Moving Forward Without Mari

In case you've been living under a rock the past few days, Texas MB Marianna Singletary has entered the transfer portal and will not play for the Texas Longhorns in the 2025 season. Last season, the redshirt sophomore tallied 1.95 kills/set and 1.38 blocks/set, leading Texas middles in both stat categories.

The news came as a complete shock to most people, as it seemed like Mari had it made at Texas. She was a starter last season, has excellent relationships with the coaches and her teammates, and was loved by fans on a team that is perennially contending for the Final Four and a National Championship. I guess in the era of NIL, the grass is always greener on the other side, and there will always be influences on athletes working on them to look at "other options," whether it be a bigger deal, a bigger role, more playing time, or whatever the case. Longhorn fans wish her nothing but the best in that search.

Looking forward, this does open up a roster spot for Texas, bringing the roster to 17 from a maximum of 18 for the season. However, don't expect the coaching staff to be eager to fill the spot just to fill it. Associate HC David Hunt says, "We feel confident in our group that we have," and there's no immediate need requiring any action in the portal.

If Texas does choose to pursue the portal, the obvious possibility is to search for another middle, but that feels unlikely. There are still three middles on the roster for 2025, all of which the coaching staff feels comfortable starting. There's Mari's starting counterpart from last season, Ayden Ames, redshirt sophomore Nya Bunton, and Taylor Harvey, the #1 MB in the 2025 class, who has yet to arrive on campus but who the staff "thinks very highly of."

There was no guarantee that Singletary would've earned a starting spot if she had stayed at Texas. We'll never know, but Mari didn't play her best ball in some of the spring games, and her name was not written in ink on the starting lineup. All of the other three options are highly talented and will be able to hold their own.

There aren't any middlemen in the portal right now who could push for a starting job in Texas, and some of the best options, such as Allie Andrew, are off the board (Baylor to Wisconsin). Due to an SEC rule, anyone who transfers in conference in the May window would have to sit a year, which removes anyone like Arissa Smith (Mississippi State). Anyone that gets added at this point would probably be a depth piece, and Texas will roll with the three currently on the roster as their starting options.

Outside of another middle, the next option would be to add a setter given there are only two currently on the roster. Don't worry, Ella's job is safe but it would be reasonable to add another setter for depth to support Rella Binney in case anything happens to Ella this season.

Texas already has plenty of depth at the pins and on defense, so it would be surprising to see them add another player at one of these positions. The Horns aren't involved in the Kmart sweepstakes due to the SEC rule, although one could dream about Torrey Stafford and Kennedy Martin locking down each pin. Sigh.... Ok, snap back to reality. It's not happening.

Most likely, Texas will roll with the roster as-is. This transfer stings; Mari will be dearly missed for her presence on and off the court. That said, the program has weathered significant departures before, and this one, while tough, doesn’t shake Texas from its status as a title contender heading into the fall.