Miami, LSU among 6 college football teams that upgraded the most with strong 2025 transfer portal hauls

With revenue sharing expected to start on July 1, this offseason likely marked the peak of the NIL era for college football. Many programs took advantage of what may be the last true Wild West portal season, pushing all their chips to the middle of the table to maximize their roster talent with major upgrades.

Glancing at 247Sports' transfer portal rankings, there are a few familiar programs near the top along with a surprising newcomer that broke the bank after making progress in the Big 12 last season. Not only did these six programs address needs at the skill spots, but they went heavy in the trenches and signed necessary depth additions at a variety of positions.

These teams are hoping their enhancements jump off the page this fall and result in banner seasons. Here's a look at teams that went all in this past offseason.

LSU Tigers

Key additions: Nic Anderson, WR (Oklahoma); Patrick Payton, Edge (Florida State); Sydir Mitchell, DL (Texas); Barion Brown, WR (Kentucky); Jack Pyburn, Edge (Florida)

Brian Kelly's 29 wins over three seasons aren't good enough for a program like LSU. That's why the Tigers exhausted resources and landed the nation's top-ranked portal class. Not only did the Tigers add weapons for returning quarterback Garrett Nussmeier, they made it a point to go after the big fish on the other side of the football. LSU signed a pair of new edge defenders from Power Four programs, then added Houston safety A.J. Haulcy and USF nose tackle Bernard Gooden in the spring window.

Miami Hurricanes

Key additions: Carson Beck, QB (Georgia); CJ Daniels, WR (LSU); Emmanuel Karnley, CB (Arizona); Xavier Lucas, CB (Wisconsin); Ethan O'Connor, CB (Washington State)

Arguably the biggest winner in the post-spring transfer window, the Hurricanes signed BYU playmaker Keelan Marion, took a flyer on talented Rutgers linebacker Mohamed Toure and added depth in the secondary with safety Jakobe Thomas (Tennessee) and cornerback Keionte Scott (Houston). Those additions just supplemented the Hurricanes' blockbuster winter portal window haul. Beck nixed another year at Georgia for a better payday in Coral Gables and TCU's James Brockermeyer is a plug-and-play starter on the offensive line. A source close to the ACC program told CBS Sports this week Miami's offensive line is "the most complete" the team has had under Mario Cristobal.

Texas Tech Red Raiders

Key additions: David Bailey, EDGE (Stanford); Howard Sampson, OT (UNC), Romello Height, EDGE (Georgia Tech); Will Jados, OT (Miami, Ohio); Quinten Joyner, RB (USC)

Thanks to the highest-rated transfer class in program history, the hype is real for the Red Raiders ahead of Joey McGuire's fourth season. Texas Tech revamped the line of scrimmage with a number of key signings, including elite edge rushers Bailey and Height along with a couple new starting offensive tackles. The Red Raiders are bringing back former five-star signee Micah Hudson at receiver following his cup of tea with Texas A&M. Former UCF run-stopper Lee Hunter fills a massive hole at 6-foot-4, 325 pounds.

Florida State Seminoles

Key additions: Duce Robinson, WR (USC); James Williams, EDGE (Nebraska); Jeremiah Wilson, CB (Houston); Micah Pettus, OT (Ole Miss); Squirrel White, WR (Tennessee)

Mike Norvell landed nearly two-dozen transfers — along with wholesale coordinator changes — to try and direct the ship back in the right direction this season. Successfully hitting on player evaluations is vital at all programs in transition roster-wise, but especially for the Seminoles who whiffed last cycle compared to elite success with 2023 additions. Former Boston College quarterback Thomas Castellanos might be the most important transfer this fall and how the Seminoles adjust to run-heavy looks with Gus Malzahn as their new play-caller.

Oklahoma Sooners

Key additions: John Mateer, QB (Washington State); Jaydn Ott, RB (Cal); Marvin Jones, EDGE (Florida State); Kendal Daniels, LB (Oklahoma State); Derek Simmons, OT (Western Carolina)

This will be a vastly different offensive look for the Sooners as they try to rebound from Brent Venables' second losing season in three years. Oklahoma has invested in Mateer and his former offensive coordinator Ben Arbuckle to bring the program back to respectability in the SEC. And with Venables taking over the defense, grabbing a player of Daniels' caliber from former Big 12 rival Oklahoma State was a big-time win. An underrated storyline from the spring window was Oklahoma holding onto former five-star defensive tackle David Stone. He entered the portal after the final spring scrimmage before changing his mind.

Missouri Tigers

Key additions: Damon Wilson II, LB (Georgia); Ahmad Hardy, RB (ULM); Beau Pribula, QB (Penn State); Kevin Coleman Jr., WR (Mississippi State); Nate Johnson, Edge (Appalachian State)

Replacing multi-year starters Brady Cook (quarterback) and Luther Burden III (wideout) would make most coaches lose sleep, especially in the SEC, but Eli Drinkwitz is confident in his portal assessments with the addition of Pribula and Coleman in those roles. Hardy should get the lion's share of the workload in the backfield after rushing for 1,351 yards as a freshman last season. Wilson was one of the top available players this cycle and the Tigers made the outside linebacker a priority.