The transfer portal for college football is one of the most horribly designed systems in modern sports. The fact that it closes and players have to announce their choice of whether to stay or to transfer to a different school while the season is still in session is pure lunacy. The NCAA has been focusing on the empowerment and mobility of its players, but the league is doing so seemingly without any sort of plan to maintain stability and competition.
But as fans of college football and of the Flames, this is the world we must live in. It is a world where every player on every team has eligibility remaining, and a great season from a program is inevitably followed by a stream of players announcing their intentions to leave the program.
My task today is to look at the Flames who have announced their entrance into the Transfer Portal, the effects they’re leaving may have on the Flames and who might step up in their absence. I’m going to focus on just some of the big hitters; if you would like a full list, you can check out our friends at A Sea of Red using this link here.
Kaidon Salter – QB
Ugh. It’s not often you see someone break every single quarterback statistic at a university, lead the team to an undefeated season and an NY6 bowl, and proceed to enter the portal. But that’s the curse of overperforming in a G5 conference. I’m not surprised by the move—in all honesty, I think it’s the best move he can make for his career. In the firestorm that is named Twitter, the two most consistent names surrounding Salter’s transfer are Auburn and Ohio State. If I were getting attention from SEC schools and the Big Ten, I’d be hard-pressed to remain in the hills of Lynchburg.
The Fiesta Bowl most certainly helps Salter as well.
Salter played really freakin’ well on Monday. Oregon’s defensive line, like the rest of the roster, was the best the Flames have played all season, and Salter and the Flames O-Line were able to avoid taking a single sack against the Ducks. Much of that was due to his mobility and maturing as a passer.
Every game this season, Salter has gotten better at moving in the pocket and knowing when to run, which he displayed in Phoenix. The Flames’ offensive line played well, but sacks are a quarterback stat, so all credit goes to Salter.
As I mentioned above, the most significant growth in Salter’s game this season has been his decision-making and his ability to take care of the football, and in a game where top-tier defenders blanketed every receiver he had, he made the most out of nothing. The 17-yard touchdown pass and the dime to CJ Daniels on the sideline were both pro-level throws, and Salter was making those kinds of plays all game on a national stage.
One last note on Salter. As I said above, this was the best decision he could’ve made for his career. It hurts to watch our superstar quarterback walk out the door, but we need to try our hardest to support him in this next chapter. Don’t be sad it’s over; be happy it happened.
Johnathan Bennett – QB
Yup, the Flames lost both their number one and number two quarterbacks to the portal. This is old news — Bennett entered the portal after the Flames’ victory over New Mexico State in the CUSA Championship. Still, it’s news that’s worth mentioning simply to discuss the newly decimated Flame’s QB room.
Bennett was the other half of the QB battle that headlined the Flames’ summer, and after losing the role to Kaidon Salter version 2.0, he sort of fell to the wayside for the Flames. There was a visible difference in his play and attitude after losing the job, so this is the least surprising of all the transfers this month. He’s an incredibly talented quarterback who’s already received offers and committed to play for the Citadel in the fall.
Kendy Charles – DT
This was one of the more surprising moves from this portal season. Kendy was one of the five captains for the Flames this season and the only member of the Flames’ front-seven to enter the portal. In his last season for the Flames, he had 3 sacks, 4.5 tackles for loss, and 24 total tackles.
The portal hasn’t been the kindest to Kendy. Just a few days ago, he tweeted, “I am still looking for a new home.” Which implies a lack of interest from schools. After that tweet, he received two offers per his Twitter, coming from Texas State and ECU. Also, on his Twitter, Kendy tweeted out his own highlights, captioned, “I entered the transfer portal looking for a better fit. No other reasons!!”
Kobe Singleton – CB
The Flames had a historically dominant secondary this season, which was followed by three of the members of that secondary entering the portal. The first of which was Singleton, who had been something of a polarizing player for the Flames. He plays corner with an incredibly aggressive style that leads to big plays and even bigger penalties.
He ended the season with four picks, 12 passes defended and 41 tackles—all incredibly high numbers. His aggressive playstyle also led to him being burnt on a few rather impactful touchdowns that could’ve haunted him and the Flames if they had gone on to lose the game.
Don’t let his boom-or-bust approach fool you, though; Singleton is an absolutely outstanding corner that will fetch a really high price on the market. On3, one of if not the best transfer portal sites out there, ranks Singleton half a point higher than the other Flame to hit the portal, who recently committed to play for Deion Sanders and Colorado.
