Florida (The State of) Football

Butch Davis came out the gate pretty strong at FIU. He was 23-14 with three bowl appearances in his first three seasons. Then the pandemic came and he lost 16 of his final 17 games. FIU was fading a tad before COVID-19, so maybe Davis had already peaked. I am curious how he could have managed the portal if he knew how it was going to work. It's an interesting "what if" to think about. FIU Golden Panthers 2021 head coach: Butch Davis Transfer Class Size: 6 (three offense, three defense) Tyrese Chambers, WR (Sacred Heart) Api Mane, OL (Kansas) Jeremy Passmore, DL (Indiana) Isaiah Velez, QB (Eastern Kentucky) Hal Vinson, LB (Texas State) Pierce Withers, S (Texas State) 2021 Record: 1-11 2021 Starts (40): Chambers (12), Mane (12), Passmore (9), Withers (7) 2022 Starts (22): Passmore (12), Chambers (10) Currently on Roster: Passmore Transferred Out: Chambers (Maryland), Velez (Coffeyville CC) 2021 All C-USA: Chambers (2nd team) Recap: Chambers was so good he flipped S...

There was a lot of optimism about Willie Taggart's fourth job in the past five years after such a short stint with Florida State. He was back in a familiar situation where he could recruit a little more comfortably. But it didn't work despite going well his strengths with his transfer classes. Florida Atlantic Owls 2021 Head Coach: Willie Taggart Transfer Class: 7 (five offense, two defense) Kamar Bell, OL (Auburn) Andrew Boselli, OL (Florida State) Johnny Ford, RB (USF) Keyshawn Greene, LB (Nebraska) Michael Johnson, QB (Penn State) Chaz Neal, OT (Florida State) N'Kosi Perry, QB (Miami) 2021 Record: 5-7 2021 Starts (45): Bell (12), Perry (12), Ford (11), Neal (10) 2022 Starts (31): Neal (12), Perry (12) Bell (6), Ford (1) Currently on Roster: Johnson, Neal Recap: Taggart has been trying to recreate what he had at USF for a couple of years with a dynamic group of talent led by quarterback Quinton Flowers with no success. Ironically he got a transfer at Florida State i...

The Jeff Scott era for the Bulls is over and for many Bulls fans it's an easy one to forget. From the head-shaking staff hires, the defenses that couldn't stop anyone and the offenses that stumbled at the most inopportune time, anything that could go wrong for USF football under Scott did go wrong.  This 2021 transfer class. Seems ok on the surface, but did any wins result of it? USF Bulls 2021 head coach: Jeff Scott Transfer Class: 9 (five offense, four defense) Demarcus Gregory, WR (Ole Miss) Matthew Hill, WR (Auburn) Will Jones, CB (Kansas State) Jaren Mangham, RB (Colorado) Timarcus Simpson, CB (Eastern Michigan) Jamari Stewart, Edge (MIssissippi State) Yusuf Terry, WR (Baylor) Christian Williams, CB (Miami) Xander Yarberough, Edge (New Mexico State) 2021 Starts (24): Hill (10), Mangham (8), Gregory (3), Williams (3) 2022 Starts (24): Hill (7), Williams (6), Jones (6), Simpson (5) Currently on Roster: Hill, Jones, Simpson, Terry Transderred Out: Gregory (Texas State) R...

