Skip to main content
Texas

Texas DT Maraad Watson named to On3's Preseason All-Transfer Portal team

Joe Cookby: Joe Cook08/20/25josephcook89
Maraad Watson
Maraad Watson (Will Gallagher/Inside Texas)

Texas defensive tackle Maraad Watson was named to On3’s Preseason All-Transfer Portal team on Wednesday. Watson, a sophomore listed at 6-foot-3 and 327 pounds, was an instant impact player for Syracuse as a freshman last season last season, recording 31 tackles 1.5 TFL, and 1.0 sack. He also had one pass breakup.

[Sign up for Inside Texas TODAY and get the BEST Longhorns coverage!]

Watson was ranked as the No. 72 overall prospect and the No. 4 defensive lineman in the transfer portal, according to the On3 Transfer Portal Industry Ranking. On3 ranked Watson as the No. 72 overall portal prospect and the No. 9 defensive lineman.

Here’s what On3’s Pete Nakos had to say about Watson.

Texas went to work adding talent at defensive tackle this offseason, bringing in five transfers. But the Longhorns scored their biggest win in the spring window, landing Syracuse freshman standout Maraad Watson. The 6-foot-3, 313-pound defensive lineman finished his 2024 season with 31 tackles and a sack. He also showed up as a disruptor against Miami, forcing chaos and pressure on quarterback Cam Ward. He’s expected to be a key piece of the Texas defensive line in the years to come, with three years of eligibility remaining, and he’s strung together a strong fall camp, according to sources.

Watson logged a Pro Football Focus defensive grade of 65.1 last year with a run defense mark of 77.4. PFF credited him with 15 stops. Watson split time between the A and B-gaps, with most of his snaps over the B-gap. Watson is one of the players likely to see considerable action in Texas’ defensive tackle rotation.

2025 Preseason All-Transfer Portal Team

QB Carson Beck, Miami
RB Jaydn Ott, Oklahoma
WR Eric Singleton, Auburn
WR Barion Brown, LSU
WR Malachi Fields, Notre Dame
TE Max Klare, Ohio State
OT Isaiah World, Oregon
OG Tomas Rimac, Virginia Tech
C Luke Petitbon, Florida State
OG Wendell Moe, Tennessee
OT Xavier Chaplin, Auburn

[Want to be the most informed Texas Longhorns football fan? Order the 2025 edition of Thinking Texas Football today!]

EDGE David Bailey, Texas Tech
DL Lee Hunter, Texas Tech
DL Maraad Watson, Texas
EDGE Damon Wilson, Missouri
LB Amare Campbell, Penn State
LB Andrew Simpson, North Carolina
LB Josiah Trotter, Missouri
CB Jeremiah Wilson, Florida State
CB Tacario Davis, Washington
S Dillon Thieneman, Oregon
S A.J. Haulcy, LSU

You may also like