Five College Football Programs That Benefited The Most From The Transfer Portal

The transfer portal giveth and the transfer portal taketh away. That’s the case for just about every team in college football.

But even still, some did better than others when it came to the portal. Others used the portal to completely revamp their whole roster for the second year in a row. But the ones who felt they were close to making a run, identified their main issues and then attacked those issues in the portal are going to be the ones very happy by the end of the year.

So, with all of that being said, here are the five programs that I felt did the best in the transfer portal.

Former Texas A&M defensive lineman Walter Nolen is now at Ole Miss © Dustin Safranek-USA TODAY Sports

Ole Miss Rebels

The Rebels were the winners in the fall window of the transfer portal. There is arguably no other team that went more all in than Ole Miss. Walter Nolen is the prize of the class.

The defensive tackle has had 66 tackles, 11 tackles for loss and five sacks in his two-year career at Texas A&M. He’s going to bring immediate help to their defense. Some other notable additions are linebacker Chris Paul Jr. from Arkansas, wide receiver Juice Wells from South Carolina and safety Key Lawrence from Oklahoma.

Dec 2, 2022; San Antonio, Texas, USA; North Texas Mean Green quarterback Austin Aune (2) passes in front of UTSA Roadrunners linebacker Trey Moore (31) in the second half at the Alamodome. Daniel Dunn-USA TODAY Sports

Texas Longhorns

Give Texas its flowers. They really put together a solid transfer class even though it wasn’t a big class. Adding guys like wide receiver Matthew Golden from Houston, safety/linebacker Andrew Makuba from Clemson, wide receiver Isaiah Bond from Alabama and defensive lineman Jermayne Lole from Louisville/Oklahoma were big additions.

But to me, the prize of the class is adding EDGE rusher Trey Moore from UTSA. Moore has a staggering 105 tackles, 35.5 tackles for loss and 22 sacks in his last two seasons. He gives the Longhorns immediate help off of the edge.

Dec 2, 2023; Atlanta, GA, USA; Alabama Crimson Tide defensive back Caleb Downs (2) practices before the SEC Championship game against the Georgia Bulldogs at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports

Ohio State Buckeyes

It’s hard for me to say anyone had a better transfer cycle than the Ohio State Buckeyes from a star perspective. The Buckeyes only took six players in the portal but four of those six for sure will be major players for them in 2024.

Those are center Seth McLaughlin from Alabama, quarterback Will Howard from Kansas State, running back Quinshon Judkins from Ole Miss and my favorite of the class, safety Caleb Downs from Alabama.

All should start for the Buckeyes or play a lot of snaps but I think Downs takes them to a whole other level as a team defensively. Adding him to that secondary will also benefit from a great defensive line and things could be special in Columbus this year.

Nov 18, 2023; Fort Worth, Texas, USA; TCU Horned Frogs defensive lineman Damonic Williams (52) in action during the game between the TCU Horned Frogs and the Baylor Bears at Amon G. Carter Stadium. © Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports

Oklahoma Sooners

Oklahoma had a bigger class as they added 15 guys in the transfer portal. They are another perfect example of seeing their weaknesses and attacking them to make them a contender this season.

But when you get arguably the top defensive tackle, Damonic Williams and top wide receiver, Deion Burks in one class, it’s hard not to put them in the top five. Add that to the work they did on the offensive line adding guys like Febechi Nwaiwu from North Texas, Branson Hickman from SMU, Geirean Hatchett from Washington and Michael Tarquin from USC and they are in a good spot.

Former Oklahoma Sooners QB Dillon Gabriel is now at Oregon. BRYAN TERRY/THE OKLAHOMAN / USA TODAY NETWORK

Oregon Ducks

Last but not least, the Oregon Ducks. The Ducks put a team together that I would be surprised if they weren’t in the College Football Playoff by the end of the season. They addressed their quarterback need by adding arguably the top available quarterback in the portal, Dillon Gabriel from Oklahoma.

You can also make a case that wide receiver Evan Stewart, defensive lineman Derrick Harmon and cornerback Jabbar Muhammad are also the best at their positions in the portal.

Overall, the Ducks and the other four teams have added some big-time players in the portal in hopes of reaching their end-of-the-season goals.