Grading how each Big 12 program did in the spring portal window

The Big 12 is welcoming four teams and several new faces into the conference this fall. While some programs were more active than others, there was plenty of comings and goings throughout the spring transfer window.

Here is a look at how all 16 teams have graded out in the window so far.

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THIS SERIES: Grading how each SEC program did in the spring portal window | Grading the Big Ten programs

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Key additions: Reymello Murphy, WR (Old Dominion); Jara Anderson, DL (Memphis); Michael Wooton, OL (Oregon)

Key subtractions: Bill Norton, DL (Texas); D.J. Warnell, S (Indiana); Joseph Borjon, OL (San Diego State), Jordan Washington, RB (Washington)

Outlook: This grade is less about the players first-year head coach Brent Brennan brought into the program and more to do with the ones he kept. Arizona managed to retain star quarterback Noah Fifita as well as his top target, Tetairoa McMillan. On defense, the Wildcats held on to their leading tackler in Jacob Manu as well as their top cornerback Tacario Davis.

Arizona experienced a few more departures this spring, as former head coach Jedd Fisch took two more of his former players with him to Washington. However, Brennan deserves a round of applause for fending off the portal sharks this spring.

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Key additions: J'mond Tapp, EDGE (Texas); Chamon Metayer, TE (Colorado)

Key subtractions: Jaden Rashada, QB (Georgia); Elijah Badger, WR (Uncommitted); Ed Woods, CB (Michigan State); Bryce Pierre, TE (Michigan State)

Outlook: While Brennan was able to hold on to his stars, Arizona State head coach Kenny Dillingham wasn’t as lucky. The Sun Devils lost their season-opening quarterback, their leading receiver and a starting cornerback in the same spring window. Arizona State added an athletic tight end in Metayer and a versatile edge rusher in Tapp, but this was an ugly transfer period in Tempe.

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Key additions: JaQues Evans, EDGE (Western Kentucky); Lorando “Snaxx” Johnson, DB (Arkansas); Elinus Noel III, DL (Baylor)

Key subtractions: Armani Winfield, WR (Colorado State)

Outlook: Baylor did solid work in the spring window, adding three difference makers on defense. Johnson returns to Waco after excelling in his lone season at Arkansas. Evans has the ability to get into the backfield, and Noel III should help clog up running lanes in the middle of the defensive line. The only notable loss is four-star receiver Winfield, who recorded just seven receptions for 90 yards in his first full season last year.

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Key additions: Austin Leausa, IOL (Southern Utah); McCae Hillstead, QB (BYU)

Key subtractions: Danny Saili, DL (Arkansas)

Outlook: BYU didn’t see much action in the spring window. Leausa will compete right away for the starting job at right guard, while Hillstead adds quarterback depth for the future. Saili never played for BYU but would have been an exciting option on the defensive line after recording four sacks and 7.5 tackles for a loss at Hutchinson (Kan.) Community College last season.

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Key additions: Xavier Lozowicki, OT (Maine); Cameron Roetherford, DL (Arkansas Pine-Bluff); Max Fletcher, P (Arkansas)

Key subtractions: Dorrian Jones, LB (Uncommitted); Tyler Gillison, LB (Michigan State); Derrick Shephard, DL (Charlotte); Payton Singletary, TE (Uncommitted)

Outlook: Nothing flashy here, but the Bearcats did add a few nice pieces. IMG Academy product Lozowicki put together a solid freshman season at Maine last year and will compete for a starting spot on the offensive line. Roetherford is another nice add from a small school and should contribute as a run-stuffer. Perhaps the most interesting addition is Fletcher, who ranked seventh nationally, averaging 46.95 yards per punt last season.

Jones is a notable loss after recording a career-high 56 tackles in his lone season at Cincinnati. Fellow linebacker Gillison is also a tough loss, as he showed promise during his redshirt freshman season last year.

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Key additions: Nikhai Hill-Green, LB (Charlotte); Dayon Hayes, EDGE (Pittsburgh); Rashad Amos, RB (Miami-Ohio); Dallan Hayden, RB (Ohio State); Ethan Boyd, OT (Michigan State); Zach Owens, IOL (Clemson); Payton Kirkland, OT (Texas); Colton Hood, CB, Auburn; Rayyan Buell, DL (Charlotte)

Key subtractions: Cormani McClain, CB (Uncommitted); Omarion Cooper, CB (Florida State); Dylan Edwards, RB (Kansas State); Alton McCaskill, RB (Uncommitted); Jack Bailey, IOL (Northwestern); Savion Washington, OT (Syracuse)

Outlook: Another year, another offseason overhaul for Deion Sanders.

On one hand, Colorado continued to beef up its offensive line with solid additions in Boyd, Owens and Kirkland. Meanwhile, Hill-Green is a high-IQ defender who can start right away at linebacker, and Hayes should be a nice rotational piece at the edge rusher position.

Still, it’s hard to ignore all the players heading in the opposite direction. Colorado lost a pair of talented cornerbacks with starting experience in McClain and Cooper. It also lost its leading rusher in Edwards as well as another other promising back in McCaskill.

Colorado’s spring class is polarizing, as some rank the Buffaloes as clear winners while others tab them as one of the biggest losers of the window. In reality, they are probably somewhere in between.

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Key additions: Christian Brathwaite, LB (LSU); Gabe Peterson, LB (New Mexico State); Bryan Massey, S (SMU);

Key subtractions: Sam Brown, WR (Miami); Isaiah Hamilton, CB (Ole Miss), Hakeem Ajijolaiya, DT (TCU); Mikal Harrison-Pilot (Uncommitted)

Outlook: It hasn’t been a pretty spring for Willie Fritz and company. Houston saw 21 players enter the portal in the recent window and has so far only reeled in seven new additions.

