By Tony Thomas
Monday, December 4th, is a date that will live in glorious victory for some teams looking to upgrade their rosters for next season with the opening of the transfer portal. Hundreds of players looking for more playing time or to extend their college careers one more year will enter what can only be described as the human equivalent of a dog and pony show.
But there are some players who have stood out and are already starting to get offers from other teams. Here are five players who have garnered a ton of attention as we approach “Maniacal Monday”
QB Will Howard
Kansas State Wildcats
6’5″, 242 lbs
Howard is a graduate transfer and has one year of eligibility remaining. He became the starter in 2022 and led the Wildcats to the Big 12 title in a win over TCU (TCU later went on to get routed by Georgia in the National Championship Game). Howard has posted eight games with multiple touchdown passes and completed 61% of his passes.
This season, Howard led Kansas State to an 8-4 record (two of those losses were by three points or less) and threw for 2,543 yards, 24 touchdowns, and eight INTs. In addition, he has rushed for 351 yards and nine scores. His passing total is 1000 yards more than he had last season.
Just a kid from Downingtown, PA.@whoward_ pic.twitter.com/y5Sc4SVcOQ
— K-State Football (@KStateFB) November 12, 2023
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This season, a couple of games stood out for Howard-he accounted for five touchdowns vs. Troy in Week 2 and threw four touchdown passes in a loss at Texas.
Howard’s career numbers in the “Little Apple” of Manhattan, KS, look like this:
- 5,333 passing yards
- 45 Touchdowns
- 23 INTs
- 870 rushing yards
- 17 Touchdowns
Potential landing spots for Howard include Washington, Louisville, Missouri, Auburn, and Kentucky.
DT Marley Cook
Middle Tennessee State Blue Raiders
6’2″, 298 lbs.
Cook is a junior and already has offers from Miami, Missouri, Houston, Boston College, Louisville, TCU, and Kansas. In 2023, Cook made 22 tackles, six tackles for loss, one sack, one pass breakup, and a forced fumble. For his career at MTSU, Cook made 61 tackles and 15.5 tackles for loss.
Give me that! https://t.co/rfldTa94gF
— Marley Cook (@marl3ycook57) November 13, 2022
OL Easton Kilty
North Dakota Fighting Hawks
6’5″, 305 lbs.
Kilty started 23 games at North Dakota and has played both Right Tackle and Left Guard, which makes him versatile. Behind Kilty’s blocking, North Dakota ranked #8 in the FCS in Time of Possession at 33:23.
In addition, Kilty’s blocking resulted in North Dakota’s quarterbacks completing 67% of their passes, good enough for #2 in the Missouri Valley Football Conference (MVFC) and #11 in the FCS.
For his efforts, Kilty was named Honorable Mention All-MVFC.
Offers to Kilty include such schools as Virginia Tech, Purdue, North Carolina State, Mississippi State, Boston College, Oklahoma State, Auburn, and Texas Tech.
OL Justin Mayers
UTEP Miners
6’3″, 309 lbs
Mayers started all 12 games for the UTEP Miners. His blocking helped UTEP average 159 yards per game rushing, ranking #5 in Conference USA. In addition, his blocking skills helped the Miners lead Conference USA in Time of Possession at 33:34, good enough for #9 nationally.
MOOD for Tomorrow!
Broke the squat record earlier this season, one last ride with my seniors!#GoMiners @UTEPFB pic.twitter.com/4iZoZEuZXI
— Justin Mayers (@JustinMayers99) November 24, 2023
Mayers has offers from Colorado, Mississippi State, Boston College, Houston, Texas Tech, Vanderbilt, South Florida, Virginia Tech, Pittsburgh, UTSA, and South Carolina.
OL Gerquan Scott
Southern Miss Golden Eagles
6’4″, 330 lbs.
A redshirt junior, Scott was a full-time starter for three years at Southern Miss. Scott started 40 consecutive games along multiple positions along the offensive line between left guard, right guard, and center.
To The Top 🦅 pic.twitter.com/bHbzvU00KW
— Gerquan scott (@GerquanScott) May 5, 2023
Colorado, Auburn, Ole Miss, South Carolina, Vanderbilt, Houston, South Florida, Marshall, and Tulsa have all made offers for Scott’s services. Scott intends to visit Ole Miss and Auburn.
In a few days, the commencement of chaos commences. Not all players who enter the portal are guaranteed a landing spot on the other side.
These players listed above have distinguished themselves enough and are blessed to have multiple offers. December 4th will be just another maniacal Monday in the world of the transfer portal.
