Mizzou OT Johnny Williams IV to Enter Transfer Portal, Per Report

The Tigers are losing a potential starter on the offensive line for next season.

Nov 15, 2025; Columbia, Missouri, USA; A general view of a Missouri Tigers helmet against the Mississippi State Bulldogs during the first half of the game at Faurot Field at Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-Imagn Images | Denny Medley-Imagn Images

Missouri Tigers offensive tackle Johnny Williams IV is set to enter the transfer portal, per a report from Pete Nakos. Williams spent only one season with the Tigers after transferring from West Virginia, appearing in only 52 snaps this season.

Williams was brought in to not only add depth to the offensive line, but also to eventually become a starter. In fact, with some big losses on the offensive front heading into the 2025 season, there was a chance he could've played right away.

It was made clear early that Williams would not be doing so, falling in place as the second-string right tackle behind senior Keagen Trost.

As a redshirt freshman in 2024 for the Mountaineers, Williams logged 239 snaps 2024, with 127 pass protection snaps. He allowed only four pressures on the quarterback in those snaps, according to Pro Football Focus, and logged a pass-blocking grade of 84.5 and an overall grade of 74.8.

With Williams gone, the Tigers' options at tackle for next season are starting to thin out. Trost is out of eligibility after this season and junior left tackle Cayden Green could declare for the NFL draft. If both of those players are gone alongside Williams, Missouri wouldn't have much going on at offensive tackle.

Jayven Richardson would be the top returner, who started in two games this season. He did a serviceable job this season as the fill-in for Green, especially against South Carolina's Bryan Thomas Jr.

Missouri's offensive tackle depth does include a few promising young players, however. Most notably, rising sophomore Jack Lange, who was rated as the top prospect in the state of Missouri in the class of 2025 and the No. 16 offensive tackle prospect in the class, per 247Sports' rankings. Rising redshirt junior Brandon Solis, a former three-star prospect, could also have some opportunities next season.

The transfer portal officially opens Friday, though players have already announced their intentions to jump into it. Williams is the 11th Missouri player to do so.

Williams is the second player to do so following Missouri's loss in the Gator Bowl. After the Gator Bowl, head coach Eli Drinkwitz spoke on his expectation for more players to enter the portal.

"There's going to be guys transferring," Drinkwitz said after the game. "There's guys that already told us that they were going to transfer, but they wanted to play tonight, and we really appreciate those guys finishing. And then once we have a kind of a final feel of where that is, and then we'll go attack the portal and build a new team. And that's that's college football now. I mean, every team's looking to rebuild their roster, post-bowl games, post coaching changes, whatever, and that's what we'll do."

To keep up with all of the offseason movement for Missouri, follow our offseason tracker.