Same Faces New Places

Caleb Downs DB

Alabama > Ohio State

Caleb Downs is a stud safety that transferred from Alabama to Ohio State for this season. Downs was regarded as one of the best defensive players in the country last year, even as a Freshman. After making the second team All American team as a freshman, he heads into this season as a first team, AP pre season All American. He’s a serious playmaker that will make an instant impact on the Buckeye defense.

Riley Leonard QB

Duke > Notre Dame

Riley Leonard joins the Fighting Irish after a few years as a Duke Blue Devil. Leonard has proven to be dynamic with his legs and helped bring a spark to Duke they haven’t seen in awhile. Leonard is 13-7 in his last 2 years at Duke and threw for a 23-9 TD/INT with 17 rushing TDs. While he still shows plenty of room for improvement, with a much better surrounding cast he could put strong numbers this year. It will all depend on his health.

Isaiah Bond WR

Alabama > Texas

If you don’t know him yet, you will. Isaiah Bond caught the last second bomb from Milroe last year to beat Auburn in the Iron Bowl. For a year where Alabama did not have many big name receivers and dealt with some QB struggles, Bond was consistent. He’s a playmaker who was looking for a team that could help him get his and improve his draft stock. He believes that team will be the Texas Longhorns this year.

Quinshon Judkins RB

Ole Miss > Ohio State

Quinshon Judkins is another one of the big name transfers landed by Ohio State. It can be argued that Judkins is one if not the best RB in the country. He’ll be joining another top back in TreVeyon Henderson making for a serious 1-2 punch. Judkins rushed for over 2700 yds and 31 TDs in 2 years at Ole Miss. Now he’s chasing a CFP National Championship with the Buckeyes loaded roster.

Dante Moore QB

UCLA > Oregon

Dante Moore was a true freshman last year that played in 9 games at UCLA. He struggled a bit but that’s expected for a true freshman. With the departure of Chip Kelly, he transferred to Oregon. He won’t be the starter but will be learning from veteran Dillon Gabriel and is expected to be the QB of the future in Oregon. While we may not see much of him this year, don’t forget about him next season!

Will Howard QB

K State > Ohio State

Howard has been one of the main talking points of Ohio State’s off season. Last year's starter, McCord, transferred to Syracuse and Howard was just named the starter. Howard played 4 years at K-State and even won a BIG12 title against TCU who made the playoff. Howard has been a dependable QB who doesn’t have the highest ceiling, but will give you an above average floor. In his 4 years (34 games) at K-State he threw for just short of 5800 yds, 48/25 TD/INT ratio and rushed for 19 TDs. With that Ohio State roster around him, he may have a chance to put up even better numbers.

Evan Stewart WR

Texas A&M > Oregon

Stewart joins Dan Lanning’s Oregon Ducks after 2 years at Texas A&M. Stewart was a 5 star WR prospect who played in 18 games at A&M, totaling 1100+ yds and 6 TDs. Unfortunately for Stewart, A&M struggled with QB play during his time there and Jimbo Fisher’s offense never lived up to the hype. Oregon will be a great change of environment for him and Dillon Gabriel will get him more than his share of targets. Be on the lookout for this kid to have a breakout year in Eugene.

Walter Nolen DL

Texas A&M > Ole Miss

Walter Nolen was the top DL in the HS recruiting class of 22. He played 22 games at A&M and recorded 66 tackles, including 11 tackles for a loss and 5 sacks. Lane Kiffin hit the portal hard this summer and Nolen will play this season as an Ole Miss Rebel. The Ole Miss defense has lacked some defensive playmakers in the past and will expect an instant improvement with the addition of Walter Nolen.

Julian Sayin QB

Alabama > Ohio State

Julian Sayin was the #3 ranked QB in the ‘24 HS recruiting class. He had originally committed to Alabama but shortly after Saban’s departure joined Ohio State for spring ball. Sayin is a high level pocket passer with strong football IQ and pure arm talent. While I don’t expect to see him much this year, he could earn the backup spot at Ohio State as he looks to be the Buckeye QB of the future.

Nic Scourton DL

Purdue > Texas A&M

Even though Walter Nolen departed, A&M reloaded by adding Nic Scourton. Scourton played 2 years at Purdue and led the BIG10 in sacks last year. Scourton is very tough to block off the edge and will have no problem competing in the SEC this year. Keep an eye out for him week 1 as he goes up against Notre Dame who lost their 1st RD draft pick LT and recently lost the projected starting LT for the year due to injury. Scourton might start hot in week 1 and never look back.

