Why Husan Longstreet is suddenly the most important quarterback in the transfer portal

Dominoes are falling in the college football transfer portal's quarterback market this week with several high-profile players coming off the board. Miami and Tennessee are two premiere programs still in need of immediate impact talent at the position and may have to pay a premium to do so given what's left in the market.

The singular portal window for the 2026 cycle closes Friday, meaning final decisions have to be made as soon as possible. USC's Husan Longstreet, the sixth-best quarterback in the portal per Cooper Petagna's Big Board at 247Sports, is now the highest-ranked, uncommitted quarterback available.

Longstreet signed with USC in the 2025 class after previously being committed to Texas A&M. He was the No. 32 player in the class (making him the last of the 5-stars in that cycle) and No. 4 QB -- behind Bryce Underwood (Michigan), Keelon Russell (Alabama) and Tavien St. Clair (Ohio State). He is a dual-threat quarterback with "a rifle for an arm," says Andrew Ivins, the 247Sports Director of Scouting. USC wanted to keep Longstreet, but Longstreet wanted to play in his second season of college football. And the Trojans return the services of the excellent Jayden Maiava. And thus, Longstreet is in the transfer portal. 

Should Miami be pushing for Longstreet?

There's some belief within the industry that Miami could target Longstreet, who recently visited LSU. The Tigers remain the perceived leader for Longstreet despite Monday night's signing of Arizona State's Sam Leavitt, the No. 1 transfer quarterback (LSU is likely willing to pay a premium for a QB2 in the portal, and Kiffin can sell Longstreet on the virtues of joining his system, where Trinidad Chambliss became a household name despite entering the year as an afterthought in the QB room). 

Meanwhile, in Miami, Carson Beck will exhaust his eligibility after next week's national championship game and there's worry in Coral Gables that the Hurricanes won't hit the jackpot like they've managed to do the last two portal cycles under center.

If Miami fails to land a quarterback this week, Mario Cristobal's program will enter spring practice in a few months with Luke Nickel, Judd Anderson, and Dereon Coleman for the starting job unless the Hurricanes convince backup Emory Williams to return.

"It's really important and it seems like they're (Miami) working all avenues to try to find a guy," InsideTheU's Gaby Urrutia told CBS Sports on Wednesday. "It doesn't sound to me like Longstreet has yet become a real option." 

Urrutia wrote a piece Tuesday saying Longstreet should be Miami's top option as it looks to find Beck's replacement. 

Longstreet has four years of eligibility remaining and if he signs with LSU, Leavitt becomes the bridge to the future in Baton Rouge. That's only if Lane Kiffin is able to add his third quarterback this month.

Josh Heupel's plan at Tennessee

While there's no scheduled visit at this time, Longstreet could also enter Tennessee's radar. Like Miami, the Vols are running low on available options with the portal window closing on Friday.

Ironically, the next highest-ranked quarterback available is Jake Merklinger, who spent his redshirt freshman season in 2025 as Tennessee's primary backup.

2026 portal cycle's top 10 transfer QBs

As of now, the Vols' only quarterbacks are George MacIntyre, who's entering his redshirt freshman season in 2026, and five-star early enrollee Faizon Brandon. Tennessee senior Joey Aguilar, who threw for 3,565 yards and 24 touchdowns after transferring from UCLA in the Nico Iamaleava swap, is hopeful he gets another year after challenging the NCAA's eligibility rules.

"Aguilar returning seems like a longshot right now and there's no clear timeline on when it might be resolved," GoVols247's Patrick Brown said. "So, it would appear their options are try to flip anyone who might be committed but didn't sign, grab a quarterback who hasn't yet entered the portal or go for an FCS guy and have him battle with MacIntyre and Faizon."

The Vols offered Leavitt and later saw Missouri's Beau Pribula commit to Virginia after slow-playing his recruitment given their preference of Leavitt. Like Miami, Tennessee also went after Alabama's Ty Simpson with a lucrative offer, but has so far decided to remain in the 2026 NFL Draft, citing loyalty reasons among others. Wednesday is the deadline for underclassmen to declare for the NFL Draft. 

Miami's transfer QB predicament: As options dwindle, flipping Ty Simpson's draft decision becomes best option

Brad Crawford

At USC, Longstreet was expected to compete for reps with Maiava this spring, but there was a reported disconnect between the freshman quarterback and the Trojans' coaching staff. If he were to sign with Miami or Tennessee, the path to QB1 status would be a bit more clear for Longstreet given the depth charts at both programs compared to what he would've faced in Los Angeles.

Portal window closing

With the deadline to enter coming later this week, there could also be the possibility of a returning Power Five starter who hasn't resigned with his current school jumping into the mix, multiple sources told CBS Sports.

Given the financial implications for jumping into the portal now as a top-end prospect, there are some who have waited until the final hour to negotiate retention contracts, which could work in Miami or Tennessee's favor if neither school likes the remaining options left in the market.

We saw this happen earlier this week with Colorado offensive tackle Jordan Seaton being one of the latest additions. The former five-star and two-year starter for the Buffaloes immediately jumped to the best-available prospect status as a top-5 transfer per 247Sports, with a reported asking price settling around $3 million. 

Given the market on quarterbacks, imagine what a difference-maker at the position would fetch if they announced intentions to transfer over the next 48 hours?