2024 Preseason All-Transfer Portal Team
A record-number of players entered the transfer portal during the two windows in 2024, and thanks to unregulated movement, we saw a record number of athletes find new homes this offseason (some more than one), too.
With spring practice in the books, summer conditioning in full-swing and the majority of the rosters set for the fall, it’s the optimal time to release my 2024 Preseason All-Transfer Portal Team.
Just like last season, my offensive depth chart has 11 starters plus a backup tailback. My defensive depth chart starts as a 3-4 look with a fifth DB when we switch to a nickel-package. Lest we forget, I had to include a kicker, punter and one breakout candidate at ATH.
Preseason All-Transfer Portal Offense
QB Dillon Gabriel, Oregon
Gabriel might be at his third school in six seasons, but the senior southpaw has stuffed the stat-sheet at every stop including leading the Big 12 in passing, touchdowns and completion percentage in 2023. The ex-Oklahoma quarterback should thrive in Will Stein’s RPO-heavy scheme, throwing to a stacked unit of playmakers, too.
RB Quinshon Judkins, Ohio State
After a record true freshman season at Ole Miss (1,567 yards and 16 touchdowns), Judkins wasn’t quite as efficient or productive as a sophomore (1,158 yards). Still, he has All-American potential and alongside TreVeyon Henderson, gives the Buckeyes the best 1-2 tailback tandem in the country.
RB Trevor Etienne, Georgia
Etienne was Florida’s most explosive playmaker in 2023, and now he’s set to star for the Gators’ chief border-war rival. The junior, who is both a home run threat as a runner and receiver, should benefit being surrounded by an elite cast of skill players coupled with running behind one of the top offensive lines in the country.
WR Evan Stewart, Oregon
Stewart was limited to just eight games in 2023, but as a freshman, he led the SEC in catches and stands to see an increase in targets with the Ducks. The former 5-star gets to team up with Tez Johnson, a fellow former transfer who saw his numbers balloon in Oregon’s offense.
WR CJ Daniels, LSU
With Malik Nabers and Brian Thomas Jr. off to the NFL, LSU nabbed the Liberty star to fill one of the vacancies on the perimeter. Daniels averaged a whopping 19.4 yards per catch in 2023 (third-most nationally among any WRs with at least 50 receptions) with 10 touchdowns.
WR Deion Burks, Oklahoma
Burks was one of the Sooners’ spring stars, quickly showcasing a strong chemistry with OU quarterback Jackson Arnold. The ex-Purdue speedster had a breakout season as a sophomore, but Burks could be even more productive in his first year in the SEC if he plays with a little more consistency (too many feast-or-famine games in 2023).
TE Jack Velling, Michigan State
Velling led all tight ends with eight touchdowns last season, pacing Oregon State’s passing attack. Velling, who followed Beavers coach Jonathan Smith to Michigan State, averaged 15.1 yards per catch and had 20 (of 29 total catches) for a first down.
OT Kadyn Proctor, Alabama
The most infamous boomerang transfer to date? The former 5-star tackle started every game for the Crimson Tide as a Freshman All-American, only to leave the program in January to return home to play for Iowa. But Proctor never suited up the Hawkeyes, leaving the team on the eve of spring practice to go back to Alabama.
OG Cayden Green, Missouri
Green stunned folks in Oklahoma when he opted to enter the portal and transfer back to his home-state school the Missouri Tigers. The former Top-100 prospect started seven games for the Sooners as a true freshman, playing mostly left guard but capable of swinging outside as an offensive tackle.
C Parker Brailsford, Alabama
Brailsford was one of the cornerstones of Washington’s Joe Moore Award-winning offensive lines, and now he’ll help anchor a Crimson Tide unit with two of the best OL transfers this cycle. He had the second-highest run-blocking grade among all centers in 2023.
OG Tyler Johnson, Colorado
The former Texas Longhorns signee found his home at Houston last season, earning third-team All-AAC honors. He made 12 starts, including 10 at right guard where he allowed just a single sack in 411 pass-blocking snaps — a much-needed skill-set for a Buffalos offensive line that couldn’t protect Shedeur Sanders all last season.
OT Zalance Heard, Tennessee
The Vols were the beneficiaries of LSU simply having too many good offensive tackles in 2024. With both Will Campbell and Emory Jones back this season (two future 1st Round picks), Heard didn’t have a starting spot, so the former 5-star recruit transferred to Tennessee where he’ll protect Nico Iamaleava’s blindside for the next two seasons.
Preseason All-Transfer Portal Defense
DE Nic Scourton, Texas A&M
At 6-5, 280-pounds, Scourton is big and strong enough to play both true end and as a stand-up EDGE. He projects to be among the best and most productive transfers this cycle, especially after a breakout sophomore season where he had 10 sacks (most in the Big Ten) and 25 run-stops (third-most nationally in the P5) for Purdue. Scourton was unblockable in Texas A&M’s spring game.
