The body is still warm on the 2024 college football regular season but teams already have an eye on next fall. The new world-order college football calendar waits for no one.
College football has always been transactional; don’t let anyone tell you differently. Instead of shady cash handoffs in abandoned parking lots or greasy McDonald’s sacks filled with money, players can now openly negotiate payment. Rightly or wrongly, this is the state of the game we love.
Speaking of the game we love, the transfer portal has changed the very fabric of the sport, both for better and worse. More and more players hit the transfer portal every year. The portal gives players a chance at a fresh start and gives programs a chance to pave over costly mistakes.
I’m not here to debate the merits of the portal. It has both good and bad elements to it. What I am here to explain is that you can tell a lot about a coach, team and program, and about how they feel about next season, by how they operate in the transfer portal.
Despite it being early days of the transfer portal window, I’m following the money and have identified four teams going all-in for the 2025 college football season.
LSU
Fresh off a disappointing 8-4 season, head coach Brian Kelly is sitting squarely on the hot seat as we enter 2025.
Kelly left Notre Dame to win a title in the Bayou but has yet to reach the lofty heights of LSU coaches past. He’s being paid an exorbitant amount of money and simply has not delivered yet. Some might call it conjecture, but I firmly think Kelly’s job could be at risk if there isn’t a big improvement next season.
Last offseason, LSU cheaper out in the transfer portal and paid the price in 2024. To make matters worse, Kelly and the Tigers recently missed out on the top-ranked recruit in the country in dual-threat quarterback Bryce Underwood. Underwood was committed to LSU for over a year before recently being wooed by a monster NIL deal that led to him flipping to nearby Michigan.
The Underwood flip was a major blow to LSU, and in my opinion, fanned the flames on the Tigers going all-in in the transfer portal.
At the time of writing, LSU has secured commitments from the following high-profile players:
WR Barron Brown (Kentucky) - Brown was one of the most coveted playmakers in the transfer portal. He has elite-level speed and is a monster in the return game. He’ll be a major weapon for LSU and returning quarterback Garrett Nussmeier.
CB Mansoor Delane (Virginia Tech) - Delane was one of the top corners in the ACC this season, earning third-team all-conference honors. He should provide some nice cover for a secondary that struggled to defend the pass. He’s a veteran, no-nonsense player with 29 starts under his belt and should be an immediate upgrade at that position.
WR Nic Anderson (Oklahoma) - Anderson is a gem of a receiver, despite struggling with injuries throughout the 2024 season. His freshman year, he set the Oklahoma freshman receiving record with almost 800 yards and 10 touchdowns. If he can stay healthy, he’ll be a great downfield threat for Nussmeier.
Auburn
Speaking of mounting pressure and a hot seat…come on down Auburn head coach Hugh Freeze. Freeze felt like a huge hire before the 2023 season, but he’s fallen flat since arriving on the plains.
Freeze is just 11-14 since arriving at Auburn and despite being renowned for his ability to kickstart an offense, the Tigers have stunk on that side of the ball. In his first year, Freeze swung big in the portal for quarterback Payton Thorne and it just never worked. Now, he’s facing a critical third year in a stacked SEC.
Much like LSU, last season Auburn cheaper out in the transfer portal with many believing they were saving their money for a monster 2025 class. That line of thinking has checked out so far, with Auburn splashing a lot of NIL money early in the window.
At the time of writing, Auburn has secured commitments from the following high-profile players:
QB Jackson Arnold (Oklahoma) - A former five-star recruit with a healthy amount of upside, Arnold feels like a worthwhile gamble for Freeze and company. He struggled in 2024 behind a beat-up offensive line and with basically no healthy receivers. But at times, Arnold showed flashes of promise and I can see the line of thinking with going for him. I’m not sure he’s the savior Auburn was looking for, but I suspect he can be a good starter with enough weapons and protection around him.
QB Ashton Daniels (Stanford) - Auburn desperately needs one of these quarterbacks to work out, and I’ll be curious to see the battle between Arnold and Daniels. Daniels didn’t have a fantastic 2024 but was surrounded by subpar talent. Label me as curious to see what Freeze could do with him.
