2025/26 Transfer Portal & Roster Changes Thread

Frank Lee said:
Are HS recruits even a concern anymore? 4* & 5* players can move around at anytime to find the right team and the right money. It's possible (but not probable) that Grunk could get his reps in at AAA VT, then get brought back up to PSU. Anything and everything is on the table at this point.
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I don't understand that logic. Most of the star players at schools like OSU and Oregon were recruited and they stayed. Of course they supplemented their rosters in the portal but most were recruited from high school. I don't see PSU simply buying a bunch of 4* & 5* kids from the portal.
 
bdroc said:
I don't understand that logic. Most of the star players at schools like OSU and Oregon were recruited and they stayed. Of course they supplemented their rosters in the portal but most were recruited from high school. I don't see PSU simply buying a bunch of 4* & 5* kids from the portal.
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I don't believe that 4* and 5* terminology matters much anymore. The market allows any team to assemble any roster it prefers. I think that anyone in any team's top class or on their roster can be purchased. It's the NFL model, but without the draft.
 
LudicrousSpeedGO! said:
We are taking the best of that Iowa St roster and combining it with the majority of what we wanted to keep from PSU's roster. I think we will be better than many fans are projecting.
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You're more optimistic than I am. PSU was going into a rebuilding year even before Franklin got fired. Then we lost our entire 2027 class and all but a couple from the 2026 class (which had eight 4* decommits). We followed that up with 34 players entering the portal. I don't think PSU wanted to get rid of 4* players like:

Coleman 98
Reynolds 93
Campbell 92
Olesh 92
Grunk 92
Gilliam 92
Mack 90

I also don't think they wanted to get rid of high 3* players like Washington, Woosley, Williams, Shanahan, and Shorter. I realize we picked up some 4* players from ISU like Becht 94, Brahmer 94, Neal 92, and Sowell 92 but I don't think trading seven 4* kids for four 4* kids gets us ahead.

IIRC Franklin's first year his class was ranked 25th. This class is ranked 43rd with the recent transfers. We might be able to win 8 or 9 games next year given our weak schedule but I still think this is going to take 3 years to rebuild. I disagree that we can just buy a playoff team from the portal.
 
bdroc said:
You're more optimistic than I am. PSU was going into a rebuilding year even before Franklin got fired. Then we lost our entire 2027 class and all but a couple from the 2026 class (which had eight 4* decommits). We followed that up with 34 players entering the portal. I don't think PSU wanted to get rid of 4* players like:

Coleman 98
Reynolds 93
Campbell 92
Olesh 92
Grunk 92
Gilliam 92
Mack 90

I also don't think they wanted to get rid of high 3* players like Washington, Woosley, Williams, Shanahan, and Shorter. I realize we picked up some 4* players from ISU like Becht 94, Brahmer 94, Neal 92, and Sowell 92 but I don't think trading seven 4* kids for four 4* kids gets us ahead.

IIRC Franklin's first year his class was ranked 25th. This class is ranked 43rd with the recent transfers. We might be able to win 8 or 9 games next year given our weak schedule but I still think this is going to take 3 years to rebuild. I disagree that we can just buy a playoff team from the portal.
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I don't trust many of the rankings for transfers. I would be much more inclined to trust their actual coach who is cherry picking the best from a top 1/3 of power 4 teams roster and combining that with much of the key players that we wanted back from the PSU roster.

For example, the freshman QB Manske who redshirted this year behind 3 year starter Becht was a high 4 star recruit and at On3 was their #55 overall recruit at any position. He didn't play this year, so 247 has him listed as a 86 (not even a high 3 star) transfer. Did he really go from being the #55 overall recruit to a lowly 3 star simply because he was being developed by the staff that turned 3 star Brock Purdy into a top NFL starter for a year while preserving his redshirt?

Also, Coleman has tons of potential but not much production and was supposedly hurt the 2nd half of the season. But he jumped from a 91 to a 98? I know he has a lot of potential and we were high on him, but what he did on the field this year doesn't warrant a 5 star transfer ranking. That new ranking is almost entirely based on how we hyped his practice performance. He may fulfill that potential or he may not be as hungry when he's driving a Bentley SUV and has a million plus in his bank account. We don't know.

