Preston Stone's 3 Best Transfer Portal Options (CFB)
CFB

Preston Stone's 3 Best Transfer Portal Options

Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images
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SMU quarterback Preston Stone announced his intention to enter the transfer portal earlier this week. The talented signal-caller began the season as Rhett Lashlee’s starter. After a home loss to BYU in which Stone completed just 2-of-4 passing attempts and was sacked three times, SMU made a change at quarterback, inserting Kevin Jennings into the lineup on a full-time basis. Jennings has held the job ever since.

Unsurprisingly, Stone is now entering the portal for a fresh start and renewed opportunity. The junior quarterback started 12 contests in 2023, throwing for 3,197 yards and 28 touchdowns. Stone led SMU to the AAC conference title before moving to the ACC this campaign.

Stone should garner consideration from QB-needy teams in the portal. He’ll offer potential suitors a combination of experience, maturity, and production. He possesses one remaining year of eligibility but could apply for a medical extension. We've identified three potential landing spots for Stone.

Duke

Duke could find themselves searching for a starting quarterback via the transfer portal for a second consecutive campaign. Maalik Murphy recently announced his decision to enter the portal himself. Murphy went 9-3 as Duke's starter this year in Manny Diaz’s first season as the Blue Devils' head coach.

Backup quarterbacks Grayson Loftis and Henry Belin IV are now in contention to start Duke's bowl game against Ole Miss. Diaz should aim higher at quarterback going into next season, considering Murphy defeated them both for the starting gig. Landing Stone via the portal would ensure there's no drop-off for a program seemingly on the rise.

Auburn

Auburn is expected to aggressively target a starting-caliber quarterback via the portal. The program is set to lose three signal-callers: Payton Thorne, Hank Brown, and Holden Geriner. Coach Hugh Freeze needs to land an experienced quarterback both capable of playing right away and overseeing his system.

The only scholarship quarterbacks scheduled to be on Auburn's 2025 roster are incoming freshman Deuce Knight and redshirt freshman Walker White. The Tigers aren't heading into the new season with that much inexperience at the most important position. Stone should possess plenty of interest in both playing within the SEC and in Freeze's player-friendly scheme.

Ole Miss

Ole Miss will undergo some changes at quarterback this offseason. Senior QB Jaxson Dart will enter the 2025 NFL Draft after a strong fourth campaign of college football. A former USC transfer, Dart is coming off a career-best year in which he threw for personal highs in yards (3,875) and touchdowns (25). The dual-threat scrambler added 452 rushing yards and three touchdowns to his offensive totals.

Fellow Ole Miss quarterback Walker Howard plans to enter the transfer portal. Howard presumably lost the backup job to redshirt freshman Austin Simmons this year as it was Simmons who received reps behind Dart this season. Head coach Lane Kiffin should possess an interest in adding a portal quarterback to increase preseason competition. Stone, who's attempting to salvage a once-promising career, should be intrigued by playing in Kiffin's brilliant offense.



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