What does Oregon State football need from the transfer portal?

Published 10:46 am Thursday, December 12, 2024

At the time of writing, Oregon State has added just one player to the 2025 roster since the transfer portal opened, interior offensive lineman JT Hand from Arizona.

One down. But how many to go?

This offseason will be different than last. Oregon State and head coach Trent Bray are not going to have to reassemble a roster of mercenaries and depth pieces who stuck around but weren’t contributors previously. A long list of players, including but not limited to, wide receiver Trent Walker, defensive back Sailiasa Vadrawale III, edge rusher Zakaih Saez, running backs Anthony Hankerson and Salahadin Allah amongst others, announced their decisions to stay in Corvallis for 2025.

Speaking with Bray after Early National Signing Day, the second-year head coach said that he’d like to be consistently adding “five or six” players via the transfer portal every season. With Hand committed, that leaves four to five spots for the Beavers to fill and a box checked on the offensive line.

So, here are the remaining positions and roles the Beavers should be looking to target through the portal, in no particular order.

Pass-rush upside, interior or edge

There wasn’t a position on Oregon State’s roster that was thinner, more injury-riddled or unproductive than the defensive line. It sounds harsh, but it’s reality. Oregon State finished dead last in the FBS with just seven sacks, no other team had single digits in the category.

The Beavers also allowed 5.3 yards a carry to opposing rushing offenses and allowed 185.8 rushing yards a game, which ranked No. 108 of 134 teams.

Adding someone on the interior feels more critical than on the edge because of the lack of depth on the interior. Olu Omotosho, Tyree Blake, Shamar Meikle and Saez (and Andy Alfieri if he doesn’t move back to tight end) are all currently expected to return as edge pass rushers and showed flashes when they could all stay healthy, which was rarely.

Edge will still be a position to look at and add another body to — particularly someone on the larger side, with all of the aforementioned edge rushers being sub-260 pounds — but interior is the more pressing need.

The interior was no different injury wise, but Thomas Collins and Tevita Pome’e are currently the only consistently available players set to return. Pome’e can fill the run and play the nose, while Collins is more of the pass-rush mold. Finding a blend that could play next to either and add depth to the room is critical.

An outside corner

The Beavers aren’t likely to add a shutdown, man-to-man monster at corner. But finding someone to pair with Exodus Ayers — who showed promise as a true freshman — will be another key piece.

Jaden Robinson has exhausted his eligibility, Andre Jordan Jr. hit the portal after a promising 2024 season, Kobe Singleton was on-again off-again with injuries and Mason White moved to a role as the nickel/slot player later in the year. That leaves Ayers as really the only other cornerback with real playing experience on this roster.

Jalil Tucker was added as a junior college signee on early national signing day and, according to Bray, will be an early enrollee. True freshmen Trey Glasper and David Madison are also planning to enroll early.

Tucker is likely to be penciled into the spot opposite Ayers, but adding one more player with college football experience into that mix would transform the corner room from a thin, but promising position into a much deeper one.

A pass catcher

Another threat in the receiving game – whether it’s a tight end, running back or receiver — would be a big get.

Trent Walker led the Beavers in receptions, yards, touchdowns and average yards per game. He was nails and one of the feel-good stories for the team after biding his time as a walk-on before a breakout 2024. Walker will be back for 2025, but he can’t do it all alone.

Darrius Clemons showed flashes, especially against Boise State. Taz Reddicks and Jeremiah Noga each had their moments and will still be contributors next season, but the cupboard is bare beyond them.

Tight end Jermaine Terry II is out of eligibility, Bryce Caufield played 352 snaps on offense and had just six catches for 90 yards, running backs Hankerson and Allah had catches, but most were screens or check downs that they didn’t do much with (a combined 29 catches for 157 yards).

Adding another weapon in the passing game at any position would be big upside. That player may already be on the roster and just needs another season of development (i.e. Zachary Card, David Wells Jr., Malachi Nelson, Jordan Anderson), but mixing in another wouldn’t hurt.

A veteran quarterback

Another year, another game of “Who beats out Ben Gulbranson in preseason camp before losing the job at the end of the year”.

All jokes aside, quarterback is a murky position at the moment. Gevani McCoy and Dom Montiel are in the portal, Gulbranson seems undecided about a return and Gabarri Johnson is still about as green as he was when he came to campus last spring. Jake Sanders graduated. Kallen Gutridge will be a redshirt freshman and Tristian Ti’a remains unsigned and doesn’t seem like he’ll be enrolling early.

Adding a veteran presence with real starting experience, whether it’s at the FBS or FCS level, will be a critical addition. It doesn’t mean he’ll be given the job outright, with Bray saying that Gulbranson will be the front runner if he returns. But, like so many positions on this roster, quality backups with experience will be important.

Quick hits

Here are some spots that just missed the cut and could benefit from a transfer, but may already have a solution on the roster.

A deep-threat receiver: Oregon State quarterbacks attempted 40 throws of 20 yards or more, 15 of them were caught. That isn’t entirely on either the quarterback or receiver, nor does Oregon State need to be routinely making those plays to be successful. But their longest pass of the season was a 55-yarder to David Wells Jr. in the first week of the season.

A solution could be on the roster in Wells Jr. or Card, but its other spot where another option wouldn’t hurt.

Another nickel defender: As previously mentioned, Vadrawale III will be back after playing the bulk of the reps here last season. Noble Thomas Jr. was the starter to begin the year before missing most of the season with injury and there are a host of safeties who could play the spot too. Vadrawale III struggled at points with the bulk of the snaps, so another body — a bigger one at that — would be helpful.