Texas had major issues on both sides of the ball in 2021, but one of the biggest was the fact they didn’t have a consistent wide receiver option outside of freshman star Xavier Worthy.
Jordan Whittington looked like he could be the perfect counterpart to Worthy, but for the third straight year he was bit by the injury bug and missed significant time.
There were also hopes that Troy Omeire would return from knee surgery and showcase his huge catch radius we had seen in fall camp the year prior, but unfortunately suffered another season-ending injury before the season began. This left players like Marcus Washington, Kelvontay Dixon, and Joshua Moore to fill in.
While they all had flashes and showed potential at times, it was evident that the Longhorns needed to add a more consistent receiver that could take some of the attention off Worthy and also be a playmaker in his own right.
They added just that in Wyoming transfer Isaiah Neyor this offseason, as they were able to flip him from Tennessee shortly after his visit to Austin. The 6-foot-3 freak athlete has the ability to out jump and out run his opponents and has been shining during Texas’ spring practices thus far.
Neyor was mentioned on Bleacher Report’s list of 12 players that are turning heads during spring practice.
A season ago, Neyor was making plays all the way up in Laramie for the Cowboys as a second-year freshman following the COVID-19 season. He pulled down 44 passes for 878 yards and scored 12 touchdowns.
When he hit the transfer portal this spring, he committed to Tennessee but went ahead and visited Texas. Then, he flipped to the Longhorns. They’re thrilled.
“I really like Isaiah Neyor,” Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian told the Dallas Morning News‘ Chuck Carlton. “He’s probably got a little more speed than I gave him credit for when we got him. He’s a competitive guy. He’s a great learner. He’s dedicated to his craft is and what he’s doing. So, on that front, very impressed with him.”
With his long strides, big catch radius and explosive athleticism, Neyor has all the tangibles to be a star. He’s showing that quickly in his new home.
The initial hopes were that Neyor could serve as Worthy’s “Robin” but it is seeming more and more like Texas may have two Batman’s instead. This is a great problem to have, as the Longhorns will be starting a inexperienced quarterback in Hudson Card or Quinn Ewers, so the more weapons for them the better.