Syracuse, N.Y. — Syracuse lost a total of 29 players to the transfer portal after the 2025 season.
Most have found new homes, but five players remain unsigned or uncommitted as schools around the country have started to finalize their 2026 rosters.
Among the 24 players to sign with or commit to a new school, one transferred to the junior-college level while four others dropped down to the FCS level.
Nineteen players will play for another FBS program, including eight who remain at the Power-Four level.
Here’s a breakdown of the departures:
Quarterbacks
Syracuse played four of its six quarterbacks in 2025, and three of those four transferred this offseason across various levels of football.
Redshirt freshman Luke Carney was the only quarterback to move to a major-conference school. Carney, a four-time state champion in Texas, was passed over by the SU coaches in favor of walk-on lacrosse player Joseph Filardi.
Carney has landed at Houston.
Rickie Collins, a former four-star recruit at LSU, transferred to Kennesaw State in a de facto trade for first-team All-Conference USA selection Amari Odom.
And Jakhari Williams, a seldom-used QB, will attend Southwest Mississippi Community College.
FCS transfers
Of Syracuse’s four FCS transfers, three struggled to see the field at SU.
That offensive lineman Joshua Miller ended up at Austin Peay is somewhat shocking. Miller transferred to Syracuse from Georgia and played three different positions for the Orange last season. He played more than 30 snaps in four of his six appearances, including a snap.
Defenders Caden Brown and Jahide Lesaine combined for just 58 defensive snaps.
Wide receiver Ta’Ron Haile played 91 on special teams.
Reunions
Some of Syracuse’s players ended up in the same landing spot.
The Orange lost its two leading wide receivers in Darrell Gill Jr. and Johntay Cook II to Ole Miss, with former Syracuse signee Michael Smith.
Wide receiver Emanuel Ross and running back Jaden Hart transferred to Connecticut with former quarterbacks coach Nunzio Campanile.
Defensive linemen Eric Thomas and DeAngelo Thompson both transferred to Memphis.
Haile and Miller both transferred to Austin Peay.
Other Power-Four transfers
Syracuse’s other Power-Four transfers were cornerbacks Ibn McDaniels (Penn State) and Kaylib Singleton (Mississippi State), running back Yasin Willis (Kansas), wide receiver Jaylan Hornsby (Purdue) and linebacker Derek McDonald (North Carolina).
Of those five players, Willis and McDonald were the only starters.
Group-of-Six transfers
Wide receiver Gabe Daniels (Tulane), defensive tackle Quante Gillians (Temple), Thomas and Thompson did as well as they could when transferring to Group-of-Six schools.
All landed in the American Athletic Conference, one of the top leagues outside of the four richest conferences.
Kicker Jaydn Oh wasn’t far behind, following former special teams coordinator Ricky Brumfield to Oregon State.
But Rickie Collins (Kennesaw State), running back Malachi James (Eastern Michigan) and cornerback Greg Delaine (Georgia Southern) ended up in the lower levels of FBS competition.
Still searching
The five players who remain unsigned or uncommitted are: linebackers James Heard Jr. and Fatim Diggs, wide receiver Ja’Meer Thomas, safety Jalil Martin and defensive end Chase Simmons.
All had different measures of impact during their time at SU.
Heard, Martin and Simmons combined for 284 defensive snaps last season. Diggs played 46 special teams snaps, while Thomas didn’t see the field at all in a redshirt year.
Syracuse can hang its hat on not losing many starters, though.
Just five of Syracuse’s outgoing transfers were starters, a welcomed outcome for a program that graduated 11 starters and its No. 2 running back in Will Nixon.
The Orange did not, however, replace every outgoing transfer with an incoming transfer.
Syracuse brought in just 18 transfers, which formed the 11th-best transfer class in the ACC, according to 247Sports.
Below is a table listing where each outgoing Syracuse transfer landed as teams dive into their winter offseason programs.