Now that the transfer portal news has died down over the last week, college football teams across the Big Ten and the country are starting to formulate their pre-spring depth charts and are preparing for Spring practices.<\/p>\n
While there are still over 1,000 names sitting in the transfer portal, hoping to fall upwards as time is of the essence to land on a roster, we already have a pretty strong understanding of which teams filled massive holes via the portal, and who lost more than they gained.<\/p>\n
As we look across the entire Big Ten, every program made at least one big splash in the portal, grabbing a top-ranked player who can make an immediate impact in 2026. Here, we evaluate the biggest portal addition for each Big Ten team, starting with the eight programs east of Indiana (going east to west), and then evaluating the west coast programs tomorrow.<\/p>\n
Rutgers: QB Dylan Lonergan (Boston College)<\/p>\n
Rutgers is ranked towards the bottom of the Big Ten in terms of transfer portal classes, but head coach Greg Schiano has found hidden gems in the past to put together competitive teams. While most of the commits to the Scarlet Knights are projected depth pieces<\/a> until they show something in Spring ball, one name stands out as a potential big pickup \u2013 quarterback Dylan Lonergan.<\/p>\n Lonergan played for Boston College this past season, transferring from Alabama, where he acted as a backup in his first two seasons of college football. As the starter<\/a> for the Eagles last season, Lonergan totaled 2,025 yards and 12 touchdowns with five interceptions. However, during the course of the season, he was benched several times due to poor performance. Nonetheless, Lonergan has starting experience at the Power Four level, making him an intriguing option for Rutgers next year. Sophomore QB AJ Surace is still expected to receive first-team reps heading into the spring, according to our Rutgers SB Nation affiliate, On The Banks<\/a>, but the BC transfer has plenty of room to grow, as he comes to Rutgers with two years of eligibility remaining.<\/p>\n Maryland: RG Tellek Lockette (Texas State)<\/p>\n Just before the transfer portal closed, the Terps lost two-year starter at right guard, Aliou Bah, who made a split decision to leave the program for LSU in a matter of days.<\/p>\n With limited time to fill such a big hole, Maryland head coach Mike Locksley dipped into the Sun Belt to find Texas State guard Tellek Lockette, who will immediately fill in as a starter in College Park.<\/p>\n Lockette has seen a ton of success in college, earning a 79.3 pass blocking rating<\/a> from PFF at Louisiana-Monroe in 2023, and playing over 800 snaps over all 13 games as a junior in 2024, finishing with a 78.9 pass blocking grade and allowing only one sack while Texas State\u2019s offense soared to 5th in the nation in yards per game (476.9).<\/p>\n While an injury limited Lockette to just four games in 2025, he still maintained an 87.7 pass blocking grade<\/a> (best among all Group of 5 linemen). The medical redshirt year allowed him to transfer to Maryland, where he has an opportunity to show his skill at the highest level of college football.<\/p>\n Penn State: QB Rocco Becht (Iowa State)<\/p>\n The Nittany Lions completely revamped their team in the offseason, first bringing in Iowa State head coach Matt Campbell to officially replace James Franklin. As a result of the hire, Campbell brought in 36 transfers to Penn State, with none other more important than his quarterback, Rocco Becht.<\/p>\n As stated in a previous article<\/a>, Becht brings 26 career wins as a starter to Penn State, the most of any returning quarterback in college football in 2026. He led Iowa State to 11 wins in 2024, finishing with 25 touchdowns and nine interceptions. In his career, he has 9,275 passing yards and 64 touchdowns, and 499 rushing yards and 19 rushing touchdowns.<\/p>\n After a rough season, particularly at the quarterback position, Penn State should have a passing game to lean on once again, making it an exciting offseason in State College.