Texas Longhorns land Michigan State transfer Michael Masunas, giving Jeff Banks the reliable in-line blocker the offense desperately needed
Texas Longhorns add Michigan State transfer tight end Michael Masunas, a 6’5″ blocker with one year of eligibility. Here’s why his physicality matters more than stats for Jeff Banks’s offense.
The Longhorns added Michigan State transfer Michael Masunas on Monday, giving Jeff Banks a veteran in-line option with one year of eligibility remaining. At 6-foot-5 and 259 pounds, Masunas arrives in Austin with a clear job description and a defined role.
Texas needed stability and physicality at the position more than upside projections. Masunas brings both, even if the production never jumped off the stat sheet in East Lansing.
Recruiting background and path to Michigan State
A product of Phoenix-area powerhouse Hamilton High School, Masunas signed with Michigan State in the 2022 class over offers from Arizona, Florida State, Tennessee, Utah, Maryland, and others. He was a consensus three-star prospect, ranked outside the top 1,000 nationally, and entered college viewed more as a developmental blocker than a ready-made weapon.
Michigan State career: From special teams to starting role
Masunas redshirted in 2022, then played sparingly as a redshirt freshman, logging most of his snaps on special teams. His first real opportunity came in 2024, when he started the opening four games before a shoulder injury ended his season. The numbers were modest—four catches, thirty-seven yards. But the tape showed competence. Pro Football Focus graded him well as both a run and pass blocker in limited snaps.
In 2025, the role expanded. As a redshirt junior, Masunas became more involved as a receiver, finishing with 19 catches on 21 targets for 232 yards and three touchdowns. His usage was controlled and underneath, with an average depth of target of 8.3 yards, but he was efficient and dependable, recording just one drop all season. As a pass protector, he allowed one quarterback hit and three pressures across 81 pass-blocking snaps.
The run blocking wasn’t as clean as it had been in his shortened 2024 sample, but the overall profile held. Masunas is reliable. Physical. Assignment-sound.
What Masunas brings to Texas’ offense
The expectation in Austin is that Masunas will step in as the Longhorns’ primary in-line tight end, especially in 12 personnel packages. His value is less about replacing production and more about restoring baseline functionality at a position that quietly stalled last season. Rising redshirt junior Spencer Shannon played 207 snaps in 2025 and didn’t draw a single target. Texas isn’t asking Masunas to be a focal point. It’s asking him to be present.
Masunas raises the floor of the room, not the ceiling. Texas is expected to continue shopping the portal for a proven receiving tight end who can stress defenses vertically and in space. But as a piece, Masunas fits. He blocks. He holds up in protection. He can catch what’s thrown to him.
Texas Longhorns News
Texas Longhorns transfer portal updates: departures, targets, and what it means for 2026
Texas football is navigating a massive roster overhaul as the transfer portal window heats up following their Citrus Bowl victory.