DT Walter Nolen, Ole Miss
The former consensus Top-5 recruit flashed as an interior pass rusher last year, recording seven sacks in a breakout sophomore season. Nolen is a special, special talent, who if he reaches his ceiling, has No. 1 draft pick potential.
DT Aeneas Peebles, Virginia Tech
Peebles is an upper-echelon interior pass rusher, grading out as the second-best at his position (90.1) among all FBS linemen in 2023, per PFF. The Duke transfer had 5.5 tackles and 10 TFLs last season and will now get to play alongside one of the better edge rushers in the ACC in Va. Tech’s Antwaun Powell-Ryland.
EDGE Princely Umanmielen, Ole Miss
The bendy, twitchy edge from Florida had one of the best pass rush win-rates (22%) in all of college football last season. He led the Gators with 11.5 tackles for loss and seven sacks, adding another 17 QB hurries. Umanmielen was a bit of a one-man band at UF, and he should benefit playing next to Walter Nolen, JJ Pegues and others on Ole Miss’ front.
LB Jamon Dumas-Johnson, Kentucky
Dumas-Johnson was an All-SEC linebacker in 2022, and although he was limited to just eight games last season after breaking his forearm, he still recorded 5.5 tackles for loss and 3.5 sacks. He’s a solid run-defender and pressure linebacker. While Dumas-Johnson was effectively pushed out by a trio of former Top-50 prospects at Georgia, the Wildcats were the recipients of one of the most experienced and productive players in the portal this cycle.
LB Jaishawn Barham, Michigan
Barham was among the best linebackers in the Big Ten as a freshman in 2022, showcasing as both a plus run-defender and cover-‘backer for the Terps. He suffered a mini-sophomore slump last season while battling various injuries, but now healthy, Barham fit right in with Michigan’s defense during the spring.
EDGE Trey Moore, Texas
The Longhorns landed one of the premier pass rushers in the country this offseason, plucking Moore away from in-state UTSA after he ranked No. 3 nationally with 14.0 sacks. The junior added 17.5 TFLs and another double-digit hurries season and will team up with Ethan Burke and 5-star freshman Colin Simmons to spearhead Texas’ pressure off the edge.
CB Jabbar Muhammad, Oregon
The former Washington standout led all corners with 19 forced incompletions, per PFF, finishing the season with three picks, too. Muhammad isn’t the biggest of corners (just 5-10, 180-pounds) but what he lacks in size is made up for with his elite quickness and a competitive mean streak.
CB A.J. Harris, Penn State
Harris couldn’t crack the lineup at Georgia, but the former fringe 5-star prospect looks to be a plug-and-play starter for the Nittany Lions in 2024. Versatile enough to play corner or nickel, Harris drew rave reviews from Penn State coaches this spring.
NB Earl Little, Florida State
Little was a depth chart causality at Alabama, but the former American Heritage star immediately carved out a role in FSU’s defense this spring. Reunited with his ex-high school coach and now Seminoles DB assistant Patrick Surtain Sr., Little impressed so much that Greedy Vance opted to transfer to USC rather than battle Little for the starting spot at nickel.
S Caleb Downs, Ohio State
Downs is arguably the most impactful transfer of the 2023 cycle, as the former 5-star recruit was among the best safeties in the country as a true freshman and still has two seasons of eligibility remaining. Downs led Alabama with 107 tackles, adding two picks and 3.5 TFLs.
S Kamari Ramsey, USC
As a redshirt freshman, Ramsey started 11 games for the best defense in the Pac-12 last season. The ex-UCLA safety thrived playing in D’Anyton Lynn’s system, recording 40 tackles, 2.5 TFLs and one interception. He reunited with Lynn at USC this offseason.
Preseason All-Transfer Portal Specialists
ATH Dylan Edwards, Kansas State
The Colorado speedster had a fantastic freshman debut (177 yards and four touchdowns in the upset over TCU), and while the rest of his season was a bit more muted, Edwards is still a dynamic weapon as a runner, receiver and returner. He had nearly 750 all-purpose yards and gives K-State a valuable weapon to reunite with former peewee teammate Avery Johnson.
PK Mitch Jeter, Notre Dame
The former South Carolina kicker was 12 of 14 on field goals last season with 33 of 34 made PATs. He also served as the Gamecocks’ place-kicker, with 65.1% of his kickoffs going for touchbacks — fifth-best in the SEC.
P Max Fletcher, Cincy
Fletcher rankled No. 3 in the SEC in punting last season, averaging 47 yards per boot at Arkansas — a nearly 10-yard improvement from his freshman season.