The transfer portal can change a program for the better, but only a few will emerge as clear winners heading into the 2022 season.
Over 2,000 college football players have entered the portal since Aug. 1. Not every player will find a new home, and teams rarely fill every empty roster spot because of scholarship limitations. Still, a handful of programs. not only rebuild and reload, but they also upgrade their rosters.
Look no further than Michigan State over the last two years (Kenneth Walker III, Jayden Reed and Payton Thorne) or Western Kentucky, which added a trio of Houston Baptist stars to jump from one of the worst offenses in the country to the second-best scoring offense in the country in 2021.
This cycle saw more big names than ever transfer within the Power Five conferences (Caleb Williams to USC; Spencer Rattler to South Carolina; Jaxson Dart to Ole Miss; Kedon Slovis to Pitt) and more are on the way.
The current cycle is nearing its end, with one more massive wave set to arrive when spring practices end in April, May and June. Many programs, however, have already signed their allotment of players — and that gives us plenty of data to explore heading into the spring.
