The transfer portal window has officially closed, and for Kansas football, it marked a notable shift under Lance Leipold. Over the two-week stretch, the Jayhawks saw 21 scholarship players with remaining eligibility exit the program-easily the largest transfer class since Leipold took over.
Add in one walk-on departure in Bryce Cohoon, and the total number of outgoing players climbs to 22. Meanwhile, names like Dean Miller, Devin Dye and Jalen Dye also entered the portal, but because they’ve exhausted their eligibility, they won’t be suiting up elsewhere.
To put this into perspective, Kansas has typically lost around 10 scholarship players to the portal in previous offseasons. But with evolving NCAA rules-especially those impacting preferred walk-ons (PWOs)-the numbers have started to swell. Still, what stands out isn’t just how many players left, but where they’re going.
Despite the uptick in departures, most of KU’s outgoing players aren’t landing at Power 4 programs. That’s been a consistent theme over the last few years.
From the 2023, 2024, and 2025 offseasons combined, just five of the 45 Kansas transfers found homes at Power 4 schools. This cycle?
Only three of the 22 players with remaining eligibility have made that leap.
And for players like Damani Maxson, Jacoby Davis, Jaidyn Doss, and Dylan Brooks-who have yet to announce their next stops-the expectation is that they, too, will land outside the Power 4 landscape.
Here’s where the Jayhawks’ outgoing transfers are headed:
- Aundre Gibson → Northern Arizona
- Bryce Cohoon → South Dakota
- Caleb Redd → Eastern Kentucky
- Carter Lavrusky → Northern Arizona
- David McComb → Miami (OH)
- Greydon Grimes → Appalachian State
- Harry Stewart III → Boise State
- JaCorey Stewart → FIU
- Jaden Hamm → Arkansas State
- Jameel Croft → Charlotte
- **Johnny Thompson Jr. ** → Ball State
- Jon Jon Kamara → Wisconsin
- **Joseph Sipp Jr.
** → Florida Atlantic
- Kene Anene → South Dakota State
- Laquan Robinson → Southern Miss
- Logan Brantley → Boise State
- Lyrik Rawls → Arizona State
- Tyler Mercer → Oklahoma State
When you step back and look at the conference as a whole, KU ranks ninth in the Big 12 for total outgoing transfers. According to the 247Sports database, Big 12 programs averaged about 30 outgoing players this cycle.
But that number is slightly inflated by Iowa State and Oklahoma State, both of which underwent head coaching changes-typically a major driver of roster turnover. Remove those two, and the average drops to 25.
By comparison, TCU and BYU stood out for their roster retention, losing just 12 and 13 players, respectively.
One more stat to consider: across the Big 12, about 38% of outgoing transfers have landed at Power 4 schools. For KU, that number sits at just 12%. That’s a significant gap, and it speaks to the type of depth Kansas is losing-not necessarily top-end contributors, but more likely players seeking playing time or a fresh start at the Group of Five or FCS level.
In the ever-evolving world of college football roster management, the transfer portal has become a critical piece of the puzzle. For Kansas, this cycle may have brought more departures than usual, but the bigger story might be the level of talent they’re losing-and where those players are headed. For now, the Jayhawks appear to be holding onto the core pieces that matter most as they continue building under Leipold.