The Orange have 27 players in the transfer portal, but it might not all be what it seems.
At the time of this posting, the Syracuse University football team has 27 players in the transfer portal. Those players include quarterback Rickie Collins, who started five games for the Orange in 2025, and top receivers Darrell Gill Jr. and Johntay Cook.
While the inclination might be that players want out of town because of program's 3-9 record or because of better NIL opportunities, that's not necessarily the case, as was noted by 'Cuse Sports Talk on Friday.
A team source has told @SteveInfantiNC9 that Yasin Willis and Johntay Cook were encouraged to enter the transfer portal by the Syracuse coaching staff. Darrell Gill was the one key starter SU wanted back that hit the portal.
So, in fact, it was Syracuse who told at least two players to look for other opportunities. There's no indication how many other players they potentially told that too.
Why would the Orange do that?
Much like the fact that players can transfer for any number of reasons, programs can try to push players out for any number of reasons. The Orange may have felt that these players didn't fit with what they were building, or they may have felt that they weren't going to have the same opportunities in 2026.
Perhaps Syracuse wanted to save some NIL money for new and incoming players. We really don't know. All we do know is that the Orange have quite a bit of roster building to do this offseason. Luckily, recruiting is one of Fran Brown's greatest strengths as a coach.
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About the Orange in 2025
As stated above, Syracuse went 3-9 in 2025, really struggling after a season-ending injury to quarterback Steve Angeli in Week 4. Luckily, Angeli will be back in 2026 and the team should have a chance to succeed at a greater level in the Atlantic Coast Conference.
Elsewhere on campus
--The Syracuse University men's basketball team dropped a 64-61 contest against Clemson on Wednesday afternoon, falling to 9-5 overall. Donnie Freeman led the way with 18 points but Syracuse is now 0-1 inside Atlantic Coast Conference play.
They'll be back in action on Jan. 6 against Georgia Tech in Atlanta, Georgia. Tip-off is 7 p.m. ET.
--The SU women avenged a tough loss against Duke on Sunday by beating Florida State on Thursday night. They are now 12-2 overall and 2-1 inside league play.
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