This week’s edition of “The Good, the Bad, the Ugly” highlights the third week of our recruiting series. Over the last two weeks, we have reviewed how each Mountain West and PAC 12 school did in the world of high school and junior college recruiting. This week, we are going to turn our focus to the transfer portal and take a look at how each team in next year’s Mountain West fared.
The Good
UNLV
It’s becoming a yearly tradition; the Rebels lose key players and immediately replace them with impactful additions
from the transfer portal. They lost their starting quarterback and Conference Player of the Year Anthony Colandrea and replaced him with a former SEC starting quarterback in Auburn transfer Jackson Arnold. The Rebels also landed a notable linebacker transfer from SMU in Mark Iheanachor. The Rebels also addressed some concerns in the secondary with cornerback Kyron Chambers out of SMU and safety Tony-Luis Nukba out of Arizona State. This is the deepest class in the conference and has a ton of upside. With Boise State gone, this might finally be the year for the Rebels.
San Jose State
After a disappointing 2025 season, the Spartans needed a quality transfer portal class and they did just that. With 21 new additions joining the program, San Jose State clearly prioritized the defensive side of the ball with a number of notable additions in the secondary and at linebacker. With quarterback Walker Eget gone, the Spartans also needed to bring in competition for the starting spot, and they did that with the addition of Hawaii transfer Luke Weaver. Weaver proved to be a capable quarterback in his relief of Micah Alejado. It will be interesting to see if he can secure the starting job in San Jose.
Hawaii
The Rainbow Warriors did an excellent job of addressing some immediate roster needs at critical positions, putting them in an excellent position to compete for the top spot in the Mountain West. They brought in depth at quarterback with the addition of Virginia transfer Bjorn Jurgensen and brought in some talented wide receivers in Virginia Tech transfer Devin Alves and Iowa State transfer Carson Brown. There is no doubt that Hawaii will have one of, if not the most elite offenses in the conference.
The Bad
New Mexico
The Lobos did an excellent job of retaining talent this past offseason, making the transfer portal less of a priority with only 16 additions. They brought in two kickers to compete for the starting spot with Ken Meir joining the program from Temple and Konner Olson joining from Western Kentucky. My favorite addition in this class is Boise State transfer Clay Martineau. Martineau had a number of health related issues during his time in Boise, but he is an athletic linebacker that can cover a lot of space. If he can stay healthy, he should put up huge numbers for the Lobos.
UTEP
The Miners are bringing in a large transfer portal class with 23 new additions joining the program. The class is well-rounded position-wise with nearly every position being addressed in this cycle. The class includes nearly every position including a long snapper and a punter. The Miners brought in a talented quarterback from Incarnate Word with the addition of EJ Colson. This class might not have a lot of star power, but there is plenty of potential for this group to make the Miners more competitive than they were last season.
Nevada
There aren’t really any sure things in this class, but there is a ton of potential in what should be Jeff Choate’s best transfer portal class since becoming the head coach at Nevada. The Wolf Pack prioritized a number of positions in this class with wide receiver, cornerback, and the offensive line bringing in the most notable additions. One name to keep an eye on is UCLA transfer quarterback Luke Duncan who will look to come in and compete for a starting spot. If the Wolf Pack can take the next step on the offensive side of the ball, they could be this year’s most improved Mountain West squad.
The Ugly
Wyoming
I will say this, the Cowboys were at least more active in the transfer portal this season. However, there were not really any splashy additions. It is pretty clear that Jay Sawvel and his staff saw a need to bring in depth on the interior offensive line with the addition of three players that can play the guard and center position. They also brought in quarterback Tyler Hughes out of William & Mary to come in and compete at a quarterback position that desperately needs to improve. It will be interesting to see if Hughes is able to win the job and elevate the Cowboy offense.
Northern Illinois
I expected the Huskies to make a bigger splash in the transfer portal with their move to the Mountain West. After looking through their transfer portal additions, there really isn’t a lot to be excited about. If there was one player I would encourage you to keep an eye on, it would be Mississippi State transfer wide receiver Cam Thompson who has nice size and was highly sought after out of high school. Otherwise, there are a lot of unfamiliar names joining the team from the FCS level.
North Dakota State
It is hard to read too much into the Bison’s approach to the transfer portal, considering they did not know they would be part of the Mountain West when they were recruiting. According to 247 Sports, the Bison have brought only four players in from the portal with EDGE rusher Truman Griffith from Kansas State being the most notable. I expect North Dakota State to be far more active in the transfer portal next off-season, as their recruiting approach will have to shift now that they are competing at the FBS level.
Air Force will not be reviewed in this article since they do not recruit from the transfer portal.
How do you feel about your school’s transfer portal class? Leave your thoughts in the comments below.