<\/p>\n Ohio State: DL James Smith (Alabama)<\/p>\n It is not a flashy position like quarterback, but Ohio State still made waves in the portal, picking up 17 commitments, all of whom were three or four stars in the transfer portal rankings. The biggest commit<\/a> for the Buckeyes was defensive lineman James Smith from Alabama, who was ranked as the No. 1 defensive lineman<\/a> available in the portal.<\/p>\n Smith will enter the 2026 season with 37 games of experience under his belt. He totaled 50 tackles in Tuscaloosa with 10.5 tackles for a loss and 3.5 sacks. In 15 games last season, Smith posted career highs in tackles (28), TFLs (6.5), and sacks (2.5).<\/p>\n With interior D-linemen Kayden McDonald and Tywone Malone Jr. departing the program for the NFL, the rising senior can play nose and defensive tackle, providing Ryan Day and Matt Patricia with a ton of options in the trenches.<\/p>\n Michigan: Edge John Henry Daley (Utah)<\/p>\n This should be a no-brainer as Michigan grabbed not just Utah\u2019s coach this offseason, but the Utes\u2019 most productive player, edge John Henry Daley.<\/p>\n The All-American defensive lineman already comes to Ann Arbor with a ton of accolades under his belt \u2013 All-Big 12 First Team, All-America (Walter Camp First Team, AFCA Second Team, AP Second Team), Chuck Bednarik Award semifinalist \u2013 and if not for an achilles injury that ended his season early, Daley could have added even more to the trophy case.<\/p>\n The 6-4, 255-pounder had 48 tackles, 17.5 tackles for loss (tied for the FBS lead), 11.5 sacks (2nd in country) and two forced fumbles in 11 games in 2025. If his recovery goes as planned, he could be the nation\u2019s top portal addition.<\/p>\n Michigan State: LT Ben Murawski (UConn)<\/p>\n The Spartans were very busy in the transfer portal this offseason, bringing in a ton of talent, primarily from the Group-5 level, to build the program back up under newly hired head coach Pat FitzGerald.<\/p>\n One thing many college football fans may remember about the former Northwestern head coach is his love for building in the trenches, and Michigan State\u2019s first portal commit happened to be UConn starting left tackle Ben Murawski.<\/p>\n Ranked as On3\u2019s No. 13 OT<\/a> in the portal, Murawski started all 12 games at left tackle for the Huskies during the 2025 regular season, playing 773 snaps on offense, and grading out as the No. 28 offensive tackle in the FBS by PFF (75.5 grade)<\/a>. His performance also led to him being named a second-team Group of Five All-American by HERO Sports. After losing starting LT Stanton Ramil, who left for Auburn, Murawski fills a big need for the Spartans.<\/p>\n Indiana: WR Nick Marsh (Michigan State)<\/p>\n Speaking of Michigan State, its biggest portal loss went 300 miles southwest to Bloomington, as wide receiver Nick Marsh wanted to get in on the action after Indiana\u2019s National Championship run in 2025.<\/p>\n Indiana may have a lot of pieces leaving for the NFL Draft, but that did not stop the Hoosiers from making big moves in the portal, bringing over one of the Big Ten\u2019s best receivers to pair with former TCU quarterback Josh Hoover.<\/p>\n The 6-foot-3, 203-pound sophomore led the Spartans<\/a> in receiving in back-to-back seasons and produced 100 catches for 1,311 receiving yards and nine touchdowns last season. As a true freshman in 2024, Marsh set MSU records for catches (41) and receiving yards (649). He recorded 12 catches for 142 yards and two touchdowns in his two games against Indiana.<\/p>\n Marsh can be expected to make an immediate impact, potentially becoming one of the nation\u2019s top receivers in 2026 with a strong offense built around him.<\/p>\n Purdue: OLB Elo Modozie (Georgia)<\/p>\n Talk about swinging big in the offseason. After finishing last in the Big Ten in 2025, Purdue head coach Barry Odom and his staff assembled a Top-25 portal class<\/a> that ranks 24th nationally and fourth in the Big Ten, according to On3.<\/p>\n