cotton Bowl loss to the Buckeyes, losing redshirt freshman defensive tackle Sydir Mitchell represents the only major departure and every player landing at a Power Four program reflects well on the current state of the Texas program and how its staff supports former players.
That makes Johntay Cook an outlier whose poor choices reflect his own immaturity.
Here’s a look at the outcomes for all nine transfers.
WR Johntay Cook — left Washington
The juxtaposition between the number of early entrants into the 2025 NFL Draft and departures via the portal on offense is truly striking — the Horns had six players forego their final season of eligibility but Cook was the only offensive player to enter the portal, doing so after making the “mutual” decision with the coaching staff to depart.
Cook allowed his immaturity to play out publicly on social media in the two months since leaving the Forty Acres, diminishing his opportunities elsewhere. A commitment to Florida looked imminent last month, but never happened. When Washington was willing to take a chance on the former consensus five-star prospect, it looked unlikely to end well. It didn’t, as Cook only made it about two days on campus before leaving Seattle.
That leaves a clear takeaway with Cook — the Texas program is in much better shape because he’s nowhere close to it.
Edge Justice Finkley — Kansas
On the opposite end of the portal spectrum is Justice Finkley, a member of the 2023 Academic All-Big 12 second team who also twice made the Big 12 Commissioner’s honor roll. Given the Alabama product’s investment in the Texas program, it was surely a difficult decision to depart for his final season of eligibility.
But it was also one that made sense after Finkley saw his playing time diminish this year following the additions of Trey Moore, the 2023 AAC Defensive Player of the Year, and Colin Simmons, the No. 2 edge in the 2024 recruiting.
After visiting Minnesota and West Virginia, Finkley committed to Kansas and should be able to compete for a starting job as a senior in a situation that sets him up for success.
Edge Tausili Akana — BYU
Listed at just 209 pounds as a freshman in 2023, Tausili Akana never developed enough physically to compete for playing time at the edge position in Austin and faces a similarly difficult developmental curve at BYU as the native of Hawaii returns to Utah, where he played high school football.
DT Jaray Bledsoe — Mississippi State
Along with Mitchell, the high-level athleticism of Jaray Bledsoe made his departure a disappointment simply because finding defensive linemen with size and movement ability is a difficult task, but after three years, he was never able to develop enough consistency to earn playing time.
Bledsoe landed in Starkville after visiting Washington and represents the type of talent infusion that head coach Jeff Lebby desperately needs at Mississippi State.
DT Sydir Mitchell — LSU
Not only does Sarkisian completely avoid recruiting his former players after they enter the portal, there’s usually little indication that the staff works hard to retain players intent on entering the portal.
Mitchell was a rare exception when the news broke that he planned to enter the portal, was initially convinced to stay, but ended up leaving anyway, reuniting with his former position coach Bo Davis at LSU.
To a greater degree than Bledsoe, players with the physical profile of Mitchell are extremely rare, but his conditioning issues and maturity issues contributed to his lack of playing time and increase the odds that he busts with the Tigers.
However, the effort Texas put into retaining Mitchell indicates that the staff wanted to allow him more time to develop physically and mentally in Austin.
DT Aaron Bryant — Vanderbilt
When Bryant departed the Forty Acres after three seasons, he did so with a letter to Longhorn Nation about his time at Texas.
The departure came after Bryant suffered a knee injury in 2024 that slowed his development and with the knowledge that further portal additions could decrease his opportunity for playing time in his final two seasons of eligibility.
So Bryant ended up in a position similar to Finkley and landed in a similar position at Vanderbilt, where he projects as a rotation player with a chance to earn a starting role.
DT Tia Savea — Arizona
The first of three portal additions at defensive tackle, Savea followed Texas co-defensive coordinator and linebackers coach Johnny Nansen from UCLA to Arizona and then to Austin, but wasn’t able to secure a spot in the rotation ahead of fellow Arizona transfer Bill Norton and Louisville transfer Jermayne Lole.
So Savea ended up redshirting in 2024 to preserve his final season of eligibility and opted to return to the Wildcats, where his usage will probably resemble the nearly 400 snaps he played in Tucson in 2023.
LB Derion Gullette — Mississippi State
A knee injury sustained in high school set Derion Gullette back before he ever stepped on campus and the faster development curves of fellow linebackers Liona Lefau and Ty’Anthony Smith made a path to playing time more difficult.
Given the lack of overall depth at the position, Nansen probably wanted to keep Gullette on the roster for another season. Like Bledsoe, though, Mississippi State profiles as a good fit for Gullette.
CB Jay’Vion Cole — Arizona
Few players are more representative of the current portal era than Cole, who was under recruited out of high school and landed at Cal Poly. After a successful season in San Luis Obispo, Cole ascended a level higher in transferring to San Jose State. After a successful season in San Jose, Cole earned a shot at Texas, but his summer arrival put him behind an early enrollee like Kobe Back and helped limit Cole to 31 snaps in 2024.
Like the other transfers, Cole should have an opportunity to play at Arizona, where he’ll benefit from a full offseason with the Wildcats.