With the bowl season winding down and the College Football Playoffs nearing the semifinals, many teams and players around the college football landscape will be officially turning their attention to the transfer portal in the immediate future.
The college football transfer portal will officially open on Friday, Jan. 2. It’ll be open for a two-week period as teams and players scramble to build their roster or find a new team for the right price and opportunity. The big news that fans will need to remember is that the NCAA eliminated the spring window back in September.
While players have already been announcing their intentions to enter the portal for the last month, they’ll have the opportunity to officially do so on Friday.
Tennessee head coach addressed the Vols’ need to add some talent through the portal this offseason, but also acknowledged his team’s incoming youth and the need for development.
“We’ve got to get better, absolutely,” Heupel said after the Vols’ loss in the Music City Bowl. “But there’s a lot of really good, young talent inside of that locker room. One of, if not the youngest teams in our league. There’s an influx of guys that we just signed that are highly talented. Yes, we have to go in the portal and get some guys, too. The talent is one thing, the development of it is the second part of it.”
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As of Thursday morning, Tennessee has 10 players from the 2025 roster who are expected to officially enter the portal when it opens on Friday. That list includes defensive back Boo Carter, defensive lineman Jamal Wallace, edge rusher Kellen Lindstrom, linebacker Brenden Anes, defensive back Marcus Goree Jr., quarterback Jake Merklinger, running back Peyton Lewis, defensive lineman Trevor Duncan, defensive lineman Herb Gray, and offensive lineman Max Anderson.
Friday will be an important, chaotic day across the college football landscape, with outgoing players being allowed to legally contact other teams, and programs putting their pieces together for their portal additions. We’ll find out a lot about each program’s roster management strategy over the next two weeks.
Stay tuned to Rocky Top Insider for continued Tennessee Football portal coverage in the month of January.
