Over 400 FCS Players transferred to the FBS in 2026
Sam Herder of Hero Sports has officially tracked one of the wildest ongoing trends in college football roster building: the mass movement of FCS talent into the FBS.
For the 2026 season, over 400 FCS players are transferring up to FBS programs, according to the updated tracker.
That number is down from last year’s staggering mark—when more than 500 FCS players moved up for the 2025 season—but make no mistake: the pipeline is still overflowing.
This isn’t a trickle. It’s a full-scale talent migration.
Why This Matters
The FCS has become one of the most important developmental levels in football. It produces:
- Immediate-impact starters
- Older, physically ready players
- Under-the-radar NFL prospects
But now, it also serves as a primary recruiting ground for FBS programs looking for proven production over projection.
If you can dominate at the FCS level, Power 4 and Group of 5 programs are watching, and buying.
Sample of 2026 FCS → FBS Transfers (from Hero Sports tracker)
| Name (Yr) | Pos. | FCS Team | FBS Team |
| Rashon Myles (Sr) | LB | Abilene Christian | Georgia Southern |
| Jonathan Goins (So) | LB | Alabama A&M | Bowling Green |
| TyQuez Richardson (So) | OL | Alabama A&M | Georgia |
| Jalen Jones (So) | WR | Alabama State | Texas Tech |
| Cedric Roberts (Jr) | LB | Alcorn State | North Texas |
| Montreze Smith (So) | LB | Austin Peay | Iowa State |
| Ellis Ellis (Sr) | DB | Austin Peay | Memphis |
| Maleek Huggins (Sr) | WR | Bethune-Cookman | Miami (OH) |
| Teko Shoats (Jr) | OL | Bethune-Cookman | Oregon State |
| Javon Ross (Jr) | WR | Bethune-Cookman | Tulsa |
| Nick Hudson (Sr) | DB | Brown | Texas |
| Zyheem Collick (Jr) | WR | Bryant | Charlotte |
| Azarel Juste (Jr) | DB | Bryant | Coastal Carolina |
| Liam Lindo (Sr) | DB | Bryant | Northern Illinois |
| Aldrich Doe (Sr) | WR | Bryant | San Diego State |
| Xavier Allen (Sr) | OL | Bucknell | Memphis |
| Dara Adeyemi (Sr) | DL | Bucknell | Stanford |
| Braydon Alford (Jr) | WR | Butler | Michigan |
| CJ Wilson (Sr) | DE | Butler | ULM |
| Racin Delgatty (Jr) | OL | Cal Poly | Alabama |
| Victory Johnson (Jr) | DL | Cal Poly | Arizona |
| Charlie Adams III (Jr) | OL | Cal Poly | Kansas State |
| Ty Dieffenbach (So) | QB | Cal Poly | UCLA |
| Mason Rivera (Sr) | S | Cal Poly | UCLA |
| Jesse Ehrlich (Sr) | P | Cal Poly | Arkansas |
| Noah Serna (Sr) | K | Cal Poly | San Diego State |
| Trevor Wilson (Sr) | TE | Campbell | Buffalo |
| Donavan Philord (So) | DB | Campbell | Central Michigan |
| Raymond Macias (Jr) | DT | Campbell | UAB |
| Brayden Hall (Jr) | DB | CCSU | Marshall |
| Gavin Taylor (Sr) | LB | CCSU | South Alabama |
| Malachi Henry (Jr) | WR | Central Arkansas | Cincinnati |
| Ben Haulmark (Jr) | TE | Central Arkansas | Iowa State |
| Landen Chambers (Jr) | RB | Central Arkansas | UCF |
| Colin Sorensen (Jr) | OL | Charleston Southern | Missouri |
| Andrew Threatt (Sr) | OL | Charleston Southern | North Carolina |
| Knai Cook (Jr) | S | Charleston Southern | Troy |
| KJ Sejour (So) | DB | Chattanooga | Ohio |
