Report: Texas DB Ryan Watts To Enter Name Into 2024 NFL Draft

The Ohio State transfer will not be returning to play for the Texas Longhorns for his fifth season of college football.

The Texas Longhorns made a run to the College Football Playoff this season, which is a great sign of a program headed in the right direction but also makes a team susceptible to losing players to the next level.

Names like Jonathon Brooks, Xavier Worthy, T'Vondre Sweat, and Ja'Tavion Sanders are all off to the NFL with other players like Kitan Crawford and Jerrin Thompson hitting the portal. On Sunday, it was revealed that they'd be losing yet another member of the secondary in corner, Ryan Watts.

According to Horns 247, the Ohio State transfer who transferred to Texas prior to the 2022 season will be skipping out on a fifth-year and instead turning pro. 

Texas DB Ryan Watts  / USA Today Sports

Watts didn't quite have the statistical production this season that he produced in his first year in Austin. He played in just nine games in which he recorded 38 total tackles with three pass deflections on the year. He also accumulated a coverage grade of 62.3 on the year, which was significantly lower than his 70.6 from 2022.

While this is a big loss in terms of losing someone who was experienced, the Longhorns are returning corners, Terrance Brooks and Malik Muhammad. They are also adding five-star safety Xavier Filsaime, four-star corner Kobe Black, as well as Clemson safety transfer Andrew Mukuba.

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The secondary struggled against higher-octane passing attacks and finished the season with the No. 113 team in the country in passing yards allowed with 254 yards given up per game. The younger guys will need to step up, and the new additions will need to make immediate an impact.