Five College Football Playoff teams who reloaded in the transfer portal this offseason

Coaches who lead their teams on deep College Football Playoff runs face a complicated balancing act of game-planning while also having to be aggressive in the transfer portal at the same time.

The lone window for players to enter the college football transfer portal this year ran from Jan. 2-16, which started a day after the CFP quarterfinals. That meant Indiana, Miami, Oregon and Ole Miss still had games to play and prepare for while every other program was fully focused on lining up transfer visits and rebuilding their rosters.

But those coaches can't delay on that front either, as many players move quickly to lock in their moves and fresh NIL contracts, so it's a necessary juggling act given the imperative importance that leveraging the transfer market has become.

"I think we all know there's no balance. you've just got to go, you've got to count on just going, load up on your coffee or whatever helps you put in extra hours, and you just go," Miami coach Mario Cristobal said last weekend ahead of the national championship game.

"Can't complain about it. It is what it is. The calendar, we all know, needs work. We need a remedy that works for everybody and makes sense for everybody.

"Obviously, we're up against a different clock, being that we're still playing and all the focus for us is on playing, and then all the extra time, which you have to make, you have to cut into your own time to continue to build your team for the future. We feel we've done the best we can thus far."

Indeed, the Hurricanes did.

Miami didn't win the national title, but Cristobal and his staff have given the program a chance to make another run at it next season while filling some key roster holes with impact transfer additions. For that matter, so too did Indiana as coach Curt Cignetti and the Hoosiers look to mount a national title defense in 2026.

Here are the five CFP teams that did the best job overall reloading through the transfer portal.

(All transfer numbers as of Friday, January 23.)

Indiana coach Curt Cignetti added key pieces in the transfer portal as the Hoosiers reload after winning a national title. — Indiana coach Curt Cignetti won a national championship in his second season with the Hoosiers. | Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

1. Indiana

Cignetti used part of his postgame press conference Monday night after that national championship win to clarify perceptions about the Hoosiers' NIL budget.

"I would like to say that our NIL is nowhere near where people think it is, so you can throw that out," he said.

Nonetheless, Indiana seems to be doing just fine when it comes to competing for coveted transfers out of the portal.

The Hoosiers top On3's transfer portal rankings while landing 17 additions this cycle in the midst of playing for and winning the national title.

We're going to go a little more in-depth on Indiana than the others on this list because of the prominence the Hoosiers achieved this season with their storybook national championship run.

With Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Fernando Mendoza widely projected to be the No. 1 pick in the upcoming NFL draft, Indiana secured his replacement in high-profile TCU transfer Josh Hoover.

Hoover is as experienced and proven as any quarterback in college football, having passed for 9,629 yards, 71 TDs and 33 INTs (plus 8 rushing TDs) while starting the last two and a half seasons for the Horned Frogs. He should be able to keep the Hoosiers offense humming in 2026.

Indiana also got him some playmakers out of the portal as well, in wide receivers Nick Marsh (59 catches for 662 yards and 6 TDs this past season at Michigan State) and Shazz Preston (43-723-4 at Tulane) and running back Turbo Richard (749 rushing yards, 213 receiving yards and 11 total TDs for Boston College).

Marsh, one of the top overall WRs in the portal, and Preston will pair with returning wideout Charlie Becker and fill the voids left by NFL-bound receivers Elijah Sarratt and Omar Cooper Jr., while Richard will help fill the void of departing running backs Roman Hemby and Kaelon Black. Lee Beebe Jr. returns after averaging 7.7 YPC on just 27 carries and could form a nice tandem with Richard.

Offensive guard Joe Brunner (a two-year starter at Wisconsin) is another big addition. It will be interesting to see if he moves over to center to replace departing starter Pat Coogan. However, he slots in, Brunner is a significant piece of the puzzle for 2026.

Former Wisconsin OL Joe Brunner has committed to Indiana, per @chris_hummer

🔴 ZERO Career Sacks Allowed (749 Pass Block Snaps) pic.twitter.com/BI0j57NwZe
— PFF College (@PFF_College) January 14, 2026

Defensively, the Hoosiers addressed key needs across the unit in landing experienced cornerbacks A.J. Harris (Penn State) and Carson Williams (Montana State), safeties Jiquan Sanks (Cincinnati) and Preston Zachman (Wisconsin), defensive tackle Joe Hjelle (Tulsa) and intriguing edge rushers Tobi Osunsanmi (Kansas State), Chiddi Obiazor (Kansas State) and Joshua Burnham (Notre Dame).

Harris was a former top-50 national prospect who signed with Georgia and started the last two seasons at Penn State, Williams led FCS national champion Montana State with 9 pass breakups as a redshirt-freshman this season, Sanks started most of the last two seasons for Cincinnati and Zachman is a seventh-year senior who started for two seasons at Wisconsin before having his 2025 season cut short by injury after three games.