| A.J. Little (Jr) | WR | Chattanooga | Southern Miss |
| Reed Swanson (Sr) | WR | Colgate | Boston College |
| Nick Dalessandro (Sr) | OL | Colgate | UMass |
| Justin Townsend (Sr) | DL | Columbia | Virginia |
| Keith Williams (Jr) | LB | Cornell | North Dakota State |
| Grayson O’Bara (Sr) | WR | Dartmouth | North Texas |
| Vasean Washington (Sr) | OL | Dartmouth | Ohio State |
| D.J. Crowther (Sr) | RB | Dartmouth | USF |
| Patrick Campbell (Sr) | DB | Dartmouth | Virginia |
| Thaddeus Gianaris (Sr) | LB | Dartmouth | Wyoming |
| Josh Williams (Jr) | CB | Dayton | App State |
| Vincent Firenze (Jr) | LB | Dayton | Wake Forest |
| Marquis Gillis (Sr) | RB | Delaware State | Arizona State |
| James Jones (Sr) | RB | Delaware State | New Mexico State |
| Brian Bates (Jr) | LB | Delaware State | Sam Houston |
| Nick Herman (So) | RB | Drake | JMU |
| Jackson Voth (Jr) | WR | Drake | Louisville |
| Sean Allison (Sr) | LB | Drake | Rutgers |
| Nolan Korzeniowski (Sr) | DL | Drake | Coastal Carolina |
| Quan Rhodes-Mckee (Jr) | LB | Duquesne | Kent State |
| Brian Beidatsch (Sr) | OL | Duquesne | Miami (OH) |
| Ish Findlayter (Jr) | DL | Duquesne | Oregon State |
| Jabari Odoemenem (Sr) | LB | Duquesne | Oregon State |
| Preston Kilgore (Jr) | TE | East Texas A&M | Southern Miss |
| Chandler Donaway (Sr) | OL | East Texas A&M | Wyoming |
| Lavon William (Sr) | DB | East Texas A&M | Illinois |
| Nic DiSanto (Sr) | OL | Eastern Illinois | Central Michigan |
| Isaiah Houi (Jr) | CB | Eastern Illinois | Oregon State |
| Marcus Calwise (Jr) | WR | Eastern Kentucky | LA Tech |
| Jacob Baker (Jr) | P | Eastern Kentucky | Louisville |
| Tommy Ziesmer (Jr) | DT | Eastern Kentucky | Louisville |
| Fred Hinton (Jr) | OL | Eastern Kentucky | Oklahoma |
| Blake Howard (Jr) | LS | Eastern Kentucky | Tennessee |
| Braden Sullivan (Sr) | LB | Eastern Kentucky | UAB |
| Brad Gurley (Sr) | DT | Eastern Kentucky | UCF |
| Jeremiah Bailey (Sr) | DT | Eastern Kentucky | UTSA |
| Zion Jones (Jr) | CB | Eastern Washington | Nevada |
| Tariq May (Sr) | DE | Eastern Washington | Rice |
| Tylin Jackson (Jr) | DE | Eastern Washington | UAB |
| Tyson Jacobson (Sr) | LS | Eastern Washington | UNLV |
| Hunter Mckee (So) | K | Eastern Washington | Washington |
| Jirah Leaupepetele (Jr) | DT | Eastern Washington | Washington State |
| Jesse Powell II (Sr) | DB | Elon | Coastal Carolina |
| Kahmari Brown (Jr) | DL | Elon | Iowa |
| Luke Duska (Sr) | OL | Elon | Kennesaw State |
| Landen Clark (So) | QB | Elon | LSU |
| Ishmel Atkins (Sr) | DB | Elon | Sam Houston |
| Asher Cunningham (Jr) | LB | Elon | Utah State |
| Ki’Shawn Harvey (Jr) | DT | ETSU | App State |
| Cole Keller (Sr) | TE | ETSU | JMU |
| Hayden Ross (So) | LS | ETSU | JMU |
| Frankie Tinilau (Jr) | OL | ETSU | JMU |
| Johnathan Cline (Jr) | OL | ETSU | Miami |
| Kaven Call (Jr) | OLB | ETSU | Middle TN State |
| Goldie Lawrence (Jr) | WR | Florida A&M | Coastal Carolina |
| Nick Dimitris (Sr) | DL | Florida A&M | Sac State |
| RJ Johnson III (Jr) | QB | Florida A&M | UMass |
| Matt Buron (Sr) | TE | Fordham | Georgia State |
