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The Oklahoma Sooners have been active through the first six days of the 2026 transfer portal cycle, but they've also seen many of their former players sign with new schools. On Wednesday afternoon, they saw a former veteran presence land in the Big Ten Conference.
Former OU tight end Kaden Helms has committed to play for Minnesota out of the transfer portal. Helms came to Norman as a member of the 2022 recruiting class, and he spent four seasons as a Sooner. Helms was a redshirt junior in 2025, and he mostly served as Oklahoma's No. 2 tight end during the program's run to the College Football Playoff.
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Helms was mostly a blocking tight end, and he caught just five passes and one touchdown for the Sooners in 2025. Injuries really derailed what he could have been in Norman, as he struggled to stay healthy enough to make a definitive impact. Tight end has been a sore spot for Sooner Nation over the past few seasons, and that room is undergoing another rebuild in 2026.
Oklahoma fired tight ends coach Joe Jon Finley last Thursday, but that hasn't stopped them from landing two potential impact transfers in the portal. Florida transfer Hayden Hansen and Colorado State transfer Rocky Beers hope to turn around OU's luck at the position, while the Sooners look for a new tight ends coach in the meantime.
As for Helms, he'll get a fresh start with the Golden Gophers, and if he can stay healthy, he'll have a chance to make the kind of impact at Minnesota that he never could at Oklahoma.
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This article originally appeared on Sooners Wire: Former OU tight end headed to play for Big Ten school
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