College football’s mad two-week scramble to land a transfer portal QB

EIGHT DAYS ON the road. Six college visits. More than 6,000 miles traveled across the country and back.

After starting 10 games in the SEC at Missouri last season, Beau Pribula expected his transfer portal experience in January to be one school, one trip, done deal. The first visit was supposed to be a mere formality, with a coaching staff he knew well, before he signed and enrolled for his senior year.

The veteran quarterback found out the hard way what can happen if those initial plans go awry.

“I had no idea it was going to turn into what it did,” Pribula said.

When 34 different Power 4 programs are searching for starting quarterbacks at the same time during a two-week transfer window, expect the unexpected. These passers are making life-altering decisions in mere days. The process has become high-stakes musical chairs now that schools are ponying up $3 million or more for proven starters.

Schools want to get deals done immediately after the portal opens, if not sooner. If the quarterback hesitates, someone else grabs that opportunity. If the deal falls through for the school, they’re in trouble.

The elimination of the spring transfer window meant that, for all parties, it was absolutely imperative to get this right in January. But the nature of this frenzied two-week period leaves every opportunity to get it wrong.

Every transfer quarterback has their own tale of how their move this offseason played out, and we’re about to find out how their decision paid off. But they’re not all on parallel paths making their own decisions. Sometimes those paths converge and collide.

In Pribula’s case, his recruitment became entangled with the fate of 10 other transfer quarterbacks. You wouldn’t get it, these quarterbacks say, if you haven’t gone through it.

“I don’t think people fully understand just how crazy and cutthroat it is,” Priubla said. “You’re taking everything into consideration with just such little amount of time.”

He’s relieved to say he made the right call in eventually choosing Virginia. By the time he had reached the end of his portal journey and seen all he had seen, he had a healthy appreciation for just how much timing and luck can dictate your fate in this chaotic era of college football.

“Have you ever been on our side in the portal?” his agent, Joe Gazza, asked. “Because it’s nuts.”

PRIBULA WAS GOING to Virginia Tech. He was so sure that he and Gazza had only one visit scheduled when the transfer portal officially opened Jan. 2.

The Hokies sent a car service to York, Pennsylvania, to drive Pribula, his older brother Cade and Gazza to Blacksburg for a visit that began Sunday evening.

The visit itself was a reunion. Coach James Franklin was now leading Virginia Tech and brought offensive coordinator Ty Howle and quarterbacks coach Danny O’Brien with him from Penn State. Pribula played under them for three years in State College.

Franklin said he was “heartbroken” when Pribula decided to transfer from Penn State late in the 2024 season, while the Nittany Lions were in the College Football Playoff. Starting quarterback Drew Allar decided to stay in school, and Pribula knew he couldn’t put off transferring and miss out on lining up a starting job elsewhere.

Pribula was back on the open market after one season with the Tigers. Virginia Tech needed a QB1. For both sides, this made too much sense. But just a few hours into the visit, Gazza was back at the hotel and received a call from a staffer at another school. They had heard Ethan Grunkemeyer, who had also played under Franklin at Penn State, had just committed to Virginia Tech.

“I’m like, ‘What are you talking about? We’re here,'” Gazza said.

From that moment forward, Pribula’s camp was scrambling. For the quarterbacks who aren’t at the top of everyone’s board, the portal experience is starting to feel less like a glitzy high school recruitment and more like a job interview or casting call. That can be the case for even the QBs as qualified as Pribula, an SEC starter entering his fifth year of college.

Virginia Tech’s staff was choosing between two of its former backups. Grunkemeyer has three more years of eligibility and showed good progress and upside over seven starts last season after Franklin was fired. For a coaching staff going into a Year 1, that was ultimately preferable to a one-year option in Pribula.

Pribula had no clue what might come next. Gazza called his rolodex of general managers, following up with every school that had expressed interest while trying to line up the next stop.

The portal opened Friday. Official visits started Saturday. The flurry of quarterback commitments began Sunday. For Pribula, doors were slamming shut in a hurry.