| Terrence Jones II (Jr) | DB | Fordham | James Madison |
| Evan James (So) | WR | Furman | Iowa |
| Trey Hedden (Jr) | QB | Furman | New Mexico State |
| Luke Clyburn (Sr) | TE | Furman | USF |
| Luke Rector (Jr) | OL | Gardner-Webb | Toledo |
| Que Billingsley (Sr) | DB | Gardner-Webb | UAB |
| Brady Braun (Sr) | P | Gardner-Webb | UTEP |
| Cooper Blomstrom (Sr) | LB | Georgetown | Arizona |
| GianCarlo Rufo (Sr) | LB | Georgetown | USC |
| Josh McCormick (Sr) | K | Grambling | Colorado |
| Michael Matthews-Canty (Jr) | LB | Hampton | Auburn |
| MJ Moultrie II (Sr) | DB | Hampton | LA Tech |
| Alex DeGrieck (Sr) | DE | Harvard | Boston College |
| Jaden Craig (Sr) | QB | Harvard | TCU |
| Ty Bartrum (Sr) | S | Harvard | UCF |
| Derek Osman (Sr) | OL | Harvard | UCLA |
| Caiden Newsome (Jr) | CB | Holy Cross | Akron |
| Jayden Clerveaux (Sr) | RB | Holy Cross | Central Michigan |
| Brice Stevenson (Sr) | DT | Holy Cross | Iowa |
| Lathan Croley (Jr) | LB | Holy Cross | JMU |
| Eli Thompson (Sr) | DB | Holy Cross | Ohio |
| Max Mosey (Sr) | WR | Holy Cross | Rice |
| Alijah Cason (Jr) | WR | Holy Cross | Sam Houston |
| Charly Mullaly (Sr) | WR | Holy Cross | South Carolina |
| Cam Jones (Sr) | CB | Holy Cross | Toledo |
| Cam Santee (Sr) | LB | Holy Cross | UNLV |
| Joe Metzger (Sr) | OL | Holy Cross | UNLV |
| Tyran Chappell (So) | CB | Houston Christian | Michigan State |
| Xai’Shaun Edwards (So) | RB | Houston Christian | Missouri |
| Brady Young (Sr) | P | Houston Christian | Ohio State |
| Kyle Koontz (So) | TE | Houston Christian | Sac State |
| Ben Mulholland (So) | OL | Houston Christian | UConn |
| Nonso Omezi (Sr) | OL | Houston Christian | WKU |
| Norey Johnson (Sr) | S | Houston Christian | Kent State |
| Xavier Newsom (So) | TE | Howard | Auburn |
| Derrick Brown (Sr) | DL | Howard | Oregon |
| Dylan Layne (Sr) | LB | Idaho | Oregon State |
| Matt Irwin (Jr) | S | Idaho | UCF |
| Caleb Ricks (So) | CB | Idaho | San Diego State |
| Matyus McLain (Jr) | DE | Idaho | Washington State |
| Trajan Sinatra (Jr) | K | Idaho State | San Jose State |
| Ian Duarte (Jr) | WR | Idaho State | Tennessee |
| Rylan Leathers (So) | S | Idaho State | Tulsa |
| Jonah Burton (Sr) | WR | Idaho State | Duke |
| Raiden Brown (Jr) | WR | Idaho State | Sac State |
| Jackson Sharman (Jr) | QB | Idaho State | Sac State |
| Patrick Bauer (Jr) | LB | Illinois State | Cincinnati |
| CJ Richard Jr. (So) | DB | Illinois State | Florida State |
| Eddie Kasper (Sr) | WR | Illinois State | Illinois |
| Mason King (Sr) | RB | Illinois State | Kent State |
| Christian Lorenzo (Sr) | DL | Illinois State | North Texas |
| Brandon Smith (Sr) | OL | Illinois State | Western Michigan |
| Jake Anderson (Sr) | DT | Illinois State | Wisconsin |
| Nick Osho (Sr) | RB | Indiana State | North Texas |
| Kai Holec (So) | OL | Indiana State | Oklahoma State |
| Mason Barton (Jr) | OL | Jackson State | Coastal Carolina |
| Ashton Taylor (Sr) | LB | Jackson State | Middle TN State |
| Isaiah Villanueva (Sr) | OL | Jackson State | Missouri State |
| Travis Terrell (Jr) | RB | Jackson State | Purdue |
