Florida football transfer portal tracker: Crucial weekend for Gators, portal targets

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — With eight scholarships available for 2023 and multiple vacancies dotting the depth chart, Florida’s football staff is browsing the transfer portal in bulk.

This weekend looms critical because it concludes a five-day period in which the NCAA allows transfers to take official visits. The Gators are courting experienced players to augment a young roster, and the ones they land now will have the added benefit of enrolling for spring practice.

Let’s check the temperature on potential transfers:

Currently on board

First, a refresher on the transfers who have committed to Florida or signed grants-in-aid since the portal window opened Dec. 5. A point of order regarding every transfer across the nation: Signing a GIA doesn’t make the players beholden to their new school. None of these players is bound until they enroll, expanding the possibility of last-second changes based upon coaching moves or name, image and likeness deals pouring in.

Wisconsin quarterback Graham Mertz: The Athletic first reported Dec. 21 that the three-year Badgers starter is Gainesville-bound. If you bought stock in Mertz as a top-70 signee in 2019 and sold it when he entered the portal, you took a heavy loss. Yet Florida’s staff sees upside in a quarterback who started 32 games at a Big Ten program, even if Mertz won only 19 of them.

The player who had Notre Dame, Ohio State, Alabama and Georgia pursuing him out of high school in Mission, Kan., received a strong endorsement from fired Wisconsin coach Paul Chryst. And there’s precedent for players capitalizing on second acts to reset their careers. Tulane’s Michael Pratt and Coastal Carolina’s Grayson McCall would’ve excited Gators fans far more, but both are staying put. Oklahoma State’s Spencer Sanders, who warranted a look from Florida last month, more recently has been linked to Ole Miss and Auburn. That leaves Mertz, a game-managing pocket passer with two years of eligibility left, to compete with sophomore Jack Miller and four-star early enrollee Jaden Rashada for the job in 2023.

Ohio State linebacker Teradja Mitchell: Like Mertz, Mitchell was a blue-chip signee — ranking No. 44 in the 2018 class — who failed to match projections. Mitchell began 2021 as the Buckeyes’ starting inside linebacker but lost his spot after eight games on a defense that ultimately saw coordinator Kerry Coombs forced out. Under new coordinator Jim Knowles this season, Mitchell played only one defensive snap and redshirted after appearing on special teams in four games.

The situation is so dire at inside linebacker for the Gators that any help feels beneficial, especially after departed seniors Ventrell Miller and Amari Burney combined for more than 1,200 defensive snaps this season, Shemar James is the only bona fide holdover in that group, with Derek Wingo and Scooby Williams yet to distinguish themselves.

Louisville defensive lineman Caleb Banks: Despite playing only 37 defensive snaps this season, Banks generated Power 5 interest from programs intrigued by his upside. He signed at Louisville in 2021 as a project at 6 foot 6 and 255 pounds, and now he’s listed at 6-7 and 300. Appearing in seven games across his first two college seasons signals there’s plenty of development still required. With three years of eligibility remaining, the Gators staff has time to make Banks productive.

Memphis defensive lineman Cam’Ron Jackson: With Desmond Watson and Chris McClellan returning, the interior defensive line rotation is thin. The 6-6, 340-pound Jackson — a longtime LSU commit before having to reroute to Memphis — is more advanced than Banks. He arrives at Florida with three years to play two and could be starting next fall as the Gators break in talented freshman signees Kelby Collins, Will Norman and Kamran James.

Teradja Mitchell played one defensive snap this season at Ohio State and redshirted after appearing on special teams in four games. (Brian Spurlock / USA Today)

Targets

Miami tackle John Campbell: He made 11 starts for a Hurricanes offensive line that struggled in Mario Cristobal’s debut season, but experienced tackles are so rare in the portal — and freshman signees typically aren’t ready to contribute — that players like Campbell have value.

USC, Tennessee and Florida State joined Florida on Campbell’s list of finalists. All three of those competing schools subsequently received commitments from tackles: the Trojans taking Michael Tarquin of Florida, the Vols pulling Andrej Karic from Texas and the Seminoles landing an elite prospect, Jeremiah Byers of UTEP. Clearly, the Gators have the biggest need.

