Longhorns Snag Commitment from UTEP Transfer Ze'Rik Onyema

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AUSTIN, Texas -- The Texas Longhorns landed back-to-back transfers on Thursday, as coach Rodney Terry and staff quickly added two important pieces to a roster that is starting to fill out.
After UT Arlington transfer guard Chendall Weaver announced his commitment to Texas, UTEP forward Ze'Rik Onyema did the same. The two join Oral Roberts guard Max Abmas and Virginia forward Kadin Shedrick as the third of fourth transfer commitments for the Longhorns this offseason.
NEWS: UTEP transfer Ze'rik Onyema has committed to Texas, he tells @On3sports.
— Joe Tipton (@TiptonEdits) May 4, 2023
The 6-8 sophomore power forward averaged 7.1 points and 4.4 rebounds this past season.
Story: https://t.co/8Fk7PH8AHM pic.twitter.com/9GPq5yAfZj
Both Weaver and Onyema took visits this week and clearly didn't need much time to be convinced. The pair will hold a key role off the bench for Texas and Terry this upcoming season.
Onyema played for Terry during his final year as head coach at UTEP during the 2020-21 season, so the connection there appears very real. A native of El Paso, Onyema was apart of Terry's 2020 recruiting class for the Miners.
This past season, he averaged 7.1 points, 4.4 rebounds and shot 55.4 percent from the field in 31 starts. The Longhorns played UTEP in the season opener, coming out with a hard-fought 72-57 win at the Moody Center. But Onyema was a major reason the game was a bit closer than expected, as he led the Miners with a team-high 10 points to go along with four rebounds off the bench. This marked the only time he didn't start all season for coach Joe Golding.
Now, he's back with his former coach.
You can follow Zach Dimmitt on Twitter at @ZachDimmitt7
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Zach Dimmitt is the Deputy Editor for Texas Longhorns On SI and Texas A&M Aggies On SI. He also contributes as a writer for the On SI channels of the Oregon Ducks, Baltimore Ravens and Tennessee Titans. He was previously the editor-in-chief of Buffalo Bills on SI, Philadelphia Eagles on SI and Seattle Seahawks on SI. Born and raised in San Antonio, Texas, Dimmitt received his Bachelor’s Degree in journalism at the University of Texas at Austin in 2022. He originally started with SI’s Fan Nation network in 2021, providing extensive coverage of the NFL and NBA along with college football and basketball. In that time, Dimmitt has published thousands of stories and has reached millions of people across multiple fan bases. You can follow him on X at @ZachDimmitt7
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