| Ahmad Miller (Jr) | RB | Jackson State | Syracuse |
| Brian Williams Jr. (So) | OL | Jackson State | UTEP |
| Sean Kinney (Jr) | OL | Lafayette | Colorado |
| Dean DeNobile (Sr) | QB | Lafayette | Florida State |
| Darson Jeanty (Sr) | LB | Lafayette | Sac State |
| Jaylon Joseph (Sr) | DL | Lafayette | Temple |
| Kortez Winslow (Jr) | OL | Lamar | FAU |
| Kei’Trone Simpson (Sr) | DE | Lamar | JMU |
| Aidan Singleton (Sr) | CB | Lehigh | Middle TN State |
| Mekhai Smith (Jr) | DB | Lehigh | Minnesota |
| Mason Humphrey (Sr) | WR | Lehigh | North Carolina |
| Mason Moore (Sr) | S | Lehigh | Coastal Carolina |
| Darrin Fugitt (Sr) | TE | Lindenwood | App State |
| Rico Bond (So) | WR | Lindenwood | Toledo |
| Jalen Bell (Jr) | DB | LIU | Delaware |
| Scoop Gardner Jr. (Jr) | DL | LIU | Western Michigan |
| Nicolas Cruji (Sr) | OL | Maine | Charlotte |
| Sincere Baines (Sr) | RB | Maine | WKU |
| Nate Robinson Jr. (Jr) | CB | Marist | UTSA |
| Josh Jackson (Jr) | WR | McNeese | LSU |
| Carmelo O’Neal (Jr) | S | Mercer | Alabama |
| Kendall Harris (Jr) | WR | Mercer | Old Dominion |
| Braden Atkinson (So) | QB | Mercer | Oregon State |
| Adonis McDaniel (Sr) | WR | Mercer | Oregon State |
| Julian Fox (Jr) | LB | Mercer | Toledo |
| Trenton Jones (rFr) | WR | Mercer | Toledo |
| Isaac Prince (Sr) | LB | Mercer | Toledo |
| CJ Miller (Sr) | RB | Mercer | Toledo |
| Kaleb Hutchinson (Sr) | S | Mercer | Toledo |
| Reice Griffith (Sr) | K | Mercer | Toledo |
| Adjatay Dabbs (Jr) | WR | Mercer | Toledo |
| Andrew Zock (Jr) | DE | Mercer | Toledo |
| Gavin Marks (So) | OL | Mercer | Tulane |
| Jamari Freeman (Sr) | OL | Mercer | Mississippi State |
| Cade Callahan (Jr) | TE | Merrimack | ULM |
| Lamont Lester Jr. (So) | DL | Monmouth | Colorado |
| Deuce Lee (Sr) | DB | Monmouth | Georgia State |
| Rodney Nelson (Jr) | RB | Monmouth | Miami (OH) |
| Chris Moreno (Jr) | OL | Monmouth | Middle TN State |
| Izzy Clark-White (Jr) | DB | Monmouth | New Mexico State |
| Josh Derry (Sr) | WR | Monmouth | UCF |
| Caleb Otlewski (Jr) | LB | Montana | Colorado State |
| Kyon Loud (Jr) | CB | Montana | Duke |
| Colin Amick (So) | OL | Montana | Iowa State |
| Jareb Ramos (Sr) | DT | Montana | Iowa State |
| Micah Harper (Sr) | S | Montana | Iowa State |
| Malae Fonoti (So) | RB | Montana | Missouri |
| Jose Balver-Mendoza (So) | OL | Montana | Nevada |
| Diezel Wilkinson (Jr) | S | Montana | UAB |
| Carson Williams (So) | CB | Montana State | Indiana |
| Seth Johnson (So) | CB | Montana State | Iowa State |
| Hunter Provience (Jr) | TE | Montana State | NC State |
| Jhase McMillan (So) | CB | Montana State | UCLA |
| Cedric Jefferson (Jr) | OL | Montana State | Utah |
| Hiroshi Carr (So) | DB | Morgan State | Southern Miss |
| Raymond Moore III (So) | QB | Morgan State | UTEP |
| Darius Cannon (Jr) | WR | Murray State | Jacksonville State |
| Dylan Rowsey (Sr) | S | Murray State | Louisville |
| Ja’Quan Redfern (Jr) | DL | Murray State | Wyoming |
| James Bradley (Jr) | DL | MVSU | Northern Illinois |
| Prince Ijioma (Jr) | DB | MVSU | Oklahoma |
