instant impact college football players

21 for 2021 College Football Topics: 21 key transfers who should make an instant impact on the 2021 season.

– Contact/Follow @ColFootballNews & @PeteFiutak

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The transfer portal is the new recruiting world.

Let everyone else develop your players – all you have to do is go shopping in the portal, and boom, problems get solved.

You could come up with a list of at least 200 transfers who should be on this list, but here’s our call on 21 who should be the biggest deals. Does that mean everyone here will rock? Nah, but most of them will.

21 transfers you need to know about are …

21 for 2021 Preview Topics (so far)
21. Thoughts, Wishes, Hopes for 2021
20. Best Teams To Not Make CFP
19: Teams That Will Rebound Big
18. Teams That Will Fall Back
17: Every Power 5 Team’s Letdown Game
16. Expectations For New Head Coaches
15. Expectations For 2nd Year Head Coaches
14. Power 5 Hot Seat Coach Rankings

– CFN 2021 Preview: All 130 Team Previews

21 Key Instant Impact College Football Transfers

21. QB McKenzie Milton, Florida State from UCF

No matter who wins the Florida State starting quarterback job, Milton will be one of the best stories of the college football season. It’ll be a battle for the gig – Jordan Travis and Chubba Purdy will get every shot – but after battling back from a horrific leg injury suffered a few years ago, anything Milton does will be amazing.
– CFN 2021 Florida State Preview

20. QB Hendon Hooker, Tennessee from Virginia Tech and/or Joe Milton, Tennessee from Michigan

The Vols lost a ton of talent to the transfer portal, but new head coach Josh Heupel has a slew of quarterbacks to choose from. There are already a few nice options in place, but Hooker was a rising star at Virginia Tech and Milton has all the tools – but couldn’t put them together – at Michigan. Whoever gets the gig will be a statistical star.
– CFN 2021 Tennessee Preview

19. OT Cain Madden, Notre Dame from Marshall

The Irish needed to revamp the line, and they’re hoping a few superstar young prospects can rise up right away. Madden should be much more than a veteran insurance policy, though, as an all-star blocker coming in from Marshall.
– CFN 2021 Notre Dame Preview

18. WR Charleston Rambo, Miami from Oklahoma

The Hurricanes already have a terrific receiving corps returning, and they added another big piece to potentially take over the home run hitting role. A former star recruit for Oklahoma, Rambo is a deep threat averaging over 17 yards per catch last season.
– CFN 2021 Miami Preview

17. DT Siaki Ika, Baylor from LSU

Baylor has a star defensive mind in head coach Dave Aranda, and he brought in the bulk to make his D rock. The former LSU defensive coordinator took the 350-pound Coke machine from the Tigers. Now the Bears have their anchor.
– CFN 2021 Baylor Preview

16. S Tykee Smith, Georgia from West Virginia

The Georgia defense was already going to be good, and now it has a few all-star caliber defensive backs coming in. More on the corner part of the equation in a moment. At safety, Smith was a key performer at West Virginia with 111 tackles and four interceptions and nine broken up passes in his two seasons.
– CFN 2021 Georgia Preview

15. QB Bailey Zappe, WKU from Houston Baptist

Easily one of the most exciting offenses early in the weird 2020 season, Houston Baptist gave everyone fits. WKU didn’t have an offense, so it took the top guys from the Huskies. The Hilltoppers got HBU’s offensive coordinator, a few great receivers, and the quarterback who hit Texas Tech for 572 yards and Texas for 480.
– CFN 2021 WKU Preview

14. LB Mike Jones, LSU from Clemson

The Tigers have their linebacking corps now. They got Navonteque Strong from the JUCO ranks to go along with the 6-0, 220-pound Jones, a guided missile of a defender who was great at getting into the backfield at Clemson. Now he should break out with a bigger role.
– CFN 2021 LSU Preview

13. QB Jack Coan, Notre Dame from Wisconsin

The hope is for Drew Pyne to grow into the type of baller who can do a little bit of everything for the offense, but before that happens – if it does – the Irish will hope the veteran accurate passer to take over the offense. Coan might not run, and he might not be next-level great, but he can be what this slightly-rebuilding team needs.
– CFN 2021 Notre Dame Preview

