A coaching change in the modern era of college football essentially guarantees a hard reset of the roster.
The South Florida Bulls recently manufactured their best season since 2017, finishing 9-4 and lingering in the rankings throughout the year. However, the success came with a cost as third-year head coach Alex Golesh was hired away by Auburn in late November, ending a 3-year run which featured a 23-15 record, two bowl wins, two ranked wins, and three winning seasons.
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Replacing Golesh is former Ohio State offensive coordinator Brian Hartline, a former 1,000-yard Miami Dolphins receiver who quickly rose through the coaching ranks, securing his first head coaching job in Tampa at age 39. And now, Hartline aims to replenish the mass exodus of players South Florida lost to Auburn and other schools in the portal.
Here are USF’s most significant losses and gains during the 2026 portal cycle:
Top 10 portal losses
10. James Chenault, CB — Utah
2025 stats: 32 tackles, 1.0 TFL, 2 INT, 3 PBU
Chenault held down a starting cornerback role for the bulk of the season before missing the final four games of action. He was instrumental in South Florida’s Week 2 ambush at The Swamp, corralling a second half interception in a defensive-driven 18-16 win over Florida. The 2025 sophomore was also one of the better tacklers out of the secondary, registering as many as nine stops in an October thrashing of Florida Atlantic.
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9. Jonas Duclona, CB — Georgia Tech
2025 stats: 35 tackles, 3.0 TFL, 1.0 sacks, 1 INT, 4 PBU, 1 FF
Duclona took over the starting cornerback role after Chenault went down for the year and thrived in it. The former Wisconsin Badger saw a breakout 2025 campaign which featured 35 total tackles and 30 solo stops — with the majority of the production occurring during the latter stretch of the season. Duclona logged his lone interception in USF’s signature 63-36 victory at North Texas in a game defined by the Bulls’ takeaway tendencies.
8. Nykahi Davenport, RB — Auburn
2025 stats: 98 rushes, 612 rush yards (6.2 average), 7 rush TD, 5 receptions, 50 receiving yards
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South Florida tested several running backs throughout 2025, but none had more impact than Davenport who led the position group with 612 rushing yards and a 6.2 average. Davenport breakaway runs became a fixture of the offense once his role increased in October. He never fielded more than 17 carries in a game but was always efficient, averaging over 5.0 yards in eight of 11 outings.
7. Chas Nimrod, WR — Auburn
2025 stats: 23 receptions, 466 receiving yards, 3 receiving TD
USF’s biggest upgrade from 2024 to 2025 was the receiving corps, and Nimrod was a substantial part of that improvement. He transferred in from Tennessee and immediately became the team’s top deep threat. Nimrod shined with 96 yards in the opener vs. Boise State and then recorded 100+ yard performances in his third and fourth games as a Bull. However, the 6’2”, 198 pound receiver’s season was cut short after six games due to injury.
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6. Fred Gaskin, SS — Auburn
2025 stats: 53 tackles, 3.0 TFL, 1.0 sacks, 2 INT, 2 PBU, 1 FF, 2 FR, 1 defensive TD
Gaskin held down a full-time starting safety role and was one of the top contributors to a defense that collected the ninth-most takeaways in the FBS. Gaskin scooped up four takeaways (two interceptions, two fumbles) and forced a fumble to add to the havoc. Such efforts led to a Second Team All-American Conference selection for the sophomore.
5. Jeremiah Koger, WR — Auburn
2025 stats: 38 receptions, 597 receiving yards, 8 receiving TD
Koger was the ultimate true freshman phenom on the 2025 Bulls. It took him a while to crack the lineup, securing his first reception on Oct. 3, but once he got an opportunity, everything took off from there. At 6’3”, 209, Koger frequently beat defenders downfield with an impressive combo of strength and speed. He averaged 15.7 yards per reception and notched eight touchdowns across his final nine games.
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4. Jarvis Lee, CB — SMU
2025 stats: 55 tackles, 12.0 TFL, 4.0 sacks, 2 INT, 2 PBU, 3 FF, 2 FR
Lee was a shocking snub from the all-conference teams, but his impact could not be denied. He was one of the best blitzing nickels in the country, and that shows in the stat sheet with his 12 tackles for loss and four sacks. Lee proved incredibly dangerous at the line of scrimmage and was a key cog in USF’s impressive takeaway effort — generating two interceptions, three forced fumbles, and two fumble recoveries.
3. Cole Best, C — Auburn
2025 stats: 13 games, 13 starts
Best was one of the longest tenured Bulls, first arriving on campus in 2021 — two years prior to the Alex Golesh era. Each year Best progressed, becoming a starter in 2024 and a star in 2025. Starting all 13 games, Best qualified for Third Team All-American Conference efforts and paved the way for a rushing offense which ranked 13th nationally in yards per game and 11th in yards per carry.
