Jumbo Package: Alabama continues to lose deep players in the transfer portal

Unfortunately, the big news yesterday was bad news for Alabama fans:

This is strange. Mbakwe was a high school QB who was expected to play DB or WR in college due to his speed. Despite being completely inexperienced as a cornerback entering college, he received decent rotational playing time throughout the season. He wasn’t a starter – but he played a fair amount of meaningful snaps.

And to be honest, for the most part he looked like someone who was still learning the position.

Basically, he got a lot more playing time as a true freshman and was the clear No. 3 cornerback through 2024… And he decides to leave?

Rumors about this topic are apparently circulating everywhere. It appears that Ole Miss is the team, and there has been a lot of talk that he might want to play on offense as well. Of course, how would he know that Ole Miss would even be willing to let him play both sides of the ball before he jumped into the portal? /S

Alabama also lost another player to the portal, although this one makes a lot more sense and we wish him well:

Alabama Recipient Emmanuel Henderson plans to enter the NCAA transfer portal On3’s Hayes Fawcett reported on Monday. Henderson spent the last three seasons with the Crimson Tide and will have one more year of eligibility.

The 6-foot-1 receiver played in every game last season and finished with four catches for 82 yards. He also contributed as a kick returner with five returns for a total of 107 yards (21.4 average).

Henderson was one of those small school athletes, a running back who switched to WR as a freshman and dealt with a pretty serious injury early in his career.

He’ll be entering his fifth season in 2025 and likely sits at No. 5 on the depth chart behind Ryan Williams, Germie Bernard, Cole Adams and Jalen Hale – plus Alabama is recruiting heavily in the portal for some WR options.

This is a transfer you can consider as a graduate who wants a chance at playing time in his senior year.

One of those portal WRs that Alabama is reportedly targeting is Miami WR, Isaiah Horton.

The Miami Hurricanes world received some not-so-great news from WR late Monday morning Isaiah Hortonwho is expected to be one of the offense’s primary threats in 2025, signs papers to enter the transfer portal.

Now CaneSport has learned that Horton’s representatives at Miami-based First Round Management are close to a deal with Alabama as UM fights to get him to stay.

Last season, Horton served primarily as a fourth receiver off the bench and had 56 catches for 616 yards (third most on the team) – his statistical best was 108 yards on eight catches with a TD against USF.

Horton arrived in Miami as a freshman in 2022 and redshirted a total of 11 reps. He then played in 11 games in 2023, starting two, and finished with 13 catches for 168 yards and a touchdown. He shined at times, most notably with a 52-yard touchdown catch against Texas A&M.

Now for more good news. TE Danny Lewis Jr. has changed his mind and withdrawn from the portal.

by a Crimson Tide player’s decision to come back.

Danny Lewis Jr., a 2022 three-star tight end from New Iberia, Louisiana, will withdraw his name from the NCAA transfer portal and return to the Crimson Tide in 2025, Lionheart Sports Agency’s Hunter Kirsch confirmed to the Tuscaloosa News.

Lewis’ production wasn’t particularly extensive in his three seasons with the Crimson Tide. He had one catch for five yards in three seasons, playing a role on both offense and special teams.

But as he enters his fourth year at Alabama, Lewis’ role could expand significantly.

The junior has been stuck behind an experienced Robbie Ouzts for three years in a row. While it wasn’t a big surprise that he burst into the spotlight entering his fourth year, it did seem a little premature since both of the starting TE’s were graduating.

Josh Cuevas is expected to be one of the TEs in the starting lineup, but Alabama has used two TEs regularly all season, so Lewis should have an early lead in winning that job.

A former Alabama player has found a new home:

Head coach Deion Sanders promised that the Colorado Buffaloes would be active in the college football transfer portal, and on Monday he landed his first significant defensive addition in former Alabama Crimson Tide lineman Jeheim Oatis.

At 6-foot-1 and 300 pounds, Oatis is a prime candidate to replace outgoing seniors Chidozie Nwankwo and Shane Cokes. Oatis played in 29 games over three seasons for the Crimson Tide, totaling 57 tackles and 1.5 sacks. Despite battling various injuries, Oatis saw limited action at the start of last season and decided to redshirt before entering the portal.

Oatis left the team when he was benched in favor of Tim Keenan and Tim Smith after failing to return to playing shape following an off-season injury, so we had mostly forgotten about him at this point in the year… But it Seems like it’s fitting that he goes to Colorado. I find it funny that he’s ranked as the top defensive player in the transfer portal this year… A guy who got benched. In a way, it shows what kind of talent is actually in the portal: It’s not the starters and stars.

Anyway, if you’re worried about the 14 Alabama players who have entered the portal, read this article by Chase Goodbread because it adds some perspective before you go too far.

Typically, Saban limited his portal interest to the few players he believed could step in and start. He never felt the need to replace backup players who left the portal with backup players from other schools.

And DeBoer shouldn’t do that either.

Saban lost 18 players to the portal last year before he announced his resignation. The portal has always resulted in a net loss of players in Alabama in terms of numbers. It obviously has a negative impact on depth; Even if DeBoer manages to push the program back into national championship contention, he likely will never be able to maintain the depth that Saban once built in the pre-portal era.

This is a different era now, and Alabama’s talents on the second and third lines under Saban have suffered as well. But there is also something like addition by subtraction when it comes to cadre turnover. Not only is the portal an opportunity for players to find a better situation, it’s also a chance for the program to get rid of a few disgruntled guys who are weakening the locker room rather than strengthening it.

Here’s another score: 27-1. That’s a total of 27 portal losses so far in Georgia, Tennessee and Florida, and they’ve only suffered one combined. Oklahoma? 22 out, none in.

Does this sound familiar?

Large schools fish with heavy equipment. And they only need to catch a few to make a difference.

Alabama lost a lot of players to the transfer portal a year ago. But they brought in Domani Jackson, Germie Bernard, Parker Brailsford and LT Overton, all of whom were among the Tide’s best and most consistent performers in 2024.

As things stand, despite the 14 portal losses, Alabama currently only has room for 6 more players. They will add some key players to the portal, but they will do so carefully.

Roll Tide!