Five most surprising college football transfer portal moves

These moves may work out, but they raise some questions on the surface.

Running back Justice Haynes was having a breakout season at Michigan before a mid-season injury, but he has decided to transfer to Georgia Tech. | Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Most transfer moves make obvious sense -- bigger opportunity, bigger spotlight, better team, etc.

Others don't immediately check those primary boxes.

Of course, one should always assume nowadays that a bigger payday is at the root of most every transfer decision, so sometimes it's as simple as that, even at the expense of some of the other aforementioned factors.

Nonetheless, these were the five transfer moves that were the most surprising on the surface for one reason or another.

Wide receiver Parker Livingstone is switching sides of the Red River Rivalry in transferring from Texas to Oklahoma. | Scott Wachter-Imagn Images

1. WR Parker Livingstone from Texas to Oklahoma

This one is as surprising as it gets -- on every level.

Not only did Parker Livingstone have a productive redshirt-freshman season at Texas, but he's from the state of Texas, he was quarterback Arch Manning's roommate, Texas is set to be loaded offensively, and one of the best teams in the country, and yet Livingstone is leaving for rival Oklahoma and its limited passing offense.

Make it make sense!

Livingstone framed his departure as being "out of my control," while 247Sports reported he was seeking more money than Texas was willing to pay.

So maybe it truly is all about the Benjamins these days in college football, but we're going to state it again because it's so crazy.

Livingstone was Manning's roommate, had an obvious connection with the QB on the field as one of his top targets with 29 catches for 516 yards and 6 TDs, Manning was elite down the stretch and is set to be a Heisman Trophy favorite in 2026, and Livingstone would rather go play for an Oklahoma offense that ranked 59th nationally in passing and is always going to be a ground-oriented team under coach Brent Venables?

Bizarre.

Justice Haynes rushed for 857 yards and 10 touchdowns on 7.1 yards per carry in just seven games for Michigan, but he's moving on to Georgia Tech through the transfer portal. | Brendan Mullin-Imagn Images

2. RB Justice Haynes from Michigan to Georgia Tech

Again, one can presume a bigger payday enticed Justice Haynes to make his second transfer in as many years -- from Alabama to Michigan and now onto Georgia Tech.

And the Yellow Jackets are a fine fit for a talented running back, ranking 21st nationally in rushing this season with a commitment to the ground attack.

But Haynes was in a pretty ideal spot with the Wolverines.

He had a breakout season despite being limited to seven games before a season-ending foot injury. That was still enough for the 5-foot-11, 210-pound back to rumble for 857 yards and 10 touchdowns on a robust 7.1 yards per carry that ranked first among Power Four running backs with at least 100 attempts.

Some highlights of Justice Haynes, Georgia Tech’s newest running back.

Biggest get for GT in the Transfer Portal era? pic.twitter.com/zj2E1O5h80

— Russell Johnson (@_RussellJohnson) January 14, 2026

Sophomore Jordan Marshall went on to have a big season of his own while taking over for Haynes, rushing for 932 yards and 10 TDs on 6.2 YPC, but there was plenty of room for both to feast in 2026.

Michigan figures to again lean heavily on the rushing attack to take pressure off still-developing quarterback Bryce Underwood -- and because that's just what Michigan does. Even with a new coaching staff, that shouldn't change. New head coach Kyle Whittingham built a reputation for physical rushing attacks at Utah and will look to do the same in Ann Arbor.

So Haynes was in an ideal position to continue putting up big numbers for the Wolverines in the Big Ten spotlight as he looks to boost his draft stock.

Instead, he'll become the focal point of Georgia Tech's offense and a program on the rise after a breakthrough 2025 under coach Brent Key.

If it did come down to money, though, it's also surprising Michigan wouldn't have made a competitive offer given the priority it puts on the rushing attack, unless it felt Marshall could handle the load for less NIL investment.