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2. Keshaun Singleton, WR — Auburn
2025 stats: 50 receptions, 877 receiving yards, 8 TD
There was no shortage of wide receiver talent on South Florida in 2025, and Singleton was the leader of the pack. The junior ranked first on the Bulls with 50 receptions, 877 receiving yards, and tied Koger for a team-best eight receptions. Singleton’s vertical presence was established in the opener against Boise State and continued throughout the year. He manufactured 120+ yards twice and recorded a 40-yard catch in six of 12 games.
1. Byrum Brown, QB — Auburn
2025 stats: 226/341 (66.3% completion), 3,158 pass yards, 28 pass TD, 7 INT, 175 rushes, 1,008 rush yards (5.8 average), 14 rush TD
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Brown will go down as one of the most memorable players in USF football history, serving as a 3-year starter at the quarterback position. He is the only 3,000-yard passer the program has ever seen, and he accomplished that feat twice. But Brown was equally known for his electrifying rushing ability, posting 1,008 yards and 14 touchdowns to wrap up his time in Tampa.
Top 10 portal gains
10. Amarion Fortenberry, CB — Kansas State
2025 stats: 13 tackles, 1.0 TFL, 2 PBU
Fortenberry becomes a Bull after one season at South Alabama and another at Kansas State. As a true freshman in Mobile, the cornerback logged eight starts and recorded 45 tackles, two interceptions, and seven pass breakups as one of the top pieces of the secondary. His playing time took a step back at Kansas State, but Fortenberry looks to re-amplify his production in the third chapter of his college career.
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9. Ayden Jackson, FS — Georgia Southern
2025 stats: 74 tackles, 3.5 TFL, 3 INT, 3 PBU, 1 FF
Jackson arrives with three years of experience at Georgia Southern, including two as a starter. 2025 was the true breakout campaign for the free safety, who ranked fourth on the Eagles with 74 tackles and first with three interceptions. He comes equipped with 18 starts, 115 tackles, and seven tackles for loss — a much-needed addition to a secondary which lost several starters to the portal.
8. Armani Winfield, WR — Colorado State
2025 stats: 22 receptions, 276 receiving yards, 2 receiving TD
Winfield initially committed to Baylor as a 4-star recruit out of the class of 2022. In two years at Baylor, Winfield caught eight passes and eventually rerouted to Colorado State. The receiver’s production skyrocketed in the Mountain West where he snagged 38 receptions in 2024 and 22 in 2025, earning a total of 17 starts in a Rams uniform.
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7. Cash Hudson, C — Missouri State
2025 stats: 13 games, 13 starts
Hudson spent four years at Missouri State — three in the FCS and one in the Bears’ inaugural FBS season. He earned Freshman All-American honors in 2023 and all-conference honors in 2024 at the FCS level. When upgrading leagues, Hudson remained one of the top players on the Bears, starting all 13 games and paving a pathway for a 1,000-yard rusher in Shomari Lawrence.
6. Michael Van Buren Jr. — QB, LSU
2025 stats: 94/151 (62.3% completion), 1,010 pass yards, 8 pass TD, 2 INT, 48 rushes, 129 rush yards, 1 rush TD
Van Buren provides experience South Florida desperately needs at the quarterback position. He was thrown into the fire as a true freshman at Mississippi State, starting eight games for a struggling Bulldog team. However, Van Buren progressed with each start and his improvement was apparent last season at LSU. In four starts, he attained 1,010 passing yards and eight touchdowns to two interceptions, leading the Tigers to 35 points in the Texas Bowl — its most vs. FBS competition all season.
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5. Kenny Odom, WR — UTEP
2025 stats: 62 receptions, 582 receiving yards, 6 receiving TD
Of the five FBS receivers South Florida landed in the portal, none have accrued more statistics than Odom. The two-time Second Team All-CUSA selection is a seasoned veteran with 21 FBS starts. In two years at UTEP, he managed 108 receptions, 1,323 receiving yards, and 14 touchdowns. Odom served as the Miners’ receiving yards leader in 2024 and receptions leader in 2025 and could be a premier option in Brian Hartline’s new offense.
4. Za’Quan Bryan, CB — Minnesota
2025 stats: 36 tackles, 1.0 TFL, 3 PBU, 1 FF
Bryan spent three seasons at Minnesota and saw a handful of starts at cornerback. He earned substantial playing time as a rotation piece the past two years for stellar Golden Gopher defenses, posting 19 tackles, five pass breakups, and an interception in 2024 and 36 tackles, three pass breakups, and a forced fumble in 2025. Bryan fulfills a much-needed spot at corner after the transfer losses of Jarvis Lee, Jonas Duclona, and James Chenault.