I would further caution over-reacting to PSU by no means being done securing portal targets. We have a pretty solid start to portal signings. We may have signed more former power 4 starters in the portal than just about any other team so far. And we aren't done.
 
If you look at the position "rooms" and not individual players, there has been much improvement, particularly in WRs and probably at QB. If the OL is at least break-even, then the running game opens up. I don't think Martin, Hayes, and Hansen, while good, are enough of an RB room to get through the season. On defense, the LB room got better. Lost Campbell, but the pick-ups look more than competent. At least better depth there. The DL needs more bodies and must get bigger on average.
It comes down to CMC running the shop now versus Franklin, and that is huge.
 
bdroc said:
You're more optimistic than I am. PSU was going into a rebuilding year even before Franklin got fired. Then we lost our entire 2027 class and all but a couple from the 2026 class (which had eight 4* decommits). We followed that up with 34 players entering the portal. I don't think PSU wanted to get rid of 4* players like:

Coleman 98
Reynolds 93
Campbell 92
Olesh 92
Grunk 92
Gilliam 92
Mack 90

I also don't think they wanted to get rid of high 3* players like Washington, Woosley, Williams, Shanahan, and Shorter. I realize we picked up some 4* players from ISU like Becht 94, Brahmer 94, Neal 92, and Sowell 92 but I don't think trading seven 4* kids for four 4* kids gets us ahead.

IIRC Franklin's first year his class was ranked 25th. This class is ranked 43rd with the recent transfers. We might be able to win 8 or 9 games next year given our weak schedule but I still think this is going to take 3 years to rebuild. I disagree that we can just buy a playoff team from the portal.
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Ohio St likely didn't want to get rid of their top transfer losses either:
WR Mylan Graham .96 transfer
OL Tegra Tshabola .97
TE Jelani Thurman .89 transfer, .96 high school
Lincoln Kleinholz .89 transfer, .94 H.S.
DE Dominic Kirks 2024 class .91 high school
James Peoples 2024 class, .88 transfer, .94 H.S.

And a bunch of others that were 4 star recruits out of high school but now are rated as 3 star players due to not playing much due to OSU's loaded roster but that could end up as top players on most other rosters. But they want to play and with the portal those players are free to move on, just like the players PSU is losing.

We have to expect to lose more players to transfer when the head coach is replaced and most of the staff is also new. It doesn't seem rational to believe Campbell can come in this late in the process, with the 2026 class lost when he arrived after signing day, and build a more loaded roster than what Franklin had in place going into the 2025 season. Franklin came on board before the transfer portal was even in effect so he didn't have to deal with the mass departures that happen now many times when a coach is replaced. Give the new guy a chance.

​

 
LudicrousSpeedGO! said:
I don't trust many of the rankings for transfers. I would be much more inclined to trust their actual coach who is cherry picking the best from a top 1/3 of power 4 teams roster and combining that with much of the key players that we wanted back from the PSU roster.

For example, the freshman QB Manske who redshirted this year behind 3 year starter Becht was a high 4 star recruit and at On3 was their #55 overall recruit at any position. He didn't play this year, so 247 has him listed as a 86 (not even a high 3 star) transfer. Did he really go from being the #55 overall recruit to a lowly 3 star simply because he was being developed by the staff that turned 3 star Brock Purdy into a top NFL starter for a year while preserving his redshirt?

Also, Coleman has tons of potential but not much production and was supposedly hurt the 2nd half of the season. But he jumped from a 91 to a 98? I know he has a lot of potential and we were high on him, but what he did on the field this year doesn't warrant a 5 star transfer ranking. That new ranking is almost entirely based on how we hyped his practice performance. He may fulfill that potential or he may not be as hungry when he's driving a Bentley SUV and has a million plus in his bank account. We don't know.

I would further caution over-reacting to PSU by no means being done securing portal targets. We have a pretty solid start to portal signings. We may have signed more former power 4 starters in the portal than just about any other team so far. And we aren't done.
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The other issue is that Campbell chose to use the first portal visit weekend to solidify the ISU players he wanted, and he did just that which seems to have filled some important spots as well as bringing in some developmental players and some that may be special teams players.
Many of the top portal players from across the country will take multiple visits before picking a school and those visits are now in process for Campbell and his staff A little patience is required as the top portal targets have lots of options, but I look for Campbell and his staff to win enough of those battles to address the needs of the roster.
 