Quarterback Husan Longstreet is leaving USC after just one year for LSU, despite the Tigers also adding veteran QB Sam Leavitt to be their starter. | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

3. QB Husan Longstreet from USC to LSU

When incumbent starting quarterback Jayden Maiava elected to return to USC for another season, it was not surprising that former five-star prospect Husan Longstreet would enter the transfer portal and look for a more immediate path to playing time.

Except Longstreet signed with LSU on Wednesday, even after Lane Kiffin and the Tigers had already added Arizona State QB Sam Leavitt to be the team's starter in 2026.

So, Longstreet, who is from Southern California and talked about how committing to USC was a big deal for he and his family, is now leaving that situation after one year.

More to the point, though, he's leaving a situation in which he was likely on track to take over as USC's starter in 2027 (with Maiava out of eligibility after next season) after another year of development under Lincoln Riley, a QB guru who has coached three Heisman Trophy winners. And he's leaving it to go be the backup to Leavitt, who has two years of eligibility left if he wants to use them.

Former Nebraska starting quarterback Dylan Raiola committed to Oregon out of the transfer portal. | Matt Krohn-Imagn Images

4. QB Dylan Raiola from Nebraska to Oregon

This move wasn't surprising when it happened, as one had to assume Dylan Raiola had some insight into whether Oregon quarterback Dante Moore would return for another season or leave for the NFL.

But maybe not.

Raiola committed to Oregon on Monday, and on Wednesday, Moore announced that he is staying in college for another season and returning to the Ducks.

It wouldn't be crazy on the surface for a quarterback to be willing to sit for a year to get the keys to the Ducks' perennially prolific offense, but it is surprising if Raiola chooses to do that. He's a former five-star prospect who was an immediate starter his first two years at Nebraska.

Raiola showed real growth in his sophomore season, raising his completion percentage from 67.1% to 72.4% and throwing for 2,000 yards, 18 TDs and 6 INTs in nine games before sustaining a broken fibula on Nov. 1 vs. USC.

There were countless programs that would have taken Raiola as their clear starting quarterback for 2026, so it's absolutely surprising he'd commit somewhere without knowing he'd be the backup and even more surprising if he picked the Ducks knowing he'd be stuck behind Moore next season.

On3's Hayes Fawcett tweeted soon after Moore's announcement that Raiola is indeed planning to be the backup QB for the Ducks this season.

Nebraska QB transfer Dylan Raiola will sit behind Dante Moore in 2026

A similar route that Dante Moore took after transferring from UCLA and further developing behind Dillon Gabrielhttps://t.co/NdyO8wq4GE https://t.co/QHD8dXiMRB pic.twitter.com/ynTk0DHeJN

— Hayes Fawcett (@Hayesfawcett3) January 14, 2026

It's also surprising Oregon would want to invest that much money in the quarterback position when it could be used for other needs, as neither Moore nor Raiola is signing on cheaply.

For all those reasons, maybe this isn't the end of the story for Raiola. Miami is among the major programs still in need of a quarterback for 2026, for instance.

Former five-star offensive tackle Jordan Seaton is leaving Colorado and entering the transfer portal. | Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images

5. OT Jordan Seaton from Colorado to ...

Jordan Seaton makes this list for a different reason -- or reasons.

The former five-star prospect hasn't chosen a new program yet, as of Wednesday, so it's not about his landing spot. And it's not all that surprising for any player to transfer out of Colorado after a dismal 3-9 season and no clear indication why the Buffs could be much better next year. Especially when that player can command top-of-market value as a transfer.

In this case, the surprise is two-fold ...

First, Seaton didn't hop into the transfer portal until Monday, a full 10 days after the portal window opened and after the offensive tackle market had seemingly already unfolded with Curne's move to Ole Miss and fellow coveted OT Jacarrius Peak moving from NC State to South Carolina.

Second, his decision was clearly a surprise to Colorado and, reportedly, its graphics staff, which, if this is to be believed, apparently edited a video package for Seaton, thinking it was for him to announce he was staying with the Buffs.

Additionally, Seaton had previously griped publicly about the lack of loyalty in college football in the transfer portal era.