Pick-Six: Ohio State's star-studded group of transfers has Buckeyes thinking big
Ohio State attacked the transfer portal intent on stopping Michigan’s run of Big Ten supremacy.
The same night Michigan clinched the national title with a 34-13 victory over Washington, running back Quinshon Judkins went on social media to announce he was transferring from Mississippi to Ohio State.
Former Kansas State quarterback Will Howard and former Alabama center Seth McLaughlin had committed to Ohio State days earlier. Former Alabama safety Caleb Downs joined them less than two weeks later.
They made the decision understanding completely the high demands of a fan base dissatisfied with a Buckeyes program that has gone 11-2 but lost to Michigan each of the last three years.
“Same expectations that I’ve had my whole life,” Downs told reporters. “The same expectations we had at 'Bama – to win games, dominate every game and go win a championship.”
Ohio State's transfer class is as star-studded as any to sign with a single school during the portal era. The second-ranked Buckeyes’ other additions include quarterback Julian Sayin (formerly at Alabama), center Seth McLaughlin (Alabama), tight end Will Kacmarek (Ohio), safety Keenan Nelson Jr. (South Carolina), punter Anthony Venneri (Buffalo) and linebacker Joey Velazquez (Michigan).
Bulked-up Buckeyes
Judkins comes to Ohio State after rushing for 2,725 yards and 31 touchdowns at Ole Miss over the last two seasons. He now will share carries with TreVeyon Henderson, who has 2,745 career yards rushing with the Buckeyes.
“I think we’re both just players that complement each other in every single way,” Judkins told reporters.
Downs was an Associated Press All-America second-team selection last year while making 107 tackles for Alabama, becoming the first freshman in school history to lead the Crimson Tide in that category. McLaughlin started 24 games for the Tide over the last three seasons.
Howard started 28 games at Kansas State and set a school record with 48 career touchdown passes. He led the Wildcats to a Big 12 title in 2022. Now he gets a chance to direct an offense featuring plenty of future NFL talent.
“Everything’s heightened here,” Howard told reporters. “You feel the eyes a little bit. I think the one thing I would say is that I don’t feel I have to be a hero here. I feel like I have the guys around me to where I just need to facilitate and just get them the ball and make good decisions. At the end of the day, I don’t have to go out there and do anything super-human. I just have to be myself and trust the guys around me.”
WR Isaiah Bond, Texas (Alabama)
Bond showed an ability to deliver in the clutch at his former school that should enable him to emerge as a top weapon for the fourth-ranked Longhorns.
Bond caught 48 passes for 668 yards and four touchdowns last season. He caught the fourth-and-31 touchdown pass in the final minute of a 27-24 victory at Auburn and followed that up by compiling five receptions for 79 yards in the Crimson Tide’s 27-24 Southeastern Conference championship game triumph over Georgia. SEC media made Bond a preseason second-team all-SEC selection.
QB Dillon Gabriel, Oregon (Oklahoma)
The former UCF and Oklahoma quarterback will suit up with No. 3 Oregon for his sixth season.
Gabriel is tied for fourth place in NCAA history with 152 career total touchdowns (125 passing, 26 rushing, 1 receiving). He also ranks seventh in total yards (15,925), eighth in yards passing (14,865) and eighth in touchdowns. If Gabriel stays healthy, he could set the record for most career starts by a quarterback. Gabriel has started 49 games. The record of 61 is owned by Bo Nix, who preceded Gabriel as Oregon’s quarterback. Gabriel leads a heralded Oregon transfer class that also includes CB Jabbar Muhammad (formerly at Washington) and Evan Stewart (Texas A&M).
QB Riley Leonard, Notre Dame (Duke)
Leonard’s move to No. 7 Notre Dame makes him the third transfer in the last four years to open a season as the Fighting Irish’s starting quarterback, following Jack Coan (Wisconsin) in 2021 and Sam Hartman (Wake Forest) in 2023.
Ankle and foot injuries limited Leonard to seven games last year after an outstanding season in 2022. During that 2022 campaign, Leonard threw for 2,967 yards with 20 touchdowns and six interceptions, and he also rushed for 699 yards and 13 scores.
DT Walter Nolen, Ole Miss (Texas A&M)
When he signed with Texas A&M, Nolen was rated as the nation’s No. 2 overall prospect in his high school class by composite rankings of recruiting sites compiled by 247Sports. He totaled 66 tackles, 11 tackles for loss and five sacks in two seasons with the Aggies before transferring to No. 6 Ole Miss. SEC media made him a preseason first-team all-conference selection.
DE Nic Scourton, Texas A&M (Purdue)
The 20th-ranked Aggies landed the 2023 Big Ten sacks leader when Scourton arrived from Purdue. Scourton collected 10 sacks as well as 15 tackles for loss and 50 overall tackles last season. He had two sacks in a loss to Michigan and closed the season with two more in a victory over Indiana. SEC media made him a preseason second-team all-conference selection.
QB Cam Ward, Miami (Washington State)
Miami has gone 19-18 over the last three seasons but enters this year ranked 19th thanks largely due to all the incoming transfers. Miami’s most heralded transfer addition is Ward, the Atlantic Coast Conference’s preseason player of the year.
After playing two years at Football Championship Subdivision program Incarnate Word, Ward started 25 games at Washington State over the last two seasons and completed 65.5% of his passes for 6,963 yards with 48 touchdowns and 16 interceptions.
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