2025 NFL Draft scouting: Cam Ward, Quinshon Judkins and other top transfers

Arguably, there are few things in this world that progress as quickly as the college football.

We even questioned three years back whether the newly implemented unrestricted NCAA transfer portal is going to make a difference in the first round of the NFL Draft. We were pondering last year as to not if but when the first transfer would occur in the first round. Then this last spring we asked ourselves who of the transfer would be the first pick. Not only is the transfer portal entrenched for the long term but its effects on Football have been the utterance of gigantic as we all predicted.

Besides, the entrant has significantly harmed university teams and brands; however, it has assisted athletes in searching for better opportunities that would allow them to succeed to the fullest extent possible in the pros. College football is now, almost completely, in the hands of the players.

Here they are my top 6 portal prospects for NFL Draft 2025 this year …

Quarterback

Cam Ward, Miami the recruit from Washington State.

To my defense, I never argue with a player when he/she wishes to go back to school. I will however have to confess to seething slightly when Ward who has already started 44 career games and passed for 13, 932 career yards, decided to take his name out of the draft last winter. The future star was not going to be ranked among the top 6 at that position in the ’24 class, however, he would have been drafted. Bless his heart, Ward was a good all-star game/combine throwing session away from flirting with the top of Day 3.

But at the same time the stresses and difficulties linked to such a decision seem so reasonable and justified. From the perspective of accuracy, Ward is not the same as he was before leaving Incarnate Word for Washingt(State in the 2022 season. He is more effective mechanically now and especially when it comes to being more accurate a bit more in the pocket and a lot more when throwing the ball. He is only 22 years old, is still in a position to progress in the sight of the scouts while on the other end, he is striving to help Mario Cristobal revive the Hurricanes.

My two other preferred five’s at this position include Riley Leonard from Notre Dame and Dillon Gabriel from Oregon. Returning from an injury-ravaged 2023, Leonard has prototypes of arm strength, size, and athleticism and has yet to turn 22 years old. And Gabriel, a player that nobody should overlook, is returning for the sixth year (and third team).

Running back

Quinshon Judkins, Ohio State University; formerly Ole Miss

Among the fantastic transfers that Ohio State acquired in this recruitment offseason, none can be as great as Judkins. Possessing a 215 pounds hammer with burst, balance, and laser sharp cutting ability, Judkins will enter 2024 as, in my opinion, the most physically developed back in the 2025 draft regime.

Overall Judkins played better in Ole Miss as a freshman than as a sophomore, there was much better blocking in front of him and likely he will have a chance to refine his vision and consistency as a inside and outside runner with true three down potential. Ohio State has a Judkins-TreVeyon Henderson duo in the backfield that might be the best pair of one-two running back punches in America. Both of those players will come into the season with the likelihood to develop as individuals and also to demonstrate the likelihood in a manner of contributing with a running mate – something that each back in this class will experience at the subsequent level.

Two others to keep an eye on: Trevor Etienne, (the brother of Travis Etienne now transferring from Florida to Georgia) and Raheim Sanders who transferred from Arkansas to South Carolina.

Wide Receiver

Isaiah Bond – Texas, originally from Alabama; Evan Stewart – Oregon, originally from Texas A&M; Colbie Young – Georgia, originally from Miami.

Xavier Worthy’s absence will be mitigated with Bond who Texas will lean on as a deep threat after the sophomore achieved nearly 700 yards last year. He arrives with global reliability. Someone will have to work hard to beat Worthy’s 4. Forty-yard dash time of 4. 31 seconds and a 6. 80 for 220 yards at the NFL combine, but Bond did record a mind boggling 21. 04 in the 200 meters in 2022 and Is capable of running under 4. 3 in the 40. It is perfectly alright for both of them.

Stewart, together with Gabriel, Tez Johnson and the rest of the largely charged Ducks fraternity, caught only 91 balls in two years at Texas A&M before moving to Oregon. Similar to Johnson, Stewart is 6 feet tall and weighs 175 pounds; he also can run a sub 4. 4 40.

Young is an impressive athlete arrives at Georgia a big wide receiver (6-3, 215) with hints of explosion and some balance. After not playing football for a year out of high school and getting lost in the COVID-19 scholarship shuffle, Young turned one great year at Lackawanna (Pa. ) College into a shot first at Miami and now with arguably the top program in America.

Others to monitor at WR: Those are Antwane Wells Jr. transferring from James Madison to Ole Miss from South Carolina plus Deion Burks transferring from Purdue to Oklahoma.

Tight End

Benjamin Yurosek, Georgia (originating from Stanford)

The Bulldogs had to part ways with Brock Bowers and are going for two good replacements — Oscar Delp, a junior and Yurosek, the senior who is transferring from Stanford. At 6-4, 242, Yurosek is a vertical tracker with speed and body control that profiles well as Carson Beck’s new target down the middle and in the air.

Yurosek accumulated 108 receptions for 1,342 yards receiving in a total of three years at the Stanford University, including a partially decorated (shoulder) 2023 campaign. He — like Delp — is tailor-made for that area of the field inside UGA’s offense and should get plenty of opportunities to demonstrate as much. Michigan junior Colston Loveland said that he is pretty secure with TE1 in the 2025 class, but Yurosek and Delp will have the opportunity to crack top five.

