{"id":261886,"date":"2026-05-07T11:41:07","date_gmt":"2026-05-07T11:41:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/261886\/"},"modified":"2026-05-07T11:41:07","modified_gmt":"2026-05-07T11:41:07","slug":"miamis-new-look-o-line-texas-portal-haul-and-more-6-things-we-learned-in-spring","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/261886\/","title":{"rendered":"Miami\u2019s new-look O-line, Texas\u2019 portal haul and more: 6 things we learned in spring"},"content":{"rendered":"

There were\u00a0many big offseason questions<\/a> facing college football programs across the country. Most of them weren\u2019t resolved during spring practice, but that doesn\u2019t mean we didn\u2019t learn anything in the past few months.<\/p>\n

Here are a few things that stood out.<\/p>\n

1. Miami\u2019s rebuilt O-line<\/p>\n

New Miami quarterback Darian Mensah will have plenty of weapons at his disposal, including senior Cooper Barkate, his former teammate at Duke and a 2025 second-team All-ACC pick, and sophomore Malachi Toney, the Football Writers Association of America\u2019s Freshman of the Year.<\/p>\n

The biggest question facing Miami\u2019s offense: How will the Hurricanes replace four offensive line starters, including three NFL draft picks?<\/p>\n

Matthew McCoy, the sole holdover, slid outside from right guard to right tackle this spring. The other four starters in Miami\u2019s spring game were five-star freshman Jackson Cantwell at left tackle, sophomore SJ Alofaituli at left guard, sixth-year senior Ryan Rodriguez at center, and sophomore Max Buchanan at right guard.<\/p>\n

Samson Okunlola, a redshirt junior who played 493 snaps last season and missed most of the spring, will likely replace Alofaituli as the starter at left guard in the fall. That\u2019s still a very inexperienced group outside of McCoy, with only three career starts among the other offensive linemen on the roster.<\/p>\n

Internally, however, there are no concerns. Mario Cristobal has confidence in the players he\u2019s recruited over the past few cycles and won\u2019t be reluctant to play Cantwell (6-foot-8, 330) and fellow freshman Ben Congdon (6-foot-8, 305) together.<\/p>\n

\u201cI really like the Congdon kid. He\u2019s a big kid that can move well. I thought that was who Cantwell was originally until someone told me it was Congdon,\u201d said a talent evaluator who attended a few of Miami\u2019s spring practices. \u201cCongdon could be a two-, three-year starter, two-time All-ACC-type talent. Cantwell, the talent is there. He was a little raw. But you can see all the physical ability is there to be a first-round pick. He looked better the second time I was there. To me, they\u2019re going to have the best offensive line in the ACC again.\u201d<\/p>\n

2. Texas\u2019 portal haul<\/p>\n

Texas spent a pretty penny \u2014 close to $3 million, we\u2019re told \u2014 to bring in Cam Coleman from Auburn and to give quarterback Arch Manning one of the best receiver groups in the country.<\/p>\n

Is it the best? One Power 4 personnel staffer sees some flaws.<\/p>\n

\u201cColeman is their best receiver with a great catch radius, but I don\u2019t think he\u2019s a burner,\u201d he said. \u201cRyan Wingo is your best athlete, but not a real good receiver. Emmett Mosley is your best overall receiver, but doesn\u2019t have long speed. They all have flaws that can limit them if you have really good corners. Week 2 (versus Ohio State) will be the test.\u201d<\/p>\n

What about the rest of Texas\u2019 portal haul? We ranked it third-best in the country<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cI still think they\u2019re lacking depth in the secondary, and I think the linebackers are just okay,\u201d the staffer said. \u201cThe kid from Florida State (Justin Cryer), he\u2019s starting, and I thought he was a reach. (Rasheem Biles) was great in Pittsburgh\u2019s system because he was a weakside linebacker. They\u2019re gonna line him up in 3-4 and make plays because he has Colin Simmons on the other side.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe offensive lineman from Wake Forest (Melvin Siani) is gonna be good at right tackle. The running backs are okay. Hollywood (Smothers) is pretty good. But I think (freshman) Derrick Cooper ends up the starter by Week 3. He\u2019s got something the other two guys don\u2019t have. Raleek Brown is too small for the SEC.\u201d<\/p>\n

