College football’s top transfer down to 4 teams after Big Ten program drops out

With more than 4,000 players in the NCAA transfer portal, one of the hottest commodities in the country is Auburn wide receiver transfer, Cam Coleman.

Ranked as the No. 1 player in the transfer portal, Coleman is expected to command an NIL deal worth around $2 million. The 6-foot-3 wide receiver out of Alabama is a former five-star recruit who is quite simply one of the best athletes in the country. Despite Auburn's mediocre quarterback play this past season, he was still able to record 56 catches for 708 yards and eight scores.

He will have his pick of the litter in terms of programs after him, but as revealed late Monday evening, one major program has decided to no longer pursue him.

Auburn Tigers wide receiver Cam Coleman (8). — Auburn Tigers wide receiver Cam Coleman (8) catches a pass as Auburn Tigers take on Alabama Crimson Tide in the Iron Bowl at Jordan-Hare Stadium in Auburn, Ala. on Saturday, Nov. 29, 2025. Alabama Crimson Tide defeated Auburn Tigers 27-20. | Jake Crandall/ Advertiser / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The program in question being the USC Trojans, who instead brought in North Carolina State wide receiver Terrell Anderson.

"Sources tell On3 that USC has removed itself from the sweepstakes to land the top transfer wide receiver," wrote Nakos. "The move comes after the Trojans landed wide receiver Terrell Anderson on Monday. Anderson posted 629 receiving yards in 2025. Coleman was scheduled to arrive in Los Angeles on Jan. 8."

With Lincoln Riley and the Trojans out, Nakos confirmed that the teams still in the mix for Coleman are the Texas Longhorns, Texas Tech Red Raiders, Texas A&M Aggies and the Alabama Crimson Tide.

Coleman has already visited both Texas and Texas A&M already, and is traveling to Lubbock on Tuesday. Aside from likely getting a monster NIL offer, he may have the chance to meet the new Texas Tech quarterback, Cincinnati transfer Brendan Sorsby.

As for Alabama, they have yet to lock down a visit.

As it stands right now, there are no recruiting or transfer portal insiders bold enough to predict where Coleman will end up next season. With that being said, Nakos also reported that the financial aspect of this move is not what is the most important to Coleman, who is presumably more focused on contending for a title and solidifying himself as a top receiver for the 2027 NFL Draft.

"Money is not going to be the deciding factor in this recruitment, even though sources have said his deal could be in the $2 million range," wrote Nakos.

Needless to say, Coleman's decision could come down to which quarterback he trusts the most, which leaves him deciding between Arch Manning (Texas), Marcel Reed (Texas A&M) Sorsby (Texas Tech) and presumably Ty Simpson (Alabama).

Wherever he ends up, that offense just instantly became that much more elite.