The spring window of the college football transfer portal opened Wednesday, April 16 and will close Friday, April 25. Players who intend to transfer must enter their names into the portal before the window closes, but do not need to have selected their next school by then.
Here is a summary of which UNC players have entered the portal during the spring window:
LB Curtis Simpson
Simpson was ranked among the best players in North Carolina in his high school class and earned all-state honors twice at Kings Mountain High. However, he didn’t see the field during his true freshman season in 2024. Now, he will enter the transfer portal with four years of eligibility remaining.
TE Ryan Ward
A rising sophomore, Ward played on special teams during his true freshman season at UNC, logging a pair of kickoff returns for 11 total yards. He is a former three-star prospect from New Jersey.
RB Jariel Cobb
An early enrollee as a true freshman in 2025, Cobb came to UNC from Reidsville High School, where he rushed for 3,001 yards across three seasons. Now, he will enter the transfer portal with a full four years of collegiate eligibility remaining.
WR Evan Haynes
Haynes enrolled early at UNC in January after a decorated high school career in Georgia. He committed to UNC when the Tar Heels were led by head coach Mack Brown and stuck around for the early months of Bill Belichick’s tenure, but now has entered his name into the portal before playing a single snap in Chapel Hill. He will have four years of eligibility remaining at his next school.
LB Michael Short
A rising junior, Short played sparingly to begin the 2024 season but saw more playing time late, posting 10 of his 23 total tackles in the season’s final three games. A former standout at Charlotte’s Mallard Creek High School, Short will have two years of eligibility remaining at his next destination.
LB Amare Campbell
Image via UNC Athletic Communications
Campbell came on strong during his sophomore season in 2024, which was his first as a starter. He played in all 13 games and ranked second on the team with 76 tackles. He also totaled 10.5 tackles for loss, 6.5 sacks, five quarterback hits, two pass break-ups and a forced fumble.
Campbell’s entry into the portal comes after he did so during the winter window following the departure of former head coach Mack Brown. Campbell then returned to UNC after Bill Belichick was hired as head coach, but now will be entering the portal once again. He will have two years of eligibility remaining at his next destination.
DL Terry Nwabuisi-Ezeala
Originally a native of Germany, Nwabuisi-Ezeala came to UNC in January as an early enrollee in the recruiting class of 2025. Now, he’ll transfer away from Carolina before playing a single snap. He’ll have four years of eligibility remaining.
OL Desmond Jackson
A redshirt-freshman from Clemmons, Jackson arrived to Chapel Hill as an early enrollee after starring at West Forsyth High School — only allowing one sack in three years of high school football. But he never saw the field in 2024 as UNC’s offensive linemen stayed healthy. He will have four years of eligibility remaining for his next team.
K Adam Samaha
Samaha transferred to UNC during the winter after beginning his collegiate career at Michigan. He’s the third Tar Heel kicker to enter the portal during the spring window.
TE Julien Randolph
A rising redshirt sophomore tight end, Randolph missed the entirety of his true freshman season in 2023 due to injury. He then appeared in the first three games of the 2024 season, but none after that.
DL Joel Starlings
A rising redshirt sophomore who ESPN ranked as the No. 4 overall player in the state of Virginia, Starlings appeared in three games in 2024 and recorded one tackle.
WR Christian Hamilton
Hamilton spent two seasons at UNC, redshirting in 2023 before appearing in eight games in 2024. He totaled 10 catches for 187 yards and a touchdown in his two years with the Tar Heels.
K Liam Boyd
Boyd, who transferred to Carolina after spending his freshman season at Clemson, served as UNC’s kickoff specialist for the 2023 season. He began 2024 as the starting kickoff specialist, but lost that job to Lucas Osada. Ironically, Osada has also entered the transfer portal.
QB Ryan Browne
Browne spent less than a year as a Tar Heel, arriving in Chapel Hill during the winter transfer window following the end of the 2024 season. The former Purdue Boilermaker appeared to be in good position to compete for the starting job with freshman Bryce Baker, but now will look to take his talents elsewhere.
WR Gavin Blackwell
North Carolina’s Gavin Blackwell (2) celebrates his touchdown with Josh Downs (11) and Asim Richards (72) while Florida A&M’s Winsome Frazier (15) walks away during the first half of an NCAA college football game in Chapel Hill, N.C., Saturday, Aug. 27, 2022. (AP Photo/Chris Seward)
Blackwell began his UNC career with a flourish, starting the first four games of the 2022 season and finishing the year with 18 catches for 239 yards and a touchdown. But Blackwell’s usage would plummet after that, and he only caught 13 more passes in the next two seasons combined. His lone touchdown catch came in the opening game of the 2022 season.
K Lucas Osada
Osada served as UNC’s kickoff specialist during the 2024 season, booting 39 touchbacks in 59 kickoffs. He had arrived at UNC ranked as the nation’s sixth-best placekicking prospect in his class.
LB Malaki Hamrick
Hamrick arrived at UNC after a stellar high school career at Shelby High, where he set the school’s all-time career sack record with 51.5. He won three state titles, was named MVP of the state championship game twice and was named the MaxPreps North Carolina Player of the Year. But Hamrick’s UNC career experienced a setback when he suffered a knee injury during following his freshman season which kept him out for much of 2023. Hamrick made just two combined tackles and appeared in only five games across the 2023 and 2024 seasons.
LBs Cade Law and Crews Law
Brothers Cade Law and Crews Law, both linebackers for UNC, entered the transfer portal Wednesday. Cade, a rising redshirt junior, originally committed to Vanderbilt and played baseball before transferring to Carolina. He appeared in all 13 of the Tar Heels’ games in 2024. Crews is a rising redshirt freshman who appeared in two games in 2024.
DE Beau Atkinson
Image via UNC Athletic Communications/Anthony Sorbellini
UNC’s sack leader from the 2024 season, Atkinson was set to assume a prominent role on the Tar Heel defense as a redshirt junior in 2025. Atkinson finished last season with 7.5 sacks, 5.5 of which came in a two-week span against Virginia and Florida State. He also led UNC with 12 total tackles for loss.
DB Zion Ferguson
A former four-star recruit, Ferguson was ranked as the No. 23 overall player out of the state of Georgia when he committed to former head coach Mack Brown. He appeared in two games in 2024, mostly on special teams, before redshirting.
OL Zach Rice
Rice arrived in Chapel Hill as a heralded, five-star recruit and the top overall player from the state of Virginia. His commitment carried so much weight that Rice declared, “I will be a program-changer,” after announcing his commitment to UNC. But in three seasons, Rice was never able to break into the Tar Heels’ starting offensive line. He appeared in just two of UNC’s final seven games of the 2024 season.
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