By: Robert Devlin III and Cory Lemer
Former Liberty WR CJ Daniels has certainly had no issue attracting the interest of top schools while in the NCAA Transfer Portal. Daniels, listed at six feet and two inches tall, has garnered the interest of some of college football’s elite programs, including CFP finalist Texas, along with Florida, Auburn, Oregon, and many others.
Coming out of High School, Daniels ranked as a three-star according to 247 Sports and held seven offers. The Flames landed the touted Georgia receiver where, after four incredible seasons with Liberty, Daniels entered the NCAA Transfer Portal on January 4th, 2024. He will have two years of eligibility remaining at the college level. Many schools were quick to contact and eventually extend offers to Daniels, who totaled over 1,000 yards during the 2024 season and rallied nearly 2,000 yards throughout his collegiate career. Among those that reached out were the Florida Gators , Auburn Tigers , and Texas Longhorns , all of whom seem to be top contenders for Daniels' talents. Daniels has visited the trio of schools once, and many believe these three schools are positioned best.
The Top Three
Despite not having a top three, there are three schools standing out. The current trend sits toward Texas, though the Gators and Tigers cannot be counted out. Auburn HC Hugh Freeze coached Daniels when Freeze was the HC for Liberty, and after a recruiting revival of Auburn football, Daniels can join this Auburn team heading in the right direction.
The Gators, with WR coach Billy Gonzales leading the push, are banking on the success of Florida WR Ricky Pearsall to help sell a vision to Daniels where he could fill a similar role.
Coach Sarkisian has seen early success in his offense since taking over at Texas, and with Xavier Worthy and AD Mitchell declaring for the draft, Daniels can fill that role as a trusted receiver in an electric offense, returning star QB Quinn Ewers.
Whichever school lands him can also fill another void at the punt-returner position, as Liberty utilized Daniels as a punt-runner. His elusiveness and solid speed can create problems on special teams.
A timeframe is unclear, as many report Daniels would also like to visit Oregon, Miami, and others. The expectation is that Daniels chooses his preferred school in the coming weeks, particularly before spring practice. While this portal recruitment may currently be up for grabs, whichever team lands the veteran reciever can call themselves lucky, as a talented playmaker like Daniels can dramatically increase a team's performance.
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