Alabama transfer WR Isaiah Bond visiting Texas New Crimson Tide head coach Kalen DeBoer wants Alabama players to give him a chance, but it may be too late with the team’s leading pass catcher.
Hours after entering the NCAA transfer portal, former Alabama Crimson Tide wide receiver Isaiah Bond is in Austin for a visit with the Texas Longhorns, according to several reports on Saturday.
The visit by Bond is notable as it regards the Texas Longhorns on a number of levels. Head coach Steve Sarkisian’s program is still looking for a slot receiver to replace Jordan Whittington and Bond was recruited by Texas as a member of the 2022 recruiting class with serious enough interest in the Longhorns that he planned to take a summer official visit to the Forty Acres before canceling it shortly before it was scheduled to happen.
Even before Bond entered the vortex, there was chatter that he could land at Texas and that momentum persisted once it became official.
Texas players and even a target in the 2026 class took notice of Bond’s interest in the Longhorns.
A consensus four-star talent out of Buford (Ga.), Bond was ranked as the No. 52 player nationally and the No. 2 athlete in the 2022 class, according to the 247Sports Composite rankings, committed to Florida in the summer before settling at Alabama. Bond showed off his lightning pace on the track, earning the Georgia AAAAAA state title in the 100m (10.51) and 200m (21.19) in 2021.
The 5’11, 182-pounder showed potential as a rookie, contributing on special teams and starting one game while posting 17 receptions for 220 yards and one touchdown. In 2023, Bond took the next step, leading the Crimson Tide with 48 catches for 668 yards and four touchdowns, spending almost 60 percent of his snaps in the slot and the rest out wide, dropping only two passes, according to Pro Football Focus, and gaining 4.6 yards after the catch per reception with an average depth of target of 12.8 yards.
And, of course, it was Bond who scored the stunning game-winning touchdown against Auburn on fourth down with 33 seconds remaining that kept Alabama’s College Football Playoff hopes alive.
During new Alabama head coach Kalen DeBoer’s inaugural news conference on Saturday, he implored players in the portal to give him a chance, but it may be too late with Bond already on the Forty Aces and several projections that he’ll chose Texas.
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