The Second Coming of This Iconic Receiver Duo May Be Happening for Texas Football

With the addition of coveted Auburn transfer Cam Coleman, the receiver room for the Texas Longhorns is one of the most potential-stacked in all of college football. With Coleman joining returners Ryan Wingo, Kaliq Lockett and Emmett Mosley V in a competitive lineup, the sky is the limit for the group that will be catching quarterback Arch Manning’s passes.

Wingo and Coleman will be listed as wide receivers one and two, respectively. Wingo, who will be a junior next season, has spent his career at Texas and played a valuable role both seasons. Coleman’s talent is unquestionable, and given that the Longhorns likely spent a pretty penny on his recruitment, he will be expecting a starting position.

As a duo, they make a pretty picture. Wingo collected 834 yards and seven touchdowns over 54 catches his sophomore season, with his longest reception at 75 yards. Coleman finished his second year at Auburn with 708 yards, catching 56 balls from junior quarterback Jackson Arnold, five of which found their way into the endzone.

Sound familiar?

Adonai Mitchell (5) and Xavier Worthy (1) celebrate a touchdown. — Texas Longhorns wide receivers Adonai Mitchell (5) and Xavier Worthy (1) celebrate a touchdown by Mitchell during the Big 12 Championship game against the Oklahoma State Cowboys at AT&T stadium on Saturday, Dec. 2, 2023 in Arlington. | Aaron E. Martinez / USA TODAY NETWORK

It should, because these two together on the field have a chance to be reminiscent of the Xavier Worthy/Adonai Mitchell duo in Texas’ 2023-24 season. Worthy, like Wingo, stayed with the Longhorns throughout his entire career and developed a reputation as quarterback Quinn Ewers’ prime target.

Mitchell, a transfer from Georgia, arrived on the Forty as a well-rated recruit and quickly became a fan favorite as one of the most reliable receivers on the team. Like Coleman, Mitchell stayed with Georgia for two years before making the move to Texas.

Wingo, like Worthy, is exceptional as a playmaker and has breakaway speed. He caught with an average yardage of 15.3 this season and 16.4 last, using his legs to extend short passes into big plays. Sarkisian utilized this by starting three games in a row with a Manning to Wingo short screen pass, two of which resulted in 60-plus-yard touchdowns within seconds of the game’s kickoff.

Mitchell’s biggest value was in his hands, and while Coleman has room for improvement on completing routine pass plays, according to NFL Draft Buzz, his biggest threat is in the deep route, just like Mitchell.

Coleman and Mitchell are also similar in the fact that they lack consistent route-running, but their uses as red zone threats are indisputable. Mitchell excelled at evading single-man coverage and finding his way to the endzone to make big plays as one of the shiftiest red zone navigators in college football, according to an analysis put out by Fantasy Life right before he was drafted. Coleman is a defensive coordinator’s red zone nightmare, with the ability to separate himself almost completely, according to 247Sports.

Worthy and Mitchell, put into a simple analogy, fit together like peanut butter and jelly — one playmaker and one reliable deep threat. With the two lining up with Ewers, Texas ended the season with a red zone conversion rate of 63.8. Worthy went on play for the Kansas City Chiefs as the No. 28 pick in the first round of the NFL Draft, with Mitchell going a round later as No. 52 to the Indianapolis Colts before he was traded this past season to the New York Jets.

Two years after Worthy and Mitchell’s departures, the Longhorns have found themselves a seemingly similar threat in Wingo and Coleman. Will the two follow in the footsteps of their predecessors, taking Texas to the semifinals of the National Championship and leaving a year early for the NFL Draft?

Time will only tell. For now, though, one thing is for sure — Manning and Co. are stacked with some of the best offensive weapons in the game.