Cam Ward QB

Washington State > Miami

Cam Ward was maybe the most sought after QB in the transfer portal this off season. Honestly, I still don’t think he’s received the hype he deserves. Ward played for two seasons at Incarnate Word where he threw for just under 7K yards and 71/17 TD/INT ratio. He then played two seasons at Washington State again just shy of 7K yards but with a 48/16 TD/INT ratio. Ward is a serious athlete who, given the right situation, could even win the Heisman this year. This season he’ll play for the Miami Hurricanes and will all have all the talent he could need around him. I’m expecting a new highlight reel every time he steps on the field this year.

Damien Martinez RB

Oregon State > Miami

To join Cam Ward is star RB Damien Martinez. Martinez earned PAC12 Offensive Freshman OTY and 2x 1st Team All PAC12 honors in his two years at Oregon State. With departure of Coach Jonathan Smith, he heads to Miami to be a part of a high powered offense for the Canes. Martinez totaled over 2K yards at 6.1 per carry. He’ll be a force behind Cristobal’s OL.

Keon Sabb DB

Michigan > Alabama

Keon Sabb was a big part of the National Championship Michigan Wolverine defense. He’s another athletic safety with good tackling ability. He’ll be transferring to Alabama to replace Caleb Downs at safety. In his 3rd year, he’ll be a dependable DB for Alabama as they try to fight off the rest of the SEC.

Aidan Chiles QB

Oregon State > Michigan State

Chiles becomes a Spartan under the same HC he had last year in Jonathan Smith. Chiles follows Smith to MSU as he plans to start for the Spartans. Chiles wasn’t the starter at Oregon State but saw plenty of reps as a freshman last year. He showed promise and tremendous upside. It’ll be awhile before Smith gets the roster rolling at MSU but they have their cornerstone piece to build around for the next few years.

Dillon Gabriel QB

Oklahoma > Oregon

Gabriel enrolls in his 3rd school, Oregon, after attending UCF and Oklahoma. Gabriel has been a college football staple the past few years and will do so again this year competing in the BIG10 as a Duck. Gabriel has passed for just short of 15K yds with a TD/INT ratio of 125/26 in 50 games. He’s been a part of some high flying offenses before so Lanning will lean on him to lead the offense with a veteran presence. He’ll have some serious playmakers on the outside in Tez Johnson and Evan Stewart and a few others. Gabriel is looking for a chance to compete in the postseason this year.

Trevor Etienne RB

Florida > Georgia

Etienne leaves Florida to become a Dawg. He’ll take over at RB as the lead man. He was just shy of 1500 yds (5.9 per carry) in 24 games at Florida. He’s a strong RB who will help improve Georgia’s RB room after a committee of guys were used last year. Expect him to get the majority of the carries this year.

Cormani McClain DB

Colorado > Florida

McClain departed from Colorado after a drama-filled season. McClain heads to Florida as a sophomore ready to compete on an SEC defense. He was the #1 ranked CB in the 2023 class and #14 overall player. There has been a ton of hype for him but it was unfortunately overshadowed by Colorado last year. Expect him to be great for the Gators this season.

Brock Vandagriff QB

Georgia > Kentucky

Vandagriff was beat out by Carson Beck for the QB spot at Georgia but was ranked a top 5 QB in the ‘21 class. While we didn’t get to see much of him in games, the word is he could still live up to his billing. He’ll try to showcase that talent this year at Kentucky. Kentucky feels like they hit big with this one and is excited for him to upgrade this offense.

Kyle McCord QB

Ohio State > Syracuse

Kyle McCord took a lot of the blowback from Ohio State’s season last year. After losing to Michigan and not making the playoff, he was harshly criticized. I think it was unfair to give him so much of the blame and I’m glad he has a chance to prove his ability again this year. McCord heads to Syracuse after throwing for 3100+ and 24/6 TD/INT ratio in 12 games as a Buckeye. He’ll look to provide the much needed upgrade at QB the Orange have been searching for.

DJ Uiagalelei QB

Oregon State > Florida State

DJ U took a trip to Tallahassee and never looked back. After starting at Clemson for 2 years (was there for 3) he transferred to Oregon State. He threw for just over 2600 yds and 21/7 TD/INT ratio in 12 games as a Beaver. Now he looks to his final stop at Florida State for a chance to compete in the CFP again. DJ is good QB but never quite reached the ceiling many had set for him. While he’s not as good as Jordan Travis, he’s a veteran with a very high floor that is capable of above average QB play. He’ll look to lead this FSU team to revenge in this year’s CFP.