CB Raidon Strader (Miami OH) - Strader was a first-team All-MAC player in 2024 and was widely recognized as one of the best young corners in the country. This is a big get for the Tigers.
PROJECTION WR Eric Singleton (Georgia Tech) - At the time of writing, the 247 crystal ball projects Singleton to head to Auburn. If the Tigers can pull this off, it’s a major coup. Singleton is the top wide receiver in the portal and was a freshman All-American in 2023. He’s widely regarded as the best route runner and fastest player in the transfer portal. Singleton and Cam Colemen would be a helluva one-two punch at receiver.
Texas Tech
Unlike LSU and Auburn, Texas Tech is fresh off a solid 8-4 season, and head coach Joey McGuire doesn’t appear to be facing any imminent job danger. Instead, all transfer portal signs are pointing towards the Red Raiders attempting to pull an Arizona State in 2025.
The Big 12 Slot Machine conference feels like it will be wide open every single season. Pull the lever and you’ll likely get a different result each time. With the high-variance nature of the league, I suspect every year we’ll get a handful of teams ramping up in the portal in an attempt to capture some magic and win the league. As we enter 2025, my eyes are squarely on schools like Baylor and Texas Tech. Both programs had strong finishes to the season and with a few additions, could surely find themselves competing for the league title next season.
At the time of writing, Texas Tech has secured commitments from the following high-profile players:
DT Lee Hunter (UCF) - Hunter is a 6’4” 320-pound junior who took home second-team Big 12 honors in 2024. He’s a behemoth of a player and had the best interior sack rate among Big 12 defensive tackles this year. This is a nice get for a Red Radiers’ defense that could use some more game-wreckers.
OT Howard Simpson (North Carolina) - Speaking of large and in charge, Simpson is 6’8” and is widely regarded as one of the top offensive tackles on the market. I suspect he’ll play LT and anchor that o-line in 2025.
OT Hunter Zambrano (Illinois State) - Zambrano is a feel-good story from the FBS ranks and has really blossomed into a nice player. He was a preseason FCS All-American in 2024 and has both the size and physical tools to play at the FBS level. He’ll probably play right tackle opposite of Simpson.
WR Reggie Virgil (Miami OH) - Virgil is a big 6’4” target who should be a nice replacement for five-star Micah Hudson, who left for Texas A&M. In 2024, Virgil earned second-team All-MAC honors and hauled in nine touchdowns.
Oklahoma
First-time head coach Brent Venables desperately needs to perform in the Sooners' second season in the SEC. In 2024, Oklahoma’s offense was an abject disaster and was a big part of why the team limped to a 6-6 finish. With an improved offense and a little better schedule luck, I don’t see why OU can’t improve by a significant margin next season.
Predictably, the Sooners are splashing the cash on offense in the transfer portal and beyond. I really like the decision to hire former Washington State OC Ben Arbuckle to the same position in Norman. Last year the Cougars had an amazing offense and this type of move indicates that Venables isn’t a stick in the mud when it comes to that side of the ball.
Speaking of Washington State and that kick-ass offense…
At the time of writing, Oklahoma has secured commitments from the following high-profile players:
QB John Mateer (Washington State) - Mateer was the number one player in this transfer portal class and is a program-defining commitment for Oklahoma. In recent years, we’ve seen players follow their OC via the portal and luckily for the Sooners, this is the case with Arbuckle and Mateer. This year, Mateer was a revelation for Wazzu, throwing for over 3,000 yards and 29 touchdowns. He’s a rowdy cousin Air Raid quarterback and I love the fit with him in Norman.
PROJECTION OT Ethan Onianwa (Rice) - OU needs help on the offensive line and Onianwa would be a big get. He’s an experienced tackle with over 2,000 snaps under his belt. This unit struggled a lot in 2024 and he should be an immediate upgrade at the position
*Keep an eye out for Oklahoma attempting to add some dynamic receivers to pair with Arbuckle and Mateer. If the Sooners can thread the needle there, they could have one of the more exciting and intriguing offenses entering 2025.
Are there any other teams you think are gearing up for the 2025 season via the transfer portal? Let me know in the comments below.