The college football season is rapidly approaching, and, once again, the ACC is an interesting conference blending contenders for the College Football Playoff and teams trying to figure out how to navigate the new era of college sports. That includes how they use the transfer portal.
It’s also worth pointing out that this isn’t a list of the best transfers, though arguably a few of them are. These are the five most interesting transfers, with players to keep an eye on for the 2026 season.
It wasn’t until the very end of the transfer portal being open when Darian Mensah decided to jump in from Duke and go to Miami. That move ended up being devastating for the Blue Devils, but could have put the Hurricanes in a position to win a national championship.
A season ago, Mensah threw for 3,973 yards and 34 touchdowns, both of which led the ACC. Now, he joins a Miami team that was good enough to play for a national championship with Carson Beck a season ago. The question is if Mensah was enough of an upgrade to win it all in 2026.
Georgia Tech is going to have a new look on offense next season. Offensive coordinator Buster Faulkner is with the Florida Gators. Then, quarterback Haynes King moved on to the next level. So, the hope is that transfer running back Justice Haynes can become the face of the offense.
Haynes previously played for both Alabama and Michigan. That included what looked like a career season in 2025 with the Wolverines, where he rushed for 857 yards on 7.1 yards per carry to go with 10 touchdowns. However, injuries, including foot surgery, cut his season short, and he only played in seven games.
The Cal Golden Bears did something that not many expected. They were able to retain quarterback Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele. More than that, they put some weapons around him, with the 15th-ranked transfer class, per On3. That’s under new head coach Tosh Lupoi.
That means there’s plenty of incoming Cal players to take a look at. That includes several offensive weapons, but Strong is perhaps the most exciting. A season ago, he had 52 receptions for 762 yards and five touchdowns with Rutgers. Now ranked as the 39th best transfer, he’ll hope to spark Cal’s offense.
It’s a new era for Virginia Tech. James Franklin is coming over after being fired by Penn State, and he seemingly took every Nittany Lion player he possibly could with him. Of Virginia Tech’s 27 transfers, 12 are coming from Penn State as he hopes to flip the roster and their fortunes quickly.
Among those players from Penn State is tight end Luke Reynolds. A position Franklin had plenty of success with in Happy Valley, Reynolds had 26 receptions for 257 yards last season, and now seems poised to break out at Virginia Tech. The 83rd-ranked player in the portal, he should have Hokies fans excited.
It’s a bit awkward in Tallahassee for Florida State head coach Mike Norvell. After winning the ACC in 2023, Florida State has gone 7-17 over the last two seasons. Worse, the quarterback position has been a mess since the Jordan Travis injury. With that, Norvell is firmly on the hot seat.
Norvell is on a short leash as he turns to transfer quarterback Ashton Daniels. Previously at Stanford and then Auburn, Daniels is experienced but has never been a star. In four games a season ago, he threw for 797 yards and three touchdowns. However, in the ACC in 2024, he threw a conference-leading 12 interceptions.
