The college football transfer portal periods have now closed as the 2025-26 college football season comes into view. As the dust has finally settled, which teams came out on top and capitalized on additions and returners as the portal periods went on?
Which players find themselves in favorable spots, where they can thrive financially, on the field, and are set up well for the future? We’ll break it down, highlighting those who came out on top ahead of next season.
College Football’s Biggest Transfer Portal Winners
LSU Tigers
Coming off a relatively disappointing 9-4 campaign, the Tigers brought in the top-ranked transfer portal class, per 247 Sports. The group was headlined by EDGE Patrick Payton, who amassed 16 sacks across three seasons with the Florida State Seminoles. Safety Tamarcus Cooley, formerly of NC State, totaled 39 tackles and three picks last season.
Wide receiver Nic Anderson will provide star quarterback Garrett Nussmeier with a big, speedy target, as the 6’4″ pass catcher had 38 catches for 798 yards and 10 touchdowns in 2023. He missed the entirety of 2024 but is expected back come next season.
LSU also secured the commitment of former Northwestern Wildcat offensive lineman Josh Thompson, who hasn’t given up a sack in 18 consecutive games.
It wasn’t just 2025 that LSU set itself up for; they also brought in freshman QB Michael Van Buren, who showed immense talent in throwing for 1,886 yards and 11 touchdowns for the Mississippi State Bulldogs a season ago. He projects as their future QB once Nussmeier departs for the 2026 NFL Draft.
Ultimately, it was an extremely successful transfer portal year for the Tigers, who set themselves up hoping to compete for SEC championships in 2026 and beyond.
Carson Beck
The former Georgia Bulldogs signal-caller spurned the NFL Draft and, instead, entered his name into the portal, where his services were surely needed elsewhere for a large amount of compensation. He was right, as the Miami Hurricanes- seeing off No. 1-overall pick Cam Ward- needed a QB. Their offer? A reported $4 million for the 2025-26 season.
Add in that the Hurricanes also welcomed in a talented pass-catching core of WR’s C.J. Daniels (2,434 career receiving yards, 21 touchdowns), Keelan Marion (1,125 career receiving yards, seven touchdowns), Tony Johnson (1,118 career receiving yards, 13 touchdowns) and TE Alex Bauman (13 career touchdowns) and Beck will have the targets.
Oregon Ducks
The Ducks reeled in a talented transfer portal group headlined by the top offensive lineman in the portal, Isaiah World. He’ll open up running lanes for new Oregon running back Makhi Hughes, who rushed for 2,779 yards and 22 touchdowns in two seasons with the Tulane Green Wave.
They also added talent to their defense. Former Purdue safety Dillon Thieneman was the Big Ten Freshman of the Year in 2023 and has 210 total tackles in two seasons.
While he’ll lead the secondary, former USC defensive lineman Bear Alexander will man the line of scrimmage. He redshirted in 2024 but was on a PAC-12 Honorable Mention selection in 2023 after recording 48 tackles, including 6.5 for loss.
It’ll be extremely difficult for this Oregon squad to replace the production left behind by 10 Ducks selected in the 2025 NFL Draft. Yet head coach Dan Lanning made the most of the transfer portal and leads the team into next season with a solid chance of defending their Big Ten title crown.
John Mateer
After seeing little time during his first two seasons at Washington State, as he was buried behind Ward, the job was Mateer’s for the entirety of last season, and he made the most of it.
During his 12 starts, he completed 64.6% of his passes for 3,139 yards and 29 touchdowns versus seven interceptions. His dynamic on the ground was almost more impressive, as he added 826 yards and 15 more scores with his legs.
Right after the season concluded, Mateer entered the transfer portal and quickly became a highly coveted prospect. He committed to the Oklahoma Sooners for a deal worth under $3 million.
That’s not bad for a guy who was unknown before last season. Now he can compete in the SEC with guaranteed money in his pocket.
UCLA Bruins
The winner of the whole Nico Iamaleava saga, the Bruins managed to land Iamaleava for a discounted price than what he wanted, as they were essentially the last program that would take him. While there are now questions about his leadership and lack of “team before me” attitude, his talent on the field is unquestioned.