3. USC\u2019s under-the-radar freshman<\/p>\n

USC signed the No. 1 recruiting class in the country in the 2026 cycle, and the newcomers were a major focus for the media in the spring as they went through their first 15 practices. The class included three five-star prospects, 10 top-100 players and 22 blue-chip recruits.<\/p>\n

One player who received overwhelming praise is wideout Trent Mosley, a four-star prospect ranked No. 250 overall in the cycle. Mosley played for former USC standout and 2002 Heisman Trophy winner Carson Palmer at Santa Margarita (Calif.) High. The Trojans lost star receivers Makai Lemon and Ja\u2019Kobi Lane to the NFL and need someone to step up next to Tanook Hines, who established himself as a playmaker last year.<\/p>\n

That could be Mosley, who has the size (5-10, 180 pounds) to be an ideal slot player. He brings explosiveness to the receiver group as well. While those physical skills could help him get on the field this fall, it\u2019s his mental approach to the game that stood out to the coaching staff.<\/p>\n

\u201cTrent had a really, really strong spring. Super excited for the future he\u2019s got at USC,\u201d inside receivers coach Chad Savage said last month. \u201cHe carries himself like a pro. He meets like a pro. The way he handled the playbook like an early enrollee was very, very impressive. So he\u2019s got a bright future, which we knew during the recruiting process.\u201d<\/p>\n

USC will also welcome Ethan \u201cBoobie\u201d Feaster, a top-50 national prospect, to the program this summer, adding more talent to a wide receiving corps that needs playmakers.<\/p>\n

4. Who\u2019s making noise at Cal?<\/p>\n

The Golden Bears underwent a major makeover in the offseason, bringing in a new head coach, Tosh Lupoi, and signing 30 transfers.<\/p>\n

Lupoi, Oregon\u2019s defensive coordinator for the past four seasons, brought three defensive transfers from Eugene. One to watch is safety Kingston Lopa, a Northern California native who was stuck in a crowded Ducks secondary. He was a four-star prospect in the Class of 2024, so the potential is there. Also, keep an eye on USC linebacker transfer AJ Tuitele, who could contribute to a position group where Cal was hit hard by attrition this offseason.<\/p>\n

On offense, the emphasis was on surrounding emerging young quarterback Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele with more talent. Chase Hendricks, who caught 71 passes for 1,037 yards at Ohio last year, is receiving positive reviews. Two transfer running backs \u2014 Adam Mohammed (Washington) and Carter Vargas (UC Davis) \u2014 also impressed in the spring.<\/p>\n

Cal brought in New Mexico transfer Dorian Thomas, one of the most productive tight ends at the FBS level last season, but one name fans should file away for the future is true freshman Taimane Purcell. The 6-4, 235-pound Purcell was a four-star prospect in the Golden Bears\u2019 2026 class and is generating a lot of excitement.<\/p>\n

5. Kentucky\u2019s talent infusion<\/p>\n

Kentucky signed a top-10 transfer portal class, and it sounds like new coach Will Stein has upgraded the offensive line, found a legit SEC starting quarterback in Kenny Minchey and surrounded him with playmakers.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think the offensive line is going to be really, really good,\u201d a Kentucky staffer said. \u201cI really liked the two freshman receivers (Kenny Darby and Denairius Gray). (Southern Utah transfer) Shane Carr had a really good spring. Sophomore DJ Miller is probably the No. 1 receiver right now.\u201d<\/p>\n