“The clock was ticking,” Pribula said. “I didn’t want to rush anything. But I understood time was not something that was a luxury.”

IN THIS ERA of the transfer portal, schools and agents negotiate throughout December to try to get these deals lined up. But until there’s a signed contract, they can still fall through.

East Carolina’s Katin Houser looked like he was heading to Arkansas until Illinois signed him. Cincinnati came close with Ohio State’s Lincoln Kienholz before he picked Louisville. And then there was Kenny Minchey at Nebraska.

The Huskers had done their homework, including conversations with Notre Dame coach Marcus Freeman, after learning Minchey planned to transfer in early December. They felt great about betting on the backup to CJ Carr and his readiness to lead a team. The two sides quickly agreed to terms and Nebraska sent the contract to Minchey’s agent, Eugene Lee, after the portal opened. Minchey announced his commitment to Nebraska on that Sunday before he had even visited.

The quarterback phoned Kentucky offensive coordinator Joe Sloan to inform him of his decision. And that turned into a two-hour call. By the end, Minchey was going to Kentucky.

Kentucky had just hosted prized Arizona State transfer QB Sam Leavitt on campus but were worried about ending up empty-handed. Sloan, their newly hired OC, had been persistently recruiting Minchey throughout but ramped up his efforts before it was too late. He sold Minchey and his family on the combined track record of new coach Will Stein and Sloan developing Jayden Daniels, Bo Nix, Dillon Gabriel and Garrett Nussmeier into NFL draft picks with Dante Moore up next.

“He’d been texting me and calling me every day,” Minchey said. “He never let up. It just took a little bit longer for me to realize that’s where I should actually go.”

Minchey hadn’t officially signed with Nebraska yet. The next day, Lee called Nebraska general manager Pat Stewart to break the news the QB was headed to Kentucky. Stewart was in disbelief and brought the phone to coach Matt Rhule. Minchey called Rhule to apologize, too.

“It was a pretty hectic process,” Minchey said. “I feel like there were a lot of players around the country going through the same thing as me. At the end of the day, it was just making the best decision for me.”

On that Monday night, Rhule held a meeting that included Stewart, assistant GM Logan Holgorsen and chief of staff Jarrett Wishon to discuss how they would move forward. They were determined to sign a quarterback on Tuesday and still had three candidates they liked: UNLV’s Anthony Colandrea, Michigan State’s Aidan Chiles and Pribula.

Gazza got the call shortly thereafter.

How quickly can you get here?

COLANDREA FULLY EXPECTED to end up at Florida State. The St. Petersburg, Florida, native made the Seminoles his first visit because it was a chance to go home.

But Colandrea left that Sunday visit without committing. His agent, Noah Reisenfeld, and Florida State couldn’t agree on the terms of a deal. They went to Georgia Tech the next day while the Seminoles brought in Ashton Daniels (Auburn) and DJ Lagway (Florida) for visits. When Colandrea got the call from coach Mike Norvell later that night and learned Florida State was going with Daniels, he was disappointed.

“I was leaning that way,” Colandrea said. “Honestly, I almost did go to Florida State.”

He had already had a hard enough time deciding to leave UNLV after earning Mountain West Player of the Year honors in 2025. Now the portal was not playing out like he had envisioned at all. Reisenfeld urged him to stay patient.

Within 20 minutes, the agent received a text from Holgorsen at Nebraska: Just wanted to let you know we’re heavily interested in Anthony Colandrea.

“I called Ant back and said, ‘Guess what? We’re going to Nebraska tomorrow,'” Reisenfeld said.

The Husker staff was honest about its intentions. They would bring all three targets to campus and make a quick decision. Now it was a question of timing and how soon each QB could get to Lincoln. As the staff went back and forth about their preferred pecking order, Rhule said it was Wishon who finally spoke up.

“He goes, ‘Hey guys, for what it’s worth, Colandrea said he could be here in the morning. Shouldn’t we just fly him in?'” Rhule said. “I’m like, well, let’s bring this other guy first and then bring him in the next day. And he sat there quietly and he goes, ‘Hey, I know I’m not in personnel. But shouldn’t we bring him in first if he can get here first?’ And I was like, ‘You know what? Jarrett is right.'”

