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Transfer Portal Snapshot: Texas surges as SEC momentum shifts

Jan 11, 2026 | 6:23 PM
Cam Coleman

Gary Cosby Jr.-Imagn Images

By Chris Marler

The 2026 NCAA transfer portal opened Friday, Jan 2 and has been open for ten days now. 

By the Numbers 

It was by far the slowest day of the portal for SEC teams since it opened. Just five players entered the portal from SEC teams, and 30 players committed or signed to SEC teams. It’s now the fifth day in a row where more people were gained than lost amongst SEC teams, and the +25 margin is the highest of any day since the portal opened. 

As of Sunday, over 4,000 players in college football have entered the portal. That includes 2,784 players at the FBS level. A total of 1,233 FBS players have committed, meaning just 44 percent of the players in the portal have signed or committed to a school. That’s up four percent from yesterday. A trend that stayed the same was less than 1 percent of players withdrawing their name from the portal with just 23 players rethinking their initial decision to enter. To put that in perspective, that number has hovered around 4 percent over the last three years. 

Texas is the New No. 1 

Texas stole most of the headlines on Sunday when they landed two top 30 players and the number one non-quarterback player in the portal. The good news started with former Auburn WR Cam Coleman signing with the Longhorns. We predicted this a few days ago, but Coleman made it official on Sunday. Coleman’s signing vaulted Texas up to the No. 1 ranking in the country from 247Sports. 

Reports from multiple schools were that Coleman was seeking around $3.5 million for his services. Sources around Auburn suggested that their offer was around $3.3 million with incentives built in that could allow it to reach $4 million. LSU was told a number similar would be required to land him. 

That kind of money automatically took out teams like LSU and Alabama, not from lack of wanting to land Coleman, but lack of desperation in needing to do so. Texas had deep pockets and desperation going all in on this portal class in what could be Arch Manning’s last year in Austin. 

The good news kept coming shortly after as Texas landed the No. 2 overall running back and Alabama portal commit, Hollywood Smothers. Smothers committed to Alabama just days ago, but the coaching staff failed to get a signature for a deal from him and only a verbal commit. That proved to be a big mistake as Smothers flipped his commitment from Alabama to Texas and will more than likely sign with the Longhorns. 

Former LSU QB Getting Another Year 

Former LSU quarterback Max Johnson is going to give Van Wilder a run for his money and give another year of college a go. Johnson committed to Georgia Southern. That’s his fourth different school after making previous stops at LSU, Texas A&M and North Carolina. Johnson was a part of the 2020 recruiting class, which included DJ Uiagalelei, CJ Stroud and Bryce Young.

Alabama Slammer-ed

Alabama had a really good season getting to the quarterfinals of the College Football Playoff and winning 11 games. They also finished with the second ranked recruiting class for the 2026 cycle, bringing in four five-star players. They have fallen on their face in the portal. The Crimson Tide has only signed five players in the portal, and one of those is a punter. Losing Smothers dropped their ranking from No. 24 to No. 56 which ranks 15th in the SEC only ahead of Vanderbilt. 

They also saw one of their top playmakers from this past season sign with another SEC school, as wide receiver Isaiah Horton signed a deal with Texas A&M. 

Big Names Making Decisions 

Former Texas running back CJ Baxter committed to Kentucky. The Wildcats currently have 21 signees and the No. 6 ranked class in the transfer portal. 

Former five-star Auburn quarterback Deuce Knight committed to Ole Miss. 

Former four-star Alabama defensive lineman Kelby Collins committed to South Carolina along with his brother Drew Collins from Arkansas State. 

Exodus by SEC Teams 

These numbers will fluctuate rapidly, but here are the total players that have entered the portal for each SEC team according to 247Sports as of Sunday, Jan. 11, at 6:00 p.m. CT.

383 players from the SEC have entered the portal, and 236 players have committed and/or signed with SEC teams. 

SEC Players Entering the Portal

  • Auburn – 36
  • Arkansas – 35 
  • Mississippi State – 34 
  • LSU – 32
  • Florida – 31
  • Oklahoma – 26
  • Tennessee – 25
  • Missouri – 24
  • Texas – 22 
  • Kentucky – 22
  • South Carolina – 21
  • Alabama – 20
  • Vanderbilt – 17 
  • Texas A&M – 16
  • Georgia – 12
  • Ole Miss – 10

Players Signed by an SEC Team 

  • Arkansas – 32
  • Kentucky – 21 
  • Auburn – 20
  • LSU – 19
  • Florida – 18
  • Texas A&M – 16
  • South Carolina – 15
  • Mississippi State – 14
  • Missouri – 14 
  • Texas – 13
  • Ole Miss – 12 
  • Vanderbilt – 12
  • Oklahoma – 11
  • Tennessee – 9
  • Alabama – 5
  • Georgia – 5

247Sports National Rankings 

No. 4 – LSU
No. 5 – Ole Miss
No. 6 – Kentucky
No. 11 – Texas A&M
No. 12 – Auburn
No. 14 – Oklahoma
No. 15 – Arkansas
No. 16 – Florida
No. 17 – Tennessee
No. 18 – Missouri?
No. 20 – South Carolina
No. 26 – Georgia
No. 34 – Mississippi State
No. 56 – Alabama
No. 62 – Vanderbilt 

Chris Marler

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