Big Ten transfers poised to make instant impact: Nico Iamaleava, Justice Haynes set for big 2025 seasons

It wasn’t that long ago transfers felt like a big deal in college football simply because there were so few of them. If your team added a transfer, it was typically done to fill a glaring hole in the roster, and a lot of the time, you had to wait an entire year before the player became eligible.

Now, if a team adds only one transfer in the offseason, the fanbase starts calling for their coach’s job. He’s not doing enough to fix this roster!

While the number of transfers has changed, what hasn’t is they still have an enormous impact on a team. Many programs don’t sit around waiting for high school recruits to mature and develop, opting instead to reload through the portal. All across the country, we’ll see transfers impacting their teams for better and for worse.

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Tom Fornelli

The Big Ten is no different, and these are the transfers likely to make the biggest impact in 2025.

He certainly generated the most headlines this offseason. If you’d have told a UCLA fan in December that Nico Iamaleava would be their starting QB in 2025, they’d have called the cops because they’d assume you’d escaped from a mental institution. But it happened, and while there are many different opinions on why it happened and who the winners are in the situation, there’s no questioning Iamaleava’s talent.

If Iamaleava builds off his first season as a starter and begins living up to it, there’s no question the Bruins offense will take a leap forward. The program suddenly finds itself in a world where it could have the best QB in the conference.

There are a lot of changes on the Michigan offense this year, and while Bryce Underwood is getting most of the attention, this is still Michigan. The Wolverines will still run the ball, but both Kalel Mullings and Donovan Edwards are gone. In their place, however, is Alabama transfer Justice Haynes.

Haynes rushed for 448 yards and seven touchdowns with the Tide last season, averaging 6.58 yards per carry. He only had 79 carries playing alongside Jam Miller and Jalen Milroe, but he should have a larger role in the Michigan offense.

Ohio State has always had quality tight ends to pair with their elite wide receivers, but now the Buckeyes offense has one of the most productive pass-catching tight ends in the country. Klare was one of the lone bright spots with Purdue last season. He led the team with 51 receptions for 685 yards and four touchdowns.

And he did that while being the only pass-catching threat opposing defenses were worried about. That will not be the case in Columbus, where he’s likely to find a whole lot of room to work over the middle of the field.

Fernando Mendoza was a productive player for California in the last two seasons. He threw for 4,712 yards, 30 touchdowns and 16 interceptions over 20 games and comes to Bloomington as the replacement for last season’s transfer starter, Kurtis Rourke.

Rourke helped lead the Hoosiers to the College Football Playoff, so it’ll be a tough act to follow, but NFL scouts are already circling Mendoza due to his ability and traits. It’s possible he could be better than Rourke, even if the Hoosiers don’t get back to the CFP.

It feels like every year we’re talking about how Penn State needs a wide receiver, and this offseason is no different. Last year, it was Tyler Warren leading the team in receiving from the tight end spot. While they’re not similar builds, Warren and Trebor Pena can play similar roles.

Pena was a reliable target for Syracuse last season, catching 84 passes for 941 yards and nine touchdowns while doing the majority of his damage out of the slot. He could be poised for a breakout on a Penn State team currently with the second-best odds to win the Big Ten (+270), according to FanDuel Sportsbook. 

Top transfers for remaining Big Ten teams

Illinois WR Hudson Clement

Illinois has plenty of starters returning from last season’s 10-win team but won’t have its top two leading receivers, Pat Bryand and Zakhari Franklin. Enter Hudson Clement, who caught 73 passes for 1,221 yards and nine touchdowns in two seasons with West Virginia.

Iowa QB Mark Gronowski

The latest hope at quarterback for the Hawkeyes. It didn’t get much attention, but Iowa’s offense was improved last season; it was just extremely reliant on Kaleb Johnson and the run game to be so. Gronowski was an extremely productive player at a strong FCS program in South Dakota State.

Maryland OT Rahtrel Perry

There were no shortage of issues with the Terps offense last year, and it’s not unreasonable to say Maryland may have had the worst offensive line among Power Four programs. The hope is Perry, a four-star prospect in 247Sports’ transfer portal rankings from Central Connecticut, can help solidify a unit that needs all the help it can get.

