Programs that finished the season poorly are starting to feel the repercussions. As the transfer portal officially opens at midnight ET on Jan. 2, more players are making their intentions to leave public. Auburn and Syracuse, however, faced the brunt of those repercussions on Tuesday. Here’s a roundup of the players who made transfer portal news.

Though Auburn has a new and promising head coach in Alex Golesh, it may not be enough, as the program is likely to lose veteran linebacker Robert Woodyard Jr. to the transfer portal. He is one of the reasons behind the Tigers finishing the regular season ranked No. 12 nationally in rushing defense. This was despite the Auburn defense crumbling under Hugh Freeze’s leadership this year, who was fired as the head coach on November 2, following a 15-19 record over two-plus seasons. Woodyard was also named a First Team All-SEC player by PFF.

Woodyard Jr. began his career at Auburn in 2022, and it was only 3 years later that the LB found a bigger role in the defense, and did not disappoint with that chance. Woodyard wrapped up the season with 67 total tackles, 2 sacks, and 1 INT.

Syracuse football is also reportedly losing a crucial player to the portal: star running back Yasin Willis. This is an extremely devastating blow to the Orange, because Willis is the leading rusher on the team. In November, he even said that he would stay on for the 2026 season. But the Fran Brown-led squad dropping to 3-9 this year likely emerged as an area of concern.

Willis was the 12th-best prospect in New Jersey at the time of his recruiting. He was part of Fran Brown’s inaugural freshman class in 2024, having flipped his commitment from Pittsburgh. He became a starting RB in his very next season, and there was hope in Brown maintaining the pace he set in 2024. However, even with Willis’ 129 carries for 558 yards and 4 TDs, the Syracuse ground attack couldn’t make a difference. But that is not all.

Other players who plan to enter the portal

Weirdly enough, even playoff participant Oklahoma is expected to lose players to the portal. The latest speculation happens to be Jacob Sexton. He had only one good year at Norman, playing 10 games out of 13 as a true freshman. Afterwards, injuries kept going up, forcing him to miss elongated periods of time. He missed a good part of the 2024 season with one such blow. This season, Sexton was able to record only 6 offensive snaps in the season opener against Illinois State, after which he was out with an injury.

South Carolina, also plagued with a poor season, will reportedly lose OL Tree Babalade. Until this year, he’d struggled to find playing time. But after Cason Henry went out with an injury early in the season, Babalade was called in. He leaves the Gamecocks with 22 games played and 15 career starts.

The offensive line was a big issue for South Carolina football this season. It forced head coach Shane Beamer to fire Lonnie Teasley and replace him with Randy Clements. The latter was brought forth with the help of the current Gamecocks OC, Kendal Briles. Despite the change in leadership, Babalade plans to enter the portal, joining fellow O linemen Henry and Trovon Baugh.

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Lastly, JMU will lose OL Joseph Simmons to the portal as well. Like others on the list, Simmons made a name for himself in 2025 after being with the program for 3 years. He helped JMU with a snap count of more than 1,200. This season, the OL allowed only 14 QB hurries. He will have 1 year of eligibility remaining.

Now reduced to a once-in-a-season appearance, the portal will open on January 2 and close on January 16.