| Adonis Jackson (Sr) | DL | MVSU | Utah State |
| Matt Vezza (Jr) | QB | New Hampshire | Ohio |
| Nick Reed (Jr) | K | New Hampshire | SMU |
| Kelby Hampton (So) | CB | New Hampshire | Southern Miss |
| Jordan McAllister (Jr) | DE | New Hampshire | Tulane |
| D.J. Johnson (So) | DE | New Hampshire | Wake Forest |
| Peyton Strickland (Sr) | TE | New Hampshire | Toledo |
| Tolu Olajide (Sr) | OL | New Hampshire | Wake Forest |
| Evan Chieca (Sr) | TE | New Haven | Florida |
| Aidan McCowan (Jr) | CB | Nicholls | Georgia Southern |
| Rasheed Lovelace (Sr) | DT | Nicholls | JMU |
| Ja’Mard Jones (So) | OL | Nicholls | LSU |
| Anthony Rogers (So) | DB | Nicholls | Tulane |
| Major Dillard (Sr) | DT | Norfolk State | USF |
| Adam Watford (Sr) | P | North Alabama | Alabama |
| BJ Diakite (Sr) | DE | North Alabama | Utah State |
| Nathan Curry (Sr) | LS | North Alabama | Wyoming |
| Tre Mittman (Jr) | S | North Carolina A&T | Georgia State |
| Eric Adams (Jr) | DB | North Carolina Central | App State |
| Donquarius Parker (Sr) | OLB | North Carolina Central | Arkansas State |
| Ja’Quan Sprinkle (Jr) | OL | North Carolina Central | LSU |
| Emmanuel Olagbaju (Jr) | DT | North Dakota | Iowa |
| Theo Grace (rFr) | LB | North Dakota | LSU |
| Antonio Bluiett (Sr) | DB | North Dakota | Utah State |
| Sawyer Seidl (Jr) | RB | North Dakota | Wake Forest |
| Toby Anene (Sr) | DE | North Dakota State | Colorado |
| Jaquise Alexander (Sr) | CB | North Dakota State | Delaware |
| Caleb Bowers (Sr) | LS | North Dakota State | Florida State |
| Eli Ozick (Jr) | K | North Dakota State | Iowa |
| Nathaniel Staehling (Sr) | LB | North Dakota State | Michigan |
| Trent Fraley (Sr) | OL | North Dakota State | Michigan State |
| Jailen Duffie (So) | CB | North Dakota State | UCF |
| Beau Johnson (Jr) | OL | North Dakota State | Vanderbilt |
| Ethan Kramer (Sr) | OL | Northern Arizona | ECU |
| Seth Smith (Sr) | OL | Northern Arizona | South Carolina |
| Seth Cromwell (Sr) | RB | Northern Arizona | JMU |
| Cam Chapa (Jr) | S | Northern Colorado | Arizona |
| Carver Cheeks (Sr) | WR | Northern Colorado | UTEP |
| Gavin Proudfoot (Sr) | OL | Northern Iowa | Iowa State |
| Liam O’Brien (Sr) | QB | Penn | Cincinnati |
| Carter Janki (Sr) | DL | Penn | Illinois |
| Netinho Olivieri (Sr) | OL | Penn | Pitt |
| Bisi Owens (Sr) | WR | Penn | Purdue |
| John Lista (Sr) | LB | Penn | UConn |
| Kristian Ingman (Jr) | TE | Portland State | Arizona State |
| Bryson Ross (Jr) | S | Portland State | Arkansas State |
| Spencer Elliott (Sr) | DL | Portland State | Hawaii |
| Daniel Matagi (Jr) | DT | Portland State | Oregon State |
| Shaun Torgeson (So) | OL | Portland State | Oregon State |
| Dionte Thornton (Jr) | DB | Portland State | Sac State |
| Carsten Mamaril (Sr) | DB | Portland State | San Diego State |
| Tuaoa Tauili’ili (Jr) | DT | Portland State | San Diego State |
| Isaiah Green (Jr) | DB | Portland State | San Diego State |
| Pierce Walker (So) | DB | Portland State | San Jose State |
| Jyziah Rockwell (Sr) | WR | Prairie View A&M | WKU |
| Nathan Levicki (Sr) | TE | Presbyterian | Western Michigan |
