Portal Prep: Five Questions Ahead of the Transfer Portal Opening

PORTAL TRACKER

Transfer portal week is finally upon us.

The portal opens Friday. More than 1,000 players have already announced their intentions to enter.

New Oklahoma State coach Eric Morris will have to build much of his first Cowboy roster via the portal, needing to fill more than 40 roster spots.

Before all heck breaks loose, here are five OSU-related questions I have entering the portal window.

1. Can OSU Secure the UNT Big 3?

Who is the UNT Big 3, you might ask? Well, it’s the underclassman collective of quarterback Drew Mestemaker, running back Caleb Hawkins and receiver Wyatt Young.

Mestemaker’s lead on the country in terms of passing is up to 698 yards ahead second-place Sawyer Robertson (Baylor) after Mestemaker threw for 250 yards and three scores against San Diego State in the New Mexico Bowl.

Hawkins was the star of that bowl game, as the Shawnee native ran for 198 yards and two touchdowns against the Aztecs to go with a receiving score. He finished his true freshman season with 1,434 yards on 6.2 yards a carry with 25 rushing TDs and four receiving TDs.

Young was Mestemaker’s target of choice all season. He finished his sophomore year with 1,264 receiving yards and 10 touchdowns on 70 catches. That yardage total ranks third nationally and the TD total is tied for 12th.

With all three of those guys expected to hit the portal, it’s hard to imagine Morris wouldn’t want to bring them with him to Stillwater, but I imagine there will be other programs around the country who will also be interested in investing in all or parts of that trio.

According to On3, Hawkins is the No. 4 player in the country expected to enter the portal. Mestemaker isn’t far behind at No. 7, and Young is No. 39. Of all the people in the portal right now, three North Texas underclassmen rank in the top 40. It’d be a big win for OSU to get them, but that will be no easy feat.

2. What Happens with Hauss?

Perhaps another piece to the Mestemaker puzzle, OSU’s 2025 starting quarterback Hauss Hejny hasn’t announced he’s going anywhere yet.

Hejny will likely get a medical redshirt for this season after playing just three series before suffering a Jones fracture that kept him out for the remainder of the year, meaning he still could have four years of eligibility remaining.

Is it a matter of Hejny seeing what move Mestemaker makes? Is there a world where they could co-exist on an OSU roster? Mestemaker would be draft eligible after the 2026 season. If he has another year similar to the one he just put up, it’s not crazy to think that’s a possibility for him.

3. Who Else Could Morris Bring from UNT?

With the conclusion of the Mean Green’s season, North Texas players have started hitting the portal, many of whom contributed mightily to the Mean Green’s successes this year.

Here are quick looks at some of the other North Texas players who will reportedly hit the portal Friday:

Ethan Wesloski, LB: Wesloski led UNT in tackles in 2025, bringing down 113 ball carriers with nine tackles for loss and 1.5 sacks. He also intercepted a pass, forced a pair of fumbles and recovered a fumble (which he returned for a touchdown). Listed at 6-foot-1, 234 pounds, Wesloski should have one year of eligibility remaining.

Ethan Day, DL: The 2025 season was Day’s first in Denton after Morris and Co. brought him in from Wyoming. He made 53 tackles, including seven tackles for loss and 4.5 sacks. Listed at 6-4, 250 pounds, he should have one year of eligibility remaining.

Quinton Hammonds, S: As we’ll get to shortly, OSU has a lot of rebuilding to do in the defensive backfield, with six of OSU’s outgoing portal players to this point being safeties. Only a true sophomore this past season, Hammonds made 53 tackles, two interceptions and a trio of pass breakups.

Braydon Nelson, Johnny Dickson, Desmond Magiya, OL: Two and a half of UNT’s starting offensive linemen have announced portal intentions.

Playing primarily at left tackle, Nelson played the second-most snaps of any Mean Green player in 2025 and was only a true sophomore. In fact, he started 11 of UNT’s games last season as a true freshman. Listed at 6-4, 321 pounds, Nelson should have two years of eligibility remaining.

Dickson played on the Virginia Tech offensive line with Bob Schick in 2023 before transferring to UNT. He was the Mean Green’s right guard this season and allowed just two sacks in 430 opportunities. PFF graded him out as the No. 5 guard in the American when it comes to run blocking. Dickson is listed at 6-2, 296 and should have one season of eligibility remaining.

Magiya was a 6-5, 329-pound redshirt sophomore in 2025. He played in all of UNT’s games, making three starts at left tackle. According to PFF, he didn’t give up a sack in 182 opportunities.

4. What Are OSU’s Positions of Need?

As of writing, OSU needs to fill more than 40 roster spots to get up to the allowed 105, so to some extent, every position is a position of need. But a few stick out.

WR: OSU is thin at receiver, particularly when it comes to receivers with size with Talyn Shettron, Shamar Rigby, Cameron Abshire, Ayo Shotomide-King and Tre Griffiths all hitting the portal.

Young could help in that aspect, but he’s listed at 6-foot, 195 pounds, and lined up in the slot on about 92% of his offensive snaps, per PFF.

For what it’s worth, Morris seems comfortable substituting size for speed at the wideout spot. Of the seven North Texas receivers who had at least 50 receiving yards this year, the tallest was 6-foot-1, with five of those guys coming in under 6-feet.

TE: The Cowboys couldn’t stay healthy at tight end in 2025, and now all but two of those guys have announced they’ll hit the portal. The only returners (as of writing) at the position are Oscar Hammond and Will Monney.

Hammond is interesting because he played for Morris at UNT in 2024, finishing with 19 catches for 238 yards and a touchdown. While he could definitely play a factor for the Cowboys in 2025, the Pokes are going to need more depth there, regardless.

OL: OSU actually had a decent amount of bodies in its OL room who haven’t announced portal intentions, it’s just that not many of those guys have a ton of experience.

DB: There are some promising, young players in the Cowboys’ defensive back room still, but this group lacks in experience, as well. Among the six OSU DBs who haven’t announced intentions to hit the portal to this point, only Cooper Lai is an upperclassman.

5. What Other Oklahomans Are in the Portal?

I wish the major recruiting services had a sort-by-state feature for the players in the portal because it seems like a decent chunk make a move closer to home.

Without that sorting feature, I poked around a bit to find some Okies from other schools who plan on entering. Here are a couple of those guys:

Jacob Sexton, OL: Sexton was a four-star recruit in the 2022 recruiting class out of Deer Creek. He’s spent the past four seasons at OU. He was the Sooners’ Day 1 starter at left tackle this season but was injured and missed the rest of the year. Injuries have been an issue for Sexton, but he has played in every season he has been on OU’s campus.

Ta’Shawn James, DB: A safety from Carl Albert, James has been at Iowa State the past three seasons. In eight games in 2025, James made 33 tackles and broke up five passes.