Houston Loses Major Defensive Piece To Transfer Portal

With the transfer portal now open until Jan. 16, players all over the country will be moving around in the short two week window.

Houston received more bad news on Thursday as standout sophomore linebacker Corey Platt Jr. announced that he would be entering the transfer portal.

With the surprising news, Platt Jr. will have two years of eligibility remaining as he searches for his new home.

Corey Platt Jr. Enters The Transfer Portal

The Houston Cougars are coming off an impressive 10-win season, led by head coach Willie Fritz and staff.

To the team’s surprise, Platt Jr. will join another team for the 2026-2027 season.

After battling several injuries and surgeries, the veteran linebacker put together the best season of his career in 2025.

He tallied 41 total tackles along with two pass deflections, three sacks and a forced fumble, making him one of Houston’s top defensive players.

Before joining Houston, Platt Jr. also spent two seasons playing under Fritz at Tulane, where he totaled 40 tackles, a sack and an interception.

What’s Next For Houston?

With the transfer portal now in full swing, expect several more players to leave the program and search for a new school.

In the new era of college football, the Cougars will have a new-look roster by the time next season roles around.

However, a completely revamped roster is not a bad thing for Houston, and it showed this year.

The portal was a big reason for the Cougars’ success in 2025 as they turned around two back-to-back 4-8 seasons with a 10-win campaign, their first since 2021.

Houston landed 30 transfers in the offseason, which ranked No. 27 in the entire country, per 247 Sports.

Now, with several seniors out of eligibility and many others expected to transfer, coach Fritz and staff will be faced with a similar task.

Fortunately for the Cougars, two of their top transfer from last season have already announced that they would be back to lead the team in 2025 in junior quarterback Conner Weigman and junior receiver Amare Thomas.

The duo instantly becomes one of the best in the entire Big 12 for 2026 as Thomas finished second in the conference with 966 receiving yards and 12 touchdowns.

Houston fans should be confident in what Fritz has done in his short time here, as he has shown he can confidently navigate the transfer portal and field a team that can compete at the top of the Big 12 Conference.

The Cougars have a lot of returning talent, and they are an attractive destination for almost any player who has entered the transfer portal.