Don't feel bad if the mass movement in college football leaves you confused about which players landed at what universities. That's why we're here. With national signign day in the rear-view mirror and spring practice on the horizon, Dave Campbell's Texas Football takes a look at the transfers added by each of the 12 FBS programs in the state of Texas. 

Texas A&M

No. of transfers: 1

Top transfers: QB Max Johnson (LSU)

Overview: Jimbo Fisher and the Aggies improved the roster on the recruiting trail enough to avoid needing an influx of transfers. That might be the best sign for a program in modern times. Texas A&M signed the best recruiting class in the history of the internet era. The group consisted of 29 signees, including 11 early enrollees and seven five stars. 

The only transfer addition was at quarterback after Texas A&M struggled to find consistency at the position. Haynes King started two games prior to a season-ending injury. Zach Calzada, who started the remainder of the games, left the program after the season. With King back, Johnson arrives from LSU to compete with the former Longview star and five-star dual-threat Conner Weigmann, who was the second-ranked quarterback in the 2022 recruiting class. 

Texas

No. of transfers: 4

Top transfers: QB Quinn Ewers (Ohio State), CB Ryan Watts (Ohio State), WR Isaiah Neyor (Wyoming), TE Jahleel Billingsley (Alabama)

Overview: Steve Sarkisian admitted towards the end of the 2021 regular season that his Longhorns required an influx of talent and depth to a roster that limped to a 5-7 finish. Texas signed the fifth-best recruiting class in the nation, which included the best haul of offensive linemen in the nation for the 2022 recruiting class. The Longhorns signed 28 players and 10 of those are expected on campus for the spring semester. 

Texas also added four transfers to the mix heading into spring ball. The headliner is Ewers, a former five-star quarterback from Southlake Carroll who spent a year at Ohio State after leaving his high school a season early. The 6-3, 206-pound Ewers was the top-ranked player in the 2022 cycle before reclassifying. He’ll be expected to take the starting spot over Hudson Card. 

The Longhorns also added much needed receiving weapons in Neyor at wide receiver and Billingsley at tight end. Neyor, who is an Arlington native, should be an immediate upgrade at outside receiver opposite of Xavier Worthy. Watts, a Little Elm product, returns to the state of Texas after a season at Ohio State. 

Baylor

No. of transfers: 1

Top transfers: DL Jaxon Player (Tulsa)

Overview: Dave Aranda clearly feels good about his returning roster after signing 21 players in the 2022 class and only nabbing one transfer from a flooded market. Player, who attended Waco Midway but wasn’t offered by the previous staff, was a difference-maker at Tulsa. He can play nose or on the outside of Baylor’s odd-man front. He’ll team up with Siaka Ika to form the best pair of interior defensive linemen in Texas. Baylor should be fine along the offensive line and defensive line. It’ll be interesting to see if Aranda and his staff add any transfers at wide receiver or in the secondary before the start of the 2022 season. 

Texas Tech

No. of transfers: 8

Top transfers: OT Michael Shanahan (UT-Martin), OT Monroe Mills (Oklahoma State), S Tyler Owens (Texas)

Overview: A new era under first-year head coach Joey McGuire means roster turnover is required. That’s the hard truth in college football. McGuire arrived on the job a month before the end of the season, which allowed him time to build a staff and get a jump-start on recruiting and the transfer portal. That time paid off with a solid 16-man recruiting class and eight transfers. Three of those transfers – Shanahan, Mills, and Cade Briggs – could become new starters along the offensive line. Owens, a freak athlete who reached five-star status at some recruiting sites, can help at safety or linebacker. The Red Raiders also added potential playmakers to the offense in wide receiver Brady Boyd from Minnesota and athlete Jordan Brown from Kansas. 

TCU

No. of transfers: 9

Top transfers: RB Emani Bailey (Louisiana), OL Alan Ali (SMU), RB Trelon Smith (Arkansas)

Overview: Sonny Dykes is a portal guru dating back to his time as an offensive coordinator at Arizona when he landed Nick Foles. He completed the same trick at SMU with quarterbacks Tanner Mordecai and Shane Buechele. He made the Mustangs a second-landing spot for many DFW natives, and he’ll want to do the same thing on the other side of town at TCU. The Horned Frogs added 14 players through the 2022 recruiting class and 11 through the transfer portal. The number of transfers likely grows again after spring ball. 

TCU lost Zach Evans at running back to Ole Miss in the winter, so Dykes and company added a pair of potential replacements in Bailey and Smith. Linebackers Johnny Hodges (Navy) and Terrence Cooks (Texas) along with defensive lineman Lwal Uguak (Connecticut) should help a run defense that struggled mightily in 2021. Ali comes over from SMU and should slot into the starting center spot. 

