Willie Fritz Works Portal; Kelvin Sampson Makes NC HOF
By Garrett Ross | 365 Sports
Willie Fritz and the Coogs have added five players to the roster via the transfer portal, while 16 players have exited the program since its opening on January 2nd. Houston has been focusing on reinforcing their offensive line while adding some depth to the backfield.
The headliner of the offensive line additions is Miami (Ohio) offensive tackle Drew Terrill. At 6-foot-6, 280 pounds, Terrill earned second-team All-MAC honors while starting in 12 games at right tackle in 2025. Houston also added Tulane IOL Shadre Hurst and Northwestern offensive tackle Hayden Wright.
Oregon running back Makhi Hughes was the second transfer portal addition for the Coogs. Hughes spent three seasons at Tulane, accounting for 2,779 rushing yards and 22 rushing touchdowns on 523 carries, before one mediocre 2025 season in Eugene.
Here are all the Houston players who have entered the transfer portal, which closes on January 19th.
1. LB Jesus Machado
2. DL Joshua Donald
3. LB Zion Taylor
4. DL Zavian Tibbs
5. QB Zeon Chriss-Gremillion
6. QB Austin Carlisle
7. RB J’Marion Burnette
8. LB Corey Platt Jr.
9. IOL Derek Joiner
10. WR Devan Williams
11. C Demetrius Hunter
12. OT David Ndukwe
13. DL Reshad Sterling
14. WR Marquis Shoulders
15. OL Cayden Bowie
16. DL Phillips Ojo (Walk-On)
Hoops News
As I’m writing this, the No. 7 Coogs are tipping off at the Fertitta Center against No. 14 Texas Tech, but we’ll discuss that next time. One notable announcement, however, is the announcement of head coach Kelvin Sampson being inducted into the North Carolina Sports Hall of Fame.
A native of Pembroke, N.C., Sampson was an award-winning student-athlete at Pembroke High School before competing in basketball and baseball and earning his bachelor’s degree at Pembroke State University (now UNC Pembroke). Sampson became the first Native American elected to the North Carolina Sports Hall of Fame.
Sampson is the only coach in Houston history to lead the Coogs to five, six, seven, eight, nine and 10 consecutive 20-win seasons as well as four consecutive 30-win campaigns. In more than 36 seasons as a head coach, Sampson has led his teams to 20 NCAA Tournament appearances. He is one of only 15 coaches in NCAA history to lead 4+ schools to the NCAA Tournament and one of only 16 coaches to lead multiple schools to the NCAA Final Four.