12. LB Ben Davis, Texas from Alabama

Yet another Alabama five-star recruit, Davis didn’t do too much for the Tide, and now the linebacking corps in place is otherworldly. That’s fine – Davis just followed former offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian over to the Longhorns where he should quickly be one of the leaders and statistical stars.
– CFN 2021 Texas Preview

11. WR Wan’Dale Robinson, Kentucky from Nebraska

The UK offense has always been more steady than sensational, and now it’s going to try cranking things up a few notches. Offensive coordinator Liam Coen – a former assistant for the LA Rams – has a few nice weapons to work with, and getting Robinson from Nebraska gives the attack a versatile, do-it-all playmaker who needs the ball in his hands.
– CFN 2021 Kentucky Preview

NEXT: 2021 Top Transfers To Watch, Top 10

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20 for 2020 College Football Topics, No. 13: 20 key transfers who should make an instant impact on the 2020 season.

– Contact/Follow @ColFootballNews & @PeteFiutak

The transfer portal is a huge part of the equation in the new college football football landscape, and it can mean everything if you get the right guy.

No, there doesn’t appear to be a Joe Burrow (Ohio State to LSU), Jalen Hurts (Alabama to Oklahoma) or Justin Fields (Georgia to Ohio State) in this year’s transfer class, but for teams that need to fill a spot right away, or need extra depth, these 20 transfers should make an instant impact.

Does it mean that these 20 are going to be superstars? Hardly.

Most of the time, there’s a reason why these guys are transferring – they’re not as good as the other options on their former teams.

For every Burrow, or Hurts, or Kyler Murray, there’s a Tate Martell or Alex Hornibrook who doesn’t turn into the answer.

There are still plenty of key transfers out there looking for a place to land, and there are several others who’ll be locked into big position battles, but for now, these 20 are eligible right away – add Auburn-to-Kentucky QB Joey Gatewood to this list if all goes well and he’s eligible to go – and should be a big deal.

20. OT Scott Lashley, Alabama to Mississippi State

The Bulldogs don’t have a bad situation at offensive tackle – Greg Eiland and Charles Cross should be fine, and there are enough options to shuffle around the line – but getting a former star recruit with great feet and a 6-7, 307-pound frame for the new offense helps. If he’s able to rise up into a starting role, all of a sudden, the Bulldog starting five that struggled last year should be a plus.

19. WR Velus Jones, USC to Tennessee

Tennessee needs more receiver help with Jauan Jennings and Marquez Callaway gone. Josh Palmer is back after finishing second on the team with 34 catches, and Brandon Johnson should be a factor after missing most of last season, but this group needs a star.

The 6-0, 190-pound Jones might not be that, but he’ll bring immediate help. The speedster was a great kick returner for USC and he caught 36 career passes for 347 yards and a score. At the very least, he’ll be a deep threat.

18. OG Ryan Johnson, Tennessee to Georgia Tech

The Yellow Jackets need more size and more experience up front. The line was a disaster for the nation’s fourth-worst offense last season, and in comes the versatile 6-6, 310-pound veteran who could be the instant leader for the front five.

17. QB Nick Starkel, Arkansas to San Jose State

It’s the last stop on the Nick Starkel World Tour, starting his career as a decent starter at Texas A&M before leaving for Arkansas. He struggled in a disastrous season for the Hogs, and now he’s off to San Jose State to try taking over for Josh Love. Don’t dismiss this just because it’s San Jose State – the passing game finished fourth in the nation.

16. RB Brittain Brown, Duke to UCLA

Someone has to replace the production of heart-and-soul RB Joshua Kelley on the Bruin offense. There are other options – second-leading rusher Demetric Felton is back – but Brown adds a good veteran presence to the mix.

Promising as a freshman, he ran for over 700 yards and seven touchdowns, and he served as a solid kick returner. Hurt at times over the last few years for the Blue Devils, now he should be a key part of the rotation.

NEXT: Top 15 Instant Impact Transfers of 2020