Grading the 2026 Kansas Football Transfer Class

The college football transfer portal window has officially closed after an exciting couple of weeks with players and schools making moves across the country.

The window opened Jan. 2 through Jan. 16 (with an extension of Jan. 20-24 for players on teams playing in the national championship), allowing college football players to be in position to transfer to another school. Players did not have to commit during the window, but they did have to put their names in to be eligible to transfer.

On3.com rates the Kansas football transfer class as the No. 52 class in the country and No. 11 in the Big 12 with 30 new players committed after losing 25 to the portal.

With the players the Kansas coaching staff has added on offense and defense, I believe they deserve a B grade for the moves they made through the transfer portal this offseason.

While they didn’t add a ton of top-end talent, they did address needs at several positions – particularly on defense – that should compliment the returning players and the incoming freshman class well.

Offense (B-)

The running back room has been completely revamped through the transfer portal these past two weeks. After losing a pair of talented sophomores to the portal in Johnny Thompson Jr. and Harry Stewart, the Jayhawks have now added a trio of talented running backs in Colorado State transfer Jalen Dupree, Syracuse transfer Yasin Willis, and Kansas State transfer Dylan Edwards.

Dupree and Willis each rushed for over 500 yards last season, and Edwards – who is ranked as the No. 19 tailback in the transfer portal – has the talent to be KU’s leading rusher and a top receiving threat as well.

Buffalo transfer Nik McMillan was a nice addition who likely has the best chance at being KU’s No. 1 wide receiver next season. And Middle Tennessee State transfer is a solid addition to the wide receiver room as well that only has two returning players from last year with any real production on the college level (Keaton Kubecka and Cam Pickett).

The team also brought in Rice quarterback transfer Chase Jenkins who will have a chance to compete for the starting job along with returning quarterbacks Cole Ballard and Isaiah Marshall.

The offensive line added a few new faces, but most have limited starting experience at their previous schools and battled injuries this past season. With only two starters returning from last year, that will likely be the group with the most question marks heading into next season.

Defense (B+)

The Kansas coaching staff knew they needed reinforcements along the defensive line with multiple upperclassmen departing, and they addressed it in a big way with the players they added through the portal.

Tulane defensive tackle transfer Tre’Von McAlpine will be an instant plug-and-play starter who should greatly help KU’s run defense – which was a problem in 2025. He, along with other players such as Michigan State defensive end transfer David Santiago, should help bring more pass rush as well.

The linebacker corps was perhaps the most upgraded position group on this side of the ball with the addition of South Carolina transfer Jaron Willis, Boston College transfer Daveon Crouch, Marshall transfer Jibreel Al-Amin, and others. They’ll be counted on to replace the talents of graduating seniors Bangally Kamara and Jayson Gilliom, along with losing Jon Jon Kamara to Wisconsin.

The front seven will look a lot different than last year but should be an improved group if the major playmakers can stay healthy.

Meanwhile, the secondary will benefit from the addition of experienced Louisville safety transfer Corey Gordon who will likely be a starter in the absence of Lyrik Rawls who transferred to Arizona State earlier this month. Ball State cornerback Roman Pearson is also a good addition to a strong cornerback unit that includes the talents of returning players Austin Alexander and Jalen Todd.

Like the offense, there is not a lot of high-end talent that the Jayhawks added, but they addressed their positions of need and built depth across the board.