On December 13, the Texas Longhorns’ dreams came crashing down when they lost to Creighton volleyball, getting knocked out of the Sweet 16. It was a bitter medicine to take for the team, but for senior Madisen Skinner, who scored 23 kills, it is extra painful. Not only did she have to deal with that terrible feeling of losing, but it was the last game she would ever play in college. Last week, Madisen shared a super emotional senior night montage on Instagram, filled with photos of her journey, her family, her teammates, and some epic action shots. And of course, there was a picture of her taped-up fingers with the word ‘faith’ written on them.

Reflecting on her journey, Madisen wrote, “Choosing to trust the Lord when he was pushing my heart to say yes to Texas has been the most impactful and life-altering decision I have ever made.” But hey, here’s the silver lining—when the transfer portal opened, Texas wasn’t left hanging. With Madisen Skinner moving on, the Longhorns scored big with a massive transfer portal win, adding some fresh talent to their lineup!

Texas Longhorns find a replacement!

The Assistant Sports Editor and resident Pitt volleyball pundit, Matthew Scabilloni of @pittnewssports, spilled some serious tea for volleyball enthusiasts on X on January 9. Dropping the scoop, he shared, “Well there it is. Former #Pitt volleyball star Torrey Stafford is transferring to Texas with two years of eligibility. She’ll be one of Texas’ stars in 2025, taking over the role of future Olympian Madisen Skinner at outside hitter.” Talk about big moves! Stafford is expected to take her best form to the Longhorns and if the words of Scabilloni are anything to go by, then this player is poised to be a real nemesis on the volleyball court.

And it’s not just Scabilloni who’s singing Stafford’s praises—her stats back up all the hype! Stafford was a real workhorse, AVCA First-Team All-American in 2024 and First-Team All-ACC in 2023 and 2024. In 2024, her .358 hitting percentage was one of the best in the NCAA, ranking 5th among all pin hitters and 2nd among Power Five players.

Not only did Stafford heat things up with her kills, she had 400 kills, 252 digs, and 67 blocks in her sophomore year. Her total number of kills, blocks, and digs at Pitt are 772, 140, and 454 respectively. But with her transferring to the Texas Longhorns? Let’s just say they’ve hit the jackpot. But guess what? She’s not the only big name joining the Longhorns!

Another star becomes a Longhorn!

As reported by Austin American-Statesman on 6th January, Texas Longhorns is very much seriously reloading for the future! They scooped up one of the most talented players from the transfer portal–Ramsey Gary, the All Big Ten libero from Indiana. This 5-foot-7 junior has two years of playing left, and she’s here to add some strong defense to Texas. With the team losing defensive specialist Keonilei Akana to graduation, Gary’s arrival will help fill the gap, especially with starting libero Emma Halter returning to keep that back-row defense solid.

Gary’s got a crazy strong resume too. She was a total standout at Indiana, starting all 30 matches as the libero and leading the team with 438 digs (4.06 digs per set). In addition, she ranked second on the team in assists with 101 (0.94 per set). In addition to all that, she made the second team all-conference this past season, and she has been a digging machine for two years now, with over 430 digs each year.

It’s clear Coach Jerritt Elliott’s got a busy offseason ahead. It was a difficult season for the team, with a 20-8 record and a failure to reach the regional final for the first time in five years. With the loss of Madisen Skinner, Reagan Rutherford, and Jenna Wenaas to graduation, plus starting setter Averi Carlson entering the transfer portal, there is going to be some mixing and matching. But hey, with talent like Gary and Torrey Stafford on board, the Texas Longhorns are definitely making some moves!