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Coming into this season, we knew that there would be one non-power four team to make the College Football Playoff. That team ended up being Boise State. The Broncos had one of the best seasons in program history as they went 11-1 in the regular with their lone loss being a close defeat on the road against #1 Oregon. Boise State ended up cruising through their Mountain West schedule, and they made it to the College Football Playoff. Now, the season is over, and the Broncos have some elite talent to replace. The transfer portal will be an important tool over the offseason.
Boise State made it to the College Football Playoff this year after winning the Mountain West and having a 12-1 record. The Broncos didn't just earn the automatic bid, but they were actually ranked inside the top-12 and ended up being one of the four highest-ranked conference champions.
The Broncos played Penn State in the College Football Playoff quarterfinals at the Fiesta Bowl, and they put up a good fight. Boise State didn't start the game strong and they didn't close it strong either, and that was ultimately the difference in the game. For a good portion of the contest, however, the Broncos showed that they belonged on the big stage.
Now, Boise State is looking to next year as they hope to take the next step. The Broncos should once again be one of the best non-power four teams, but they do have some elite talent to replace. That's when the transfer portal comes into play.
The biggest loss that Boise State is suffering is the loss of running back Ashton Jeanty. Jeanty was the best player on the team and one of the best running backs that college football has ever seen. He was a Heisman finalist, and the heart and soul of this Broncos team.
He is just one player that needs to be replaced, but there are more as well. Here are some transfer portal targets that the Broncos should be looking at to help fill the void of lost talent.
Johntay Cook, WR, Texas
One position of need for Boise State is the wide receiver position, and Johntay Cook could be an option. This a bit of a long shot as Cook was a very highly-ranked recruit and he has the potential to be a star at the best programs in the country. However, his recent situation with Washington could be a big turn off for top schools, and Cook could have to think about going to a non-power four school like Boise State.
Johntay cooked transferred to Washington this offseason, and less than 48 hours after joining the team, they decided to part ways. It's unclear what happened, but this could make it hard for Cook to land a spot with a top power four program. If he can't, Boise State would be a good option as they are going to be a College Football Playoff contender.
Scottre Humphrey, RB, Montana State
At this point, a lot of top transfers have already been taken, but running back Scottre Humphrey could be worth a look if you're Boise State. The Broncos do already have a transfer RB commit this offseason as Malik Sherrod is coming to play for Boise State, but Humphrey might still be an option. He rushed for nearly 1,400 yards last season and 16 touchdowns while averaging seven yards per carry. Those are impressive numbers and he could make a big impact next year on this offense.
A lot of transfer portal work will be done later in the offseason when the spring window opens, but there is still some good talent available. The time to build for the 2025 season is here, and it will be exciting to see if this Boise State football team can make another run to the College Football Playoff.
Transfer portal overview
One of the biggest parts of the college football offseason is the transfer portal, and the festivities begin before the offseason actually starts. Teams that didn’t qualify for the postseason have entered their offseason, but there are a lot of teams that still have bowl games to play. The transfer portal opened up on December 9th, so it creates some issues for players that want to transfer but still have a season going.
The transfer portal is a massive part of college football now, and there are definitely positives and negatives to it. One of the biggest issues that people have with it is the timing of the first window. It is open in early December so players can pick a new school and start the next semester there when January rolls around. However, it does create issues as we have already seen players this year on College Football Playoff teams have to miss out on the opportunity to participate in the CFP because of their transfer.
On the flip side, the transfer portal gives teams a chance to completely rebuild their squad in just one offseason. New head coaches can come in and bring in a lot of experienced players from the jump, and it can make for a quick turnaround. Any team has hope in the offseason because of the transfer portal.
The transfer portal opened up for the first time this season on December 9th and that first window stayed open until December 28th. This window is the main window where a lot of the action takes place, but the transfer portal will open again in the spring.
From April 16th until April 25th, the transfer portal will be back open. That way, players can go through spring ball and have a better idea of what their upcoming season will look like. If they aren’t satisfied, they can leave. We even sometimes see players that transferred in the first window transfer again in the second window, sometimes back to their original school.
The transfer portal is a crucial part of the offseason, and we will be hearing a lot about it from now until the end of the spring.
