Longhorns Contact 7-Foot Oregon Transfer Kel'el Ware

AUSTIN -- Texas Longhorns head coach Rodney Terry is already getting down to business in the recruiting game.

Per reports from On3 on Tuesday, Texas has reached out to Oregon Ducks big man Kel'el Ware, who officially entered the transfer portal on Monday.

Ware, a 7-foot, 210-pound center, was a 2022 McDonald's All-American and five-star prospect per On3's and 247Sports' recruiting rankings coming out of North Little Rock, Ark. Ware officially visited the University of Texas at Austin on June 20, 2021, but quickly committed to Oregon on Aug. 9 of that year just one day after the Ducks offered him.

Ware played in 35 of 36 games for the Ducks this past season as a freshman, but didn't live up to the sky-high hype that followed him headed into college. Playing just 15.8 minutes per game and making four starts, Ware averaged 6.6 points, 4.1 rebounds and 1.3 blocks per game.

The talent is clearly there for Ware. But luckily, despite a quieter year than expected, he'll only be a sophomore next season and reportedly has no intentions of entering the NBA Draft as he weighs his transfer options.

Ware's best performance this past season showed the kind of production he's capable of, especially since it came against a team favored to win it all in this weekend's Final Four. In an 83-59 loss to the UConn Huskies on Nov. 24, Ware posted a team-high 18 points and nine rebounds on 2 of 3 shooting from deep in 26 minutes off the bench.

With still a ton of room to grow and reach his incredible potential, Terry and the Longhorns will no doubt go all out to bring him to Austin.

You can follow Zach Dimmitt on Twitter at @ZachDimmitt7

Want the latest in breaking news and insider information on the Longhorns? Click Here to Subscribe to the Longhorns Country Newsletter

Want even more Texas Longhorns? Check out the SI.com team page here

Follow Longhorns Country on Twitter and Facebook.

Make sure to subscribe to the Longhorns Country Podcast today! Click here To Listen.