This was Gus Malzahn's first season with the Knights and he needed to use the portal pretty liberally to change the structure of the roster that had been put together by Scott Frost and Josh Heupel.  UCF Knights 2021 Head Coach: Gus Malzahn Transfer Class: 11 (seven offense, four defense) Ricky Barber, DL (Western Kentucky) Isaiah Bowser, RB (Northwestern) Andrew Brito, QB (UMass) Markaviest Bryant, DL (Auburn) Nate Craig-Myers, WR (Colorado State) Marco Domio, CB (Auburn) R.J. Harvey Jr., RB (Virginia) Brandon Johnson, WR (Tennessee) Jordan Johnson, WR (Notre Dame) Mark-Antony Richards, RB (Auburn) Jarvis Ware, CB (Missouri) 2021 Record: 9-4 2021 Bowl Result: Defeated Florida 29-17 in Gasparilla Bowl 2021 Starts (47): Bryant (13) B. Johnson (12), Barber (10), Craig-Myers (6), Bowser (5), Richards (1) 2022 Starts (33): Barber (14), Bowser (10), Ware (6), Harvey (3) Currently on Roster: Barber, Richards, Ware 2021 All-AAC: Bryant (1st Team) 2022 All-AAC: Barber (1st Team), Bo...

Sometimes less is more and that was the case with the Miami Hurricanes transfer class. Manny Diaz looked to find the best players possible to fill some holes on the roster and did just that. The small class was so productive it makes you wonder if Manny Diaz could have done more. Miami Hurricanes 2021 head coach: Manny Diaz Transfer Class: 4 (two offense, two defense) Deandre Johnson, Edge (Tennessee) Justice Oluwaseun, OL (UNLV) Charleston Rambo, WR (Oklahoma) Tyrique Stevenson, CB (Georgia) 2021 Record: 7-5 2021 Bowl Result: Withdrew from Sun Bowl (COVID-19) 2021 Starts (35): Rambo (12), Stevenson (10), Johnson (10), Oluwaseun (3) 2022 Starts (21): Oluwaseun (11), Stevenson (10) Currently on Roster: Zero 2021 All-ACC: Rambo (2nd Team) 2022 All-ACC: Stevenson (3rd Team) NFL Draft: Stevenson (2023 Bears, 2nd round) Recap: What this class lacked in size, it delivered in productivity. All four players were brought in to help fill immediate holes and did so. Every player in the...

The Florida Gators transfer class in 2021 was much like Dan Mullen's general reputation as a recruiter -- a little underwhelming with a gem or two in there.  The big deal in this class was getting Bowman, a five-star RB prospect out of Lakeland High, who spent a year at Clemson. The change of scenery did nothing for Bowman, who barely lasted the season at Florida before leaving to go to UCF.  Florida Gators 2021 head coach: Dan Mullen Transfer Class: 8 (two offense, five defense, one specialist) Elijah Blades, CB (Texas A&M) Kaleb Boateng, OT (Clemson) Demarkcus Bowman, RB (Clemson) Jace Christmann, K (Mississippi State) Daquan Newkirk, DT (Auburn) Jadarrius Perkins, CB (Missouri) Tyrone Truesdell, DL (Auburn)\ Antonio Valentino, DL (Penn State) 2021 Record: 6-7 2021 Bowl Result: Lost 29-17 to UCF in Gasparilla Bowl 2021 Starts (16): Valentino (8), Newkirk (7), Perkins (1) Currently on Roster: Perkins Transferred Out (2): Blades (Buffalo), Bowman (UCF) Recap: In 20...

One of the many offseason projects I will be working on is a breakdown on transfer portal classes two years in the rear.  In 2021 the transfer portal was still a bit of a new thing and coming out of pandemic there were a lot of moving parts in college football, so I don't think student-athletes and coaches realized the true power of the portal.  Two years out allowed the full impact of a transfer class to be felt. More transfers aren't going to be at their new program for more than two years without making some sort of a mark.  Anyway first team up is FSU. Florida State Seminoles 2021 head coach:  Mike Norvell Transfer Class:  12 (four offense, eight defense) Cortez Andrews, LB (Maryland Marcus Cushnie, Edge (Alabama A&M)) Dillan Gibbons, OG (Notre Dame) Jermaine Johnson, DE/OLB (Georgia) Joe Lang, S/DB (Holy Cross) Jarques McClellion, CB (Arkansas) McKenzie Milton, QB, (UCF) Brandon Moore, CB (UCF) Andrew Parchment, WR (Kansas) Jammie Robinson, S (South Car...