Preston Hodge – CB
Preston Hodge, you are a Buffalo. No matter what you think of the way Colorado’s season went, there’s no denying that there is a large national spotlight on Deion Sanders’ team, and anyone who goes there and plays well will be noticed. So, for a corner like Hodge, who had an excellent season for the Flames, this is an excellent career move.
Hodge ended the 2023 season with three tackles for loss and two interceptions, one of which he returned for a touchdown, along with a forced fumble and 48 tackles. He’s a physical player who is hard to evade in the open field and hits like a truck, and if he gets the starting nod, he will pair beautifully with superstar DB Travis Hunter.
Jaylon Jimmerson – S
This is another transfer that caught me off guard. Jimmerson transferred to Liberty from Incarnate Word and played two seasons on the Mountain before moving to a different CUSA school in Sam Houston. Jimmerson ended the 2023 season with one pick, two tackles for loss, and 18 tackles from the safety position.
The reason for this move isn’t entirely clear to me, whereas with Singleton, Hodge, and Salter, I can see their reasoning as clearly as a LASIK surgery patient. Jimmerson played well, sure, but he didn’t have nearly as good of a season as the other three I mentioned, and the move from Liberty to Sam Houston is much more of a lateral move (or even downward) than an upward move like Hodge, who’s committed to Colorado.
The only reason I can come up with is Brylan Green. The sophomore safety had an incredible 2023, in which he shot himself into the national spotlight with his superb play and his charisma. He earned himself the starting role, which may be the reason for Jimmerson’s departure, but that’s just my best guess.
CJ Daniels – WR
I thought we managed to keep Daniels. I went to bed on Wednesday night thinking and hoping that we were able to retain our superstar wideout and that we get to watch him end his career on the Mountain and declare for the draft as a Liberty Flame until I woke up to breaking news.
That’s another casualty of this new transfer portal era that we live in. Liberty is not going to have as many players in the NFL. In the NFL draft, a player is mentioned along with his position and his school, like Bijan Robinson, the running back out of Texas. Well, that school mentioned there is always the school where the player ends their career. This means that when Salter, Daniels, Singleton and Hodge make the league, like I think they will, Liberty won’t be lauded as the school to develop these new stars. In the eyes of the audience, Lynchburg will just be a stop in the journey, not the place that produced these NFL players.
Daniels had himself one heck of a year. He led all Flames pass catchers with 55 catches for 1,067 yards and 10 touchdowns this season and was clearly the best player in the Flames WR room after a slow last two seasons for the Flames due to injuries.
In my post-Fiesta Bowl column, I discussed Daniels and said that he was one of the only Flames to stand out against the powerhouse opponent that is Oregon, and I ended the column, which you can read here, by saying this:
Every performance by Daniels of this caliber slides him up NFL draft boards and pushes him further and further into the spotlight of NFL draft discourse (of which I am a part of, come back in the spring). Now what does this attention do for Daniels’ career? Is he going to remain a Flame?
To answer my own question, no. Daniels will not remain a Flame after entering the portal. He will be an NFL wideout, and it will be a shame to see another school listed next to his name in the draft profile.
Palsgrove is the asst. editor for the Liberty Champion. Follow him on X
William Murphy
January 5, 2024
I began attending Marshall University football games at the age of 10 in Huntington, WV. In November of that same year, our community suffered a devastating loss when our team and residents were tragically killed in a plane crash, claiming the lives of 75 individuals. Subsequently, football transcended being just a sport; it became a tribute to those who had participated in it. I can vividly recall those brisk Saturday mornings as we gathered at the Boys Club, waiting in a van for transportation to the game. In the 1970s, catching your favorite college team in action meant attending the game since televised broadcasts were limited. Today, I hold dear the cherished memories of my siblings and me seated in the stands at Fairfield Stadium, a venue constructed in 1934 but now a part of history.
A structured framework for the College Football Portal and Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) is imperative. This structured approach ensures fairness, transparency, and compliance within the college football landscape. In the context of college football, a structured framework would help establish clear guidelines for student-athletes, institutions, and sponsors involved in NIL deals. It would also contribute to preserving the integrity of collegiate sports by preventing potential abuses and ensuring that all stakeholders benefit equitably. Ultimately, a structured College Football Portal and NIL framework would promote long-term sustainability and ethical practices within the industry, aligning with principles of good governance and effective contract management.