The winners and losers of the 2026 college football transfer portal

The 2026 college football transfer portal is as closed as something so shapeless ever can be. 

There are still a few players who will see their names entered the next two days as teams process players who submitted their names on deadline day, Jan. 16. There will also be a few players from Indiana and Miami who choose to enter the portal after the national title game as they get an additional five days following the championship game. But overall, the dominoes have fallen during the portal cycle. 

Just shy of 3,300 FBS scholarship players entered the portal and the majority of the difference-makers are off the board. 

With the embers of an incredibly chaotic cycle beginning to burn out, these are the biggest winners and losers of the 2026 portal window.

Winners 

Texas Longhorns

The class isn't completely set for Texas yet -- expect an interior lineman to be added -- but the proverbial hay is sitting in Bevo's barn, and he's eating well! Take a look at how a few pieces in Texas' 15-player class rank by position according to Cooper Petagna's 247Sports transfer portal rankings:

Hollywood Smothers - No. 2 RB
Raleek Brown - No. 5 RB
Cam Coleman - No. 1 WR
Melvin Siani - No. 3 OT
Ian Geffrard - No. 9 DL
Rasheem Biles - No. 3 LB
Bo Mascoe - No. 7 CB

Texas had glaring needs at all of those positions. Not only did the Longhorns fill holes, but they added some of the best players available, including legitimate difference makers like Coleman, Smothers and Biles.

A championship window is open in Austin with Arch Manning likely entering his final collegiate season. Texas knew it had to take advantage of the portal. It went big. 

Oklahoma State Cowboys 

The 2025 Cowboys were one of the worst Power Four teams this century. They went 1-11, didn't win a single game against FBS competition, had an average scoring margin of minus-22.5 points and finished 122nd in SP+. The new staff, almost all of which came from North Texas, knew it needed to tear the infrastructure down and start the foundation from scratch. 

A month-and-a-half later the Cowboys have added 50-plus players in the transfer portal. 

Oklahoma State is attempting the Curt Cignetti model with Eric Morris signing 17 former UNT players (and counting), including those like five-star transfer QB Drew Mestemaker and his favorite weapons: Running back Caleb Hawkins (the national rushing TD leader) and wide receiver Wyatt Young (third in the FBS in receiving yards). 

After 1–11 season, Oklahoma State looks to Indiana's roster-rebuild blueprint

Shehan Jeyarajah

There are quality pieces outside that group, too, including a pair of four-star receivers (Justin Bowick, Chris Barnes) and critical defensive targets like d-lineman Jerry Lawson and James Williams. 

Whether a roster with 65-plus new pieces can be successful in Year 1 remains to be seen. But this is the kind of class the Cowboys needed to have a shot. 

Indiana Hoosiers

If you thought Indiana would slow down after back-to-back playoff appearances, you probably haven't seen their transfer class. The Hoosiers went to the portal for a quarterback for a third straight year and landed arguably the most proven (and talented?) of the trio in TCU's Josh Hoover, a multi-year starter who's thrown for nearly 10,000 yards in his career. 

What is different is that the Hoosiers have shifted more to a quality over quantity approach, shifting down from 31 transfers in 2024, 23 in 2025 and now just 17 during the 2026 cycle. 

They're high-end additions across the board. The group includes Michigan State's best player (WR Nick Marsh), Kansas State's best defender (Tobi Osunsanmi), Boston College's best weapon (running back Turbo Richard) and Wisconsin's best offensive lineman (Joe Brunner). 

Indiana is now operating like a legitimate contender in the portal instead of a program that's bargain-bin shopping. The Hoosiers are spending big and with that comes a top 10-portal class with an average rating (88.9) that's nearly equal to Ohio State's (89.1). It's a new era in Bloomington. 

Notre Dame Fighting Irish

From an efficiency standpoint, nobody had a cleaner cycle than Notre Dame. 

There are seven signees, all of whom waited until at least Jan. 10 to announce publicly, and six of them rate as a four-star transfer. Quiet (mostly), smooth and effective. The Irish went into the cycle with one glaring need at defensive tackle, and they ended up with the No. 3 DT (Tionne Gray, Oregon) and No. 8 DT (Francis Brewu, Pittsburgh) of the cycle. 

Beyond that group the Irish took a pair of high-upside wide receivers (Quincy Porter, Mylan Graham) from Ohio State, a former five-star edge rusher (Keon Keeley) from Alabama and Colorado' starting cornerback DJ McKinney. 

Throw in the fact the Irish did not lose a starter in the portal, and it was a breezy cycle in South Bend. 

LSU Tigers 

Nobody entered this cycle with more pressure than LSU and Lane Kiffin. 

The Tigers went all-in on the "Portal King," hoping to create a championship spark. And given the exodus that happened upon Kiffin's arrival -- particularly along the offensive line where almost every starter departed -- LSU had to emerge as the big winner of the cycle just to compete in 2026. 

