In the age of the NCAA transfer portal, contributing as a true freshman has never been more difficult, and that’s bearing out for a Texas Longhorns team with more experience than a year ago as wide receiver Jermaine Bishop is the only player consistently earning playing time with running back Derrek Cooper battling injuries and edge Richard Wesley now sidelined with a high ankle sprain.
That leaves wide receiver Kohen Brown as the other main contributor with his role on four special teams units. After the first two games of the season, when Brown only played on the kick coverage unit, Brown has been a mainstay on kick coverage, kick return, punt coverage, and punt return, totaling 91 snaps. Only seniors Ryan Niblett and Colton Vasek have played more snaps on special teams.
Oddly enough, on Thursday Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian mentioned wide receiver Chris Stewart as a special teams contributor along with Brown even though Pro Football Focus hasn’t tracked any snaps for Stewart yet this season.
“I see them every day. The way they work in practice, they are definitely showing up in that aspect of it, so I love love what they’re bringing,” Sarkisian said.
The other freshmen mentioned by Sarkisian as making strides are all on defense — defensive linemen Jamarion Carlton and Brinley Tita, linebackers Tyler Atkinson and Rocky Cummings, and defensive backs Toray Davis and John Meredith III.
The surprising inclusion is Tita, a 6’2, 252-pounder who was a late addition to the 2026 recruiting class. Undersized for the position, Tita’s only other reported offer was from Henderson State, making him a developmental prospect whose most likely contributions would be on scout team, where he could provide a higher level of competition than a walk on. That remains the case, but it’s notable that Sarkisian mentioned the Humble Summer Creek product.
Carlton’s name is much less surprising to hear because of the 6’5, 280-pounder’s pedigree — he was a consensus four-star prospect ranked as the No. 64 player nationally and the No. 7 defensive lineman in the 247Sports Composite rankings. After another offseason of development, Carlton could factor into the defensive line rotation next year.
Cummings drew buzz during preseason camp, but Atkinson, who was a consensus five-star prospect, notably did not, and has not been able to earn a spot on special teams. As Sarkisian says frequently, development happens at different speeds for different players, so it’s not necessarily concerning that Atkinson hasn’t drawn more attention for his trajectory, but there is a significant financial investment in him. The hope now is that he’ll be ready to step into a major role next season after Rasheem Biles departs for the NFL.
The same is true of Meredith, who re-classified from the 2027 class after he was ruled ineligible for his senior season, reducing the expectations of an early impact. After some early conditioning issues surfaced, Meredith’s inclusion is a positive sign that he’s adjusting to college practices.
Davis was mentioned by Sarkisian before the season as one of five freshmen impressing, and while that hasn’t translated to playing time outside of 20 snaps on defense against Texas State and UTSA, as well as four snaps on special teams, the Colorado product is looking like one of the better evaluations in the cycle by the Longhorns staff.
“A lot of these guys are getting better and, unfortunately, you guys don’t always get a chance to see them because they’re not playing every Saturday on the weekend,” Sarkisian said. “But I see them a lot, and I’ve been impressed with these guys. They work hard. They’re team committed. They want to be really good, and I appreciate the work ethic that they’re bringing every single day. So that’s been really cool to see.”