Isaiah Neyor could be the perfect mentor for Troy Omeire.
Texas Longhorns fans have long been awaiting the debut of Troy Omeire, the young wide receiver who was hauling in amazing catches in spring ball two years ago but has yet to appear in a game.
The 6-foot-3 receiver has unfortunately been plagued by injuries throughout his couple years on campus, and has been unable to be available for a single regular season game. Availability has been a major issue for this position group, as the Longhorns second leading receiver from last season, Jordan Whittington, has also had an injury-plagued career.
This led to the staff’s heavy pursuit of transfer wide receivers in the portal, where they struck gold in Wyoming’s Isaiah Neyor. A 6-foot-3 receiver with blazing speed and an infinite catch radius, who ranks as the No. 18 overall player in the transfer portal.
247Sports recently wrote about the impact Neyor will have and has had on the team up to this point. Here is what they said about Neyor’s positive early impact on the position group:
Omeire will benefit from having an experienced player like Neyor in his position group. After redshirting as a freshman in 2019, Neyor followed up a 2020 season with eight catches for 248 yards (31 yards per catch) with 44 catches for 878 yards and 12 TD catches in 2021.
“Isaiah has an excellent work ethic and is already leading by example,” the team source said. “The more guys you can have like that, the better everyone in the position group becomes, including Troy (Omeire).”
If Texas can get the production from Neyor that he had at Wyoming, where he caught 44 passes for 878 yards and 12 touchdowns, the Longhorns will have a very dangerous one-two punch with him and Xavier Worthy.
It will also help Omeire to see a receiver built very similarly to him have success in this offense.
Spring ball will be the first look at many of the exciting new faces around the program.
Spring practices offer fresh starts and new goals for football programs across the country.
Steve Sarkisian and his staff have built lots of excitement around the program heading into the offseason. Spring ball will be the first look at many of the exciting new faces around the program.
The Longhorns did a masterful job navigating the transfer portal, adding several key pieces to the roster including former Ohio State quarterback Quinn Ewers. Texas also closed extremely well in the 2022 recruiting class, finishing with the No. 5 class nationally.
Texas’ spring practice schedule will consist of 15 practices, starting on March 22. They will practice three times per week before concluding spring ball at the annual Orange-White spring game on April 23.
Spring practice will give Sark an idea of what the team needs to improve upon before the fall.
Here are four things Texas needs to accomplish to consider spring practice a success.
After having just one legitimate playmaker at receiver in 2021, the Longhorns went out and got one of the best receivers in the transfer portal.
Wyoming transfer Isaiah Neyor racked up 44 catches for 878 yards, and 12 touchdowns while playing in an offense that was extremely run-heavy. At Texas, he will have infinite opportunities to make big-time plays alongside Xavier Worthy and may play his way into being a legitimate NFL prospect.
His combination of size, speed, and play-making ability has caught the attention of experts already even without suiting up as a Longhorn.
Bleacher Report released a list of players who they see as the top big-play threats in 2022. Joining the 2021 Biletnikoff Award winner Jordan Addison and Rose Bowl star Jaxon Smith-Njigba at the No. 2 spot, is Neyor.
Here is what they said about Neyor:
The Longhorns are getting one explosive receiver in Neyor. As a freshman in 2020, he averaged 31 yards per catch in four games. He broke out as a sophomore with 878 yards and 12 touchdowns, averaging 20 yards per reception, too.
His 12 scores led the Mountain West and were tied for eighth nationally. He had seven games in which he averaged at least 20 yards per catch. He had 13 receptions that went over 30 yards as well, a figure that tied for fifth nationally. Per Burnt Orange Nation, Neyor accounted for 80 percent of Wyoming’s touchdown receptions and 41.5 percent of its receiving yards in its run-heavy offense (64.6 percent of its plays were runs).
Neyor could have an even more explosive year in Austin in 2022. At quarterback, Texas will be choosing between former 5-star QB prospectand Ohio State transfer Quinn Ewers and Hudson Card. Texas (225.4; 71st) averaged about 60 passing yards more than Wyoming (162.7; 117th).
Neyor transferring to an offense that will likely utilize him more than Wyoming did puts him near the top of this list.
