I didn’t expect to be renewing this series on the morning of the Texas “spring game,” but here we are. As spring practice comes to an end, Sarkisian is continuing to look for ways to improve and deepen this roster. Darius Snow, former Michigan State LB, represents likely the most impactful addition of the pair of portal players.
Snow brings elite experience from the Spartans, entering his 7th year in college football, elevating the floor for a relatively thin linebacker room. On top of that, he already has a connection to the current Longhorns roster, through his father.
Career Stats: 144 total tackles, 2 PDs, 1 sack, 1 INT(in the three season w/o major injury)
Snow’s college career has been nothing but change. He’s had three(now four) head coaches, went through COVID-19 early in his career and multiple significant injuries. Snow shined in his sophomore season of 2021, racking up 81 tackles, 2 PDs and an INT. In 2022, he suffered a serious leg injury that would keep him sidelined that season. After four games in 2023, another injury sent that season down the drain. He was able to stay healthy throughout the last two seasons, mostly as a rotational LB/special teamer.
Snow is an addition that will likely cause Longhorn Nation to ask the obvious question: Does this mean the LB room is a disaster? I’d argue the answer is no, far from it. I believe this, like the other portal addition, is about two things: 1. Raising the floor of the roster and 2. Adding experience that can help on and off the field. Snow checks both those boxes and could very well carve out a major special teams role early in 2026.
The other factor in this addition is obvious: Steve Sarkisian has roster spots to play around with. The Longhorns had a number of players leaving via the NFL Draft and the portal, meaning they had more roster spots to fill even after spring. Well, it seems those spots have been filled because Texas seems to have hit the 105 player mark. Now, it’d be foolish to say something can’t change, but this could be the final couple of moves of the offseason.
Overall, this is a really nice addition to the LB room depth. At 230lbs, he’ll be one of the bigger LBs, so could step in on short yardage situations. More likely, his special teams ability and experience will be a massive asset for the Longhorns. I would be surprised if he changed the snaps distribution in the LB room too much. That being said, this is a great floor-setting addition to a room that needed it.
This article originally appeared on Longhorns Wire: Fresh Faces On The Forty: Longhorns added another transfer portal LB
Reporting by Tommy Bresee, Longhorns Wire / Longhorns Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
