The transfer portal is the best and worst thing in today’s college football. That answer will be determined depending on who you ask and who they are a fan of. What is certain is there are a ton of impactful transfers filling up the portal and coming down on landing spots.
2024 had an unprecedented amount of talent enter the portal. Several top recruits from past classes and draft-eligible classes entered it in December, and now most have found homes.
Players either decided to team up or go off on their own with a coach they had who took a new job. Every impactful transfer leaves a ripple effect across the roster. In the same way recruiting or draft decisions do, there are no small decisions in college football anymore.
As a result of everything being amplified, devy has become that much harder. It was already a difficult angle in the dynasty to see a player’s value long-term; now, they change year to year.
Let Dynasty Nerds do some thinking for you now. We crowned these as the most impactful transfers heading into the 2024 season.
Evan Stewart, WR, Oregon
The biggest name at the wide receiver position to hit the portal was Stewart. The former 5-star recruit made an immediate impact at Texas A&M and was a prized recruit for them. He helped the development of Conner Weigman, and it made Texas A&M a very fun offense.
Things soured for Stewart at College Station, and he would end up in the transfer portal. That allowed Dan Lanning and Oregon to scoop him up and pair him with Dillon Gabriel. The Ducks’ offense is losing Bo Nix and Troy Franklin. This is about the best replacements you could ask for if you are in Oregon. If he declares, Stewart will lead this group of impact transfers as he is one of the best wide receiver prospects in the 2025 NFL Draft.
Quinshon Judkins, RB, Ohio State
Ole Miss and Lane Kiffin had one of the most effective offenses in college football the past two years. The straw that stirred that drink was running back Judkins and his 3,006 total yards of offense. He started immediately as a freshman despite coming into the program as a 3-star recruit.
Judkins shocked the college football world when he entered the transfer portal. Rumors swirled, but ultimately, all that mattered was where he would land, and that was Columbus, Ohio. Judkins joins an Ohio State roster with a lot of star power returning with a chip on their shoulder. With his arrival, he gives the Buckeyes the best running back duo in the country with TreVeyon Henderson.
If that isn’t among the impact transfers, then what should be?
London Humphreys, WR, Georgia
Humphreys is a name that might be known to many but should and will be. Vanderbilt had a formidable receiving group led by Humphreys and Will Sheppard. Both ended up in the transfer portal and will now be their versions of impact transfers.
Sheppard headed west to Colorado to boost Sheduer Sanders and the Colorado offense, and Humphreys stayed in the SEC. He hopes to jump in and help maintain a Georgia offense that is the closest of talent to the NFL. He is entering his sophomore year, so he will be around for the next two years at least. Be sure he remains on your radar.
Trevor Etienne, RB, Georgia
Being the brother of a former top college player turned NFL star isn’t easy, but Trevor Etienne has managed. After coming to Florida as a 3-star recruit, he quickly showed he deserved something better.
Etienne ran with a unique blend of speed and power and was a highly sought-after player in the transfer portal. Of course, a running back like that fits in anywhere, but he landed in the best place possible: Georgia. The Bulldogs are losing their two top rushers to the NFL, leaving Etienne to gobble up much of their workload.
He is an impact transfer, but he could be one of the best running backs in a loaded 2025 class.
Malachi Nelson, QB, Boise State
In the 2023 recruiting class, the quarterbacks were some of the most sought-after. One of them was Nelson, who committed to USC to sit behind Caleb Williams. Nelson would make only three pass attempts as a freshman and was passed over to start in the team’s bowl game when Williams sat out.
The passing over caused Nelson to enter the transfer portal, but the results were interesting. The 11th-ranked recruit in the 2023 class would only take one visit, and it would be where he would commit to Boise State. The Broncos’ offense has star running back Ashton Jeanty as its focal point, but the arrival of Nelson sets a different tone.
Nelson could be the biggest impact transfer to play in 2024. If he can be the player everyone thought he could be, then his draft stock and devy value will skyrocket.
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