All-Transfer Defensive Team For The 2023 College Football Offseason

Offense gets you to championships, but defense wins them. Quarterbacks and wide receivers dominate headlines when it comes to the transfer portal, but landing a strong defensive class can turn a team completely around. This year, the portal was jampacked with defensive talent.

Which players land on KillerFrogs' All-Transfer team for defense?

2023 All-Transfer Team Defense

Andre Carter, DL

Western Michigan to Indiana

Only one player in college football had more hits on opposing quarterbacks than Andre Carter did in 2022 (17). Carter's numbers rival that of top NFL Draft prospect Will Anderson, coming in just shy of his total pressure numbers (54) and out-shining his win rate against opposing offensive linemen (20.9%).

Carter comes in to an Indiana defense in sore need of help along the defensive front. Tim Allen's crew ranked 87th in points per drive allowed and won just two conference games. Expect Carter to be in contention – if not on – the preseason all-Big Ten list.

Braden Fiske, DL

Western Michigan to Florida State

Lining up next to Carter all season gave Braden Fiske a serious boost in production. Unfortunately for Western Michigan, they lose both top-flight defense players. Fiske finished 2022 fourth in pressures among interior defensive linemen (38) and tied for second in sacks (8).

Fiske goes from playing alongside one prolific defensive end to another at Florida State in All-ACC selection Jared Verse (also a transfer). The 'Noles are expected to be a top-10 program this coming season and Fiske will almost certainly be a cog in the engine that runs their success.

Daniel Grzesiak, DL

Utah State to Cincinnati

Grzesiak recorded the second-most sacks among edge defenders in the Mountain West and ranked 23rd among all edge rushers nationally, per PFF. He also recorded just a 7.8% missed tackle rate last season, the fourth-lowest among players who played at least 650 defensive snaps.

Cincinnati saw a mass exodus of players, typical for a team that turns their coaching staff over. Grzesiak immediately becomes one of the Bearcats' most valuable defenders and he hasn't even played a down for them yet.

Josiah Stewart, DL

Coastal Carolina to Michigan

Stewart racked up multiple all-Sun Belt honors, including Sun Belt Defensive Player of the Year and was named a 2021 Freshman All-American. At Coastal, Stewart had a propensity to take over games, once recording five tackles for loss and four sacks against Georgia Southern.

Last season, Stewart saw a decline in production thanks to a litany of double- and triple-teams. In the Michigan system, he should see that kind of attention alleviate.

Nick Jackson, LB

Virginia to Iowa

Rarely does a player with the accolades of Jackson transfer. He is a three-time All-ACC selection and led the conference in tackles in 2022. However, Jackson decided to jump ship from a Virginia program laden with coaching turnover and no reasonable improvement in sight.

He joins Iowa and fills in for the departed Jack Campbell (NFL) on a stout Iowa defense. No longer buried on a subpar defensive unit, expect Jackson to be in the All-American conversation this year.

Antonio Grier Jr., LB

USF to Arkansas

According to ESPN's Bill Connelly, players that transfer up (from Group of Five to Power Five) typically out-perform their expectations. For Grier, that's a tall order – the grad transfer logged 22.5 tackles for loss and 10 sacks during his time in Tampa, but missed most of last year with an injury.

Arkansas loses a pair of outstanding linebackers to the NFL, paving the way for Grier to be a featured part of the Razorbacks defense from Day 1. He's a multi-year all-AAC selection, including on the preseason first team in 2022.

Omar Speights, LB

Oregon State to LSU

In four seasons as a starter for Oregon State, Speights logged over 300 tackles (25 for a loss), three interceptions, and three fumble recoveries. He earned all-Pac 12 honors this past season after recording a career-high eight TFLs.

As a freshman, Speights burst onto the scene, recording 18 tackles against Washington – the most by a freshman in 2019. He's also an ironman, having not missed a game in his collegiate career (45 games).

Travis Hunter, DB

Jackson State to Colorado

If one player doesn't need a laundry list of accolades laid out, it's Travis Hunter. He was the No. 1 overall recruit in the 2022 class both as a corner and receiver. Per 247Sports' Andrew Ivins, Hunter is, "a generational type of talent." In his season at Jackson State, Hunter dominated every phase of the game, scoring four touchdowns on just 18 receptions, including a game-tying TD in the Celebration Bowl, and also taking one of two interceptions to the house.

Rated as a 0.999 prospect at 247Sports, he carried his vaunted five-star rating as a transfer into Colorado. Hunter – along with Deion and Shadeur Sanders – are so impactful that they put Colorado on the map just weeks after a 1-11 season.

Fentrell Cypress, DB

Virginia to Florida State

Cypress clocked in as 247Sports' fourth-best transfer available and third-best defensive back. Another Virginia standout, Cypress was targeted just 40 times over 350+ snaps and broke up 14 of those targets. He allowed a reception every 18.8 coverage snaps, 12th-best in the country and among names like first-round hopeful Julius Brents.

He joins the third-ranked transfer class at Florida State, per 247Sports as a preseason all-ACC contender.

Evan Williams, DB

Fresno State to Oregon

Williams earned all-Mountain West honors in 2022 in his third year as a starter for Fresno State. He logged 54 solo tackles, six for a loss, and defensed four passes this past season, following up a three-interception season in 2021.

Oregon loses their top corner Christian Gonzalez to the NFL Draft and three total defensive backs arrive to Oregon via the portal, including Williams. He's the most experienced of the group.

Al Walcott, DB

Baylor to Arkansas

Baylor played Walcott all over the field, as the safety recorded 10 pressures and 59 solo tackles last season en route to an all-Big 12 selection. 247Sports ranks Walcott as the sixth-best available safety transfer in the country, landing at Arkansas with the aforementioned Grier and two other transfers projected to start.

He earned a top-30 grade nationally as pass rushing safety, per PFF. Walcott allowed a paltry 8.6 yards per reception, 34th-lowest among safeties.

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