Jayden Woods. Petre Thomas-Imagn Images

Florida EDGE Jayden Woods to be top target on transfer portal market

By Andrew Kulha | Last updated Dec 29, 2025 6:22 PM ET

The Florida Gators are set to lose one of the top young players in the country to the transfer portal.

News coming out of Gainesville is that, after a stellar freshman season, EDGE Jayden Woods will be looking for a new college football home.

Woods is a former four-star recruit from Shawnee, Kansas. Checking in at 6-foot-3, 248 pounds, he was ranked as the No. 10 EDGE in the 2025 class, according to 247Sports.

He was a big-time get for Billy Napier on the recruiting trail, and his talent immediately transferred onto the field for the Gators. Woods played in 12 games as a freshman, totalling 28 tackles, five tackles for loss, 3.5 sacks and an interception.

He co-led the team in sacks and was third in tackles for loss. He was the first true freshman since Johnnie Church in 1992 to lead or co-lead the Gators for sacks.

From @Hayesfawcett3, Florida EDGE Jayden Woods plans to enter the transfer portal.

Woods was a key retention target for Sumrall and the Gators. If he does end up leaving and not re-signing, it’s a big loss pic.twitter.com/qEd6rDretP
— Will Thomas (@wthomassports) December 29, 2025

Notably, the fact that Woods is entering the transfer portal doesn't necessarily mean that he'll end up leaving the Gators. The 2025 season was tumultuous for Florida, ultimately leading to the firing of head coach Billy Napier. Former Tulane coach Jon Sumrall is the new head man in Gainesville, though, and you can bet that he and this new staff are going to do everything they can to change Woods' mind.

The young EDGE is going to get interest from just about every big-time school in college football, and he's also going to be set up to make a ton of money via NIL deals.

Can Florida compete? It's a big early test for Sumrall and the Gators.

A member of the Freshman All-SEC Team, Woods was originally committed to Penn State before flipping his commitment to Florida. Perhaps the Nittany Lions, now coached by Matt Campbell, will try to get back in the running with him.

Andrew Kulha

Andrew Kulha is probably the only sports writer you know who also doubles as a mortician. Spooky! @KulhaSports

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