Washington Huskies Transfer Portal Trends

While there is still time for UW to bring in more 2026 contributors through the transfer portal, the Dawgs now have nine commitments. The incoming group tells us plenty about what the coaching staff values in the portal and how they view roster construction for this year and beyond. Here are a few themes I have noticed during the portal season.

1. Production Over Potential. This phrase has been a mantra of Curt Cignetti and the Indiana Hoosiers. Rather than trying to find players with a great pedigree, they look for those who might have been underrated by recruiting services, but have proven they can produce in college football. I’m sure plenty of other programs will borrow elements of what has made Indiana so dominant, but this approach is one that has clearly influenced UW. Seven of UW’s nine commits come from G6 or FCS programs where they made all-conference teams or standout stats or PFF grades. I’m including Logan George in that group because he put up great stats at Idaho St before playing very little at Ohio St last year. The two exceptions have clear connections to the program. CB Emmanuel Karnley previously committed to Jedd Fisch at Arizona before moving to Virginia. He played very well for the Cavaliers and definitely fits in the “production” category, but it’s not really fair to call the ACC Champs a lower-tier program. RB Jayden Limar also produced at Oregon- 5.7 yards per carry last year- and returns closer to home to fill in the gap left by Adam Mohammed.

• 2. Upgrading the Talent. UW has seen 19 players from last year’s team enter the transfer portal, but the destinations for those who have committed indicates that many of them might not have been quite at the level of top Big 10 programs. Eleven of those 19 have committed elsewhere. Only two have gone to FCS or G6 programs, but another five have gone to P4 schools that are clearly behind UW in their current talent and success level (Oklahoma St, Arizona, Stanford, UCLA, Cal, all at various stages of rebuilding, including four new head coaches). The exceptions are Deven Bryant to USC, Caleb Smith to Alabama, Bryce Butler to Texas Tech, and Raiden Vines-Bright to Arizona State. Bryant and Smith are both head-scratchers, though Bryant is from SoCal and Smith committed to Kalen DeBoer at UW. Butler has moved to a national semifinalist who is famous for splashing cash and RVB has moved closer to home. It’s safe to say that the Dawgs would have preferred to retain Butler, RVB, and Muhammed, but three truly regrettable losses (and likely a fourth in Paki Finau) sounds a lot less scary than 19.

• 3. Defensive Needs. With three commitments on the interior defensive line, it’s clear that the coaching staff has prioritized rebuilding its core. With Anterio Thompson and Simote Pepa graduating, plus Butler, both Parker twins, and Dominic Macon all transferring, it was obvious that this position would need to be replenished. There are two other spots that most assumed UW would target that have not come to fruition in the same way. Due to the Huskies’ inconsistent pass rush and the graduation of Zach Durfee, Edge looked like a position in need of an immediate injection of production. George was a good pass rusher at Idaho St but did nothing at Ohio St last year, so it’s hard to depend on him as a difference maker. Reports are that the coaching staff has not gone after many other Edges, which indicates that they have a lot of faith in Jacob Lane and the oft-injured combination of Russell Davis and Isaiah Ward. Perhaps that group, plus some pass-rush opportunities for Zaydrius Rainey-Sale, and some talented freshmen like Derek Coleman-Brusa will be enough to improve the pass rush, but having someone with a 7+ sack season in FBS would instill more confidence.

• 4. Wide Receiver Needs. The other apparent position of need is WR. Last season, UW had a need for a plug-and-play wide receiver who could provide a deep threat opposite Denzel Boston. They quickly added Texas transfer Johntay Cook, but his ordeal became an almost comical series of missteps and errors in judgment that quickly ushered him out of the program. From there, the Huskies targeted several other WR options before finally landing Omari Evans from Penn St. Evans was not a flop for the Huskies, but he also fell clearly behind Dezmen Roebuck on the WR2 pecking order, in spite of Rashid Williams missing the season. A year later and the story has been similar. With Boston headed to the NFL, the Huskies could use a plug-and-play possession WR. We know that they have pursued Florida’s Naeshaun Montgomery, South Alabama’s Jeremy Scott, Syracuse’s Darrell Gill, and Ohio St’s Quincy Porter. All have either committed elsewhere or appear on the verge of doing so. The pool of available WRs is drying up; Gill is the last uncommitted WR rated 4* by 247 and he is strongly rumored to be near a commitment to Ole Miss. Ironically, Cook is the second top-rated uncommitted WR, but the odds of a reunion there are slim and none, and slim just left town. I’m a big believer in the talent level in the current WR room, but even I will admit that the experience after Roebuck is extremely low.

• 5. Extended Eligibility. One of the fascinating parts of the transfer portal era to me has been to see how programs balance pursuing experienced players versus players with more eligibility. While Fisch and his staff have clearly looked for players with an established track record this year, they have also erred on the side of players with more years of eligibility remaining. Kolt Dieterich, DeSean Watts, Tyler Robles, Darin Conley, Emmanuel Karnley, Kai McClendon, and Logan George all have 2-3 years of eligibility remaining. Limar and punter Hunter Green are the exceptions. It’s certainly possible that some of them could re-enter the portal again during their collegiate careers, but it’s much easier to keep a player once you have him than to pull him from another school when you can only legally contact them once they have entered the portal.