Riley Leonard is the latest quarterback to put his name in the transfer portal as college football's wild offseason is already getting underway before conference championship games have even been played.
The Duke quarterback now joins the likes of Will Rogers, Grayson McCall, Tyler Van Dyke, Will Howard, KJ Jefferson and many others in the transfer portal. However, one could argue that Leonard might be the most enticing quarterback prospect of the bunch. With how he elevated the Duke Blue Devils offense the past two years when healthy combined with his obvious talent as both a passer and runner, he could be a legitimate game-changer in the transfer portal for the right program.
With Leonard, he could likely have his pick of wherever he wants to go in the transfer portal. And in fact, he may already have his pick. Reports indicate that he has a "no contact" attached to his entry into the portal, which may mean he already knows where he wants to go or is going.
Having said that, we can still talk about where that might be. And reading the room, these three places would make a ton of sense and be great fits for Riley Leonard in the transfer portal.
3. Texas A&M Aggies
It wouldn't be the first time that we've seen a college football quarterback follow his head coach to a new home, so we have to mention the Texas A&M Aggies, who just hired former Duke head coach Mike Elko, as their replacement for Jimbo Fisher.
Elko was not part of Leonard's recruitment as the quarterback committed and signed in 2021 before Elko arrived in Durham the following year. However, the now Aggies head coach was overseeing the quarterback's development over the past two seasons, so the two are surely intimately familiar with one another.
Furthermore, if Elko can accomplish the unwieldy task of keeping some of Texas A&M's high-profile recruits from the past few years in the program, Evan Stewart chief among them, then perhaps we could see even more from Leonard unlocked in this offense and, in turn, more unlocked from the Aggies offense as well in Elko's first year as the head coach.
Having said that, Conner Weigman is the complicating factor here. While A&M struggled mightily down the stretch, the offense seemed to be trending up when the former 5-star recruit was at the helm of the offense before going down with an injury.
Would Elko and the Aggies want to push Weigman out in favor of Leonard? That's the big-time question to answer here, but the Duke connection surely makes Texas A&M a worthwhile consideration.
2. Florida State Seminoles
We've seen what a beautiful job that Mike Norvell has done with the Florida State Seminoles after inheriting an absolute dumpster fire in the wake of Jimbo Fisher and then Willie Taggert. But now the Noles are one win away from a College Football Playoff berth and the arrow continues pointing up for FSU.
Having said that, there should be questions at quarterback beyond the 2023 season. Jordan Travis has exhausted all of his eligibility and the limited amount we've seen of Tate Rodemaker doesn't inspire a ton of confidence. That leaves 2023 4-star AJ Duffy and incoming high-4-star Luke Kromenhoek as the other viable options for Florida State at the position, at least already in house or committed.
But perhaps Leonard could be the stopgap between those options at a place that could also be mutually beneficial to the quarterback.
Though Keon Coleman and Johnny Wilson are gone for the NFL after this season, Norvell has done a phenomenal job in building up the weapons in Tallahassee, which would allow Riley to play in the best offensive environment of his career to this point. Furthermore, his dual-threat ability in addition to his strong traits as a passer could keep the Noles from seeing a major drop-off offensively.
While FSU might not be the favorite, they are a logical upgrade on the football side of things for Leonard while also a potentially necessary addition for Florida State to keep the momentum that Norvell has built up within the program over the past few seasons.
1. Notre Dame Fighting Irish
All of the discussion about Riley Leonard could land in the transfer portal might be a moot point from the jump.
Upon his entrance into the portal, it was noted in most every report that he filed his paperwork with a "no contact" clause. That usually indicates that a player already has a destination in mind where they could land. And in this case, it seems very likely that Leonard will land with the Notre Dame Fighting Irish.
ESPN insider Adam Rittenberg noted Notre Dame as the "likely" program to land Leonard. Furthering that, within mere hours of the news that Leonard had entered the transfer portal, seven experts for 247Sports filed predictions that the quarterback would be going to South Bend.
And when you get down to it, it's hard not to see how obvious the fit is. Though they have more resources in terms of the football program, Notre Dame is another high-academic institution, which clearly appeals to Leonard given his time at Duke. Furthermore, the Irish are losing Sam Hartman to the NFL Draft, which opens up a void for a year or two until prized recruit CJ Carr is ready to take over.
It's a natural fit and it seems like the wheels are already in motion for it to happen. If you're a betting person, then bet on Riley Leonard being the next Notre Dame starting quarterback come the first game of the 2024 season, though anything can happen in college football and in the portal.
