Five New Transfer WR Candidates for Pitt
PITTSBURGH -- The Pitt Panthers have not been shy about pursuing wide receivers through the transfer portal. Since the middle of the 2022 season, the Panthers have lost four wideouts to the portal and the NFL, so they have hunted pass-catchers all offseason.
The transfer portal operates in two stages, generally speaking. The first comes with the end of the regular season and bowl season, as players get one more game's worth of film before exploring other options, and again when spring practices end and players get a better sense of where they will or won't fit into their current team's plans. That second wave of transfers are hitting the portal now and there are plenty of new options for the Panthers to pick from.
One of those options is Shane Hooks, Jackson State's leading receiver (66 catches, 775 yards and 10 touchdowns in 13 games). The graduate transfer entered the portal in December and committed to Ole Miss in early April, but he recently backed off that commitment and has reopened his recruitment. Hooks holds offers from Cincinnati, Old Dominion, Western Michigan and UNLV at the moment. At 6'4 and 205 pounds, he has a similar frame to outgoing Panther Jared Wayne.
On the opposite side of the spectrum in terms of size is UTEP transfer Tyrin Smith, a 5'7 and 170-pound wideout from Cibolo, Texas who enjoyed a productive and decorated two seasons with the Miners before opting to try his luck in the transfer portal. This is another player who made a commitment earlier in the offseason before re-entering the transfer portal. Smith was pledged to Texas A&M before having second thoughts and weighing a return to UTEP. There will almost certainly be suitors from all over the Power 5 interested in landing Smith, an All-CUSA selection last year who's accounted for 104 receptions for 1,609 yards and 11 touchdowns over two seasons at the FBS level.
Sticking in the state of Texas, former UTSA receiver and first-team Conference USA selection Zahkari Franklin is looking for a new home in the transfer portal. He made his decision to transfer just two days ago and, after doing nothing but produce for the Road Runners over his four years in San Antonio, figures to be a hot commodity in the transfer portal. Over 46 games in his career, he's accounted for 262 catches, 3,348 yards and 37 touchdowns - all of which top the program record books.
There will be options coming from the Power 5 level as well, with a pair of Big 10 wideouts choosing to enter the transfer portal after their teams have wrap up spring practices.
The first was former Ohio State Buckeye, Kaleb Brown. He was a unanimous four-star prospect, ranked as high as the No. 78 recruit in the class of 2021 (247Sports) and No. 9 receiver in the class (ESPN). He joined a crowded Buckeye receivers room and did not see the field during his freshman season.
Michigan State's Keon Coleman, another former four-star recruit and top-20 player form Louisiana in the class of 2021, followed a wave of Spartans exiting the program after a wildly successful sophomore season. After waiting his turn for a year, Coleman burst onto the scene with a team-high 798 yards and seven touchdowns on 58 catches in 12 games.
While anyone recruiting Brown will be counting on his talent shining through, Coleman has been there and done that at the Power 5 level.
This new crop of transfer wideouts are massively talented and most have proven they belong at the FBS level. Pitt doesn't need to land all of them - with so many great options and some solid pieces already added to help cover for the recent losses - the Panthers need just one to feel good entering fall training camp.
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