2026 Portal Cycle
Published May 5, 2026
Updated July 1, 2026
LSU pulled in two of these five portal additions — a $6M quarterback and the most valuable offensive lineman in the country, both arriving in the same offseason. No other program landed more than one player here.
We pulled valuations for every player who entered the transfer portal during the 2025-26 cycle and committed to an FBS program for the 2026 season — this offseason's most consequential moves, not lifetime portal arrivals or transfers from earlier cycles. Two of the five — Mensah and Leavitt — land at the same $6M valuation, so we've grouped them rather than ranking them against each other.
Below: the five moves, the context behind each, and what each tells us about the 2026 portal market.
| Player | Move | Est. NIL Value |
|---|---|---|
| Darian MensahQB Mensah's intra-ACC move from Duke after an ACC Championship season gives Miami its third straight headline portal QB, following Cam Ward and Carson Beck. The move came via the first major settlement of an enforced NIL contract — a precedent that will shape future portal cycles. |  | $6.00M |
| Sam LeavittQB LSU's headline portal acquisition. Leavitt arrives in Baton Rouge after a strong 2025 at Arizona State as one of the highest-valued quarterback additions of the cycle. |  | $6.00M |
| Jordan SeatonOT The most valuable offensive lineman in the entire portal cycle. Pairing Seaton with Leavitt gives LSU a franchise QB and franchise protection in the same offseason — the most coherent portal class in college football. | | $4.00M |
| Drew MestemakerQB The biggest punching-up story of the cycle. Mestemaker's leap from North Texas to Oklahoma State is a Group of 5 to Big 12 jump that immediately makes him one of the most valuable QBs in college football. |  | $3.75M |
| Cam ColemanWR A five-star wide receiver changing hands inside the SEC. Coleman's move from Auburn to Texas gives the Longhorns a marquee target and stands as one of the most valuable receiver additions of the 2026 cycle. |  | $3.00M |
Scope is the 2026 portal cycle — players who entered the transfer portal during the 2025-26 academic year and committed to an FBS program for the 2026 season. Players who arrived via portal in earlier cycles, even if their original arrival was a transfer, are treated as returning players and are not included here.
Three of the five are quarterbacks. Our valuation model assigns the highest position baseline to QBs, reflecting the position's outsized impact on team outcomes — and the portal market in 2026 reflects the same dynamic. Programs are paying QBs the most because the position commands the highest premium.
Snapshot reflects Spring 2026. Valuations may shift as additional NIL deals are reported and as fall depth charts finalize.