Michigan State CB Joshua Eaton

The Michigan State defense allowed 31.1 points per game in conference play last season, which is out of line with how defensive coordinator Joe Rossi’s defenses have typically performed. There were a few spots the Spartans felt the need for an upgrade and went after Eaton. He began his career at Oklahoma before transferring to Texas State, where he had 56 tackles and 13 passes defended the last two seasons.

Minnesota RB AJ Turner

Turner didn’t garner much attention out of high school, but he grabbed plenty of eyeballs with Marshall last season. In his first year as a starter, Turner rushed for 864 yards and six touchdowns while averaging 8.31 yards per attempt. I’d expect that average to come down a bit in the Big Ten, but those attempts to go up with Minnesota.

Nebraska WR Dane Key

Jahmal Banks and Isaiah Neyor combined for 78 receptions for 1,042 yards and eight touchdowns last season, but both are gone. So Dylan Raiola needs new weapons to throw to, and Dane Key will receive plenty of looks. Key caught 126 passes for 1,870 yards and 14 touchdowns in three seasons with Kentucky and will likely post career highs in Nebraska’s offense.

Northwestern QB Preston Stone

Northwestern’s performance at QB last season was abysmal. Their 101.92 passing efficiency was the worst in the Big Ten, and they threw only seven touchdowns to 11 interceptions. Enter Preston Stone, who lost his starting gig to Kevin Jennings at SMU last year but brings plenty of experience and production. He threw for 3,197 yards and 28 touchdowns in 2023 with the Mustangs.

Oregon OT Isaiah World

Oregon loses a lot of experience along the offensive line, including both tackles Ajani Cornelius and Josh Conerly. So, the addition of Isaiah World is a huge one for the Ducks. While most fans won’t be familiar with the transfer from Nevada, the 6-foot-8, 309-pound tackle is already generating first-round buzz in early NFL mock drafts.

Purdue CB Ryan Turner

To be honest, narrowing it down to the one impact transfer on Purdue was extremely difficult, seeing how nearly the entire team will be different in 2025. In the end, I went with Turner. He comes to Purdue from Boston College but began his career at Ohio State. He had 13 tackles for BC last season with two tackles for loss, a sack and an interception (a pick six at that). He’s the kind of versatile defensive back with whom first-year Purdue coach Barry Odom has had plenty of success.

Rutgers WR DT Sheffield

My impact transfer for Rutgers last season was WR Dymere Miller, and he led the team with 59 receptions for 757 yards and four touchdowns. Miller is gone, and in his place is my new impact transfer, DT Sheffield! Sheffield began his career at Washington State but played for North Texas last season. Rest assured, Rutgers will not throw the ball as often as either of those teams, but he should be the No. 1 option after grabbing 66 passes for 822 yards and 11 touchdowns with the Mean Green in 2024.

USC DL Keeshawn Silver

USC signed 16 transfers in the 2025 class, and seven are defensive linemen or defensive backs, so it doesn’t take a genius to figure out the priority. Any one of them could have a major impact in 2025, but I’m going with the former 5-star prospect out of high school — Keeshawn Silver. The Kentucky transfer is a disruptive force on the interior of the defensive line, and while he may not put up eye-popping numbers, his presence will be felt.

Washington CB Tacario Davis

I was a big fan of Davis with Arizona in 2023 when the 6-4 corner had an outstanding season. However, like a lot of his teammates, he wasn’t nearly as effective in 2024 under a new coaching staff. In Washington, he’ll reunite with Jedd Fisch and look to reignite his college career in a Washington defense with a lot of snaps to replace in the secondary.

Wisconsin DT Parker Petersen

Luke Fickell has made big changes to the Wisconsin offense this offseason, but he’s still Luke Fickell. When his teams excel, they do so with outstanding defense, and there’s been an overhaul on that side of the ball as well. Petersen is one of the newcomers to the defensive line, and he was a disruptive player for Tulane last season.