With star cornerback D'Angelo Ponds declaring for the NFL draft and key safeties Louis Moore and Devan Boykin out of eligibility, those veteran reinforcements in the secondary were essential.

On the edge, Indiana is losing Stephen Daley, Mikail Kamara and Kellen Wyatt, and all three additions should make an immediate impact.

Osunsanmi was ranked the eighth-best edge rusher available in the portal by On3 and had 4 sacks and 6 tackles for loss in just six games this past season before an injury, Burnham is a former four-star prospect who tallied 6 sacks and 17 TFLs in 40 games with 15 starts across four seasons at Notre Dame, and Obiazor had 2 sacks and 30 pressures (per PFF) in 2025.

Indiana could lose key defensive tackle Tyrique Tucker to the NFL draft, so Hjelle (2.5 sacks, 4.5 TFL, 46 tackles for Tulsa) helps as well.

One major position the Hoosiers didn't address is linebacker, with star Aiden Fisher out of eligibility, but they will return leading tackler Rolijah Hardy and potentially fellow LB Isaiah Jones, pending his NFL draft decision.

Don't sleep on the addition of Hawaii punter Billy Gowers, either. He ranked 10th in the FBS in punting average (46.24 yards per punt) as a "freshman" -- after playing professional Australian Rules Football for five years.

And how's this for an interesting transfer move? Tight end Brock Schott, a four-star prospect from the 2025 recruiting class, transferred from Miami to Indiana, switching sides of the national championship matchup. He'll have a chance to replace productive senior Riley Nowakowski.

Indiana is losing a lot of the core of the team that pulled off this incredible two-year run and has to replace not only production but the intangibles that factored into it all as well. But on paper, at least, Indiana looks well-positioned to make a run at a third straight CFP appearance in 2026.

Texas Tech and coach Joey McGuire were again among the most aggressive teams in the transfer portal. | Sam Navarro-Imagn Images

2. Texas Tech

There was no doubt that Texas Tech would once again be one of the most aggressive teams in the transfer portal after loading up last year to set up its breakthrough first CFP appearance.

With a lot of the key contributors to that 12-win season now moving on, the Red Raiders had plenty of needs to address and spread their sizeable NIL war chest around accordingly with 21 transfer additions. Among 2025 CFP teams, Texas Tech tied for the most additions from On3's top 100 transfer rankings with five.

Most notably, Texas Tech not only replaced departing starting QB Behren Morton but did so with an upgrade, landing Cincinnati transfer Brendan Sorsby for a reported $5 million deal.

Sorsby was excellent for the Bearcats this past season, passing for 2,800 yards, 27 TDs and 5 INTs while rushing for 580 yards and 9 TDs. Morton struggled mightily in Texas Tech's CFP quarterfinals loss to Oregon, so landing an elite QB was a top priority for the program.

Overall, the Red Raiders' five additions from On3's top 100 transfer rankings are Sorsby (No. 9), DT Mateen Ibirogba (No. 13, from Wake Forest), LB Austin Romaine (No. 92, from Kansas State), EDGE Adam Trick (No. 98, from Miami of Ohio) and WR Malcolm Simmons (No. 100, from Auburn).

Texas Tech invested heavily last transfer cycle to build an elite defensive line that led the FBS in rush defense (just 68.14 YPG), ranked 6th in tackles for loss (7.5 per game) and 10th in sacks (2.93 per game).

With AP First-Team All-America edge rusher David Bailey, fellow prolific EDGE Romello Height and AP Third-Team All-America DT Lee Hunter moving onto the NFL, along with AP First-Team All-America LB Jacob Rodriguez, the Red Raiders needed to again invest significantly in the front-7 and did so.

The 6-foot-3, 296-pound Ibirogba was the top-ranked DT in the portal, by On3, after tallying 21 tackles, 3.5 TFLs, 2 sacks, 26 pressures (per PFF), a forced fumble and a blocked kick this year.

Former Wake Forest DT Mateen Ibirogba has committed to Texas Tech🌵

26 QB Pressures Last Season (5th Most Among ACC DTs)

(Via: @Hayesfawcett3) pic.twitter.com/bkVhXBRN5w
— PFF College (@PFF_College) January 6, 2026

Trick was a first-team All-Mid-American Conference selection this season after racking up 59 tackles, 12.5 TFLs, 8.5 sacks, 5 passes batted down and 3 forced fumbles as a redshirt-junior. He might not even be the most intriguing edge rusher addition, though.

The Red Raiders actually loaded up there, also landing San Diego State transfer Trey White, who totaled 17.5 sacks, 31 TFLs the last two years as a two-time first-team All-Mountain West selection, and Kent State EDGE Jamond Mathis (6 sacks in 2025), flipping him from a commitment to Virginia.

