Ranking college football's deepest WR rooms in 2026: Texas, Miami, Indiana add through portal
Several CFP contenders added major pass-catching weapons through the transfer portal to build elite wide receiver groups
There's a reason college football coaching staffs put a premium on the wide receiver position during the 2026 transfer portal cycle. Game-changers on the outside or in the slot can take offenses to new heights in the passing game and establish enough of a threat to assist with production in other areas.
A few weeks removed from spamming then-freshman Malachi Toney throughout its first College Football Playoff appearance with an array of quick targets and touches, Miami followed Ohio State's previous postseason lead by finding creative ways to get its best player the football.
The Hurricanes should once again have one of the deepest wide receiver rooms in the country as a preseason contender, along with others who utilized the portal for assistance within the two-deep.
With spring practices on the horizon, here is a look at the sport's best pass-catching groups.
1. Texas
Projected starters: Cam Coleman, Ryan Wingo, Emmett Mosley V
Coleman was the top-rated wide receiver in the portal and signed with Texas over offers from several title contenders. He should be a touchdown machine for Arch Manning in this high-powered scheme as long as Wingo takes some of the pressure off the other side of the field. Wingo, a fellow former five-star recruit, doubled his production numbers as a sophomore in 2024. Ironically, Wingo is the lone remaining wide receiver from Texas' 2024 class, which included Parker Livingstone, Freddie Dubose and Aaron Butler. Mosley, a former Stanford transfer, averaged 14.6 yards per catch for the Longhorns last season and scored three touchdowns.
2. Ohio State
Projected starters: Jeremiah Smith, Chris Henry Jr., Brandon Inniss
Ohio State has the nation's best player for one more season before Smith is off to the NFL as potentially the No. 1 overall pick in 2027. One of the nation's highest-paid players at any position has scored 27 touchdowns over his first two years on 163 receptions and 2,558 total yards. Henry could be the Buckeyes' next great freshman in a line of elite first-year players as a five-star gem of the 2026 cycle. After losing Carnell Tate to the NFL Draft and six others to the portal -- including Mylan Graham and Quincy Porter to Notre Dame -- the Buckeyes signed three other freshmen at the position, along with LSU's Kyle Parker and UTSA's Devin McCuin in the transfer market. McCuin recorded 65 receptions for 726 yards and eight touchdowns last season for the Roadrunners.
3. Clemson
Projected starters: Bryant Wesco Jr., TJ Moore, Naeem Burroughs
New Clemson play-caller Chad Morris has two potential first-round picks at wide receiver and hopes projected starting quarterback Christopher Vizzina can get Wesco and Moore the football often in 2026. It'll be his job to find space for the pair of elite-level wideouts to work. They've combined for 20 touchdowns the last two seasons and helped Clemson get to a playoff appearance in 2024. Tyler Brown could be a breakout option in the slot after playing behind Antonio Williams for the Tigers. Burroughs, a former track star, has elite speed.
4. Oregon
Projected starters: Dakorien Moore, Jeremiah McClellan, Iverson Hooks
An impact player at Oregon as a freshman despite missing several games in November, Moore should challenge for 1,000 yards and double-digit touchdowns as WR1 for Dante Moore. McClellan's equally talented and really came alive down the stretch as a second-year standout. For an eight-loss team last season at UAB, Hooks was one of the lone bright spots after recording 72 catches for 927 yards and seven touchdowns. When former five-star transfer Evan Stewart may not even crack the starting lineup following his return from an injury that caused him to miss all of the 2025 season, that's when you know there's elite depth for the Ducks.
5. Miami
Projected starters: Malachi Toney, Cooper Barkate, Vandrevius Jacobs
Grabbing a top-100 portal talent like Barkate to pair with Toney was a home-run move for the Hurricanes coming off an appearance in the national championship, especially when you consider his former Duke teammate -- quarterback Darian Mensah -- will be the guy directing this offense. Toney shattered various program and ACC records last fall as a true freshman and enters his sophomore campaign as wideout No. 2 behind Ohio State's Smith nationally. Jacobs spent the last two years at South Carolina, where his breakout season came in 2025 with 32 catches for 548 yards and four touchdowns.
6. Indiana
Projected starters: Charlie Becker, Nick Marsh, Shazz Preston
Despite Omar Cooper Jr. and Elijah Sarratt's departures to the NFL, the Hoosiers remain loaded on the outside after going portal-heavy for help. Becker needs no introduction after his College Football Playoff heroics on money downs, but the addition of March (Michigan State) and Preston (Tulane) provides former TCU quarterback Josh Hoover with plenty of proven options. Indiana OC Mike Shanahan will spend spring practice determining the rotation behind this trio as the leader of one of the nation's most potent attacks.
7. Texas A&M
Projected starters: Mario Craver, Isaiah Horton, Ashton Bethel-Roman
Making up for the loss of slot superstar KC Concepcion could be challenging, but retaining Craver as a certified weapon was essential in bringing back a top-end option for Marcel Reed and this Texas A&M offense. Craver looked borderline unstoppable with three straight 100-yard games to open the season before quieting down a bit. The Aggies grabbed Horton from the portal, who was penciled in to be one of Alabama's top wideouts in 2026. The offseason battle between Bethel-Roman and former five-star signee Terry Bussey is intriguing, given Bethel-Roman's unexpected rise as a freshman. He scored four touchdowns over a three-game stretch in November to unseat Bussey for reps.
8. Oklahoma
Projected starters: Isaiah Setagna, Trell Harris, Parker Livingstone
This is a new-look group for the Sooners outside of Setagna, who's back after dominating from the slot with 67 catches for 965 yards and eight touchdowns, many of those coming down the stretch as John Mateer's preferred choice. Six wide receivers left the program for the portal, and the Sooners reloaded with a couple of signings there, along with three freshmen, including two four-stars. Livingstone comes over from Texas after posting 29 receptions for 516 yards as a redshirt freshman. He was the Longhorns' third-leading wideout last season and should receive a bevy of targets from Mateer given his field-stretching abilities. Oklahoma landed Harris after he helped Virginia win the ACC as an all-conference talent with 847 yards and five touchdowns.
9. Florida State
Projected starters: Duce Robinson, Micahi Danzy, Jayvan Boggs
The Seminoles did not take a transfer wideout despite signing 23 players this cycle, an obvious sign Mike Norvell feels great about who he returns in the room and the half-dozen freshmen who join in the 2026 class. Four-star recruits Jasen Lopez and EJ White are newcomers to keep an eye on behind Danzy and Boggs, with Robinson being this group's true No. 1. The 6-foot-6 Robinson torched ACC defenses last fall after coming over from USC, finishing with 56 catches for 1,081 yards and six touchdowns, team-bests in every category by a long shot. Danzy managed three 100-yard games as a freshman and averaged 21.1 yards per catch. He scored three times in the run game on reverses, too.
10. Notre Dame
Projected starters: Jordan Faison, Jaden Greathouse, Quincy Porter
The Fighting Irish need Greathouse to be a difference-maker in 2026 after he tied for the team-lead in touchdowns as a freshman in 2023 before redshirting after four starts last season with a leg injury. He missed five games as a sophomore with hamstring issues, but when he's been healthy and available, Greathouse is clearly a player with elite-level production. After posting career-bests last season in catches (49) and yards (640) from the slot, Faison blossomed into a reliable, preferred option for CJ Carr. One of two Ohio State signees at the position from the portal, Porter offers a big-body (6-4, 210) target in the passing game.