Three key offensive transfers were limited or missed the spring while recovering from injuries: running backs CJ Baxter (Texas) and Jovantae Barnes (Oklahoma) and receiver Nic Anderson (LSU). Baxter, the 2023 Big 12 Offensive Newcomer of the Year, reinjured his hamstring a week into camp.<\/p>\n

The standout new arrivals on defense this spring: linebacker Bo Barnes (Texas), nickelback Aaron Gates (Florida) and safety Jordan Castell (Florida).<\/p>\n

6. Texas Tech\u2019s QB predicament<\/p>\n

Texas Tech\u2019s quarterback outlook changed drastically last week following the news that Brendan Sorsby would take a leave of absence to enter a residential treatment program for a gambling addiction<\/a> and the resulting eligibility questions that linger amid reported allegations of his betting activity.<\/p>\n

Sorsby, one of the top quarterback transfers of the offseason, signed a one-year deal for more than $4 million to help upgrade Texas Tech\u2019s offense after the Red Raiders made their first College Football Playoff last season but were shut out 23-0 by Oregon in the Orange Bowl. But there\u2019s no guarantee Sorsby plays a down for Tech, given the circumstances.<\/p>\n

Will Hammond, a redshirt sophomore who was Texas Tech\u2019s 2024 quarterback signee, has long been viewed within the program as the Red Raiders\u2019 quarterback of the future. As far back as his true freshman season, one program source said Hammond had the potential to make an impact similar to what Graham Harrell had on Texas Tech two decades ago.<\/p>\n

Hammond backed up Behren Morton last year and performed admirably in relief of Morton during Texas Tech\u2019s road win at Utah, though he endured some struggles in the team\u2019s lone conference loss at Arizona State.<\/p>\n

But Hammond tore the ACL in his right knee in his second start of 2025, a late October win over Oklahoma State. In addition to landing one of the top transfers of the offseason, the Sorsby signing also bought the Red Raiders time, not forcing them to rely on a young player coming off a major injury to lead what they hope is a second straight conference title and CFP appearance. Now, they might not have a choice.<\/p>\n

In March, when Texas Tech began spring football, head coach Joey McGuire estimated that Hammond could be cleared by Week 3, citing a nine-month recovery from surgery. But more recently, there is growing optimism that Hammond\u2019s return could be sooner as his knee is responding well to rehabilitation. If things continue to progress at the current pace, there\u2019s hope that Hammond could be ready for Week 1, according to a source briefed on his recovery.<\/p>\n

Even if Hammond stuck to the original timetable, the Red Raiders would probably be OK. Sorsby wasn\u2019t the only quarterback transfer they signed this offseason; they also picked up former Tulsa starter Kirk Francis as a depth option.<\/p>\n

Francis has 12 games of FBS starting experience across three seasons with the Golden Hurricane. He had pedestrian numbers (58.4 percent completion rate, 6.6 yards per attempt, 18 touchdowns, 13 interceptions in 18 appearances) but has legitimate arm strength. Given the roster talent Tech has around the quarterback and the team\u2019s first two opponents \u2014 Abilene Christian and Oregon State \u2014 the Red Raiders could likely manage in the interim without Hammond.<\/p>\n

But they\u2019d want to have him back for Week 3, when they open conference play hosting Houston for a Friday night game. The Cougars are coming off a 10-3 season and are considered a Big 12 Championship Game contender this season.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"There were\u00a0many big offseason questions facing college football programs across the country. Most of them weren\u2019t resolved during…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":261887,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[20291,143,2529,123,125,5079,124,6792,2526,4671],"class_list":["post-261886","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-miami","tag-california-golden-bears","tag-college-football","tag-kentucky-wildcats","tag-miami","tag-miami-headlines","tag-miami-hurricanes","tag-miami-news","tag-texas-longhorns","tag-texas-tech-red-raiders","tag-usc-trojans"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/261886","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=261886"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/261886\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/261887"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=261886"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=261886"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=261886"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}