Transfer Check-In: A Look at Oklahoma State’s Outgoing Transfers from Last Season

The transfer portal is still a relatively new thing, especially when paired with the power of NIL.

The end of last season saw a ton of movement in the portal all over the country, and Oklahoma State was no exception. With the Cowboys on a bye this week, I thought this would be a good time to take a look at how outgoing transfers from last year are performing in their new threads.

Only four weeks into the 2023 season, the sample size is still relatively small, and it’s hard to compare how one player is playing in one scheme to how he would play in another. All that is to say, take some of this with a grain of salt.

Spencer Sanders, Ole Miss

Sanders has played in all four of Ole Miss’ games this season, though not as the Rebels’ starter.

He is 10-for-16 with 142 passing yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions and has ran for another 15 yards. The majority of Sanders’ work came in Ole Miss’ Week 1 win against Mercer, where he was 8-for-14 with 134 yards and two touchdowns.

PFF has his season grade at 87.5, which is significantly better than all three of OSU’s passers (Garret Rangel’s 67.4 ranks the highest), but with the sample size small because of Sanders not starting (and OSU rotating three guys), it’s tough to take too much from that.

Dominic Richardson, Baylor

Dominic Richardson has taken a team-high 36 carries this season with the struggling Bears, where he has ran for 160 yards. He also has seven catches for 49 yards.

Ollie Gordon has one more carry and 70 more yards than Richardson at this point in the year. Richardson’s 4.4 yards per carry is below that of Gordon (6.2) and Jaden Nixon (4.9) but above Michigan State transfer Elijah Collins’ (4.1). Again, the sample size is small, particularly when OSU was heavily rotating three tailbacks before this past weekend.

In 105 snaps, Richardson has a 68.9 grade from PFF, which is lower than the trio of Gordon (70), Jaden Nixon (77.7) and Elijah Collins (74).

John Paul Richardson, TCU

John Paul Richardson is the 3-1 Horned Frogs’ leading receiver through three games, having caught 14 passes for 185 yards. He is still waiting on his first touchdown in purple, though.

For comparisons sake, Jaden Bray and De’Zhaun Stribling each have more receiving yards than Richardson at this point in the year.

Richardson had six catches apiece against Colorado and Houston this year, where he combined to have 123 of his receiving yards.

PFF grades Richardson at a 76.8, which would rank tops among OSU wide receivers. Stribling is OSU’s highest-graded WR at at 70.6.

Bryson Green, Wisconsin

Bryson Green has caught eight passes for 83 yards in the Badgers’ first four games. That yardage total ranks fourth among Wisconsin receivers.

PFF has given Green a 53.9 grade to this point, which is below the OSU average of 60.5.

Stephon Johnson Jr., Houston

A promising freshman on last season’s OSU squad, Stephon Johnson has six catches for 24 yards since transferring to Houston. He ranks sixth among Cougars in receiving yards and fifth in receptions.

Having played 101 snaps with Houston, per PFF, Johnson has a 45.8 grade four games into the year.

Braylin Presley, Tulsa

An instant fan-favorite upon signing with the Cowboys, Braylin Presley has three catches for 54 yards and five carries for 17 yards in his first four games with the Golden Hurricane.

In 87 snaps, Presley has a 50.6 PFF grade. For reference, Brennan Presley — OSU’s primary slot receiver — has a 51.8.

Mason Cobb, USC

Switching to the defensive side of the ball, Mason Cobb has dealt with injury early in USC’s season.

After playing in the Trojans’ opener against San Jose State, Cobb missed games against Nevada and Stanford before returning this past weekend against Arizona State. On the year, he has seven tackles, including two tackles for loss.

In limited snaps because of his time injured, Cobb has a 55.5 PFF grade. For reference, Nick Martin, OSU’s starting middle linebacker, has a 54.5, and Justin Wright, who has also played just two games because of injury, has a 35.6.

Jabbar Muhammad, Washington

Jabbar Muhammad has been outstanding through four games as a Husky, recording eight tackles, a sack, two pass breakups and an interception that he returned 42 yards.

His interception came this past weekend in Washington’s 59-32 win against Cal.

Muhammad has a PFF grade of 72.5, which would actually be second among OSU corners behind D.J. McKinney’s 72.7 (something that probably hasn’t been talked enough about with OSU’s struggles). McKinney has played five more snaps than Muhammad, per PFF.

Thomas Harper, Notre Dame

Thomas Harper has made 20 tackles through five games with the Fighting Irish, which ranks fifth among Notre Dame defenders and tops among defensive backs.

Harper also has two tackles for loss, a sack, a pair of pass breakups and a forced fumble.

The grades haven’t been overly kind to Harper, though, as he checks in at a 59.9, according to PFF. That’s about on par among OSU safeties with at least 90 snaps played, which is a 58.5.

Trace Ford, Oklahoma

Trace Ford has played 87 snaps in the Sooners’ first four games, where he has five tackles and an interception he returned 26 yards.

His snap total ranks third among OU edge rushers behind Ethan Downs (152) and
Rondell Bothroyd (147). Ford has a 76.8 grade through four games, which would rank second among OSU edge rushers behind Anthony Goodlow’s 82.6 (another solid score that is buried by OSU’s struggles). Nathan Latu isn’t far behind Ford in the PFF gradebooks with a 74.1.