The more time goes on, the more it seems college sports teams utilize the transfer portal as a means for replenishing roster talent.
We’ve seen it a lot recently among college football teams, particularly at the quarterback position. Some notable quarterbacks transfers include: D.J. Uiagalelei (Clemson -> Oregon State), Quinn Ewers (Ohio State -> Texas), Kedon Slovis (USC -> Pitt -> BYU), Graham Mertz (Wisconsin -> Florida), Brennan Armstrong (UVA –> N.C. State), Jayden Daniels (Arizona State -> LSU) and J.T. Daniels, who’s played at more schools than I can count.
Several players in the transfer portal have also found their way to Chapel Hill, with plenty of them finding on-field success. Ty Chandler helped stabilize the running back position in 2021, after Michael Carter and Javonte Williams were selected in the NFL Draft. This year, Amari Gainer joined the Tar Heels from Florida State, Nate McCollum came up from Georgia Tech and Devontez Walker, who was ruled ineligible for the season, found his way down from Kent State.
UNC’s most impactful transfer this season, however, might be East Tennessee State transfer Alijah Huzzie. The junior defensive back made a game-saving tackle in overtime against App State, then cemented his status as Carolina’s punt returner against Pitt.
With the Heels and Panthers deadlocked at 14 midway through the second quarter, Huzzie gave UNC the lead for good when he took a Caleb Junko punt 52 yards to the house.
Just how good has Huzzie been for Carolina and where does he rank among inward transfers? Not just in football, but across all sports? Let’s take a look at what fans had to say on X (formerly known as Twitter):