College Football: Top 25 players in the transfer portal

Dillon Gabriel leads the way: The new Oregon quarterback is our top player in the transfer portal after placing fourth among FBS signal-callers with a 91.4 grade this season.

Princely Umanmielen places second: The former Florida edge defender is the top defensive player in the portal as his 21.9% pass-rush win rate was the fifth-best in the country.

Cameron Ward rounds out the top three: The former Washington State quarterback was ninth among FBS signal-callers with a 78.6% adjusted completion rate.

Nowadays, there are two ways to build your roster in college football The traditional way of recruiting high school players.Through the transfer portal.

The transfer portal, essentially college football’s version of free agency, has grown in importance every year. More than 1,000 players have entered the portal since it opened on Dec. 4. Five of the past seven Heisman Trophy winners have transferred at least once, as well.

With so many players in the portal, it can be difficult to keep up with who the top ones are. Here’s who we consider to be the 25 best in the transfer portal.

 QB DILLON GABRIEL, OKLAHOMA SOONERS (NEXT SCHOOL: OREGON DUCKS)

Gabriel’s 91.4 grade this season trailed only Jayden Daniels, Bo Nix and Carson Beck among FBS quarterbacks. His 118.9 passer rating was fifth in the nation as well. Gabriel will now replace the aforementioned Nix at Oregon and should be seen as one of the top Heisman contenders next season.

 EDGE PRINCELY UMANMIELEN, FLORIDA GATORS (NEXT SCHOOL: OLE MISS REBELS)

Umanmielen’s 21.9% pass-rush win rate this year was fifth among all edge defenders in the nation. The junior’s 19.1% pressure rate this season was also ninth in that same group. The year before, Umanmielen’s 78.8 run-defense grade trailed only Will Anderson Jr. among SEC edge defenders.

Umanmielen will stay in the SEC and play for Ole Miss next season.

 QB CAMERON WARD, WASHINGTON STATE COUGARS (NEXT SCHOOL: UNDECIDED)

Ward was ninth among FBS quarterbacks this year with a 78.6% adjusted completion rate. His 23 big-time throws were third among Pac-12 signal-callers as well. While Ward has a high ceiling, he still tends to be a bit of a rollercoaster. The junior’s 41 turnover-worthy plays over the last two seasons are the most among Power Five quarterbacks.

 QB DANTE MOORE, UCLA BRUINS (NEXT SCHOOL: UNDECIDED)

Moore had an up-and-down true freshman season, earning just a 58.0 grade on six starts. However, he did show off the arm that made him the No. 3 overall recruit in the 2023 class. His 6.4% big-time throw rate ranked fourth among Pac-12 signal-callers this year. Moore still has a ton of potential and must play at least two more years of college football, making him a very valuable player in the portal.

DI WALTER NOLEN, TEXAS A&M AGGIES (NEXT SCHOOL: UNDECIDED)

Speaking of former highly-rated recruits, Nolen was ranked first overall in the 2022 high school class. The sophomore’s seven sacks this season were second among SEC interior defensive linemen while his eight tackles for loss/no gain were third. He was fourth in that same group with a 9.9% pass-rush win rate.

 EDGE TYLER BARON, TENNESSEE VOLUNTEERS (NEXT SCHOOL: OLE MISS REBELS)

James Pearce Jr. received most of the love on Tennessee’s defense and deservedly so, but the Volunteers’ other edge defender was also extremely impressive. Baron was fifth among SEC edge defenders in both pressures (41) and pressure rate (17%) this season. He was also fifth among Power Five edges with 12 tackles for loss/no gain.

Baron will join Umanmielen at Ole Miss, giving the Rebels the top two edge defenders in the transfer portal.

 EDGE B.J. GREEN II, ARIZONA STATE SUN DEVILS (NEXT SCHOOL: UNDECIDED)

Green has been an extremely productive edge defender for Arizona State over the past two seasons. His 56 pressures this year were sixth among Power Five defenders. In 2022, Green paced the nation with a 22.4% pressure rate.

CB/S ANDREW MUKUBA, CLEMSON TIGERS (NEXT SCHOOL: UNDECIDED)

Mukuba played mostly as a slot cornerback for Clemson this season and had a nice bounceback campaign as a junior, allowing only 0.42 yards per coverage snap that ranked third among Power Five corners. The year before, he struggled to a 50.2 grade but also dealt with a myriad of injuries like a dislocated elbow, sprained MCL and others.

As a true freshman, Mukuba earned a 77.0 grade. He’s a versatile chess piece for whoever gets him as he can play in the slot, deep at free safety or stick his nose in the box at a high level.

RB RAHEIM SANDERS, ARKANSAS RAZORBACKS (NEXT SCHOOL: SOUTH CAROLINA GAMECOCKS)

Like Mukuba, Sanders’ “down season” could be attributed to injuries. He battled a knee injury all season that limited him to only 209 yards on 62 attempts.

“Rocket” entered the season as my No. 3 running back in the country after rushing for the sixth-most yards in the Power Five (1,466) last season. His 16 runs of 20-plus yards were second among that same group despite being a bigger back at 237 pounds.

Sanders will stay in the SEC and play for South Carolina next season.

LB JAISHAWN BARHAM, MARYLAND TERRAPINS (NEXT SCHOOL: UNDECIDED)

Barham also had a down season as the sophomore earned just a 66.9 grade with a 47.1 coverage grade. The year before though, the true freshman excelled with a 78.5 grade and an 83.1 coverage grade. He finished 2022 as the seventh-most valuable linebacker in the country according to PFF’s wins above-average metric.