The Longhorns will have two of the most explosive receiving in the nation with Neyor and Xavier Worthy. Factor in superstar running back Bijan Robinson and you have a three-headed monster that will give defensive coordinators nightmares.
Texas could have a plethora of players drafted in 2023, unlike what is expected in 2022.
With the 2022 NFL draft approaching, and Texas having just a couple players with a chance of being drafted, it is the perfect time to look at the current roster and identify future draft picks.
The Longhorns struggled greatly in the first season under Steve Sarkisian, and while the blame can be passed around to practically everyone, Texas just did not have a good year. There were only two bright spots on the season, with both Xavier Worthy and Bijan Robinson doing their best to carry the team.
Looking at the roster for the 2022 season, the staff has added a ton of talent all over the board that will likely boost the stock of some players, or in the case of a couple of the transfers, give themselves a bigger platform to go to the NFL.
As it sits right now, Texas has two players in Robinson and linebacker DeMarvion Overhsown that are a lock to be drafted in 2023, but that does not mean some of these other players aren’t on the radar.
Let’s take a look at the players who have a prime opportunity to increase their draft stock in 2022. Honorable mentions are Anthony Cook, Alfred Collins, Jahleel Billingsley.
The anticipation to see Isaiah Neyor in a Texas uniform continues to build.
The anticipation to see Isaiah Neyor in a Texas uniform continues to build.
The Wyoming transfer was already viewed as one of the better transfers available in the portal this offseason, but 247Sports took the liberty of boosting his rating even higher.
The article mentions that advanced data, film, and what they have been hearing from camp all played a factor.
Here is what they said about the playmaker from Arlington:
Big-play threat Isaiah Neyor was one of the most coveted transfer portal receivers this cycle. Neyor originally committed to Tennessee and then flipped to Texas. Neyor averaged a whopping 20 yards per catch in 2021 for Wyoming and had nice overall production, with 44 catches for 878 yards and 12 touchdowns. He showed the ability to consistently get over the top and has the size to make contested catches downfield.
Intel out of Austin has been great so far regarding Neyor and hopes are high that he can be the much-needed No. 2 complement to star Xavier Worthy (as defenses key on Worthy, Neyor should be freed up). With big-armed Quinn Ewers the favorite to start at quarterback, Texas shouldn’t have an issue getting Neyor the ball deep.
His ranking went from a 91, which was in the 29-40 range, to a 93. This bumps him up to the No. 18 spot, which has him as the third highest ranked receiving transfer.
Neyor exploded onto the scene in 2021, grabbing 44 catches for 878 yards, averaging 20 yards per catch, and hauled in 12 touchdowns. He put up all these numbers in an offense at Wyoming that ranked No. 117 in passing offense in the country.
Whether it is Ewers or Hudson Card behind center, the Longhorns quarterback will have an embarrassment of riches in 2022 when it comes to receiver weapons.
Texas’ talented group of newcomers look to help the Longhorns get over the hump.
This offseason has been one of the craziest in college football history. Between the coaching carousel and the transfer portal, teams all over the country will look much different next season.
Texas was able to keep some key players along with adding many sought-after newcomers to the program.
Defensive starters DeMarvion Overshown, D’Shawn Jamison and Keondre Coburn decided to come back for one last season in Austin.
The Longhorns captured some strong recruiting momentum down the stretch to finish with the No. 5 class in the nation. The class addresses Texas’ need in the trenches on both sides of the ball. The offensive line haul was especially impressive, with two five-stars Devon Campbell and Kelvin Banks.
Former five-star quarterback Quinn Ewers and multiple other talented players join the roster via the transfer portal.
The influx of talent has brought some much-needed optimism to the program. The fresh faces on the roster will be tasked to help the Horns bounce back from last year’s 5-7 campaign.
Here are six newcomers who should make a major impact in the 2022 season for Texas:
Texas leads the conference in talented newcomers for 2022.
In the upcoming college football season, the Big 12 conference will have their hands full with the newcomer of the year awards. On top of the loaded recruiting classes, there is the transfer portal.
There was plenty of action as football players made the decision to leave the Big 12, and plenty more opted to join the conference. That doesn’t even take into account the players that transferred within the conference.