| Blaine Hipa (Sr) | QB | Princeton | Duke |
| Tahj Owens (Sr) | DB | Princeton | Western Michigan |
| Greg Gaines III (Sr) | WR | Rhode Island | FIU |
| Kevin Schaeffer (Sr) | TE | Rhode Island | FIU |
| Nick Thomas (Sr) | OL | Rhode Island | Toledo |
| Peyton Seelmann (Jr) | LB | Richmond | North Carolina |
| Xavier Styles (Jr) | S | Robert Morris | Iowa |
| Adam Johnston (Jr) | LS | Sac State | Arkansas |
| Damian Henderson II (Jr) | RB | Sac State | Colorado |
| Jaquail Smith (So) | RB | Sac State | Colorado |
| Ernest Campbell (So) | WR | Sac State | Colorado |
| Jose Soto (So) | OL | Sac State | Colorado |
| Micah Mosley (So) | OLB | Sac State | Fresno State |
| Dylan Hampsten (Jr) | DL | Sac State | Fresno State |
| Ricky Lee III (Jr) | CB | Sac State | Middle TN State |
| Jaden Rashada (Jr) | QB | Sac State | Mississippi State |
| Bear Tenney (rFr) | TE | Sac State | New Mexico |
| Koa Akui (Sr) | S | Sac State | Rice |
| Jason Oliver (Sr) | CB | Sac State | San Diego State |
| Jordan Anderson (So) | WR | Sac State | San Jose State |
| Anta’Veon McKenzie (Jr) | S | Sac State | UAB |
| DeSean Watts (Jr) | DT | Sac State | Washington |
| Glory Stephen-Wangboje (Sr) | DT | Sacred Heart | Northwestern |
| Nate Hampton (rFr) | OL | Saint Francis | Akron |
| Malikai Nichols (Jr) | CB | Saint Francis | Sac State |
| Zachary Betts (Jr) | OLB | Saint Francis | UMass |
| Kendric Council (Jr) | LB | Saint Francis | UMass |
| Balaam Miller (Jr) | DT | Saint Francis | Washington State |
| Carson Sloan (So) | LB | Samford | App State |
| Donovan Grayson (Sr) | DE | Samford | Coastal Carolina |
| Dee Newsome (Jr) | CB | Samford | Purdue |
| Tre Moore (Sr) | OLB | San Diego | Purdue |
| Jehchys Brown (Sr) | DT | SEMO | App State |
| Ryan Kingston (Sr) | P | SEMO | Bowling Green |
| Cam Pedro (Sr) | WR | SEMO | Charlotte |
| Trey Lisle (So) | OLB | SEMO | Michigan State |
| Donnie Cheers (Sr) | WR | SEMO | Nevada |
| Nasim Cairo (Sr) | DL | SEMO | Southern Miss |
| Landon Sylvie (Jr) | S | SEMO | Southern Miss |
| Kalvin Gilbert (Jr) | WR | SEMO | Toledo |
| Chimdia Nwaiwu (Sr) | OL | SFA | Florida State |
| Jalen Mayo (Sr) | CB | SFA | Houston |
| Lachie Pozzobon (So) | P | SFA | Oklahoma State |
| Tug Sanford (Sr) | LS | SFA | Oregon State |
| Jacob Hand (Jr) | K | SFA | Texas Tech |
| Eli Fields (Sr) | DT | SFA | UTEP |
| Kameron Reddic (Jr) | DB | SFA | West Virginia |
| Roman Tillmon (Jr) | S | South Dakota | Boise State |
| Jacob Arop (So) | OL | South Dakota | Cal |
| Larenzo Fenner (Jr) | WR | South Dakota | Cincinnati |
| L.J. Phillips Jr. (Jr) | RB | South Dakota | Iowa |
| Caden Crawford (Sr) | DL | South Dakota | Iowa State |
| Mikey Munn (So) | DB | South Dakota | Rutgers |
| Tyler Ebel (Sr) | P | South Dakota | Vanderbilt |
| Jalen Lee (Sr) | S | South Dakota State | Coastal Carolina |
| David Alpers III (Sr) | TE | South Dakota State | Jacksonville State |
| Jaylon Domingeaux (Sr) | WR | Southeastern | Wisconsin |
| Treylan James (Jr) | S | Southern | LSU |
| Darren Morris (Sr) | WR | Southern | Boise State |
