Money Talks: Oklahoma Lands Top QB As CFB Portal Chaos Continues

As more dominoes fall in college football’s record period of transfer portal movement, quarterbacks continue to be the biggest stories among programs with the largest donor bases and NIL (name, image, and likeness) money to spend.

Oklahoma landed Washington State transfer John Mateer, who was the consensus top quarterback in the portal. Mateer has signed a deal with the 1Oklahoma collective, which is the university’s primary NIL partner.

The Sooners had previously lured Washington State offensive coordinator Ben Arbuckle to Norman with a three-year contract, along with former Cougars quarterbacks coach John Kuceyeski.

Mateer will replace Jackson Arnold, who transferred to SEC rival Auburn for an undisclosed NIL deal that is raising some eyebrows.

More Talent for Coach Prime

As Colorado gets ready for its Alamo Bowl matchup with Big 12 rival BYU, the Buffaloes have landed a potential replacement for Shedeur Sanders, who is widely projected to be a top-five pick in the 2025 NFL Draft. 

Liberty quarterback Kaidon Salter is transferring to Colorado, which already has an incoming five-star freshman signal-caller, Julian Lewis. It’s another win for Colorado coach Deion Sanders as he prepares to field a team without his son as well as Heisman Trophy–winning two-way star Travis Hunter—also a projected top-five NFL Draft pick.

The Portal’s Dark Side

As of Thursday afternoon, Penn State backup Beau Pribula had not signed with a new school, but the quarterback’s decision to transfer and miss out on his team’s College Football Playoff run led to some questions about the logistics and timing of the portal’s opening.

“I don’t think it’s in the best interest of the student-athlete,” Penn State coach James Franklin said. “I don’t think it’s in the best interest of college football.”