Nebraska picked up Colandrea, his parents and his agents the next morning and drove them onto the field at Memorial Stadium, where they were greeted by the entire coaching staff.

“When Anthony walked in, it was just like, here’s our guy,” Rhule said. “I just felt it and believed it.”

Pribula arrived at Nebraska that afternoon while Colandrea was still in the facility. He was meeting with offensive coaches when Stewart broke the news to Gazza: They had just received a commitment from Colandrea.

“It was awkward,” Nebraska offensive coordinator Dana Holgorsen said. “But how else do you do it? You gotta get ’em ASAP. You have to make that decision because if you wait in the portal, you’re cooked. If you wait an hour, you might be cooked.”

“That was pretty weird and just an interesting thing,” Pribula said. “I wasn’t offended or anything like that. I understood the timing of the portal. I was just like, ‘Well, I appreciate your time and thanks for the hospitality for a couple hours.'”

Nebraska hoped to make sure Pribula and Colandrea did not cross paths in the hallways while they were in the building.

“I did see him,” Colandrea said. “I was like, ‘That’s crazy.’ It really is nuts. It’s insane.”

Chiles never made it to Lincoln. He locked in his commitment to another Big Ten program, Northwestern, on that same day. The decision came as a huge relief to Northwestern coach David Braun and his new OC Chip Kelly.

“You think on Day 1 of his visit we’re in a really good spot, but it’s crazy how competitive it can get within 12 hours,” Braun said. “Chip is not a naturally excitable person, but he was fired up.”

Meanwhile, Pribula was at a hotel in Omaha, once again trying to figure out his next move. Gazza had started hearing rumors during the day, but now it was suddenly real.

“The next thing you know, Demond Williams is gonna go to LSU and Washington wanted me to visit,” Pribula said.

WASHINGTON WASN’T THE move. Demond Williams Jr. had announced he was entering the portal despite already re-signing with the Huskies. Washington’s staff flew Pribula out to Seattle for a Wednesday visit, but coach Jedd Fisch still hadn’t given up trying to work things out with Williams.

The next day, Williams reversed course and publicly recommitted to the Huskies.

Georgia Tech wasn’t the answer, either. Pribula flew across the country for a Friday meeting with the Yellow Jackets. Brent Key and his coaches were still evaluating their options and were up front from the start that they weren’t ready to decide yet. They would end up waiting out the rest of the College Football Playoff and signing Indiana’s Alberto Mendoza, the younger brother of Heisman winner Fernando Mendoza, the day after the title game.

“Beau is more even-keeled, but there were some days when him and I were looking at each other like, ‘Man, I don’t know where this is going, I’m not gonna lie to you,'” Gazza said.

Ten minutes before they boarded a flight home from Atlanta, Gazza received an unexpected call: Tennessee wanted to get Pribula on campus. They canceled their plans and got on a flight to Knoxville.

Tennessee was one of several schools that couldn’t decide whether it truly needed a transfer, and the clock was ticking. The Vols were in a tricky spot. Their starter, Joey Aguilar, was seeking one more year of eligibility and eventually sued the NCAA. They had just hosted Leavitt on a two-day visit and were still in the race, but Leavitt was heading to Miami next. They also had five-star freshman Faizon Brandon enrolling early to compete with second-year backup George MacIntyre.

So Tennessee brought in Pribula to keep its options open. Agents say this is becoming a common practice in transfer recruiting and see similarities to the NFL predraft process and top-30 visits. Some visits might be more exploratory than anything with no promises of putting an offer on the table. A week later, the Vols signed Colorado backup Ryan Staub.

Tennessee and several more programs were dealing with another unpredictable variable throughout this portal cycle: eligibility cases. As Pribula traveled to Knoxville, Ole Miss’ Trinidad Chambliss and Virginia’s Chandler Morris had just learned their eligibility waivers were denied by the NCAA.