| Ryan Schwendeman (Sr) | TE | Southern Illinois | Wisconsin |
| Shane Carr (Sr) | WR | Southern Utah | Kentucky |
| Joshua Dye (Jr) | RB | Southern Utah | Ole Miss |
| Baron Taylor (Jr) | S | Southern Utah | Southern Miss |
| Elliot Huether (Sr) | P | St. Thomas | ECU |
| Jordan Pendleton (Sr) | OLB | St. Thomas | Utah State |
| Chase Ortiz (So) | LS | Stetson | Marshall |
| Richard Mosley III (Sr) | DB | Stonehill | Colorado State |
| Jayce Freeman (Sr) | WR | Stony Brook | Temple |
| Cody Jackson (Sr) | WR | Tarleton State | Iowa State |
| Tre Page III (So) | RB | Tarleton State | Oklahoma State |
| Gavin Forsha (Sr) | LB | Tennessee State | Ball State |
| Devaughn Slaughter (So) | WR | Tennessee State | Kennesaw State |
| Jace Hoath (Sr) | TE | Tennessee State | ULM |
| KJ Cooper (Sr) | QB | Texas Southern | USF |
| Isaiah Bogerty (Sr) | LB | Texas Southern | UTEP |
| Mikey Rosa (Jr) | LB | The Citadel | Jacksonville State |
| Bradlee Jones (Sr) | DB | The Citadel | Rutgers |
| Jeremiah Holmes (Sr) | LB | The Citadel | Utah State |
| Jaceon Doss (Sr) | WR | Towson | Nevada |
| Carter Moses (Sr) | TE | UAlbany | Kansas |
| Cam Stodghill (Sr) | LB | UAlbany | Michigan State |
| Balansama Kamara (Sr) | DL | UAlbany | Colorado |
| Deshon Dodson (So) | DL | UAlbany | Temple |
| Carter Vargas (Jr) | RB | UC Davis | Cal |
| Caden Pinnick (So) | QB | UC Davis | Washington State |
| Lawson Petty (Jr) | OL | UIW | Baylor |
| EJ Colson (So) | QB | UIW | UTEP |
| Jai’Lun Hampton (Sr) | OL | UT Martin | NC State |
| Keyshawn Johnson (Sr) | OLB | UT Martin | Syracuse |
| Drake Martinez (Sr) | TE | UT Martin | Tennessee |
| Cade Hechter (Sr) | K | UT Martin | UTEP |
| Tony Diaz (So) | WR | UTRGV | Iowa |
| Niko Paic (Sr) | OL | Valpo | ECU |
| David Avit (Jr) | RB | Villanova | Arizona State |
| Anthony Hawkins (So) | S | Villanova | Iowa |
| Zahmir Dawud (Jr) | CB | Villanova | Rutgers |
| Jason Hall (Jr) | LB | Villanova | West Virginia |
| Noah Grevious (So) | WR | VMI | JMU |
| Owen Sweeney (So) | WR | VMI | Marshall |
| William Dixon (Sr) | OL | VMI | Missouri State |
| Morgan McPhaul (Sr) | TE | VMI | Oklahoma State |
| Kouri Crump (Sr) | S | VMI | Western Michigan |
| Caden Kellow (Sr) | LS | Weber State | Boise State |
| Keahnist Thompson (Sr) | DE | Weber State | Michigan State |
| Montae Pate (Sr) | CB | Weber State | Northwestern |
| Vae Soifua (Sr) | OL | Weber State | Sac State |
| Davion Godley (Jr) | RB | Weber State | Sac State |
| Sione Hala (Sr) | LB | Weber State | San Diego State |
| Aizik Mahuka (Jr) | LB | Weber State | San Jose State |
| Noah Bennee (Sr) | TE | Weber State | Utah |
| Will Way (Jr) | OL | Weber State | Wake Forest |
| Matt Herron (Sr) | DT | Weber State | Wake Forest |
| BJ Carey (Sr) | S | Weber State | WKU |
| Logan Mackey (Jr) | CB | Weber State | Wyoming |
| Kyeaure Magloire (Sr) | CB | West Georgia | Arkansas |
| Kourtney Kelly (Jr) | DL | West Georgia | Clemson |
| Tre’shawn Moore (Jr) | S | West Georgia | Colorado State |
| Owen Dupree (Sr) | WR | West Georgia | Georgia State |
| Geoffrey Speight (Sr) | DL | West Georgia | Hawaii |