However, our focus will be on the transfers from outside the Big 12 that joined for the upcoming college football campaign. The Texas Longhorns were among those who accumulated a lot of talent through the portal and with their top-five class.
Here are our top 12 players to transfer into the conference based on their transfer portal ranking from 247Sports. The Longhorns account for 33% of them.
The talk in Texas is the Longhorns No. 5 ranked recruiting class in the 2022 cycle, but make no mistake the team under Steve Sarkisian loaded up in the transfer portal.
All four players they added to the class are expected to play major roles on this team. Everyone knows about the quarterback and his two newest weapons. Not to mention Texas secured one of the best offensive line hauls that we have ever seen.
Photo by Mike Cravens / Austin American-Statesman / USA TODAY Network
This year’s transfer cycle has been defined by the game of musical chairs at quarterback. Steve Sarkisian landed one of the nation’s top young talents at the position in Ohio State transfer Quinn Ewers, who will step right into the starting role and be the face of the program’s continued rebuild. The Longhorns further upgraded the passing game by adding former Alabama tight end Jahleel Billingsley, who has the talent to play at the next level, and former Wyoming wide receiver Isaiah Neyor, one of the top deep threats in the country in 2021.
It was clear that the Texas staff had a clear view of what they wanted to do this offseason. On top of securing the top recruiting class in the Big 12, Sarkisian also brought in a lot of talent through the transfer portal. The biggest came when Quinn Ewers chose Texas over Texas Tech and TCU. He is in line to be the quarterback of the next couple of seasons, as he would have been had he stuck with his original commitment. The Longhorns ended up winning in the end, now the question remains if he can lead them to the promised land.
Adding Jahleel Billingsley to replace the loss of Jared Wiley and Isaiah Neyor replacing Joshua Moore was massive. However, the defense might have been the underrated part in all of this. Texas flipped Ohio State commit Terrance Brooks and landed Buckeyes defensive back Ryan Watts in the transfer portal. It appears the staff put together a solid building block.
The Sooners on the other hand were big losers in the transfer portal according to Myerberg. Fans can thank Texas native Lincoln Riley for nuking that team from the inside. He did grow up as a Texas Longhorns fan after all.
It hasn’t been a total flop: OU has rallied under new coach Brent Venables to sign Central Florida quarterback Dillon Gabriel and one of the deepest transfer groups in the FBS. Gabriel’s production in the Group of Five and familiarity with new offensive coordinator Jeff Lebby’s system makes him the favorite to claim the starting job. The Sooners also addressed two areas of concern in the secondary and overall line play; McKade Mettauer (California) is a likely starter on the offensive front, while Jonah La’ulu (Hawaii) and Jeffery Johnson (Tulane) bolster depth on defense. It’s still hard to overlook the fact that OU lost one of the best players in the country at the most important position on the field.
Two five-star quarterbacks opted to exit stage left. Mario Williams is an up-and-coming wide receiver in college football. He opted to join Caleb Williams at USC with Riley. Oklahoma did secure a top 10 class in 2022 but those losses could be monumental. It is a wait-and-see approach for first-time head coach Brent Venables and those north of the Red River. As of right now, it appears the advantage arrow points to Austin.
Texas still has many question marks they need to address, but also have the chance to excel in some areas.
Steve Sarkisian and Texas have had as good of an offseason as they could have asked for after a disappointing 5-7 campaign.
Texas signed a top-five recruiting class that focused on adding much-needed talent to the trenches. 13 of the 27 signees are either offensive linemen or on the defensive front seven. Kelvin Banks became the first five-star offensive lineman to sign with Texas since the 2009 cycle.
The Horns also hit big in the transfer portal, bringing four guys who will push for immediate playing time. Former Alabama tight end Jahleel Billingsley and Wyoming wide receiver Isaiah Neyor are proven players ready to contribute. Ohio State transfers Quinn Ewers and Ryan Watts were targeted by many schools after entering the portal.
Texas will continue to look to use the portal this offseason as more players will presumably enter the portal after spring ball.
Looking ahead to the 2022 season, Texas still has many question marks they need to address, but they also have the chance to excel in some areas.
Here are Texas’ biggest strengths and weaknesses heading into 2022:
