2025/26 Transfer Portal & Roster Changes Thread

GregInPitt said:
It won't be long before the list of players in the transfer portal is a mile long. But already a name is in that could help PSU. Nick Marsh from MSU would be a great addition to PSU's sorry WR room.

And with the strike out PSU had in the early signing period of the 2026 class, the lack of unsigned 2026 class players, and the early contact (i.e. tampering) that we all know goes on), it's not too early to look for articles, news, and rumors on PSU transfer targets.

247sports.com

2026 College Football Transfer Portal Top Prospects

2026 College football Transfer Portal Top Prospects
247sports.com 247sports.com

Given that the transfer portal activity will be subtracting from the roster and adding to the roster I am copying a roster review I posted into another thread here. As we hear of players leaving I'll do a strike through of that player, and as we hear of incoming players I'll add them to their position group, so we can look at the overall activity and see where the position weaknesses are as this plays out over the next few months.

Eligibility noted is for 2026 season)
Returning starters or players with some starting experience or significant contributors at their position in Bold
EDIT: went back and "Bolded" the young players that filled in and played well vs Clemson.
Also, Underlined players have announced their intention to return to PSU for 2026.

OFFENSE (38)
QB - Rocco Becht(RS Sr from ISU),Grunk(RS So), Kritza (RS Fr), Smolik(RS Jr), Falzone (2026 Fr), Evans(2026 Fr)
RB - Wallace(RS Jr), Martin(RS So), Smith(RS So), Hayes(RS Fr), Coleman(RS Fr)
OT - Donkoh(RS Jr), Goodman(RS Fr), Williams(RS Jr), Sexton(RS So), Boyer(RS So), Aliciene(RS Fr), O'Hara(RS Fr), Will Thompkins (RS Fr from ISU), Pete Eglitis (2026 Fr)
OG/C - Loane (RS Sr), Cousins(Jr), Shanahan(RS Jr), Rulli (C), Onoh(RS Jr), Birchmeier(RS Jr), Harbour(RS So), Brewer(RS So), Troutman(RS Fr), (Loane to the NFL), Mason Bandhauer(2026 Fr), Vaea Ikakoula (RS Fr)
TE - Reynolds(Jr), Rappleyea(RS Jr), Benjamin Brahmer(Sr from ISU), Gabe Burkle(RS Sr from ISU), Schlaffer(RS Jr), Olesh(RS Fr), Kortovich (RS Fr), Henderson(RS Fr)
WR - Chase Sewell(RS Sr from ISU .93 portal rated), Denmark(RS So), Howard(So), Gonzalez(RS So), Brown(RS So), Outen(RS Fr) , Exinor(RS Fr), Samuel(RS Fr), Black(RS Jr), Saunders(RS Sr), Ivey(RS Sr), Whitver(2026 Fr)

DEFENSE (42)
DT - Keanu Williams(RS Jr from UCLA), White(RS Sr), Armstrong Nnodim (RS So, from OK St), Blanding(RS Jr), Dallas Vakalahi(RS Sr from Utah), Gilliam(RS So), Wafle(RS So), Andrews(RS So), Cook(RS So), Adirika(RS Fr), Artis(RS Sr)
DE - Granville(RS So), Harvey(RS So), Coleman(So), Kemajou(So), Robinson(RS Jr), Mayer(RS Jr), Williams(RS So), Jennings(RS Fr), Harris(RS Fr), Burnett(RS Fr), Ford(2026 Fr), Alexander McPherson (So, transfer fro Colorado)
LB - Rojas(Sr), Campbell(Sr), Tatsch(So), Wylie(RS Sr), Speca(RS So), Arrington(RS Fr), Smith(RS Fr), Jackson(RS So), Nelson(RS Jr)
S - Lane(Jr), Mack(Sr), Belgrave-Shorter(RS So), Toure(RS So), Marcus Neal Jr (Jr from ISU), Thomas(RS Fr), Payne(RS Jr), DinkinsRS Sr), Williams(2026 Fr)
CB - Harris(Sr), Tracey(Sr), Collins(RS Sr), Dixon(So), Woseley(RS So), Washington(Sr), Joseph(RS Fr), Thomas(RS Fr), Johnson(RS Fr), Chatman(2026 Fr)
Specialists - Barker (RS-Jr K), Parker (RS-Fr K), Lucas Tenbrock (P/K, 2026 Fr)

All of these scholarship players won't stay but if all the players return that have starting experience, complimented with additions at positions of needed experience and talent (QB, OL, WR, DT, LB) the PSU roster would compare favorably to any B10 team not named Uh-high-ya or Oregon.

Hardest job to assemble a starting group would seem to be on the OL where if Loane and Donkoh go on to the NFL only Cousins and Shanahan have any starting experience. Campbell I believe has said his OL coach is coming with him. But there are petty big numbers of players along the OL that have been in the PSU S&C program mulitple years and that were high end recruits coming out of H.S. that the new coach will have to work with if he gets them to stay at PSU.

Additional 2026 Class Players (after early signing day)
1. Bryson Williams (S)
2. Tyrell Chatman (CB)
3. Lucas Tenbrock (P/K)
4. Kase Evans (QB)
5. Pete Eglitis (OT)
6. Mason Bandhauer (OL)
7. Keian Kaiser (LB)
8. Ben Whitver (WR)
9.

Incoming Transfers (other than crew from ISU)
1. Benjamin Brahmer .94 4 star TE from ISU, 6'7", 255 1 yr to play
2. Marcus Neal .90 4 star Safety from ISU, Junior
3. Will Thompkins .85 OT from ISU, RS Fr
4. Gabe Burkle .88 TE from ISU, RS Sr
5. Rocco Becht .94 QB from ISU, RS Sr
6. Chase Sewell .93 WR from ISU, RS Sr
7. Keanu Williams .90 DT from UCLA, RS Jr
8. Armstrong Nnodim .xx DT from Ok St, RS So
9. Alex McPherson, .86 DE from Colorado, So
10. Dallas Vakalahi, .86 DT from Utah, RS Sr

Outgoing Transfers
1. Joey Schlaffer (RS-JR, TE) Odd TE out at a deep and talented position
2. Elliott Washington (Sr, CB) Rotational player that got some starts but got passed by younger players.
3. Chaz Coleman (So DE 12/18/25)
4. Birchmeier (RS-Jr OL 12/19/25)
5. AJ Harris (Sr CB 12/22/25)
6. Kari Jackson (RS-So LB 12/23/25)
7. Daniel Jennings (FS-Fr DE 12/24/25)
8, Anthony Ivey (RS-Sr WR 12/29/25)
9. Keon Wylie (RS-Sr LB 12/29/25)
10. Bekkem Kritza (RS-Fr 12/30/25)
11. Kaden Sauders (RS-Sr WR 12/31/25)
12. Xavier Gilliam (RS-So DT 12/31/25)
13. Jalen Harvey (RS-So DE 12/31/25)
14. Braz Thomas (RS-Fr S 12/31/25)
15. Anthony Speca (RS-So LB 12/31/25)
16. Reynolds (Jr TE 1/1/26)
17. Shanahan (RS Jr OG 1/1/26)
18. Grunk (RS So QB 1/1/26)
19. Josiah Brown (RS So WR)
20. Jven Williams (RS Jr OL)
21. Jeff Exinor (RS Fr WR)
22. King Mack (Sr Safety)
23. Eagan Boyer (RS So OT)
24, Cam Wallace (RS Jr RB)
25. Lamont Payne (RS Jr Safety)
26. Smolik(RS Jr QB)
27. Corey Smith (RS So RB)
28. Dakaari Nelson (RS Jr LB)
29. Olesh (RS Fr TE)
30. Henderson (RS Fr TE)
31. Wafle (RS So DT)
32. Campbell (RS Sr LB)
33 Woseley (RS So CB)
34 Lane (RS Jr Safety)
35. Denmark (RS So WR)
36. Troutma (RS Fr OL)


Announced intention to return to PSU
Tatsch (So LB)
Rappleyea (RS Jr TE)
Donkoh (RS Jr OL)
Cousins (Jr OL)
Rojas (Sr LB)
Collins (RS Sr CB)
Dixon (So CB)
Onoh (RS Jr OL)
Howard (So WR)
Granville (RS So DE)
Lane (RS Jr Safety)
Sexton (RS So OT)
Aliciene (RS So OT)
Martin (RS So RB)
Kemajou So DE)
Toure (RS So Safety)
Gonzalelz (RS So WR)
Kortovich (RS Fr TE)
Tracy (Sr CB)
Joseph (So CB)
Rulli (RS Sr Center)
Robinson (RS Jr DE)
Blanding (RS Jr DT)
Goodman (RS Fr, 5 star 2025 class OT)
Tikey Hayes (RS Fr, 2025 class RB)


Losses to Graduation (out of eligibility or declaring for the NFL Draft)
1. Durant (DT)
2. Ford (DT)
3. Sutton (DE)
4. Fisher (DE)
5. DeLuka (LB)
6. Wheatley (S)
7. Allar (QB)
8. Allen (RB)
9. Singleton (RB)
10. Dawkins (OL)
11. Rucci (OL)
12. Shelton (OL)
13. Dinkins (TE)
14. Hudson (WR)
15. Ross (WR)
16. Pena (WR)
17. Clifford (WR)
18. Nwosu (P/KO)
19. Thompson (P)
20. Ioane (OG)

Pinstripe Bowl Opt Outs
1. Durant 12/9
2. Wheatley 12/10
3. Singleton 12/11
4. Vega Ioane 12/12 (off to NFL)
5. Zuriah Fisher 12/23 (petitioning for 6th season??, transferring??)

Campbell's Coaching Staff
Derek Hoodjer (from ISU) - General Manager
Jack Griffith (former Cincinnati Director of Player Personnel) - Assistant GM
Terry Smith ??
Taylor Mouser (from ISU) - OC
Ryan Clanton (from ISU) - OL (Trautwein to Florida)
Deon Broomfield (from ISU) - DB's and Secondary Defensive Coordinator
Reid Kagy (from ISU) - Director of Strength and Conditioning
Trent Slattenow(from Cincy) - director of player personnel
Jack Griffith (from ISU) - Recruiting Assistant
Noah Pauley - WR's Coach
Click to expand...
Still time to go, however, I’m not exactly wowed with what we have done in the portal so far. Yes we have acquired what I assume are most of Iowa States best players, but we have lost quality talent from our own roster and I don’t see a lot of top talent coming in from non Iowa State teams. I kept hearing that we had NIL money to compete, but so far the results are ho hum. I have dropped expectations for next year. It seems we will be playing with a middle of the road Big Ten roster. I hope the coaching and development is as good as we were told.
 
sr108 said:
Still time to go, however, I’m not exactly wowed with what we have done in the portal so far. Yes we have acquired what I assume are most of Iowa States best players, but we have lost quality talent from our own roster and I don’t see a lot of top talent coming in from non Iowa State teams. I kept hearing that we had NIL money to compete, but so far the results are ho hum. I have dropped expectations for next year. It seems we will be playing with a middle of the road Big Ten roster. I hope the coaching and development is as good as we were told.
Click to expand...
Yes, I was expecting a bigger splash of top end talent. But we have to trust Cambell and his staff's ability to evaluate talent. And there are some positions where there have been big losses to the portal but where there was such an abundance of talent that the talent remaining is still pretty top end. CB for example withe Dixon, Collins, Tracey and Joseph, supplimented by the ISU players looks as good as any team in college football. The OL seems to have top end talent returning in spite of the losses with Donkoh, Cousins, Rulli, Onoh, Sexton, Aliciene and Goodman, supplimented by the ISU players also should be pretty good, especially considering that 4 of last year's starters are gone. TE still seems loaded although there will be work to do for 2027 this time next year.

Some positions needed a rebuild such at DT and with the recent departures Safety, but that's been addressed to a large degree.

And WR was a glaring weakness which has been a focus and it seems that there will be more talent coming during the remainder of the portal season.

With Terry Smith staying it seemed initially like the new staff would be able to keep more of the roster in place, but that's just college football with today's rules and with agents staying in the ears of 18-24 year old young adults. There will be many players that their entry to the portal won't work out as they thought it would and they will learn hard lessons on how a market place works.....
 
That was never going to happen. The team needed a top to bottom purge and a reset. It needed a restructuring of NIL as well. We've also gotten some really good players in the portal. We'll be fine and we're not done yet.
 
GregInPitt said:
Yes, I was expecting a bigger splash of top end talent. But we have to trust Cambell and his staff's ability to evaluate talent. And there are some positions where there have been big losses to the portal but where there was such an abundance of talent that the talent remaining is still pretty top end. CB for example withe Dixon, Collins, Tracey and Joseph, supplimented by the ISU players looks as good as any team in college football. The OL seems to have top end talent returning in spite of the losses with Donkoh, Cousins, Rulli, Onoh, Sexton, Aliciene and Goodman, supplimented by the ISU players also should be pretty good, especially considering that 4 of last year's starters are gone. TE still seems loaded although there will be work to do for 2027 this time next year.

Some positions needed a rebuild such at DT and with the recent departures Safety, but that's been addressed to a large degree.

And WR was a glaring weakness which has been a focus and it seems that there will be more talent coming during the remainder of the portal season.

With Terry Smith staying it seemed initially like the new staff would be able to keep more of the roster in place, but that's just college football with today's rules and with agents staying in the ears of 18-24 year old young adults. There will be many players that their entry to the portal won't work out as they thought it would and they will learn hard lessons on how a market place works.....
Click to expand...
Hope I’m wrong but games are still won on the LOS, (see this years playoffs), and I am not impressed with what we have brought in so far, especially on Defense.
 
sr108 said:
Hope I’m wrong but games are still won on the LOS, (see this years playoffs), and I am not impressed with what we have brought in so far, especially on Defense.
Click to expand...
Regarding the DL, at DT the roster only lost Gilliam, a starter, and Wafle, the 4th or 5th DT. Where would the position have been had Franklin not gotten fired? Gilliam, Blanding, Wafle, Cook, and Andrews and whoever Franklin had brought in at DT. Blanding, Cook and Andrews are still at PSU and Campbell has brought in a group of 4 DT's that seem better, bigger and more experienced than any group that Franklin had gotten.

DE is where Campbell seems to still have work to do. Granville, Kemajou, Robinson and the big, young DE transfer McPherson along with the 2026 class 4 star DE Ford. A talented group but not enough depth. I look for Campbell to bring in 2+ more DE's with at least one of them pretty experienced.

Mike LB is still somewhat of an unknown at this point as well and is also a big part of stopping the run. If Campbell had stayed LB was in pretty good shape with Rojas, Tatsch and a couple of young and talented LB's along with the ISU transfers. What Campbell does at LB it seems will tell us how much confidence he has that the 3 ISU transfer LB's that include the .91 Caleb Bacon who has great size for Mike and may be the starter there.
 
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sr108 said:
Hope I’m wrong but games are still won on the LOS, (see this years playoffs), and I am not impressed with what we have brought in so far, especially on Defense.
Click to expand...
I like the size of the DL portal players and their experience. Are they top tier,? Doubt it but I believe they will do well in the B1G. What DT was dominant for PSU in 2025? No one, not even Zane Durant with all the preseason hype. Xavier Gilliam played better later in the season yet still wasn't dominant. I'm in wait & see mode.
 
sr108 said:
Still time to go, however, I’m not exactly wowed with what we have done in the portal so far. Yes we have acquired what I assume are most of Iowa States best players, but we have lost quality talent from our own roster and I don’t see a lot of top talent coming in from non Iowa State teams. I kept hearing that we had NIL money to compete, but so far the results are ho hum. I have dropped expectations for next year. It seems we will be playing with a middle of the road Big Ten roster. I hope the coaching and development is as good as we were told.
Click to expand...
There has to be a difference between guys that want to be on Penn State than those that don't.
 
Big 2024 class corner (redshirt freshman, RS soph in 2026) that seems to look more like a future Safety for PSU, but who knows....

www.blackshoediaries.com

Former Syracuse DB Ibn McDaniels Commits To Penn State

Black Shoe Diaries, a Penn State Nittany Lions community
www.blackshoediaries.com www.blackshoediaries.com

victorybellrings.com

Penn State and DC D'Anton Lynn add up fourth DB from Transfer Portal

Penn State football head coach Matt Campbell acquired a second cornerback from the Transfer Portal. Redshirt freshman Ibn McDaniels from Syracuse joined former
victorybellrings.com victorybellrings.com
 
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GregInPitt said:
Big 2024 class corner (redshirt freshman, RS soph in 2026) that seems to look more like a future Safety for PSU, but who knows....

www.blackshoediaries.com

Former Syracuse DB Ibn McDaniels Commits To Penn State

Black Shoe Diaries, a Penn State Nittany Lions community
www.blackshoediaries.com www.blackshoediaries.com

victorybellrings.com

Penn State and DC D'Anton Lynn add up fourth DB from Transfer Portal

Penn State football head coach Matt Campbell acquired a second cornerback from the Transfer Portal. Redshirt freshman Ibn McDaniels from Syracuse joined former
victorybellrings.com victorybellrings.com
Click to expand...
I think they're more than making up for the 2026 class. I don't see that being a problem in the future like I had thought previously.
 
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GregInPitt said:
Regarding the DL, at DT the roster only lost Gilliam, a starter, and Wafle, the 4th or 5th DT. Where would the position have been had Franklin not gotten fired? Gilliam, Blanding, Wafle, Cook, and Andrews and whoever Franklin had brought in at DT. Blanding, Cook and Wafle are still at PSU and Campbell has brought in a group of 4 DT's that seem better, bigger and more experienced than any group that Franklin had gotten.

DE is where Campbell seems to still have work to do. Granville, Kemajou, Robinson and the big, young DE transfer McPherson along with the 2026 class 4 star DE Ford. A talented group but not enough depth. I look for Campbell to bring in 2+ more DE's with at least one of them pretty experienced.

Mike LB is still somewhat of an unknown at this point as well and is also a big part of stopping the run. If Campbell had stayed LB was in pretty good shape with Rojas, Tatsch and a couple of young and talented LB's along with the ISU transfers. What Campbell does at LB it seems will tell us how much confidence he has that the 3 ISU transfer LB's that include the .91 Caleb Bacon who has great size for Mike and may be the starter there.
Click to expand...
Wafle entered the portal and has committed to Duke.
 
TheNewBoss said:
Interesting, I don't believe PSU had an Edge coach in the past? Not sure.
Click to expand...
This would actually be a fun coaching position. Developing a combo of strength, timing, fast twitch, etc. Some timed obstacle courses could be set up.
"Edge rushers use various techniques to pressure the quarterback, including speed rushes, power moves, and hand combat techniques. Key strategies involve timing the snap, leveraging body position, and using moves like the chop or rip to disengage from offensive linemen."
 
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