At linebacker, Romaine played just nine games for Kansas State before a season-ending hand injury, but he still ranked second on the team with 66 tackles and 7 TFLs, along with an interception and forced fumble.

Offensively, meanwhile, the Red Raiders lose top receivers Caleb Douglas and Reggie Virgil and will hope Simmons (908 yards and 5 TDs the last two seasons at Auburn) can be a go-to target for Sorsby along with Pittsburgh transfer Kenny Johnson (48 catches for 695 yards and 5 TDs in 2025) returning wideout Coy Eakin (48-637-6) and prolific tight end Terrance Carter Jr. (55-624-5).

A wildcard addition to that group, meanwhile, is Alabama State transfer Jalen Jones, who racked up 1,167 yards and 9 TDs on a robust 22.9 yards per reception as a sophomore.

Texas A&M and coach Mike Elko have one of the top-rated transfer portal classes this cycle. | Maria Lysaker-Imagn Images

3. Texas A&M

Texas A&M is on the ascent after making the playoffs in coach Mike Elko's second season, and the Aggies invested big in the transfer portal to help make sure that momentum continues.

Texas A&M has landed 18 transfers so far, headlined by WR Isaiah Horton (No. 38 on On3's transfer rankings, from Alabama), OT Wilkin Formby (No. 42, from Alabama), CB Rickey Gibson III (No. 45, from Tennessee), EDGE Anto Saka (No. 68, from Northwestern), S Tawfiq Byard (No. 132, from Colorado), and DL C.J. Mims (No. 218, from North Carolina).

The top priority for the Aggies this transfer cycle was rebuilding an offensive line, losing both starting tackles and guards.

And they did a good job of addressing those needs, landing four experienced starters in OT/OG Formby, OT Tyree Adams (LSU), OG Trovon Baugh (South Carolina) and OG Coen Echols (LSU).

Formby started every game for Alabama as a redshirt-sophomore, moving from right tackle to right guard midway through the season. Adams was LSU's starting left tackle for eight games as a redshirt-sophomore while missing the rest due to injury.

Baugh started 11 games at right guard this season for South Carolina and played in 35 games overall in three years, earning Freshman All-SEC and Freshman All-American (from PFF) honors in 2023. And Echols started eight games at left guard while playing in all 13 for LSU as a redshirt-freshman.

Losing half of its dynamic wide receiver duo with KC Concepcion off to the NFL, finding another proven playmaker to pair with Mario Craver (59-917-4) was another key need. That's what the Aggies got with Horton as he moves on to his third school in as many years after productive seasons at Miami in 2024 (56-616-5) and Alabama this past year (42-511-8).

The Aggies restocked in the secondary with Gibson and Byard. Gibson sustained a season-ending arm injury in the first game of 2025, but he was regarded as a shutdown corner as a sophomore starter in 2024 while tallying 32 tackles and 5 pass breakups. Byard led Colorado with 84 tackles along with 7.5 TFLs, an INT, 4 PBUs and 2 FFs.

Saka, Mims and Ryan Henderson (from San Diego State) are intriguing additions up front for the defense. Saka had 12 sacks over the last three years for Northwestern, earning honorable mention All-Big Ten the last two seasons. Mims had 42 tackles, 2 sacks and a FF for the Tar Heels after spending his first three years at East Carolina, and Henderson had 9 TFLs and 7 sacks this season for the Aztecs.

An underrated pickup, meanwhile, was kicker David Olano, who was 37 of 43 on field goals the last two seasons at Illinois.

Ole Miss coach Pete Golding brought in more than 20 transfers this cycle as the Rebels look to reload after their playoff run. | Lauren Witte/Clarion Ledger / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

4. Ole Miss

Ole Miss has brought in a whopping 27 transfers this cycle, coming off its run to the CFP semifinals, while adding some high-profile talent at key positions.

Headlining the Rebels' transfer haul are OT Carius Curne (No. 26 on On3's rankings, from LSU), QB Deuce Knight (No. 37, from Auburn), CB Jay Crawford (No. 49, from Auburn), S Edwin Joseph (No. 97, from Florida State), EDGE Blake Purchase (No. 101, from Oregon), WR Darrell Gill (No. 104, from Syracuse), RB Makhi Frazier (No. 124, from Michigan State) and S Joenel Aguero (No. 148, from Georgia).

Ole Miss is still waiting on a resolution in star QB Trinidad Chambliss' eligibility status, as he filed suit against the NCAA in Mississippi state court last week after having his eligibility waiver request for 2026 denied. There is reportedly renewed optimism that Chambliss may prevail.

But even if he doesn't, Ole Miss secured itself a strong Plan B option with Knight. The former top-100 national prospect started one game as a freshman for Auburn this season, completing 15 of 20 passes for 239 yards, 2 TDs and 0 INTs while rushing for 162 yards and 4 TDs vs. Mercer. That was a tantalizing peek at the dual-threat QB's potential.