Largely, the Tigers succeeded. They have the No. 1 portal class, after all. 

Things appeared perilous for a bit with LSU's quarterback situation. Ultimately the Tigers landed the No. 1-ranked QB of the cycle (Sam Leavitt) and his successor, former five-star recruit Husan Longstreet from USC. They'll get to throw to a new crop of receivers, which includes an astounding four four-star takes from the portal. The d-line class features a trio of four-star prospects -- and may include a fourth depending on how the Princewill Umanmielen saga plays out -- and LSU signed one of the most productive linebackers (TJ Dottery) and safeties (Ty Benefield) of the cycle. 

The offensive line remains the big question mark. They've signed four (and counting) o-linemen this cycle, but there isn't a no-doubt offensive tackle among the bunch in what is one of the most expensive offensive tackle markets to date. How that o-line comes together will determine if LSU ends up being a winner on the field next year. For now, though, Kiffin has again done enough to appear in the portal winner's column. 

Kentucky Wildcats 

How 'bout these Cats? Kentucky came away with the best offensive line class of the portal cycle. 

The Wildcats added Tennessee offensive tackle Lance Heard (the No. 4 OT), the top-ranked center in the portal in Baylor's Coleton Price (No. 1 IOL) and a multi-year starter at guard Tegra Tshabola (No. 4 IOL) from Ohio State. 

Given that Will Stein is the head coach and Joe Sloan is the offensive coordinator, it's little surprise the Wildcats found Year 1 offensive portal success. Kentucky flipped Notre Dame QB transfer Kenny Minchey from Nebraska, landing one of the most intriguing high-upside passers of the cycle. The Wildcats landed former five-star running back CJ Baxter from Texas and a potential game-changing weapon on the boundary in LSU transfer Nic Anderson. Baxter and Anderson were buy-low players because of injuries, but if they get back on track in Lexington they will be stars. 

Defensively Kentucky nabbed a linebacker Texas didn't really want to lose in Elijah Barnes, a multi-year starter at safety from Florida (Jordan Castell) and one of the most experienced DTs of the cycle, Jamarrion Harkless, from Purdue. 

Kentucky would have liked to land one more impact wide receiver. But overall it was an extremely successful debut cycle for Stein and his first-year staff and proof that Kentucky doesn't just spend on basketball. 

Losers 

Alabama Crimson Tide 

Determining winners and losers is a bit more nuanced than going down a list and counting who signed the most good players and who lost the most. But that is part of it, and nobody lost more good players than Alabama. 

Of the top 80 players in the portal rankings, six of them are former Crimson Tide signees. Alabama fans would likely push back that only two of those six were full-time starters. Fair!

What's also fair is those losses are reflective of the changing landscape for Alabama, which no longer gets to hoard elite depth like it did in the Nick Saban era. 

The Tide are competitive in the name, image and likeness landscape but they are not on the same upper tier as the new big dogs like Miami, Oregon and Texas, and that's why you're seeing those like Keon Keeley, a former five-star and key rotation piece, walk out the door for Notre Dame. 

It's harder than ever to hold onto key depth -- heck, even starters -- and Alabama's portal cycle is an example of that reality. 

It's not as if Alabama didn't add good players. Bringing in Devan Thompkins and Terrance Green is a net positive for the Tide along the defensive front, even while losing James Smith. Yet in totality, especially when you consider the depth that departed, Alabama's roster is a little worse coming out of January. 

Clemson Tigers 

Dabo Swinney deserves credit for finally jumping into the transfer portal with gusto. Clemson, which had signed just six total transfers since 2018, inked 10 of them this cycle. 

There are some good players among that group, too. Colorado freshman edge London Merritt was arguably the Buffs' best defensive player this year. Elliot Washington played well in rotational snaps for Penn State this year at cornerback. Jerome Carter was an all-conference safety for Old Dominion. Clemson added quality, needed pieces to bolster a defense that failed to live up to its usually elite standards in 2025. It would have been even better if not for the Luke Ferrelli saga, which has Clemson fans red-hot mad at Ole Miss for what they believe was the poaching of a signed and enrolled linebacker. We'll see if anything further plays out there between the Tigers and the the ACC Defensive Rookie of the Year. 

My gripe for Clemson is on the offensive side of the ball, nevertheless. Given that Clemson's offense failed to live up to expectations (62nd nationally in yards per play) this season, you'd think the Tigers would have loaded up there. Instead, Clemson signed one player in running back Chris Johnson. The speedster averaged 7.1 yards per attempt this season at SMU on 67 carries, and will help Clemson's offense. But the fact Clemson failed to add a quarterback or a single offensive lineman this cycle could result in further regression. 

Clemson ranked 91st nationally in pressure rate allowed and 87th nationally in yards created before contact running the ball. The o-line, as it has been for years, was underwhelming. Perhaps Dabo Swinney is hoping continuity and youth will carry Clemson's o-line forward. Five starters do return, but not improving that position in the portal seems misguided. 

