CFB DeptHITS: Friday, January 17
We'll take a look at the big news of the day and take a closer look at the biggest specialists (kicker and punter) to move via the portal thus far.
In today’s HITS, we’ll take a look at some of the bigger player/coaching news of the past 24 hours and then take a quick look at the top specialists who are on the move via the transfer portal. Enjoy!
|||||| THE HITS
Texas A&M ::: WR Micah Hudson [13.6] has stepped away from team activities for the time being. The transfer-in from Texas Tech needs some time away apparently, but this is not expected to be a long-term situation. Just something to monitor.
Virginia Tech ::: Former Texas State EDGE Ben Bell [15.8] is heading to Virginia Tech. The former non-recruit who started his career at Louisiana Tech, moved to Texas State where he became a star. He tearfully moves on from the program to play in the ACC for 2025. He joins James Djonkam [15.3] from Eastern Michigan as big pick-ups on the defensive line for Brent Pry's defense.
Rutgers ::: The Scarlet Knights get yet another portal pick up as CB Cam Miller [14.0] comes in from Penn State. He joins UNLV transfer Jett Elad [13.6] as solid additions to a secondary that may be returning a lot of production as it stands. Rutgers currently stands at #27 in our portal 'talent churn' rankings thus far.
UCLA ::: EDGE Drew Tuazama [12.9] is hitting the portal. Wherever he lands next will be his fifth school. He has been at UAB, Syracuse and South Carolina before the Bruins this year, where he received just nine snaps. His best performance came in 2022 for UAB when he recorded five sacks. He is likely to move down to the group of five to get on the field and try to replicate that success in his final season.
UCF ::: Former Florida Gator WR Marcus Burke [11.1] is headed from Gainesville to Orlando for what is likely his final season. The former 4-star recruit in 2021 out of Jacksonville (FL) just never really cracked the rotation enough to make a difference for the Gators. He has just 19 career catches for 270 yards and two touchdowns (both this season). Maybe there is something to unlock here and the opportunity to see it is there with the Knights receiver room losing seven of its top eight from a year ago to graduation and the portal.
Tulane ::: Former South Alabama Jaguar EDGE Jordan Norman [13.3] is headed to NOLA to join the Green Wave. He has been reunited with a former position coach Landius Wilkerson (via @CregStephenson). He put up really impressive numbers in 2024, including 25 hurries and 17 stops for South Alabama in his first real action as a redshirt freshman.
Arizona ::: The Wildcats have landed one of the better FCS transfers in EDGE Malachi Bailey [13.5] making the move from Alcorn State. He played three seasons there and got better each season. This 2024 season catapulted him onto the radar of many FBS programs. He racked up 53 pressures, including 11 sacks and 34 hurries. He also missed on only 7.5% of his tackle chances. The dude is a great pickup for a defense that needs all the help it can get.
USC ::: The Trojans are holding on to their defensive coordinator, D'Anton Lynn. He has received a lot of interest after guiding the UCLA Bruins to new heights in 2023 and then reviving this USC defensive unit in 2024. He agreed to a contract extension and may soon begin receiving head coaching interest with another good season in LA.
|||||| PORTAL SPOTLIGHT: SPECIALISTS
Kickers are people too. In fact, they can have a big impact on the results of games and seasons. See Kenny Dillingham’s now famous rant about how bad his kickers were earlier this season. He threatened to hold on-campus tryouts. Former South Carolina kicker and transfer-in to Notre Dame, Mitch Jeter, has made some big kicks for the Irish on their run to the National Title game on Monday.
The less heralded of the kickers, the punter, can be a weapon that could flip field position and back up opponents deep in their own territory. Think about where Alabama could have ended up without James Burnip. Here’s a fun stat for you. Tide opponents only returned eight (8) punts this season. Their grand total yardage on those kicks — eight (8) yards. Burnip moves on after this year - likely to the NFL — and Alabama will need to replace him with somebody from this years’ portal.
Place Kickers in Tracker: 50
Place Kickers Committed: 26 (52%)
Top 15 Place Kickers:
Punters in Tracker: 39
Punters Committed: 18 (46%)
Top 15 Punters:
As always, you can keep up with all of the movement over at the site with our Portal Tracker tools.
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