| Latrelle Murrell (Jr) | RB | West Georgia | Kennesaw State |
| Davin Wydner (Sr) | QB | West Georgia | Louisville |
| TJ Lester (So) | RB | West Georgia | Marshall |
| Jordan Dees (So) | WR | West Georgia | Washington State |
| Bo Simpson-Nealy (Jr) | S | Western Carolina | FAU |
| Hasaan Sykes (Jr) | CB | Western Carolina | Kentucky |
| Justin Wallace (Sr) | DE | Western Carolina | Memphis |
| Josiah Thomas (So) | TE | Western Carolina | New Mexico State |
| Taron Dickens (Jr) | QB | Western Carolina | North Carolina |
| James Tyre (Jr) | WR | Western Carolina | North Texas |
| Malik Knight (Sr) | WR | Western Carolina | Pitt |
| Elijah Collins (Jr) | OL | Western Carolina | Sam Houston |
| Emmet Rhoades (Jr) | LS | Western Carolina | South Carolina |
| Jackson Banks (Jr) | DT | Western Carolina | Southern Miss |
| Christian Pierce (Sr) | LB | Western Illinois | Michigan |
| Matthew Montgomery (So) | OL | Western Illinois | San Diego State |
| Esteban Guillory (Sr) | DB | Western Illinois | UTEP |
| Markell Holman (Sr) | RB | Western Illinois | Wyoming |
| Justin Krueger (So) | DE | William & Mary | UMass |
| Kadin Lynch (Sr) | OL | William & Mary | Utah State |
| Tyler Hughes (Sr) | QB | William & Mary | Wyoming |
| Darius Malcolm Jr. (So) | DB | Wofford | Memphis |
| Luke Moise (Jr) | OL | Wofford | New Mexico State |
| C.J. Coombes (Jr) | S | Wofford | North Texas |
| Mason Howard (Sr) | OL | Wofford | UConn |
| Michael Bennett (Sr) | OL | Yale | Oregon |
| Nico Brown (Sr) | WR | Yale | Stanford |
| Ezekiel Larry (Sr) | DE | Yale | Virginia |
| Makai Shahid (Jr) | DB | Youngstown State | Arkansas State |
| Flash Wilson (Sr) | WR | Youngstown State | UConn |
The Bigger Picture
What stands out isn’t just the number, it’s the quality.
We’re not talking about depth pieces anymore.
These are:
- All-conference FCS starters
- Defensive playmakers
- Offensive linemen stepping into Power 4 programs
- Quarterbacks getting real opportunities at higher levels
Even with the dip from 500+ to 400+, the talent drain from FCS to FBS remains enormous.
And it raises the same question every year:
Is the FCS becoming a developmental league for the FBS?
Final Take
The answer, at least for now, is yes.
The FCS is still competitive, still physical, and still producing NFL talent, but the transfer portal has turned it into the most important talent pipeline outside of high school recruiting.
And as long as FCS players continue to prove they can play at a higher level, this list isn’t going anywhere. It’s only going to keep growing, but I hope players see articles like this and realize loyalty is more important than money.
NFL Draft Diamonds was created to assist the underdogs playing the sport. We call them diamonds in the rough. My name is Damond Talbot, I have worked extremely hard to help hundreds of small school players over the past several years, and will continue my mission. We have several contributors on this site, and if they contribute their name and contact will be in the piece above. You can email me at nfldraftdiamonds@gmail.com