College football transfer portal sees wave of entrants at spring window's 11th hour

Gavin Wimsatt, Rutgers

Ta'Quan Roberson, UConn

Grady Brosterhous, Virginia

Ryder Burton, BYU

Steele Wasel, Akron

Rutgers shut down the quarterback competition between Wimsatt and incoming transfer Athan Kaliakmanis at the end of spring camp with the newcomer beating out the incumbent starter. Wimsatt, in turn, hit the transfer portal Wednesday as one of the most athletic signal-callers in the 2024 cycle. His passing ability is modest at best as he never completed even 50% of his throws across a year and a half as the starter, but Wimsatt is fresh off a tremendous rushing season in which he racked up a Rutgers quarterback-record 497 yards and 11 touchdowns.

RUNNING BACK

Kedrick Reescano, Ole Miss

Jaren Mangham, Michigan State

Demarkcus Bowman, UCF

Bowman represented a massive recruiting win for Clemson four years ago when he signed with the Tigers as a five-star recruit and the No. 25 overall player in the 2020 cycle. Now, ahead of the 2024 season, he seeks his fourth school after stops at Florida and UCF. The former blue-chip prospect has just 33 carries on his career ledger. Reescano and Mangahm were both four-star recruits in their respective classes and could carve out roles on their new teams. The latter is a super-veteran entering his sixth year of college football, and his career highlight came in 2021 when he racked up 671 yards and 15 touchdowns at USF.

WIDE RECEIVER

Devin Downing, BYU

Kyion Grayes, Ohio State

Dallas Sims, Minnesota

Marquis Shoulders, Tulsa

Silas Evans, Colorado State

Grayes and Shoulders are the only receivers in this group to hold playing experience. The former may still have a bright future as a contributor at another school but never carved out consistent playing time in the loaded Ohio State receiving corps, making just one catch across two seasons as a former blue-chip recruit. Shoulders was dominant on a per-game basis last season at Tulsa, amassing five touchdowns across the first five games of the campaign before he sustained a season-ending foot injury.

TIGHT END

Keleki Latu, Nevada

Latu is a reliable producer with extensive experience at the power conference level. He opened his career in 2021 at California and made 10 appearances, played in 12 games as a sophomore then started each of his first six games at Nevada before missing the rest of the 2023 season due to injury. That season-ender derailed the best campaign of Latu's career, in which he set a career high with six catches against Texas State and logged a personal-best with 81 receiving yards against UNLV.

OFFENSIVE LINE

Brione Ramsey-Brooks, TCU

Shancco Matautia, Arizona State

Teivis Tuioti, Colorado State

Enokk Vimahi, Ohio State

Geno VanDeMark, Michigan State

Rodney Leaks, Houston Christian

Ethan Boyd, Michigan State

Bruno Fina, UCLA

Evan Cooke, Kent State

This is the second time VanDeMark entered the portal this offseason. Michigan State's projected right guard starter tested the waters in December when the Spartans named Jonathan Smith their next head coach and had strong ties to Oklahoma but ultimately elected to stick with the program for spring practices. His teammate, tackle Spencer Brown, joined the Sooners and is in the mix to become their starting right tackle, and perhaps VanDeMark will capture interest from OU the second time around.

DEFENSIVE LINE

Danny Saili, BYU

Bishop Thomas, Colorado

Brayden Dudley, West Virginia

Former Florida State signee Bishop Thomas played 117 defensive snaps for Colorado last season and recorded six tackles, two tackles for loss and a fumble recovery. Deion Sanders dismissed him from the program this spring, and he is now back in the transfer portal in search of his third school in as many years. Dudley leaves West Virginia after three seasons as a reserve edge rusher, and Saili — the No. 13 junior college prospect this offseason — departs from BYU before his debut season at the power conference level.

LINEBACKER

Jayden McDonald, Indiana

Nigel Glover, Ohio State

Kendrick Blackshire, Texas

Avery Huff, Louisiana Tech

Skielar Mann, Ole Miss

Hayden Moore, Michigan

Kofi Taylor-Barrocks, Colorado

Kenny Byrd, UTEP

Chaz Ah You, BYU

Josh Phillips, UTEP

Marcellius Pulliam, Miami

Glover, Blackshire, Huff and Ah You are all former four-star recruits. Blackshire has the highest upside of the bunch and is in search of his second school this offseason. He transferred to Texas ahead of spring practices on the heels of a productive Alabama career in which he logged 25 tackles, two tackles for loss, two quarterback hurries, one forced fumble and a fumble recovery over the last three seasons. He played in two separate College Football Playoffs. Ah You is the most experienced linebacker in this group and is set to embark on his seventh year of college football. He made 33 appearances at BYU as a 2017 signee.

DEFENSIVE BACK

Collin Gill, Oregon

Keyshon Mills, SMU

Michael Mack, Wisconsin

Andre Seldon, TCU

DaShawn Jones, Wake Forest

Montre Miller, West Virginia

Isaiah Hamilton, Houston

Tony Mitchell, Alabama

Jaden Mangham, Michigan State

River Hanson, Duke

Zion Hopes, Louisiana Tech

Davis Burns, UTEP

There are a handful of starting-caliber defensive backs in this group who should find instant playing time this year at power conference schools. Mangham and Hamilton each logged four interceptions last season while Jones tallied three takeaways and Seldon (at New Mexico State) hauled in one. These corners and safeties started the vast majority of games last season at their respective schools and were some of the most productive defenders on their squads.