A few other tight ends to watch: And Josh McCauley (Missouri out of Texas), Jalin Conyers (Texas Tech for Arizona State), Jack Velling (Michigan State for Oregon State), and Jake Johnson (North Carolina-State for Texas A&M).

Offensive line

Carter Brailsford Alabama, Washington; Jonathan Mendoza Louisville, Yale; Jalen Travis Iowa State, Princeton; Seth McLaughlin Ohio State, Alabama; Gerald Mincey Kentucky, Tennessee.

For all the changes Kalen DeBoer managed to make for a Crimson Tide team in his first offseason, his biggest coup was to have Brailsford follow him. Brailsford (6-2, 275) played over the ball for last season’s Joe Moore Award winning Washington unit. He is still a bit ‘scrawny’, or rather not muscular enough — this kid will need to bulk up in order to impose himself on the SEC standard — yet his raw agility, quick-twitch muscle, and cerebral thinking are far beyond the norm for his age. In such a case, should Brailsford outshine his first-year performance, ruling NFBC as one of the most competitive conferences in the country, he’ll definitely shoot right through the roof.

Another employee on the move here is Travis a Princeton tackle. Jalen Travis is the younger brother of Reid Travis who used to play basketball for Kentucky and the cousin of Ross Travis a former basketball player at Penn State and NFL tight end, Jalen took up football only in mid-high school and has been growing—tall both on and off the field. He has ballooned and is now 6-9 315 and still can bend and move as though he is a basketball player who just stepped off the court. Similarly to Brailsford, big year against better competition is going to be beneficial to Travis as far as evaluators are concerned.

It will be an engaging year for McLaughlin for the time is anew at Ohio State after a poor departure of the year 2023 in Alabama. McLaughlin has had some improvement when he was starting part-time for the Tide in 2022 and will get another opportunity at regeneration with Ryan Day and his revamped Ohio State offense.

Defensive line

Spartans, Nik Scourton, Edge , Texas A&M (from Purdue) ; Wide Receivers, Princely Umanmielen, Edge, Ole Miss (from Florida) ; Defensive Lineman, Walter Nolen, IDL, Ole Miss (from Texas A&M) ; Offensive Tackle, RJ Oben, Edge, Notre Dame (from Duke).

Another even more impressive player who would have perfect illusion of joining this year’s draft and hearing his name is Umanmielen. However, due to NIL, he has an opportunity to remain an additional year in school and, apparently, polish preparations to become not only a pass rusher, which, let it be mentioned, he is excellent at since he earned a 21. 2023 having a 1 percent win rate. Umanmielen is another prospect who should be a strong, rare edge rusher in the NFL due to his size, 6-5, 255, speed and quickness.

Scourton (6-4 , 280) is a mauling edge who recorded 45 pressures and a 21. Spearheading this offense last season was Austin Peay, which recorded a meager 1 percent winning average against Purdue.

Nolen was recruited as a high school player with the rating of No. 1 nationally; he played better as a sophomore after having a relatively poor performance as a freshman; however, Nolen has the ability to become a game-breaker inside, as he is 6-4, 290 pounds now.

Above, a lengthy, twitched-up edge who totaled honors with swift basketball at the point of attack at Duke, will dare himself with Notre Dame’s 2024 lineup.

Linebacker

Jamon Dumas-Johnson of Kentucky originally from Georgia; Jaishawn Barham of Michigan originally from Maryland.

Though, Kentucky may not have signed as many transfers as other institution in SEC (Ole Miss and Texas A&M signed 52), the quality of transfers the devil signed including Dumas-Johnson, Chip Trayanum, Gerald Mincey among others cannot be overlooked. Dumas-Johnson (6-1, 245) had his share of coverage and tackling problems at Georgia but NFL team’s dream about a athletic thumper that they don’t hardly look for anymore. He may not be a sideline to sideline type of player but he is more than equipped to produce in the box.

It is quite the same for Barham who is listed smaller even though he rushes at 6-3, 248. He migrated from Maryland to Michigan where he will replace Junior Colson one of the NFL sized stack linebackers drafted this spring. Just like Colson, there are also those transferable qualities to Barham’s frame (length, explosion, lateral quicks) which made him one of the top transfer prospects in this year’s market.

Secondary

Jabbar Muhammad, CB, Oregon (transferred from Washington and via Oklahoma State); Domani Jackson, CB, Alabama (transferred from USC);Andrew Mukuba, S, Texas (transferred from Clemson); Keon Sabb, S, Alabama (transferred from Michigan)

Some persons have exploited the portal to the max compared to Muhammad who spent his early years of college at Oklahoma State and transferred to Washington in 2023. He did not get as many interceptions, but he tied the program record for pass breakups with 16 during Stanford’s run to the National Championship Game. For instance, Muhammad, who was a significant contributor for Washington’s team that is considered one of the best of all time played for DeBoer but transferred to a rival school, Oregon after DeBoer left the institution. It’s the good kind of decision-making for business and, lo and behold, discussing big decisions like this is now acceptable at the collegiate level.

Sabb, on the other hand, was also among the comers that the Crimson Tide claimed.

Courtney Morgan, general manager at DeBoer and the director of recruitment for the University of Alabama, was on the Michigan staff for the recruitment process of the big, long, and explosive Sabb of IMG Academy in 2022. And before that Sabb was a member of the very talented, albeit overly populated Michigan secondary last year. He excelled especially in additional playing time in the slot, free safety, and the box during the national championship — against DeBoer and Washington. Small world.