Major college football program lands three of the Top 5 players in the transfer portal

With over 10,000 players in the NCAA transfer portal a handful of the top players have been flocking to one major program.

Following the hiring of Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin, the LSU Tigers appear to be on the right track to returning to national contention. Kiffin, who replaced Brian Kelly, has taken advantage of the resources available to him in Baton Rouge, and is putting on a clinic when it comes to landing top talent in the transfer portal.

Following Friday evening's commitment from Colorado's Jordan Seaton, who ranked as the No. 1 offensive tackle in the portal, Kiffin has been able to bring in three of the top five players in the portal. Per On3's Industry Rankings, Seaton ranked as the No. 4 player in the portal.

Joining him as new LSU Tigers that are near or at the top of the rankings are EDGE Princewill Umanmielen, who followed Kiffin from Ole Miss, and Arizona State quarterback transfer Sam Leavitt. Umanmielen ranks as the No. 3 player in the transfer portal, while Leavitt ranks as the No. 1 player in the portal.

LSU new head coach Lane Kiffin. — LSU new head coach Lane Kiffin speaks at South Stadium Club at Tiger Stadium. | Matthew Hinton-Imagn Images

While landing these three players, along with the slew of bona fide studs they also brought in, this trio certainly was not cheap.

According to FOX 8's Garland Gillen, Umanmielen's transfer to LSU cost the Tigers $500,000 in buyout fees. The Tigers are also expected to pay the All-SEC selection $1 million in 2026. He was by far the cheapest of the trio, as Leavitt reportedly had an asking price of $4-5 million.

As for Seaton, who was a freshman All-American in 2024 and an All-Big 12 selection this season, he was expected to command anywhere in the $3-4 million range. The IMG product chose the Tigers over Miami, Texas and Oregon.

Although it may be a costly haul, Kiffin was clearly thrilled on social media, as he taunted fans with a simple smirk on Seaton's announcement that he was planning to commit.

😏 https://t.co/g055jmDy4J
— Lane Kiffin (@Lane_Kiffin) January 24, 2026

According to On3, LSU's transfer portal class has an adjusted NIL Value of $6 million, which is one of the highest in the country. Kiffin's first portal class features 39 additions with 33 departures, with other key adds being former five-star quarterback Husan Longstreet (USC), wide receiver Jayce Brown (Kansas State), linebacker TJ Dottery (Ole Miss) and EDGE Jordan Ross (Tennessee).

While LSU fans suffered through the mediocrity of the Kelly era, it appears on paper that they could easily make a case for being one of the best teams in college football.