GregInPitt said:
The other issue is that Campbell chose to use the first portal visit weekend to solidify the ISU players he wanted, and he did just that which seems to have filled some important spots as well as bringing in some developmental players and some that may be special teams players.
Many of the top portal players from across the country will take multiple visits before picking a school and those visits are now in process for Campbell and his staff A little patience is required as the top portal targets have lots of options, but I look for Campbell and his staff to win enough of those battles to address the needs of the roster.
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I agree and actually like the approach that he took. We had tons of spots to fill. He started with what he knew best in terms of talent evaluation. He also started with where he can lock down the most in a short period. Now we aren't working with nearly the massive complexity. He simplified it. We are already over halfway there in just a weekend in terms of the number of players he had to land. Now he can re-assess which rooms need the most effort in terms of numbers and NIL and zero in on the potential options to fill those needs.

Plus, if a big NIL guy has taken 2 visits and we know what his offers are, then we can offer accordingly or move on. If Campbell had gone after them first, we wouldn't have known that player's other offers nor would we be as certain that they are or are not a need at that price tag.
 
GregInPitt said:
The other issue is that Campbell chose to use the first portal visit weekend to solidify the ISU players he wanted, and he did just that which seems to have filled some important spots as well as bringing in some developmental players and some that may be special teams players.
Many of the top portal players from across the country will take multiple visits before picking a school and those visits are now in process for Campbell and his staff A little patience is required as the top portal targets have lots of options, but I look for Campbell and his staff to win enough of those battles to address the needs of the roster.
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I like the way you think and I get the logic. Time will tell.
 
LudicrousSpeedGO! said:
Former top 40 overall WR from NC state visiting PSU currently.

247sports.com

Noah Rogers, NC State Wolfpack, Wide Receiver

Also competes in track and field. Ran an 11.34 100 and a 23.24 200 as a sophomore. Also long jumped 18-9. Ran an 11.41 100 and a 23.50 200 as a freshman....
247sports.com 247sports.com

www.espn.com

Noah Rogers - NC State Wolfpack Wide Receiver - ESPN

View the profile of NC State Wolfpack Wide Receiver Noah Rogers on ESPN. Get the latest news, live stats and game highlights.
www.espn.com www.espn.com
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I’m noticing a pattern with these WRs that MC is recruiting. Most of them are around 6’2” and 210 lbs. The body type that can be used to outmaneuver smaller secondary players. Also, after watching Rocco Bechts tape, he likes to throw the ball into small spaces for the wideouts. It appears that MC is comfortable with an aggressive passing game that takes advantage of these qualities.
 
IMO, this is partly why we grabbed so many from ISU. Most came cheaply. We supposedly have $30m to build out a roster. That includes retention, recruiting, and portal acquisitions. You can't spend indiscriminately. You have to calculate worth and project costs in each position room. $30m is better than most but not all. But even $30m runs out if you want to buy all top rated players. Maybe Texas tech or Ohio st will go $40m+ this year? We don't have everyone else's strategy to assess when making offers.

https://twitter.com/x/status/2008341449361027472
 
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If you look at the position
GregInPitt said:
Looks like Campbell is trying to add a veteran RB to pair with Martin. Peoples is a 2024 class RB, same as Martin, and was the 247 composite #8 RB, .9484. Martin was the #6 2024 RB.

victorybellrings.com

Matt Campbell has his sights set on bringing a highly-touted Ohio State transfer RB to Penn State

James Peoples is reportedly heading to Happy Valley for a transfer visit after entering the transfer portal with two years of eligibility remaining.
victorybellrings.com victorybellrings.com
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victorybellrings.com

Penn State’s defense will pay the price for Matt Campbell’s transfer portal whiff

Matt Campbell is picking his former Iowa State roster clean, but he lost the team's top corner to a Big Ten rival.
victorybellrings.com victorybellrings.com
Side note: The article below the one you provided is a head scratcher. I guess we'll see how the five star-studded TTU and USC do again this year. The writer's bio doesn't go with a site called "Victory Bell Rings".
 
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