Before missing 2021 with a torn ACL, Campbell made three starts in 2020. He would have two years of eligibility remaining assuming a medical waiver for the season lost to the knee injury.

With Richard Gouraige graduating and Tarquin off to the West Coast, Florida’s depth at tackle is thin. Aside from Austin Barber, who delivered a promising redshirt freshman season with five starts, the spring lineup could involve sophomores Kamryn Waites and Jordan Herman. Even that’s tenuous after the massive 6-8 Waites moved inside to guard midway through last season.

Baylor guard Micah Mazzccua: O’Cyrus Torrence is NFL-bound after a stellar one-year layover at Florida, and Ethan White is in the portal, which leaves Richie Leonard as the only Gators guard with measurable experience. Though the door isn’t shut on White’s return, landing Mazzccua would solidify the interior line. The 10-game starter at Baylor this past season is in the midst of a busy week, also visiting Nebraska and Auburn.

Baylor safety Al Walcott: A two-year starter at Baylor, Walcott emerged as a reliable tackler this season. You also might recall his 96-yard pick six the previous year against Ole Miss in the Sugar Bowl.

If there’s a drawback to Walcott, it’s that he only possesses one year of eligibility as a grad transfer. Then again, that single year could be the only bridge needed until safety signees Dijon Johnson, Jordan Castell and Aaron Gates acclimate.

South Carolina edge Gilber Edmond: Three years ago he was a February signing day flip from USF to the Gamecocks, where Mike Peterson was coaching the outside linebackers. Now Peterson is at Florida, and Edmond, a native of Fort Pierce, has an opportunity to transfer home.

The 6-5, 250-pound junior visited FSU this week — “It’s amazing what they have done the past season,” he said. LSU and Ole Miss are also believed to be involved after Edmond emerged as a starter this season with nine tackles for loss, two sacks and 39 total stops.

He has two years of eligibility remaining, the same as Florida’s top edge rusher, Antwaun Powell-Ryland. That’s not a dealbreaker because all the top programs courting Edmond are likely to use him in a platoon.

Michigan linebacker Deuce Spurlock: He’s from Madison, Ala., the same Huntsville suburb as Gators cornerback Jaydon Hill. In the seven months Spurlock spent at Michigan, he appeared in two early-season games. A low three-star recruit in the 2022 class, he’s a plus-athlete who rapidly added 20 pounds as a freshman and has inside-outside flexibility at linebacker.

Long shots and potential interest

South Carolina edge Jordan Burch: Peterson played a role in signing this five-star, No. 8 recruit in 2020. The competition will be hefty for Burch this time around, even though he only began to flash his elite potential this past season.

LSU linebacker DeMario Tolan: The Orlando-Dr. Phillips graduate was a four-star recruit last year who appeared in 10 games this season at LSU. The Gators weren’t much of a factor in the high school recruitment of this athletic linebacker, and he was quick to visit Auburn after entering the portal this week.

Towson tackle Dan Volpe: After earning FCS Freshman All-America honors, the 6-6, 305-pound Volpe has referenced offers from Duke and Kansas. There’s a ton of runway left in the college career of a player who made 12 starts his first year.

Kentucky tackle Kiyaunta Goodwin: The No. 38 recruit in 2022 redshirted as a freshman.

Ole Miss linebacker Austin Keys: He factored into the Rebels’ inside linebacker rotation each of the past two seasons and has two years of eligibility remaining. A three-star recruit in 2020, Keys was recruited heavily by Napier’s staff at Louisiana.

Liberty running back Dae Dae Hunter: He ran for 854 yards this season — 213 of those against BYU — but tore his LCL in Week 9 and missed Liberty’s final four games. There might be questions about his readiness for preseason camp, but the 5-10 Hunter showcased his pass-catching skills at Liberty and his first two seasons at Hawaii. With Florida seeking running back depth behind Montrell Johnson and Trevor Etienne, might Hunter embrace a backup role?