Texas’ offseason overhaul has already put Sean Miller’s first Longhorns team in rare company.
Even after losing 11 players from last season’s Sweet 16 squad, Texas is sitting at No. 7 in ESPN’s latest Way-Too-Early Top 25, a jump of two spots from the network’s previous ranking. The Longhorns trail only Florida, Duke, Illinois, UConn, Michigan and Tennessee.
That kind of respect comes after a complete reset in Austin. Texas said goodbye to three of its top four scorers and watched a full dozen departures pile up through eligibility, the transfer portal and the NBA Draft, including first-round 2026 NBA Draft pick Dailyn Swain.
Miller didn’t try to plug the gaps one by one. He tore it down and rebuilt.
The result is a roster that 247 Sports ranked with the nation’s fourth-best transfer class, which also stands as the highest-rated portal haul of Miller’s coaching career.
The transfer group is led by former TCU forward David Punch, Colorado guard Isaiah Johnson, Auburn forward Elyjah Freeman, Tennessee guard Amari Evans and Saint Mary’s guard Mikey Lewis. Texas also added five freshmen and kept center Matas Vokietaitis in the fold after he drew interest from multiple Division I programs.
Punch is the newcomer ESPN expects to make the biggest immediate splash. He put up 14.1 points and 6.8 rebounds per game at TCU last season, and the outlet singled him out for his physicality and defensive playmaking. ESPN projects him to join Vokietaitis, Johnson, Freeman and freshman Austin Goosby in the starting five.
Goosby brings plenty of buzz of his own. The Melissa, Texas, native is a 5-star prospect, ranked No. 18 overall and No. 4 among combo guards in the 2026 class by 247 Sports. He picked Texas over offers from SMU, UCLA, Miami and Duke.
Miller likes more than the names on the roster. Speaking recently on the Aaron Torres Podcast, he said, "I love the people and players we have," and added, "And I think they've come here to be part of something bigger than their own goals."
That’s the bet in Austin now: talent on paper, enough of it to earn a top-10 preseason spot, and enough buy-in to turn a roster full of new faces into something that can build on last season’s unexpected Sweet 16 run.
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