Houston

No. of transfers: 5

Top transfers: LB Jamal Morris (Oklahoma), WR Joseph Manjack (USC), WR Sam Brown (West Virginia)

Overview: Houston’s recruiting efforts are on an upward trajectory thanks to results on the field and an eventual move to the Big 12 Conference. The Cougars signed 15 players to a 2022 class that ranked second in the AAC and 49thin the nation, which is an improvement of 36 spots from the 2021 cycle. Still, Houston should always thrive in the transfer market with so many former high school products from the area looking for a second chance. Morris graduated from Fort Bend Bush. Manjack attended Tomball Memorial. Three of the five transfers play wide receiver with Houston needing to find a compliment to Nathaniel Dell. 

SMU

No. of transfers: 6

Top transfers: LB Jaqwondis Burns (Minnesota), WR Joshua Moore (Texas), WR Beau Corrales (North Carolina), OT Joseph Bissinger (Virginia)

Overview: SMU is one of three FBS programs in Texas undergoing a coaching change joining Texas Tech and TCU. First-year head coach Rhett Lashlee is back in Dallas after a year as the offensive coordinator at the University of Miami. He didn’t receive much time to recruit, signing 12 players to a class that ranked 80th in the nation and sixth in the AAC. The Mustangs did add six quality transfers to help replenish the roster for 2022. Bissinger and Burns should be penciled in as starters. Moore and Corrales should help reload the wide receiver position after losing Danny Gray to the NFL. 

UTSA

No. of transfers: 3

Top transfers: WR Chris Carpenter (Colorado), OT Payne He’Bert (Northwestern), K Jared Sackett (South Florida)

Overview: The Roadrunners used the momentum gained during a Conference USA championship run to sign their most talented class in program history. The 15-man class closed strong to rank second in C-USA and 69th in the nation, which was 13 spots better than the 2020 cycle. Five of those 15 additions are JUCO signees who should contribute immediately. UTSA also added a trio of transfers to the mix. Carpenter, a Jacksonville, TX product, should add to a dynamic receiving core. He’Bert has a chance to replace Spencer Burford. Three-star kicker Sackett should continue UTSA’s run of impressive place kickers. 

North Texas

No. of transfers: 6

Top transfers: QB JD Head (Louisiana Tech), CB Zahodri Jackson (Utah State), WR Jay Maclin (Missouri)

Overview: North Texas must improve its passing offense in 2022. Seth Littrell took steps towards improving the talent at the position by landing Head, originally from Pearland, from Louisiana Tech and Birdville High School product Stone Earle after he spent a year at Abilene Christian. The offense also added Maclin, a slot receiver with excellent genetics considering his older brother, Jeremy, played in the NFL. Jackson will arrive from Utah State and compete for a starting spot at cornerback. Nicholas Nakwaasah transferred from Central Arkansas with plans to take over one of the starting safety positions. 

Rice

No. of transfers: 4

Top transfers: WR Sam Crawford (Tulsa), WR Isaiah Esdale (West Virginia), ILB Cam Dillon (Columbia)

Overview: Rice’s 12-man recruiting class ranked above North Texas, UTEP, and Texas State in the national rankings. It was headlined by wide receiver Rawson MacNeill. Two of the four transfers signed by Rice also play wide receiver with the Owls needing weapons opposite of Jake Parker. Crawford and Esdale are 6-foot-1 and capable of playing outside receiver or in the slot. Dillon should immediately add a run-stopper to the linebacker room. Rice also added kicker Tim Horn from Washington to improve special teams. 

UTEP

No. of transfers: 1

Top transfers: S Kobe Hylton (Louisiana)

Overview: UTEP uses the JUCO market to make immediate upgrades to its roster. It is a trick Dana Dimel learned after years spent as an assistant to Bill Snyder at Kansas State. The benefits are similar with JUCO and transfer targets more able to play right away thanks to a few years removed from the high school ranks. Eleven of the 16 players signed by UTEP in the 2022 recruiting cycle come from the JUCO ranks. That allowed the Miners to add just one transfer, though, it is wise to expect that number to grow in the summer. Hylton arrives from Louisiana with a chance to help at deep safety. 

Texas State

No. of transfers: 7

Top transfers: QB Layne Hatcher (Arkansas State), OT Evan Lovell (Rhode Island), DL Dominique Ratcliff (Louisiana)

Overview: The Bobcats have nearly ditched high school recruiting under Jake Spavital. The 2021 class included one high school player from the state of Texas. That number grew to two in the 2022 cycle. Instead, Texas State shifted focus to the JUCO ranks and the transfer market to build a roster. Three of the five players signed by the Bobcats in the 2022 cycle came from the JUCO ranks. 

The program also added seven transfers. Hatcher, one of two transfer quarterbacks signed, is the most intriguing considering his arrives from Sun Belt rival Arkansas State. The Bobcats also addressed the trenches by adding offensive linemen Lovell and Richard West alongside defensive lineman Dominique Ratcliff.