I'd also question Swinney choosing not to add a starting-caliber quarterback. With Cade Klubnik's departure, long-time backup Christopher Vizzina is next up. He could be good. Vizzina's been fine (596 yards, four touchdowns, one interception, 61% completion mark) in limited action the last two years. 

There just isn't much experience in Clemson's quarterback room. Vizzina has started one career game. The other three scholarship QBs on the Tigers' roster are freshmen. Swinney is betting a lot that Vizzina is the guy by not adding another arm to compete with him. There was belief in the industry Clemson would pursue a transfer QB. Whether the Tigers got cold feet with the price tags of the portal's middle tier of QBs or decided it was not worth losing Vizzina or the depth behind him will be questions Swinney may have to answer this fall. 

The great news for Clemson it held on to rising junior wide receiver TJ Moore, who strongly considered the portal. But coming off the Tigers' worst season in a decade, they needed to be even more active in the portal to avoid the loser designation. 

Florida State Seminoles  

Players can always outperform their rankings, but there's the reality of Florida State's 2026 transfer class is that, well, it's just OK. 

The Seminoles currently sit at 25th nationally in the portal. That's solid, bu it's also not what a 5-7 team needed to change its fortunes ahead of a win-or-go season for head coach Mike Norvell, who would not still be in this seat were it not for a $50 million buyout and a competitive-as-heck coaching carousel that FSU did not seem eager to jump into. 

Florida State had some wins. It signed an impact running back in Tre Wisner, who played great in Texas' biggest games, and one of the best offensive tackles on the market in Xavier Chaplin, plus four-star linebacker Mikai Gbayor. The Seminoles also avoided disaster by reeling Ja'Bril Rawls and the Desir twins back from the portal with re-worked deals. 

On the whole, however, the Seminoles lost a lot. Star safety Earl Little Jr. is now at Ohio State. The program's most promising young receiver, Lawayne McCoy. left for Louisville. Starting linebacker Justin Cryer hopped in the portal to become a Longhorn. 

Beyond that run of departures, the Seminoles didn't exactly hit home runs at critical positions of need. The QB who's going to save Norvell's tenure is … Ashton Daniels? Personnel staffers like Daniels and think he's a very capable starter on the Power Four level. But he's also now a two-time backup in stints at Stanford and Auburn. A below-average secondary lost its best player (Little), and FSU failed to add any weapons at receiver or tight end to help compliment Duce Robinson and Micahi Danzy. 

It wasn't a goldilocks return for Florida State this cycle. And Norvell needed to be great in the portal ahead of his ultimate hot seat season. 

Iowa State Cyclones 

It's hard to be a new head coach in 2026, especially at a Group of Five program or a less-resourced Power Four. New Cyclones head coach Jimmy Rogers had a particularly difficult job ahead of him, because almost every good player on Iowa State's roster departed upon Matt Campbell's exit to Penn State. 

Fifty-five Cyclones entered the portal this cycle. Of the team's season-ending starting 22, 15 of them entered the portal, six of them graduated and only one, defensive end Ikenna Ezeogu, stayed in Ames. 

That's not even the full reality of the losses. Some regular starters who were injured midseason left. Key depth pieces departed. Young pieces that were set to define Iowa State's future hopped in the portal, too. 

Only a few scattered pieces of the Matt Campbell era remain in Ames. 

That means it's on Rogers to pick up the pieces and build. That may be difficult in Year 1. There were 18 outgoing Cyclones who rank higher on Petagna's board than Iowa State's highest-ranked incoming transfer, to put things in perspective. 

There are some gems to be found in Iowa State's class, and the open nature of the BIg 12 makes it possible for Iowa State to build a contender somewhat quickly. But it's hard to find a Power Four team hit harder by the portal this cycle than Iowa State. 

Duke Blue Devils 

Sometimes a team can just get blindsided, and that's what happened for Duke at the portal deadline's close when star quarterback Darian Mensah opted to go into the portal. Mensah had, uh, already announced publicly he planned to return in 2026. He was among the highest-paid players in the sport, on a two-year contract at $4 million annually, and had just led Duke to an ACC title. Everything should have been fine. 

He hopped into the portal anyway, which left the Blue Devils in an impossible position at quarterback with no proven solutions available and no time to create a solution via backchannels. 

Duke went from one of the best quarterback situations in the country to one of the worst in just a few hours. It's a brutal blow for coach Manny Diaz and a program that hoped to continue momentum coming off a conference title. 

The Blue Devils lost some key pieces beyond Mensah, too. The team's leading returning receiver Que'Sean Brown left for Virginia Tech while safety Terry Moore -- who missed the 2024 season with an injury that was very much felt by one of the worst pass defenses in the Power Four -- jumped in the portal and transferred to Ohio State. 

Diaz is clearly a good coach and will likely manufacture success in 2026 no matter who's his QB1. But the loss of Mensah casts a dark shadow over the Blue Devils' offseason.