Arizona State lands starting SEC QB in transfer portal

The transfer portal is officially open, and thousands of Division I college football players are seeking new programs for 2026.

Even schools still in the College Football Playoff, like Oregon and Indiana, are hosting over a dozen players on campus, trying to get them to sign with the team while also preparing for the upcoming semifinals.

Kenny Dillingham knows all about the CFP, having made it in 2024 and barely losing to Texas in one of the best Playoff games since its inception over a decade ago.

He did that with a young, strong-armed, mobile transfer quarterback named Sam Leavitt.

And although Leavitt is in the portal and is touring schools to see where he will play in what is likely his final season of college ball before the NFL, Dillingham believes he’s found another young, strong-armed, mobile QB who can help the Sun Devils return to the College Football Playoff.

More news: SEC Team Loses Starting QB Hours Before Transfer Portal Opens

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As Saturday came to a close, news came out that Arizona State had agreed to a deal with starting Kentucky Wildcats signal-caller Cutter Boley.

Boley has a prototypical pro quarterback build at 6-foot-5 and 220 lbs. and has an effortless cannon of an arm. While Kentucky wasn’t a force in 2025, Boley had moments where he looked like a future great, as he flicked his arm nonchalantly as a ball would fly 30 yards in the air to a receiver finishing their route.

As a freshman, Boley threw for 2,160 yards with 15 touchdowns and 12 interceptions. Although not a true dual-threat quarterback by any means, he’s athletic enough to scramble and take yards when given to him, improving on his running from 2024 to his first full year as a starter.

While Boley inked a deal with Arizona State, Leavitt was visiting Boley’s former home of Lexington at the Kentucky campus. The former Sun Devils QB is on a tour of schools before making his decision, with the Texas Tech Raiders next on his list.

The transfer portal officially closes on Jan. 16, 2026.