Every season, transfers flood the college football offseason news. This is especially true for quarterbacks, but there are other talented players who will be on new teams this season too. Here are the top non-quarterback transfers for the 2021 college football season.
Note: Only players who are eligible for the 2021 season will be listed.
Ty Chandler, RB, North Carolina Tar Heels
Chandler spent four seasons at Tennessee and played well for the Volunteers. He has 2,046 rushing yards in his career to go with 465 receiving yards. His nose for the end zone is also solid, as he has 16 total touchdowns. With Tennessee changing coaches, Chandler decided to transfer to North Carolina.
The Tar Heels lost their top two running backs from last year in Michael Carter and Javonte Williams. That will give Chandler a chance to make an immediate impact for the Tar Heels. With Sam Howell back at quarterback, North Carolina will have their eyes on competing in the ACC.
Arik Gilbert, TE, Georgia Bulldogs
Gilbert’s time at LSU was short, as he played just one season for the Tigers. He was impressive in his short stint with the Tigers though. The former highly-touted recruit posted 35 catches for 368 yards and two touchdowns for LSU. With LSU struggling, Gilbert decided to transfer to Georgia.
With the transfer, Gilbert will be playing both wide receiver and tight end. He has unique athletic ability to be able to do that, but Georgia also has a solid tight end in Darnell Washington. Gilbert will help fill the void left by the injury to George Pickens, who is out for the year with an injury. After an altercation with head coach Kirby Smart at practice, Gilbert is taking some personal time away from the team.
Eric Gray, RB, Oklahoma Sooners
Another former Tennessee running back, Gray played for the Volunteers for the last two seasons. In his time there, he rushed for 1,311 yards and eight touchdowns. He also had 369 receiving yards and three touchdowns catches. Along with a few other players from Tennessee, Gray decided to transfer to Oklahoma.
Gray is figured to be the starter for the Sooners this year. With the team bringing back 17 starters, including quarterback Spencer Rattler the team will be national title contender. Gray should help them win a lot of games and can put up big numbers for the Sooners.
Derrion Kendrick, CB, Georgia Bulldogs
Following the season, Kendrick decided to come back to college, but then was kicked off the Clemson team. He had been really good for the Tigers with 63 total tackles, three interceptions and 11 passes defended over three seasons with the Tigers. The team he joined, Georgia, is playing Clemson in the first game of the season, which adds some drama.
Georgia lost three corners to the NFL from last season and needed to find some players who were ready to hit the field. Kendrick is more than ready to hit the field for the Bulldogs. If he plays well, he can help the Bulldogs win the SEC and get his draft stock back up after leaving Clemson under less than ideal circumstances.
Wanya Morris, OT, Oklahoma Sooners
Morris is another player who left Tennessee for Oklahoma. He was an All-SEC Freshman in 2019 and also played well in 2020 blocking for both Eric Gray and Ty Chandler. With the new coaching hire at Tennessee, Morris decided to leave for a team that could compete.
As mentioned, the Sooners could end up in the College Football Playoff. Morris will be charged with protecting Spencer Rattler’s blindside and will still be clearing holes for Eric Gray. If he holds up, he could help achieve his personal and the team’s goals.
Charleston Rambo, WR, Miami Hurricanes
One of the few players who transferred from Oklahoma this year is Charleston Rambo. In three seasons, Rambo had 76 receptions for 1,180 yards and nine touchdowns at Miami. He has been productive for Oklahoma and should really help Miami’s offense become more explosive.
Miami gets quarterback D’Eriq King back for the 2021 season. With King and Rambo, the Hurricanes have a lot of hope for their offense. They should be able to compete in the ACC this season. Rambo will have a chance to show his talents off early in the season, as the Hurricanes take on Alabama in the opener.
Wandale Robinson, WR, Kentucky Wildcats
Robinson is from the state of Kentucky, but chose to sign on with Nebraska out of high school. For the Cornhuskers, Robinson totaled 580 rushing yards, 914 receiving yards and seven total touchdowns as a do-it-all player. After two seasons at Nebraska, Robinson decided to transfer back to his home state and paly for the Wildcats.
Kentucky won five games, including the Gator Bowl last season. They return just 11 starters, but Mark Stoops has the Wildcats consistently playing solid football. With Robinson now on offense, the team should be able to drastically improve their 107th-ranked scoring offense. Robinson can have a successful season and the Wildcats can go to another bowl game.
Henry To’o To’o, LB, Alabama Crimson Tide
As another one of the former Tennessee players to transfer, To’o To’o made a jump to a national contender. At Tennessee he had 140 total tackles, 12.5 tackles for loss and 1.5 sacks. After two seasons with the Volunteers, To’o To’o should be able to make a huge impact for the Crimson Tide.
Alabama’s defense returns seven starters from their team last season. They ranked second in the country last season and get to add To’o To’o too. He will make a lot of big plays for Alabama and could help them reach the National Championship Game once again.
Other Impactful Transfers
T.J. Carter, CB, TCU Horned Frogs
Carter played four seasons at Memphis before deciding to transfer. He was a freshman All-American and received conference honors several times throughout his career. In Gary Patterson’s defense, he should thrive.
Ben Davis, LB, Texas Longhorns
Although Davis had a tough time cracking the lineup for the Crimson Tide, he decided to transfer to Texas. He followed Steve Sarkisian, who left Alabama to take the Texas head coaching job.
Obinna Eze, OT, TCU Horned Frogs
Eze was a two-year starter for Memphis and like T.J. Carter decided to transfer to TCU. He will join an offensive line that brings back three starters.
Mike Jones, LB, LSU Tigers
Even though he started seven games at Clemson, Jones decided to transfer to LSU. He will important for the Tigers, as they lost Jabril Cox to the NFL.
Cain Madden, OL, Notre Dame Fighting Irish
Madden was able to get extensive experience at Marshall over his five seasons there. Now, he will help Notre Dame, who lost four starters to the NFL.
Tykee Smith, S, Georgia Bulldogs
Smith played two seasons at West Virginia and played well. Now, he will help a Georgia defensive backfield that lost a lot of talent to the NFL.
Jordan Strachan, Edge, South Carolina Gamecocks
He posted 9.5 sacks at Georgia State and now Strachan is taking his game to the next level in the SEC.
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