Chambliss would later file suit against the NCAA and was granted an injunction a month later, but in that moment, the Rebels needed a solid Plan B. They tried making a late run at Lagway and brought him in for a visit after he had already verbally committed to Baylor. For Lagway, the portal process was unlike anything he had expected or experienced as a five-star high school recruit.

“It’s really fast,” Lagway said. “I feel like that’s the biggest decision of your life, and it’s gotta be fast. It’s like speed dating.”

Virginia had already hosted and missed out on Lagway days earlier. When Gazza initially called Virginia GM Justin Speros about Pribula, the Cavaliers said they were still waiting for clarity on Morris. Now they had it. If Morris wanted to keep fighting for a seventh year, he would need to file a lawsuit.

“I was hitting up Speros constantly like, ‘Dude, Chandler Morris isn’t coming back. And if he doesn’t, what do you have?'” Gazza said.

Virginia had lost Colandrea to the portal a year earlier. Backup Daniel Kaelin had just transferred back home to Nebraska. They were talking to Pitt’s Eli Holstein and junior college transfer Tre Guerra. But when it was time to get serious about a target, Speros wanted Pribula.

“I told them, ‘Bring us in, OK? Just bring us in,'” Gazza said. “And in a short time, a lot shifted and Virginia went full-court press.”

BY THE TIME Pribula arrived at Virginia after five official visits in seven days, he was exhausted. When asked to look back on how he got through this whirlwind tour, he paused and sighed.

“That’s a good question,” Pribula said.

It was 6 a.m. flights four or five days in a row and nights at random hotels as they crisscrossed the country. He was worried about staying in shape and would squeeze in body weight workouts in the hotel gym or even at the airport. He just tried to stay clearheaded and consistent.

“It’s also an interview for me, you know?” Pribula said. “The schools I’m traveling to, they want to know if I’m the right guy and the right fit for their program. So I had to be on my P’s and Q’s.”

The Pribulas and Gazza landed in Charlottesville at 11 a.m. on Sunday. They were only on campus for six hours. Speros called it a “meat and potatoes” visit. Pribula had been on enough of these and didn’t want to waste time. He needed time around the head coach, OC and QB coach. He wanted to meet the strength and nutrition staffs. He wanted to get a decent feel for the program culture. But these trips aren’t about photo shoots or hype anymore.

“At the end of the day, really, I just wanted to talk ball,” Pribula said.

As he departed, Pribula insisted he was too tired to make a decision. He needed to get home to Pennsylvania, see his family and talk it out. Virginia’s coaching staff gave him some grace, and it meant a lot to him. Coach Tony Elliott texted Pribula encouraging him to take his time and pray on it.

But Speros and Virginia’s coaches were sweating this out until the very end. Guerra’s agents needed an answer by Sunday night. Speros asked for more time. Instead, Guerra signed with Coastal Carolina. Now they were anxious. They were expecting a verdict from Pribula via Gazza by noon on Monday, but that deadline came and went. The GM was officially worried they had whiffed.

Finally, a little after 5 p.m., Gazza asked Speros to get on a Zoom meeting. They got the deal done by 8:30 p.m.

“Besides my wedding, that might’ve been the best night of my life,” Speros said with a laugh. “I was so relieved. I’m telling you, if you ask anybody on our staff, they were like, ‘Dude, I’ve never seen you happier than that.'”

Holstein was still interested in joining the Cavaliers, even if that meant sitting behind Pribula for a season, and committed the next day. Classes had already started at UVA. Pribula had one week to get enrolled and get to campus.

After all that chaos, Pribula ended up at a program that played for the ACC championship and won 11 games last season. Virginia named him the starter after a spring competition and has given him every opportunity to become its team leader.

He’s back on the East Coast, less than four hours from home. His grandparents couldn’t travel to his games last season, but they’ll get to be there for his senior year. Sure, being a college QB1 is big business now, but those reasons still matter.

Pribula is grateful for where he ended up — and glad he’ll never have to do this again.

“There was nothing happening we could predict,” Gazza said. “A lot of it wasn’t even in our hands. It was a constant war.

“But it kind of worked out perfectly.”