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3. Caleb Cook, G — Georgia Southern
2025 stats: 13 games, 13 starts
Cook will be a sixth-year senior in 2026, and that veteran presence will pay dividends. He arrives in Tampa with 43 games and 25 starts under his belt, and in 2025, he proved to be one of the best guards in his conference. Cook landed First Team All-Sun Belt honors as a team captain at Georgia Southern, and his leadership will be instrumental on this heavily refurbished roster.
2. Grayson Howard, ILB — Florida
2025 stats: 4 tackles
Howard was a starter for a resurgent 2024 Gators team which produced an 8-5 record, securing nine starts that season. However, injuries limited his 2025 campaign to three games. Howard now moves in-state after recording 60 tackles, three tackles for loss, two fumble recoveries, and two forced fumbles across three collegiate seasons — one at South Carolina and two at Florida.
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1. C.J. Hicks, DE — Ohio State
2025 stats: 6 tackles, 1.0 TFL
Hicks was a 5-star defensive end prospect from the class of 2022, ranked as the No. 10 overall recruit by 247Sports. The edge rusher spent four seasons at Ohio State and recorded 44 games of experience, although he still awaits his first starting opportunity. Hicks’ greatest contributions transpired in the Buckeyes’ 2024 National Championship season where he generated 22 tackles and two sacks. Last season, he took a redshirt and was limited to four games, thus earning an opportunity at closing his career on a high note in Tampa.
Main takeaways
Auburn is South Florida West
Recruiting your old roster is a common practice when a coach takes a new job, and we saw this to an extreme extent with North Texas and Oklahoma State. When Alex Golesh took the Auburn job, he brought five assistants and 13 players with him. Assistants include Kodi Burns (associate head coach/co-offensive coordinator/wide receivers), Joel Gordon (offensive coordinator/quarterbacks), Tyler Hudanick (run game coordinator/offensive line), Brad Wilson (outside linebackers), and DeMarcus Van Dyke (cornerbacks). Players include QB Byrum Brown, QB Locklan Hewlett, RB Nykahi Davenport, WR Keshaun Singleton, WR Jeremiah Koger, WR Chas Nimrod, WR Christian Neptune, WR Kory Pettigrew, TE Jonathan Echols, C Cole Best, G Cole Skinner, CB Gavin Jenkins, and SS Fred Gaskin.
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When watching the 2026 Auburn Tigers, South Florida will be commonly referenced each game as a bulk of the roster was built and developed in Tampa — especially the offensive side. South Florida’s offensive scheme may shift under Brian Hartline, but the Golesh offense should still be alive and well in the SEC.
There will be a quarterback battle
South Florida completely revamped its quarterback room after the departures of three-year starter Byrum Brown and backup Locklan Hewlett to Auburn. In return, the Bulls landed a pair of SEC quarterbacks in Michael Van Buren Jr. and Luke Kromenhoek, as well as Jayden Bradford and KJ Cooper. Of those four, the favorites to land the starting job are Van Buren and Kromenhoek.
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Van Buren arrives as the most seasoned veteran, arriving to Tampa with 12 career starts (8 at Mississippi State, 4 at LSU). He ended the season as LSU’s starter, leading the Tigers through the Texas Bowl and showing across-the-board improvements from his Mississippi State days. Speaking of Mississippi State, that’s where Kromenhoek hails from. Kromenhoek is also entering his third stop in his third year of college, originating as a highly-touted 4-star quarterback recruit by Florida State. He has two starts of experience, both with the Seminoles in 2024. But with a new staff in place, the Van Buren vs. Kromenhoek QB battle will be something to monitor over the next seven months.
Wide receiver losses are massive, but gains have potential
Besides quarterback, which features the loss of the team’s leader and quarterback Byrum Brown, South Florida took its biggest hit in the portal at wide receiver. The Bulls had five 300+ wide receivers in 2025 and four of them landed at Auburn. The only one that remained is Mudia Reuben who attained 495 receiving yards and five touchdowns as a newcomer from Stanford last season. USF’s receiving corps was one of its most formidable units in 2025, but now the group restocks with Kenny Odom (UTEP), Armani Winfield (Colorado State), Arhmad Branch (Purdue), Bryson Rodgers (Ohio State), and Cameron Seldon (Virginia Tech).
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That’s plenty of incoming talent from other FBS schools, but most of that is untapped potential. Odom and Winfield were previously established starters at their institutions, but Branch (4 starts at Purdue), Rodgers (0 starts at Ohio State), and Seldon (3 starts at Virginia Tech) are greener prospects looking to break out in Hartline’s offense in Tampa. After all, Hartline is known for locating and developing wide receiver talent. The former NFL receiver was renowned for its recruiting ability at the position, and at Ohio State, he coached first-round draft selections Garrett Wilson, Chris Olave, Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Marvin Harrison Jr., and Emeka Egbuka.
