Seven transfers, led by Cam Ward, are taken in NFL Draft’s first round

In some ways, Cam Ward’s career encapsulates the evolution of modern college football.

Ward, a zero-star recruit who had no FBS offers, utilized the transfer portal twice, following the coach who recruited him the first time. He capitalized on the name, image and likeness revolution, both at Washington State and Miami. He played in a conference, the Pac-12, that was later raided by two others. In 2024, he lifted a team into contention for the first 12-team College Football Playoff. How he handled his final bowl game sparked intense debate.

So it’s fitting that Ward going No. 1 in the 2025 NFL Draft on Thursday signals the continuation of a trend. Transfers aren’t new to the draft, even at the top. Caleb Williams (2024), Joe Burrow (2020), Kyler Murray (2019) and Baker Mayfield (2018) were all transfers who went first, and they were preceded long ago by quarterbacks Jeff George (1990) and Troy Aikman (1989).

But transfers early in the draft were long the exception. Major rule changes — the introduction of the transfer portal, removal of transfer restrictions, and the introduction of NIL — have made players who switch schools more prevalent in college football and, as a result, the draft. The last three years have seen significant jumps in the number of transfers drafted by NFL teams, according to SportSource Analytics:

Last year, nine transfers were taken in the first round, the highest such total in the last 10 years. On Thursday, seven were chosen, the second-highest total in that time. Let’s take a look at each and their journey to this point.

1. Cam Ward, QB, Miami (Tennessee Titans)

Previous schools: Washington State, Incarnate Word

2. Travis Hunter, CB/WR, Colorado (Jacksonville Jaguars)

Previous school: Jackson State

Hunter’s transfer from the FCS to the FBS was, like Ward’s, a result of following the coach who recruited him, Deion Sanders. But Hunter’s journey to that point was different. Unlike Ward, Hunter had every school clamoring for his services out of high school as the nation’s No. 1 recruit. He committed to Florida State but made a stunning flip to Jackson State on signing day, becoming the highest-ranked recruit in the modern era to sign with an FCS program. When Sanders departed Jackson State for Colorado, Hunter followed and quickly established himself as a unicorn, playing full-time at receiver and cornerback. The two-time All-American won the Heisman Trophy and finished his three-year college career with 85 tackles, nine interceptions, 37 passes defensed at corner and 171 catches, 1,258 yards and 15 touchdowns.

16. Walter Nolen, DT, Ole Miss (Arizona Cardinals)

Previous school: Texas A&M

Nolen was the highest-ranked prospect in the Aggies’ famed 2022 recruiting class, which was the top-rated recruiting class of the modern era and drew a lot of attention and accusations, some of which sparked a verbal spat between Jimbo Fisher and Nick Saban. Nolen was the No. 2 recruit in the 2022 class and the No. 1 defensive lineman. He had two productive seasons in Aggieland, but after Fisher was fired and defensive line coach Elijah Robinson left for the defensive coordinator job at Syracuse, Nolen entered the portal. In his one year at Ole Miss, he was a menace, tallying 14 tackles for loss, 6 1/2 sacks and becoming a consensus All-American.

21. Derrick Harmon, DT, Oregon (Pittsburgh Steelers)

Previous school: Michigan State

Harmon was yet another transfer because of a coaching change. He was largely overlooked by power-conference programs as a three-star recruit and the No. 117 defensive lineman, with most of his offers coming from Group of 5 and FCS programs. Michigan State was one of three Power 4 programs to offer and landed him in the 2021 class. Mel Tucker, the coach who recruited Harmon, was fired for cause amid an investigation into sexual harassment allegations in September 2023 and, three months later, Harmon hit the portal. At Oregon, Harmon’s production jumped. He finished with 10 1/2 tackles for loss, five sacks and two forced fumbles en route to third-team All-Big Ten honors.

23. Matthew Golden, WR, Texas (Green Bay Packers)

Previous school: Houston

Golden spurned SEC and Big Ten programs to stay home and play for the Cougars and was the third-highest-ranked recruit the program had signed in the modern era. He had two productive years at Houston and other programs noticed: Then-head coach Dana Holgorsen said in November 2023 that Golden had been offered “six figures” by SEC schools to transfer. Golden initially rebuffed those overtures, but once Houston fired Holgorsen, Golden hit the transfer portal. Texas quickly pounced, and in his lone season with the Longhorns, Golden thrived, catching 58 passes for 987 yards and nine touchdowns. He averaged at least 20 yards per catch in 10 of Texas’ 16 games last season.

25. Jaxson Dart, QB, Ole Miss (New York Giants)

Previous school: USC

Dart was a top-100 recruit who signed with USC and spent part of his first season under former coach Clay Helton. When USC fired Helton and the Trojans later brought in Lincoln Riley (and, as a result, Williams), that changed the outlook for Dart. “He didn’t want to leave,” his father said in 2023. He entered the transfer portal and visited BYU, Oklahoma and Ole Miss before eventually choosing the Rebels. He spent the next three seasons in Oxford and threw for more than 10,000 yards and 72 touchdowns.

32. Josh Simmons, OT, Ohio State (Kansas City Chiefs)

Previous school: San Diego State

Simmons had significant attention from power-conference schools coming out of high school and committed to Oregon in his junior year but decommitted at the onset of the pandemic. Without the opportunity to visit schools in 2020, he opted to stay close to home with the Aztecs. He redshirted his first year, then started all 13 games in 2022 before hitting the portal and transferring to Ohio State. He started every game he played for the Buckeyes, but missed the last 10 games of 2024 with a knee injury.

(Photo: Stacy Revere / Getty Images)

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