Ohio State's Ja'Had Carter back in portal (2024)

The 2023-24 transfer portal cycle is on pace to be another record-setting one, with 2,300 scholarship college football players already in the portal at the FBS level. So far, more than 1,400 have announced commitments as the 14-day spring transfer window continues from April 16-30.

Which big names do you need to know ahead of the portal deadline? In an effort to help you keep track of who’s going where and which top transfers are still on the market, The Athletic ranks the best available players in the portal.

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Ohio State safety Ja'Had Carter is back in the transfer portal after just one year with the Buckeyes.

He played just 121 snaps on defense last year, fifth among designated safeties and had just five tackles. He battled injuries throughout his short time with the Buckeyes and was never able to solidify himself in the lineup. His departure isn’t a major loss, or a huge surprise, especially with Perry Eliano, who recruited him, no longer on the roster.

Carter also didn’t play much this spring and didn’t play in the spring game. He, again, was injured, but Ohio State has a host of talented young players it feels comfortable playing. Malik Hartford played 150 defensive snaps last year and had some bright moments as a true freshman. Also on that list of talented young players is Jayden Bonsu, who didn’t play a snap last season, but started in the spring game.

Though Ohio State is still in a three-safety defense, Jim Knowles’ 4-2-5 will give more of a hybrid look going forward with the Buckeyes recruiting and developing corners as nickel safeties, as well. That diminishes the impact of Carter entering the portal. Caleb Downs and Lathan Ransom will lead the room, with new safeties coach Matt Guerreri turning to some high-potential players behind them.

Miami added another talented weapon to its offensive arsenal Sunday when it picked up a commitment from former Houston receiver Sam Brown.

The 6-foot-2, 195-pounder from Bloomingdale, Ga., led the Cougars with 62 catches for 815 yards and three touchdowns last season and caught 41 passes for 471 yards and four touchdowns in 2022 for Hurricanes offensive coordinator Shannon Dawson when both were in Houston.

Brown, who signed with West Virginia out of high school, provides quarterback Cam Ward with another experienced weapon.

Miami has one of the best receiver groups in the ACC led by Xavier Restrepo (85 catches, 1,092 yards in 2023) and Jacolby George (57 catches, 864 yards). In addition, the Hurricanes are expecting big things from third-year sophom*ore Isaiah Horton, a standout during the spring.

USC picked up a commitment from one of the most intriguing wide receivers available in the spring portal in Auburn's Jay Fair.

The 5-foot-10, 181-pound playmaker led all Tigers receivers in catches as a sophom*ore with 31 for 324 yards and two scores but hit the portal this spring after Auburn added a bunch of newcomers to its receiver room who expect to play big roles. I spoke with multiple Power 5 staffers who believed Fair could be one of the best wideouts on the market.

Lincoln Riley has taken two wideouts in this spring cycle in Fair and Kyle Ford, who's rejoining the program after one season at UCLA.

With only a few days left to make their choices in time to play next fall, 396 players from the 18 schools in the new-look Big Ten have entered the transfer portal since December, according to figures compiled by The Athletic with information provided by The Athletic, On3 and 247Sports.

Of that number, 259 have found homes, including 29 who withdrew from the portal. Two players initially entered the portal but opted for the NFL draft (Michigan State linebacker Jacoby Windmon, Maryland quarterback Taulia Tagovailoa). Neither player was selected this weekend. So far, 178 players have committed to or signed with Big Ten schools.

With spring football now complete, expect an influx of departures by Tuesday's deadline.

Wisconsin reserve cornerback A.J. Tisdell, who had been working with the third-team defense during spring practice, is in the transfer portal. Tisdell redshirted as a freshman last season and will have four years of eligibility remaining.

The Badgers have had five scholarship players enter the portal during the spring window, but none were particularly surprising considering they were not likely to be among the regular contributors: quarterback Nick Evers, defensive lineman TJ Bollers, wide receiver Tommy McIntosh, defensive lineman Mike Jarvis and Tisdell.

Wisconsin's projected scholarship count for next season sits at 84, with the Badgers still pursuing another defensive lineman out of the portal.

Davon Townley Jr., a reserve defensive lineman at Penn State, has entered the transfer portal. Townley had bounced between end and defensive tackle. This isn’t his first time contemplating a transfer, either. He entered the portal in December of 2022 and then withdrew his name by January of 2023 and stayed at Penn State. By my count, the Nittany Lions are down to 95 scholarship players. Townley is the third player to seek a transfer this spring, joining wide receivers KeAndre Lambert-Smith (Auburn) and Malick Meiga.

Chuck Martin saw it coming because it had already almost happened. In December, kicker Graham Nicholson entered the transfer portal for a day, but the Lou Groza Award winner pulled back after the Miami (OH) staff convinced him to stay. Bigger wasn’t necessarily better. Until bigger returned in the spring portal window. And this time there was no talking Nicholson out of it.

The nation’s best kicker will play his final season at arguably college football’s best program. Nicholson committed to Alabama on April 21, barely 48 hours after entering the transfer portal again.

“Welcome to the food chain,” Martin said.

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Missouri has landed a commitment from SMU transfer tackle Marcus Bryant. The 30-game starter was one of the more coveted veteran linemen in the spring portal window and chose the Tigers over Washington, TCU and Mississippi State.

He's a 6-foot-8, 318-pound left tackle who earned first-team All-AAC honors last season for the conference champs and has played more than 2,300 career snaps. Bryant was No. 11 in our most recent best available rankings.

Penn State transfer wide receiver KeAndre Lambert-Smith has committed to Auburn, he announced Wednesday.

Lambert-Smith, a 38-game starter who led the Nittany Lions in receiving last season, entered the transfer portal on April 15 and chose the Tigers over Texas A&M for his final season of eligibility.

The 6-foot-1, 184-pound senior emerged as Penn State’s No. 1 receiver last season and led the team with 53 receptions for 673 yards and four touchdowns to earn honorable mention All-Big Ten honors. His 38 career starts would have been the most among all returning Big Ten receivers entering 2024.

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Georgia is evidently losing defensive lineman Christen Miller, who posted "Thank you UGA For Eavrything" amid an On3Sports report he is entering the portal. This would be a surprise loss for Georgia, which was counting on more snaps from Miller this season, his third with the team.

Miller played in every game as a reserve last year, making four tackles for loss, and 14 total tackles. It would be the third portal entry this spring window, with running back Andrew Paul and receiver Tyler Williams. Georgia appears close to adding quarterback Jaden Rashada from Arizona State, who is on a visit to Athens this week, probably to finalize his decision.

Michigan cornerback DJ Waller, a three-star prospect from the Class of 2023, has entered the transfer portal. He had been battling Jyaire Hill for a starting job opposite Will Johnson. It’s a bit of a surprise given the possibility for playing time, but Hill had a good spring and might have won the job anyway.