As a redshirt freshman, he threw for 2,616 yards and 19 touchdowns and helped lead the Vols to their first College Football Playoff appearance in school history. Now he’ll lead a Bruins squad that finished 5-7 and 12th in its first season in the Big Ten.
But it won’t be all Iamaleava, as they landed former Cal Bears RB Jaivian Thomas, who totaled 626 rushing yards and seven touchdowns in a reserve role. He’ll immediately be UCLA’s lead back next to their star QB.
Like LSU, they also added a passer for the future in Iamaleava’s brother, Madden. A four-star prospect, he decommitted from Arkansas and is set to join his brother at UCLA, finishing off a double play for the Bruins at QB in the present and future.
Darian Mensah
Continuing the trend of QBs cashing in, Mensah parlayed a terrific true freshman season with the Tulane Green Wave — 2,723 passing yards and 22 touchdowns while completing 65.9% of his passes — into a reported $8 million NIL deal across the next two seasons with the Duke Blue Devils.
Along with the money, he’ll be moving from the AAC into the ACC, with much greater competition as he looks ahead to a possible pro future come the 2027 NFL Draft.
Texas Tech Red Raiders
It’s tough not to mention the Red Raiders when talking about who had the most success through the transfer portal. They secured additions across the board — in all, there are 21 arrivals via the portal.
The catalyst are Stanford EDGE David Bailey (seven sacks and five forced fumbles a season ago), UCF D-lineman Lee Hunter (69 solo tackles in three seasons), USC RB Quinten Joyner (478 rushing yards and three touchdowns last season) and Miami (OH) WR Reggie Virgil (816 receiving yards and nine touchdowns last season).
They also added Louisiana tight end Terrance Carter, who caught 48 passes for 689 yards and four touchdowns and was one of the top TE options in the portal.
KEEP READING: Former Tennessee Offensive Lineman Ayden Bussell Commits to West Virginia
A potential star in the secondary could be North Dakota State transfer safety Cole Wisniewski, who missed all of last season due to injury but intercepted eight passes and had 50 solo tackles in 2023.
Texas Tech already has its quarterback in Behren Morton. Now, they’ve added a number of key pieces around the edges and look poised to compete for a Big 12 title.
Ole Miss Rebels
The Rebels’ brass went to work in the portal — specifically with their pass-catching unit, which saw four of its top five receivers depart via the draft.
Alongside third-leading receiver sophomore Cayden Lee, head coach Lane Kiffin also brought in WRs Harrison Wallace III (Penn State), De’Zhaun Stripling (Oklahoma State), Traylon Ray (West Virginia), Deuce Alexander (Wake Forest), and Caleb Odom (Alabama).
Wallace and Stribling are especially established, having compiled 720 and 886 receiving yards in 2024.
They’re also adding Luke Hasz, formerly of Arkansas, to replace outgoing production at the TE position. Hasz has caught seven touchdowns in two seasons.
Likely-to-be starting QB Austin Simmons will have plenty of targets to throw to in his first season running the show.
Penn State Nittany Lions
A last-second transfer portal addition puts the Nittany Lions in this spot after they landed former Syracuse WR Trebor Pena, who quickly became the top player in the portal as soon as he entered in late April after posting 84 receptions, 941 yards, and nine touchdowns a season ago.
Penn State swooped in and secured Pena’s commitment, adding him to the senior class that also includes quarterback Drew Allar and RBs Nicholas Singleton and Kaytron Allen.
A year after reaching the CFP semifinals, the Nittany Lions look even better heading into 2026.
Auburn Tigers
The Tigers struggled at the quarterback position in 2024, going through Payton Thorne and Hank Brown without much success. This culminated in a 5-7 record and a missed bowl game, which is expected at the very least at Auburn.
Immediately after the season, they added two passers who will compete for the starting spot: Oklahoma’s Jackson Arnold and Stanford’s Ashton Daniels. Arnold is the favorite to start despite a rough freshman season with the Sooners in which he was benched numerous times.
A former five-star prospect in the 2023 class, he raises the ceiling immediately for the Tigers and gives them hope for a future of dynamic quarterback play.
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