College Football HQ

$4 million QB named No. 1 transfer portal quarterback in college football

The experts agree: this is the single-best quarterback who came through the college football transfer portal, and an SEC powerhouse made the move of the year by getting him.
James Parks|
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Lane Kiffin didn’t waste any time living up to his Portal King moniker after making the biggest coaching move in college football and winding up at LSU.

Kiffin signed 40 players out of the transfer portal to the consensus No. 1 ranked class this offseason, and quarterback Sam Leavitt was the jewel in LSU’s crown.

Leavitt was considered the top-ranked quarterback right when he entered the portal, and he maintained that No. 1 position in the latest edition of the national transfer portal player rankings looking ahead to 2026.

Leavitt also leads NIL values in 2026

Not only is Leavitt considered the top-ranked quarterback to enter the transfer portal in the 2026 cycle. He’s also regarded as the most valuable.

Leavitt currently ranks No. 1 nationally among quarterbacks that transferred during this season’s cycle in total estimated NIL value.

LSU’s new signal caller is worth $4 million in total NIL valuation, according to the updated On3 Sports national player rankings this cycle.

That figure represents a notable jump from earlier this month, when experts calculated Leavitt to be worth $3.1 million, an increase of roughly 29 percent in value.

What Sam Leavitt has done on the field

Leavitt initially began his college football career at Michigan State back in 2023, appearing in four games with 2 touchdowns and 2 interceptions before making the move that would put him on the national stage.

The quarterback made a bombshell transfer to Arizona State in the 2024 offseason, a decision that propelled himself and the program to a historic effort that year.

Leavitt helped lead the Sun Devils to a 10-2 regular season campaign and beat Iowa State by a 45-19 count to win the Big 12 championship and put the school into the College Football Playoff for the first time ever.

That season, Leavitt was responsible for 2,885 yards passing with 24 touchdowns against 6 interceptions, rushing for another 443 yards and 5 additional scores.

Leavitt won the Big 12 Offensive Freshman of the Year honor and was named Second Team All-Big 12 for his efforts after posting the most passing yardage for a freshman quarterback in Arizona State football history.

But his 2025 season was ultimately cut short by a Lisfranc injury after the Sun Devils’ game against Houston.

Leavitt passed for 1,628 yards with 10 touchdowns and 3 interceptions, rushing for 306 yards and another 5 scores in seven appearances this fall.

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James Parks
JAMES PARKS

James Parks is the founder and publisher of College Football HQ. He has covered football for a decade, previously managing several team sites and publishing national content for 247Sports.com for five years. His work has also been published on CBSSports.com. He founded College Football HQ in 2020, and the site joined the Sports Illustrated Fannation Network in 2022 and the On SI network in 2024.

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