ACC Transfer Portal News
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As we close in on National Signing Day for the high school football prospects that will soon have put pen to paper, there’s been a considerable amount of action with the Transfer Portal, too.
It’s well known that the Miami Hurricanes have been active, with recent examples having been former Alabama offensive guard Javion Cohen and UCF cornerback Davonte Brown joining Mario Cristobal and his staff in Coral Gables.
What about the competition for the Hurricanes in the Atlantic Coast Conference though? Here are a few of the happenings that took place already that impact the opponents Miami will play in 2023. Let’s start with a closer look at rival Florida State, then add a few notes about other key programs from the ACC.
Florida State: Fellow Fan Nation site NoleGameday has reported about Virginia transfer defensive back Fentrell Cypress II and his official visit to Tallahassee. The Noles need defensive back help, so that’s a situation to monitor.
The Seminoles also needed offensive line help and will be getting Casey Roddick from Colorado. He has starting experience, so FSU did well with landing him.
The Noles also have South Carolina transfer Jaheim Bell, a tight end/H-back, coming to play for them. Also, FSU added former Miami defensive tackle Darrell Jackson. It's not been all good for the Seminoles.
FSU lost talented freshman defensive back Sam McCall to the Portal, and he was expected to be a big part of the Seminoles secondary when he first signed his letter of intent. Hard to find talent with McCall’s length and size at 6-foot-1 and 180 pounds.
Several other FSU players are in the Transfer Portal, including 2022 top defensive line recruit Shambe Jackson from Orlando (Fla.) Boone. Much like the Canes, the Noles will see quite a bit of turnover with the Transfer Portal this offseason.
North Carolina: With Keeshawn Silver having decided to transfer, it’s a disappointing end to a two-year stint for Silver in Chapel Hill. A highly regarded prospect, he never played much for UNC. The 6-foot-6 and 295-pound defensive lineman will likely see several suitors though. Cannot teach his size.
Overall, since earlier in the college football season, the Tar Heels have gone well past 10 players that entered the Portal. That’s a lot. It will be interesting to see how they finish recruiting to help offset some of those losses, as well as gaining transfers.
Clemson: It’s the one program that just does not seem to want to take players from the Transfer Portal. Much has been discussed about how Dabo Swinney much prefers to bring in high school talent, but can that be sustainable by itself and Clemson remain a top 10 program?
Several Tigers are now in the Transfer Portal, including just losing former cornerback starter Fred Davis II to UCF, linebacker Vanta Bentley to Colorado, and wide receiver Dacari Collins to North Carolina State.
Even former starting quarterback DJ Uiagalelei has made his intentions to transfer known. Indeed, Clemson has seen quite a few players leave and it’s going to be hard for the Tigers to reach 85 scholarships unless Swinney changes his plans about how he handles adding players from the Portal, too.
North Carolina State: There has been the aforementioned Collins coming to the Wolfpack from the Tigers, but there’s bigger news. Quarterback Devin Leary has been in the Transfer Portal for a while. Several schools have been rumored but it’s the point that it will be hard for NC ST to replace a possible future NFL quarterback.
Overall, the Wolfpack have not been as hard as the Tar Heels or Seminoles, but they have not landed as much talent from the Portal either.
Pittsburgh: After only one season, quarterback Kedon Slovis has entered the Transfer Portal again. Pittsburgh’s quarterback situation was expected to be held down by Slovis but he only completed 58.4% of his passes, passed for 2,391 yards, and threw 10 touchdowns to nine interceptions.
In sum, Pittsburgh has seen seven players enter the Transfer Portal since it officially reopened on Dec. 5. Look for Pittsburgh to be active in bringing in players after having a solid 8-4 season, including winning their last four contests heading into the Sun Bowl contest with UCLA.
All Hurricanes will be periodically checking back in with how some Miami opponents are doing with the Transfer Portal to give a glimpse of future matchups with the Canes.
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