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College football transfer portal: Monday's 5 biggest moves

A quarterback and several players from the CFP finalists found new homes on Monday.
Joe Cox|
Former Stanford QB Elijah Brown found a new portal home on Monday.
Former Stanford QB Elijah Brown found a new portal home on Monday. | Sergio Estrada-Imagn Images

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Miami (FL) HurricanesIndiana HoosiersWashington HuskiesNorth Carolina State Wolfpack

College football's transfer portal kept rolling on the final Monday of January. Most of the major moves surround the two College Football Playoff finalists, who had a belated window for players to enter the portal. They each saw some defections on Monday and an experienced power conference quarterback was also on the move. Here are Monday's five biggest portal moves.

QB Elijah Brown to Washington

Washington has already had a wild off-season at the quarterback position after Demond Williams intended to head off in the transfer portal, but was gradually coaxed back. Brown now adds some depth to the room. In nine games over two seasons at Stanford, he passed for 1,103 yards and six touchdowns.

Brown was a four-star recruit out of the legendary Mater Dei High in California in the 2024 class. He's certainly some insurance against issues with Williams and might be the heir apparent to the Washington QB job in 2027.

Raul Aguirre to NC State

Aguirre is a significant loss for Miami. He was a four-star recruit who saw increasingly more time in three seasons with the Hurricanes. He ended up with 43 tackles and a pair of tackles for loss in 2025. But at NC State, he should be able to use his one remaining year to make his NFL case, with a significantly cleaner path to playing time than at Miami.

Joshisa Trader to NC State

Similarly, Trader is also making the move over the NC State, likely for similar reasons. A four-star receiver in the 2024 recruiting class, Trader caught six passes in 2024 and 13 passes in 2025, with a single touchdown each year.

He's got two remaining years of eligibility and should get more playing time with the Wolfpack than he likely would have at Miami.

Nino Francavilla to Buffalo

A three-star recruit from Connecticut, Francavilla was a late pick-up for Miami in the 2024 class and his other schools were academic powers in the northeast. After playing in five games in 2024 and two games in 2025, he's heading back closer to home and likely seeking more playing time. A 6'3". 300 pound lineman should not lack for playing time at Buffalo.

Ace Ciongoli to Florida

Even the defending champions lose players to the portal. Ciongoli was an under-the-radar late recruit for Indiana as a walk-on in its 2025 class. The 5'11" slot receiver from Massachusetts didn't see the field in 2025, but probably saw enough on the sidelines to realize that his best shot at playing time was elsewhere.

Jon Sumrall snagged Ciongoli for his initial Florida team and likely plans to utilize his skill set for middle of the field targets in 2026 and beyond.

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Joe Cox
JOE COX

Joe is a journalist and writer who covers college and professional sports. He has written or co-written over a dozen sports books, including several regional best sellers. His last book, A Fine Team Man, is about Jackie Robinson and the lives he changed. Joe has been a guest on MLB Network, the Paul Finebaum show and numerous other television and radio shows. He has been inside MLB dugouts, covered bowl games and conference tournaments with Saturday Down South and still loves telling the stories of sports past and present.

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