Let’s Debate: Most Impactful, Most Perplexing Transfer Portal Additions

The College Football Playoff semifinals headline this week, but the real chaos is happening in the transfer portal.

Star players are on the move, rosters are flipping fast, and several programs have made early statements that immediately position them in the 2026 CFP conversation (hello, Indiana and Texas Tech).

As players continue to move from team to team (this current portal window will close on Jan. 16), we are asking the following questions: Which transfers are poised to make the biggest impact next season? And which decisions leave us scratching our heads?

Our writers debate below:

1. Which transfer will have the biggest impact next season?

Laken Litman: Brendan Sorsby, QB, Texas Tech

The former Cincinnati quarterback is heading to Texas Tech next year, making the Red Raiders an instant College Football Playoff contender once again. Sorsby, a dual-threat signal-caller who is also known for his strong arm, helped the Bearcats jump out to a 7-1 record this season before the team sputtered to the finish. 

Sorsby already has NFL general managers drooling for whenever he’s ready to turn pro, and he will be one of the highest paid college QBs in 2026. While the Red Raiders had a stellar year and a top-20 offense this past season, Sorsby’s talent might be better suited to lead this program deeper into the playoff.

[One Big Thing: The Big Ten Is on the Verge of Stealing the SEC’s CFB Crown]

Michael Cohen: Josh Hoover, QB, Indiana

After guiding Indiana to 25 wins and counting over the last two seasons, with this year’s run already including the Hoosiers’ first outright Big Ten title since 1945, head coach Curt Cignetti deserves supreme benefit of the doubt when it comes to player evaluation — particularly at quarterback. 

Two seasons ago, Cignetti plucked former Ohio QB Kurtis Rourke from the MAC and transformed him into a seventh-round pick by the San Francisco 49ers. This year, the Hoosiers identified former Cal signal-caller Fernando Mendoza as their diamond in the rough and molded him into a Heisman Trophy winner and potential No. 1 overall pick in this year’s NFL Draft. 

If Cignetti thinks that Hoover, who threw for more than 9,600 yards and 71 touchdowns across four seasons at TCU, is the right person to take over, it would be unwise for anyone to doubt him.

RJ Young: Rocco Becht, QB, Penn State

Becht was widely regarded as one of the top quarterbacks available in the portal. With the former Iowa State star joining Matt Campbell in Happy Valley, the Nittany Lions look more and more like a re-skinned version of the Cyclones, and that’s a good thing.

Becht threw for 9,274 yards and produced 83 total touchdowns during his time at Iowa State. He helped guide the Cyclones to a 25-7 record over the last two seasons, including an 11-win season and a trip to the Big 12 title game (2024).

Prior to Becht’s arrival, Iowa State had never enjoyed a 10-win season. This makes Becht the kind of QB that can flip a program’s fortunes — much like Rourke at Indiana in 2024. He’s uniquely equipped to help transform a mediocre team into one that can be a conference championship contender. And now he’ll have even more resources at his disposal.

[CFP Predictions: Nick Saban’s Coaching Tree on Display at CFP Semis]

2. Which transfer is the most perplexing fit?

Laken Litman: Parker Livingstone, WR, Oklahoma

Not because his decision to transfer to Oklahoma is an odd fit, but because he decided to go to his former school’s biggest rival. 

Livingstone, who has three years of eligibility remaining, was one of the Longhorns’ top wide receivers in 2025 as a redshirt freshman, and he was quarterback Arch Manning’s roommate. He reportedly chose OU over Indiana, perhaps in an effort to show Texas what it’s missing in a more direct way. 

While nothing is certain yet, it’s widely believed that Texas will land several high-profile receivers out of the portal. The Longhorns are reportedly after Auburn’s Cam Coleman, one of the most coveted players in the portal who has yet to publicly announce where he’ll be playing in 2026. 

Michael Cohen: Kenny Minchey, QB, Kentucky

A four-star recruit in the 2023 recruiting cycle, Minchey never won the starting job during his three seasons at Notre Dame, falling in line behind Sam Hartman, Riley Leonard and, most recently, CJ Carr. He finished his Fighting Irish career having completed 23 of 29 passes for 212 yards with no touchdowns and no interceptions — not the most convincing body of work. And yet, despite that lack of production, Minchey seems to have been quite coveted in this year’s portal cycle. 

Minchey committed to Nebraska earlier this week after the Cornhuskers bid farewell to former five-star Dylan Raiola, and then flipped his pledge to Kentucky and first-year head coach Will Stein shortly thereafter. Stein, who did exceptional work with quarterbacks during his time as Oregon’s offensive coordinator, surely had his reasons for pursuing Minchey. But from the outside looking in, those reasons aren’t exactly clear.

RJ Young: Dylan Raiola, QB, Uncommitted

The fit was Nebraska. The fit is Nebraska.

The fact that Raiola not only remains in the portal, but has not landed at a major Power 4 program is perplexing for both him and the Huskers. Had he known the market would’ve been this cool, would he have reconsidered entering the portal? Had the Huskers known the market was going to be like this, would they have asked him to accept a more program-friendly deal?

These are questions no one has answers for through the first week of January, and the longer they go unanswered, the more perplexing Raiola’s portal campaign becomes.

Michael Cohen covers college football and college basketball for FOX Sports. Follow him at @Michael_Cohen13.

Laken Litman covers college football, college basketball and soccer for FOX Sports. She is the author of “Strong Like a Woman,” published in spring 2022 to mark the 50th anniversary of Title IX. Follow her at @LakenLitman.

RJ Young is a national college football writer and analyst for FOX Sports. Follow him @RJ_Young.

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