It’s being advertised as the busiest, wildest transfer portal period since the tool to help players switch schools was created. For good reason.
Player movement has never been easier, nor has the market to find one’s relative value, and entering the portal is a good way to test the marketplace. Throw in the extra year available to players who suited up in 2020, and expect to see some interesting names in the portal, even if it means they’re just trying to re-negotiate their current NIL deal, so to speak.
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For Alabama football, it’s been a busy end of the regular season with six players announcing their intention to enter the transfer portal thus far. Expect to see plenty more before all is said and done. There will be the initial wave that we’re currently seeing ahead of the transfer window opening Monday (Dec. 5 to Jan. 18), and there will surely be more after spring practice (May 1 to 15) once players see where they stand on the depth chart.
Alabama players entering transfer portal
| Player | Position | Class |
|---|---|---|
Trey Sanders | RB | Redshirt junior |
Khyree Jackson | CFB | Junior |
Dameion George | OL | Junior |
Christian Leary | WR | Sophomore |
Traeshon Holden | WR | Junior |
Tanner Bowles | OL | Redshirt junior |
But the transfer portal giveth too. Depending on how many prospects are signed in the 2023 recruiting class, Alabama will use the transfer portal to take as many players as it needs to get to the 85-scholarship limit.
The Crimson Tide had a total of 17 players enter the transfer portal from the 2021 team. It’s not unreasonable to expect 10-15 players to enter the portal this cycle.
Here’s a look at how each position could be affected, with the understanding that I’m not going to call into question any particular player’s competitive character. It’s an exercise in trying to understand what might make sense and what won’t.
Quarterback
With the expectation that Bryce Young will declare for the NFL Draft, that would leave two scholarship quarterbacks on the roster with Jalen Milroe and Ty Simpson. It would be shocking for either to enter the portal before the conclusion of spring practice. Both will be competing for the starting job and both will have a leg up on the two freshmen in the 2023 class (Eli Holstein and Dylan Lonergan).
If a quarterback doesn’t separate during the spring, it’s possible Alabama could look to see who’s in the portal to see if a good fit exists. That could be said of every position, though. It’s also entirely possible if Milroe or Simpson were to separate, the other could enter the portal. It’s just the nature of quarterbacks, given that there’s only one player who can play at a time and the portal is their best friend.
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Running back
Trey Sanders is already in the portal. It’s probable that Jahmyr Gibbs, with his speed and versatility, could find himself with a high enough grade to enter the draft. The Athletic’s Dane Brugler projected Gibbs to be taken with the 31st pick in the first round of his first mock draft.
Jase McClellan, Roydell Williams and Jamarion Miller are the remaining scholarship running backs, with current verbal commitments from five-star recruits Justice Haynes and Richard Young. I don’t anticipate McClellan, Williams or Miller leaving, though it’s tougher than ever to predict these things. If Alabama holds on to both of the verbal commitments, a transfer running back coming into the program doesn’t seem high on the priority list.
Wide receiver
There are two wide receivers already entering the portal in Traeshon Holden and Christian Leary. I wouldn’t be surprised if more join them. That’s not a prediction, just a state of the wide receiving corps this season. The freshman wide receivers are clearly the future, and there are a couple of sophomores who have carved out roles for themselves, so the older receivers are likely to sense that and could seek playing time elsewhere.
Alabama has worked the portal for the position the past two seasons and had some success, especially with Jameson Williams. It’s a position that’s become a greater need for today’s college football offenses to thrive. If a talented player were to come available, Alabama is obviously an attractive place to play, after producing multiple Biletnikoff Award winners and a Heisman Trophy winner.
I don’t expect any portal attrition at the tight end position. But with the departure of senior Cameron Latu, an experienced tight end might make sense to add to the roster — although Amari Niblack is an exciting young player you can build around. He is more of a receiving tight end and not a traditional inline blocker, though.
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Offensive line
Two linemen are already in the portal in Damieon George Jr. and Tanner Bowles, and more movement is likely. Tyler Steen, Emil Ekiyor and Darrian Dalcourt are seniors and Kendall Randolph is a graduate student.
JC Latham and Tyler Booker are the future of the offensive line, while Seth McLaughlin has multiple years of experience at center. That’s a pretty solid nucleus to start next season. I don’t anticipate the need for bringing in a portal lineman, but if the right one was available, a team can always improve its roster.
On the other hand, I will be surprised if there’s not at least one more offensive lineman who enters the portal, just in projecting the depth chart moving forward.
OL Damieon George said he will enter the transfer portal. (Mark J. Rebilas / USA Today)Defensive line
Byron Young, DJ Dale and Justin Eboigbe are seniors from a not particularly deep group in terms of numbers. Jaheim Oatis might garner some all-freshman team honors this season based on his play, and he’ll return as one of the leaders of the unit. Tim Smith has plenty of experience.
This is one of the positions where you might see a player who sees the writing on the wall about his future playing time and explores his options in the portal. It’s not a given, but it’s sort of the nature of the game right now.
With as many players as are expected to enter the portal this offseason, it’s only logical that not all of them find a home and most probably won’t find as good of a home as the one they left. But if playing time is what they’re seeking, and they don’t see it on the horizon at their current program, transferring to a school where they can play makes sense.
Linebacker
Will Anderson Jr. (No. 2 in Brugler’s mock draft) is a safe bet to turn pro, Henry To’o To’o is a senior and Jaylen Moody is a fifth-year player. This is a position where there could be some movement, just given all the talent on the roster and the sheer numbers. There are some very good players on this roster at linebacker, though. Some are the next ones up, including Keanu Koht, Jihaad Campbell, Jeremiah Alexander and more.
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Alabama got To’o To’o out of the portal two years ago from Tennessee, and he’s called the defense for that duration. It’s not immediately clear who will call the defense from either end next year. Defensive coordinator Pete Golding could try for a new challenge or could come back.
Dallas Turner and Chris Braswell are excellent players on the edge, and Deontae Lawson got valuable experience inside splitting time with Moody. Then there are the young linebackers I mentioned above. It’s a talented group, but all of that talent won’t get on the field next year. This will be a position to really study during spring practice and right after.
Secondary
Khyree Jackson plans to enter the portal, which wasn’t that surprising considering he ended the regular season suspended from the team. Jordan Battle and DeMarcco Hellams are seniors. It’s another deep position, so it wouldn’t be out of the ordinary if another defensive back entered the portal.
Malachi Moore had fans on edge Thursday morning when he had a social media post asking for someone to take over his lease. That’s the kind of speculation that the portal has led to in these crazy days. There’s been no indication that Moore is portal-bound.
The player he’s split time with the past two seasons, Brian Branch, could work his way into the first round if he chooses to test the NFL Draft waters. That’s something to watch, but at the moment, Branch opting for the NFL wouldn’t surprise me.
Kool-Aid McKinstry will be back for his junior season and Eli Ricks is expected back at the other corner spot. Both safety spots are open, and if Branch goes to the NFL, the star position is open too. Earl Little II is a player to watch at safety.
Like with the linebackers, the defensive backs might compete it out through spring practice before portal decisions are made, but some players who want to transfer to another SEC school have to declare their intent to do so by Feb. 1.
(Top photo of Traeshon Holden: Kevin C. Cox / Getty Images)
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