All Missouri football storylines, developments on Day 1 of transfer portal

1 week ago 2

Can’t keep up with the portal? Don’t worry. You’re not alone.

The college football transfer portal officially opened for entries Friday, Jan. 2, and the numbers nationwide are staggering. More than 4,500 players in Division-I football alone have reportedly put their name into the database on opening day.

Among those, 24 players are from Missouri football. That number keeps changing.

And, among those 4,500 or so players, about 15-25 will end up signing with the Tigers over the course of the next few weeks.

It was a hectic opening day. The biggest surprise of Mizzou’s portal season to date arrived. Some visitors and interest from the Missouri side has also dropped, with a major update dropping at quarterback. And, there are a potential couple of suitors for MU’s outgoing starting QB.

It’s almost impossible to keep tabs on everything. So, here is your major Missouri portal news from Friday, Jan. 2, condensed into one spot:

Rebel coming to CoMo at QB?

Mizzou is reportedly the favorite to land a Week 1 starting SEC quarterback.

Pete Thamel at ESPN reported that Ole Miss quarterback Austin Simmons, who was widely expected to be the Rebels’ starter in 2025 before Division-II transfer Trinidad Chambliss emerged as one of the great college football stories this season, has entered the portal with a no-contact tag.

Thamel has indicated that Missouri is the favorite to land his service, which gets a lot easier if Simmons isn’t speaking to other schools.

More: Is Missouri football closing in on a portal QB? It looks like it

Other reports Friday indicated that Mizzou may have interest in DJ Lagway (Florida) and Amari Odom (Kennesaw State). Odom, according to 247Sports, will visit Mizzou on Jan. 7.

But the Simmons report indicates that Mizzou is trending in a positive direction.

In 2025, Simmons — a 6-4 left-hander from Miami, Florida — completed 60% of his 75 pass attempts for 744 yards, four touchdowns and five interceptions. He rushed 21 times for 82 yards and one touchdown. He also had three fumbles.

Surprising transfer decision from starting safety

More: Missouri football starting safety to enter transfer portal, per report

There had been disappointing portal entrants for Missouri before the portal officially opened. Wide receiver Joshua Manning was reliable. Running back Marquise Davis was highly promising. It’s never a great sign to lose nearly half of your previous freshman class after just one season.

Many of those weren’t ideal, but most are quickly fixable.

But the news that safety Marvin Burks Jr. intends to transfer, which dropped Friday in a report from 247Sports, was the perhaps the most surprising news to date. Burks played more snaps than any player on the Missouri defense last season. He has been a fixture of the MU secondary for two seasons.

That type of experience — not to mention familiarity — is hard to find.

Mizzou now needs to find a starting-caliber safety (or two) in the transfer portal. That’s easier said than done.

The number of Tigers in the portal is now up to 24. Two of those players waited until the official portal opening date, with wide receiver Daniel Blood also making it known Friday that he plans to transfer.

New school close for former Mizzou QB?

Beau Pribula looks like he has narrowed down his next destination, with a move to the ACC looking likely.

Virginia Tech and Georgia Tech will get visits from the Mizzou transfer, according to multiple reports.

The Hokies’ new head coach is James Franklin, who recruited Pribula to Penn State. Georgia Tech is losing starter Haynes King to eligibility, and backup Aaron Philo seems likely to follow offensive coordinator Buster Faulkner to Florida.

Following Franklin to Morgantown and Virginia Tech seems to make the most sense for Pribula.

Elsewhere, Mizzou wide receiver Marquis Johnson looks like he might stay in the SEC, with Kentucky and Mississippi State reportedly interested.

More reported Mizzou interest, visitors

According to various reports, the following players have set up (or are expected to set up) visits with Missouri:

San Diego State defensive back Dalesean Staley will visit Mizzou and Nebraska, per JPGVisuals on X. He’s a Kansas City native who had 80 total tackles and 10 pass breakups at safety for the Aztecs this season.
Matt Zenitz at 247Sports has reported that Emmanuel Oyebadejo, an edge rusher at Jacksonville State, will visit Missouri, Texas A&M and Florida. He’s from Manchester, England, and had 4.5 sacks and two forced fumbles this season.
Per Pete Nakos at On3, Mason Purham, a defensive end at Division-II Emory and Henry, has set up a visit with Mizzou. James Madison also is eyeing the 6-5 edge rusher.
Chris Hummer at 247Sports reported that North Texas wide receiver Wyatt Young, who had 1,274 receiving yards and 10 touchdowns this season, will visit Mizzou, as well as Louisville, Oklahoma State (where UNT’s head coach is now) and Michigan.

This article originally appeared on Columbia Daily Tribune: Missouri football storylines, updates from first day of transfer portal

Read Entire Article