Meanwhile, Curne was considered one of the top offensive tackles in the portal after the former five-star prospect played more than 300 snaps as a true freshman at LSU, drawing starts at both left and right tackle. The Rebels also added former Oklahoma starting center Troy Everett, who was limited to one game by injury this season.

Ole Miss loses most of its receiving production from 2025, including top wideouts Harrison Wallace III, De'Zhaun Stribling and Cayden Lee, but it restocked with four WR transfers.

Gill totaled 63 catches for 1,076 yards and 7 TDs the last two seasons at Syracuse, while former five-star Johntay Cook also comes in from Syracuse after having a breakout season (45-549-2) following two quiet years at Texas. The Rebels also added WRs Cameron Miller (13-141 as a freshman at Kentucky) and Isaiah Spencer (14-194 at Virginia Tech after having 660 yards and 4 TDs at Jackson State in 2024)

And Frazier is an interesting addition to the backfield to pair with returning star RB Kewan Lacy after rushing for 520 yards and 2 TDs for Michigan State.

Crawford, Joseph and Aguero are big additions for the Rebels' secondary.

Crawford started 18 games over two seasons at Auburn, earned Freshman All-SEC honors in 2024 and totaled 11 passes defended and 2 interceptions. Joseph had 37 tackles, 3 INTs and 5 PBUs as a redshirt-sophomore for Florida State.

Aguero is a former five-star top-30 national prospect who spent three years at Georgia and was a full-time starter the last two, finishing this season with 39 tackles, 1 INT and 2 PBUs.

Ole Miss lost one of its defensive stars to the portal, though, with elite edge Princewill Umanmielan (9 sacks) leaving for LSU, so the Rebels will hope Purchase (32 tackles, 2 sacks and an INT as a redshirt sophomore for Oregon) can unlock more of his untapped potential and help fill that void.

Miami coach Mario Cristobal is looking to reload in the transfer portal. — Miami coach Mario Cristobal is looking to reload in the transfer portal after getting the Hurricanes to the national championship game. | Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

5. Miami

This one is a bit contingent on developing matters.

Officially, Miami only had eight transfer additions as of Friday, but that list could get a major boost if Duke star quarterback Darian Mensah is able to transfer to the Hurricanes, as is expected to be his preference. Mensah and the Blue Devils are in a legal standoff about whether the QB is able to transfer to another school or is bound to the two-year NIL contract he signed when he transferred in from Tulane last year.

If Miami is able to reel in Mensah, it would be a major coup and give the Hurricanes a major boost in their hopes of returning to the CFP after falling just short in the national championship game this week.

Mensah passed for 3,973 yards, 34 TDs and 6 INTs for the ACC-champion Blue Devils.

Miami is in a bit of desperation mode this late in the transfer cycle, trying to find a proven replacement for QB Carson Beck, so again, how the Hurricanes' transfer class is judged will hinge greatly on what happens at this position. But it's clear Miami is willing to invest significantly to find its new QB, so it would be a surprise if it doesn't end up in a good spot one way or another.

Meanwhile, among the players the Hurricanes have officially added are two star defensive players to fill major voids.

Edge rusher Damon Wilson II is No. 6 overall on On3's transfer portal rankings after racking up 9 sacks (third-best in the SEC) and 13 QB hurries for Missouri this season. He is one piece to the puzzle in replacing projected first-round draft picks Rueben Bain Jr. and Akheem Mesidor.

Safety Omar Thornton had a breakout sophomore season for Boston College with 82 tackles, 8 TFLs, 2 sacks, 4 FF and an INT. He will seek to replace standout safety Jakobe Thomas, who led the Hurricanes with 5 INTs and was second with 75 tackles.

Whoever Miami's QB is in 2026, he'll have some nice weapons to throw to with returning star Malachi Toney (109-1,211-10) returning, paired with South Carolina transfer Vandrevius Jacobs (32-548-4) and West Virginia transfer Cam Vaughn (1,343 yards and 9 TDs over the last two seasons). The Hurricanes needed those additions with productive senior WRs Keelan Marion and CJ Daniels moving on.

That's a good-looking unit as is, but it could get a whole lot better as Miami is considered the favorite to land Duke transfer (and Mensah's top target) Cooper Barkate, who totaled 135 catches for 2,190 yards and 18 TDs the last two seasons.

Miami's offense was ultimately just a little lacking compared to the team's elite defense this season, but if it's able to reel in Mensah, with those WRs plus Barkate and RB Mark Fletcher Jr. returning, the Hurricanes' ceiling could be even higher on that side of the ball in 2026.

Also, don't overlook the pickup of Northwestern kicker Jack Olsen, who made 19 of 21 field goals this past season. Carter Davis' struggles on field goals in the playoffs hurt Miami.