After an impressive 9-4 season that ended with a win over Mississippi State in the Duke’s Mayo Bowl, we have officially reached the offseason. That means its time for what I think many would consider the worst
part of the current era of college sports—the transfer portal. We clearly have a problem with the sports calendar when Wake Forest’s 2026 season has to start hours before their 2025 season even ends, but it is what it is. The portal opened on January 2nd and it will close on the 16th—players in the portal can still sign after it closes. Here’s a list of the roster turnover so far for the Deacs. I will continue to update the list as players enter the portal or sign with Wake Forest.
Incoming Players (5)
- KD Daniels, RB, Florida, RS Freshman
- 5-11, 200 pounds
- 4-star recruit out of high school, 14th best RB in 2024 class
- 28 carries, 120 yards, 1 TD this season for the Gators
- 3 years of eligibility
- Chase Tyler, WR, Duke, RS Freshman
- 6-2, 200 pounds
- 3-star recruit out of high school
- 4 catches for 120 yards this season at Duke
- 3 years of eligibility
- Josh Patterson, Safety, Iowa State, Freshman
- 5-11, 195 pounds
- 3-star recruit out of high school, 76th ranked safety in 2025 class
- Brother of Wake Forest standout Davaughn Patterson
- 4 tackles and 1 interception in 4 games for the Cyclones this season
- 4 years of eligibility
- Bernard Causey, DB, Georgia State, RS Freshman
- 5-11, 165 pounds
- 3-star recruit out of high school
- 19 tackles, 6 passes defended, 1 sack and 1 FF in 10 games this season
- 3 years of eligibility
- Tolu Oladije, OL, New Hampshire, Gr Student
- 6-5, 300 pounds
- CAA 1st Team All-Conference
- 1 year of eligibility
Outgoing (20)
- Deshawn Purdie, QB, Sophomore
- 6-4, 228 pounds
- 41-82 (50%), 618 yards, 6 TDs, 3 Ints in 8 games this season
- 26.9 QBR
- 270 yards and 4 TDs against Oregon State in October
- Charlotte Transfer
- Mateen Ibirogba, DT, RS Junior
- 6-3, 300 pounds
- 22 total tackles, 3.5 TFL, 2 sacks, 1 FF this season
- Georgetown transfer
- Chris Barnes, WR, RS Freshman
- 5-7, 170 pounds
- 39 catches for 547 yards and 3 touchdowns this season
- 11 returns for 263 yards and 1 touchdown
- Washington State transfer
- Micah Mays Jr, WR, RS Sophomore
- 6-2, 200 pounds
- 18 catches for 302 yards and 2 touchdowns this season
- 520 career receiving yards and 4 career TDs at Wake Forest
- 4-star recruit and #25 WR in the 2023 class
- Tate Carney, RB, RS Junior
- 6-0, 207 pounds
- 1 rush for 9 yards this season, 1 kick return for 26 yards
- 133 carries for 592 yards and 10 rushing touchdowns in 4 years with Wake
- 12 receptions for 148 yards and 1 touchdown in career
- Harry Lodge, TE, RS Junior
- 6-6, 240 pounds
- 0 catches in 6 games this season
- 12 career catches for 110 yards at Wake Forest
- Transferred to GT in December 2024 before coming back to Wake in the spring
- Dominic Deluca, TE, RS Freshman
- 6-6, 250 pounds
- 1 catch for 7 yards in 10 games this season
- 3-star recruit and #116 TE in 2024 class
- Drew Pickett, RB, RS Sophomore
- 5-10, 186 pounds
- Did not play in 3 years with the Deacs
- 3-star recruit and #100 RB in the 2023 class
- Kendal Howard, Edge, RS Freshman
- 6-3, 260 pounds
- Did not play in 2 seasons with the Deacs
- 3-star recruit and #184 DL in 2024 class
- Darius Jones, LB, RS Freshman
- Recorded 4 tackles in 9 games this season
- Played in 11 games over 2 years for the Deacs
- 3-star recruit and #112 LB in 2024 class
- Reginald Vick Jr., WR, RS Junior
- 6-3, 198 pounds
- Played in 4 games this season, did not record a catch
- Transfer from Virginia Union, where he caught 48 passes for 1,164 yards and 12 touchdowns.
- Nathan Pahanich, OT, Freshman
- 6-4, 291 pounds
- 3-star recruit in the 2025 class
- Elijah Oehlke, QB, Freshman
- 6-2, 223 pounds
- 3-star recruit, #58 QB in 2025 class
- Did not play this season
- Ben Grice, WR, Sophomore
- 6-0, 194 pounds
- Played 12 games on special teams in 2024
- 3-star recruit and #143 WR in 2024 class
- Cole Funderburk, DE, Freshman
- 6-3, 235 pounds
- 3-star recruit and #136 Edge in 2025 class
- Did not play this season
- Derrell Johnson II, IOL, Redshirt Junior
- 6-3, 306 pounds
- Saw action in 1 game in 2023 against Notre Dame
- 3-star recruit and #38 IOL in 2022 class
- EJ Reid, WR, RS Freshman
- 5-8, 178 pounds
- Played in 3 games in 2024
- 3-star recruit and #260 WR in 2024 class
- Jacob Cosby-Mosley, Safety, RS Freshman
- 5-11, 200 pounds
- Played in 2 games in 2024 and 1 game this season
- 3-star recruit and #135 Safety in 2024 class
- William Wiebush, Safety, Freshman
- 6-0, 182 pounds
- 3-star recruit and #181 CB in the 2025 class
- Did not play this season
- Ka’Shawn Thomas, DL, RS Sophomore
- 6-1, 292 pounds
- Played in 3 games this season, did not record a tackle
- 3-star recruit and #206 DL in 2023 class