The Cougars lost their leading receiver in Brown as well as their top cornerback in Hamilton. Four-star receiver Harrison-Pilot is also a notable departure. Brathwaite and Peterson provide a nice boost the linebacking unit, but the Cougars need more than that to make up for their spring losses.

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Key additions: None

Key subtractions: None

Outlook: Iowa State didn’t add anyone in the spring window but didn’t deal with a notable departure.

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Key additions: Bai Jobe, EDGE (Michigan State); Amir Herring, IOL (Kansas)

Key subtractions: None

Outlook: It wasn’t a busy spring in Lawrence, but Kansas managed to land a pair of four-star talents from the 2023 class without experiencing a key departure. Jobe is a former Rivals100 member who appeared in just one game during his freshman season at Michigan State last year. He signed with the Spartans as the No. 7 weakside defensive lineman in his class.

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Key additions: Dylan Edwards, RB (Colorado); Alex Marenco, LB (New Mexico)

Key subtractions: Jevon Banks, DL (UConn)

Outlook: Adding Edwards might be the move that helps Kansas State take home the Big 12 title. During his freshman season last year, the Derby, Kan., native ran for 321 yards and a touchdown on 76 carries while pulling in 36 receptions for 299 yards and four scores through the air. He adds another dimension to a Wildcats offense that already returns a 1,000-yard rusher in junior running back D.J. Giddens as well as a Heisman darkhorse candidate in sophomore quarterback Avery Johnson.

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Key additions: Trent Howland, RB (Indiana); Gavin Freeman, WR (Oklahoma)

Key subtractions: None

Outlook: It wasn’t a busy window for Oklahoma State, but the Cowboys came away with a pair of somewhat intriguing additions. Howland will add depth behind Doak Walker Award winner Ollie Gordon II. Meanwhile, Freeman should serve as a nice utility weapon. The 5-foot-8, 185-pound receiver tallied 19 receptions for 95 yards and a touchdown for Oklahoma last season. He also carried the ball five times for 20 yards and ran back a punt for a touchdown.

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Key additions: James Brockermeyer, IOL (Alabama); Hakeem Ajijolaiya, DL (Houston)

Key subtractions: Damonic Williams, DL (Oklahoma)

Outlook: There’s no getting around the loss of Williams. The 6-foot-2, 320-pound defensive tackle was one of the key cogs of TCU’s defense the past two seasons, recording a combined 60 tackles, including 4.5 sacks. TCU brought in Ajijolaiya, who can also eat up blocks and clog running lanes. However, the Houston transfer is hardly a replacement for Williams.

On the other side of the ball, Brockermeyer once again followed in his twin brother Tommy’s footsteps, transferring from Alabama where he spent the spring as the Crimson Tide’s first-team center. James should have more success than Tommy did in Fort Worth, but he’s still unproven at the college level after playing sparingly the past two seasons.

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Key additions: None

Key subtractions: None

Outlook: Texas Tech didn’t have a portal addition this spring but didn’t see any key departures either.

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Key additions: Peny Boone, RB (Louisville); Jacurri Brown, QB (Miami); Tre’quon Fegans, CB (Southern California); Nyjalik Kelly, EDGE (Miami); Cedrick Hawkins, S (Ohio State); Keegan Smith, IOL (Central Michigan); Jacoby Jones, WR (Ohio)

Key subtractions: Demarkcus Bowman, RB (Uncommitted); Timmy McClain, QB (Arkansas State); Nikai Martinez, CB (Uncommitted); Josh Celiscar, EDGE (Texas A&M)

Outlook: Despite losing a former five-star running back and its projected backup quarterback, Central Florida ended up as one of the biggest winners of the spring window. The Knights replaced Bowman with MAC Offensive Player of the Year Boone, who ranked seventh in the nation in yards per carry (7.22) and eighth in rushing yards (1,400). Meanwhile, Miami transfer Brown should fill in for McClain as a backup option behind K.J. Jefferson at the quarterback position.

Central Florida wasn’t done there, either. The Knights also came away with several other impact additions, bringing in four-star defenders in Southern California defensive back Fegans and Miami edge rusher Kelly, who are both poised for breakout years.

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Key additions: Sam Huard, QB (Cal Poly); Damien Alford, WR (Syracuse); Paul Fitzgerald, EDGE (Utah State)

Key subtractions: Koli Faaiu, IOL (Texas A&M); Chase Kennedy, EDGE (Arizona)

Outlook: Utah bolstered its offense for the present and the future during the spring window. Alford joins the Utes after leading Syracuse with 33 catches for 610 yards and three touchdowns last season. The 6-foot-6, 210-pound receiver should be a nice target for returning starting quarterback Cam Rising, who is entering his seventh and final season.

Utah was also able to find Rising’s eventual successor, landing a commitment from former five-star recruit Huard. Last season, Huard started nine games for Cal Poly, completing 60.9 percent of his passes for 2,205 yards and 18 touchdowns with 10 interceptions. The rising redshirt junior has two years of eligibility remaining.

Utah’s biggest loss comes in Faaiu, who started the last eight games at center. The 6-foot-3, 326-pound lineman was expected to retain his starting spot had he stayed.

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Key additions: Dontez Fagan, CB (Charlotte)

Key subtractions: Montre Miller, CB (Uncommitted), E.J. Horton, WR (Uncommitted)

Outlook: West Virginia lost seventh-year senior Miller, who played in just one game last season before suffering a season-ending injury. The Mountaineers were able to replace him with Fagan, who is coming off an impressive senior at Charlotte where he recorded four pass breakups and an interception while starting nine games in 12 appearances.