UM portal QB options dwindle as Simpson says no. Is it time to fill from within?
Unlike the past two years, the Miami Hurricanes won’t be landing one of the top two quarterbacks in the transfer portal -- at least nobody who’s in the portal at the moment.
And that’s the key caveat, because UM reportedly is “exploring” quarterbacks who aren’t in the portal, hoping to lure one of them before the portal closes Friday night.
After snagging Cam Ward and Carson Beck over the past two offseasons, UM has come up short so far this time around, leaving the Canes facing something of a conundrum for 2026.
It wasn’t for lack of effort. UM made multi-million dollar bids for three top QBs over the past two weeks.
It was surprising that departing Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson spoke openly to On3.com on Tuesday about how Miami kept throwing money at him in trying to convince him to join the Canes instead of turning pro.
The fact Miami offered $6.5 million on a one-year deal, according to On3, was not remotely surprising, based on my conversations with multiple people who have dealt with Miami. Those people describe the Canes’ philosophy as doing whatever is necessary to land any QB they view as a genuine difference-maker.
“Miami was kind of like, ‘All right, we’re moving on,’ and then they lost out on Sam Leavitt and came back with that big number,” Simpson said. “And then Ole Miss called again and said they could match it.”
But Miami’s $6.5 million did not dissuade him from his original decision to turn pro. He said if he had taken the Canes’ or Rebels’ offers or Tennessee’s $5 million offer, “everybody would just remember me as the guy who took all this money and went to Miami or Tennessee for his last year.”
A source close to former Cincinnati quarterback Brendan Sorsby, Miami’s top QB portal target, said the Canes offered just less than what they offered Simpson. Sorsby liked UM, but he liked more the idea of joining his girlfriend at Texas Tech.
UM also made a competitive offer for Arizona State’s Sam Leavitt, who reportedly took north of $5 million from LSU.
Another potential target, Southern Cal’s Husan Longstreet, signed with LSU on Tuesday.
At some point, the Canes probably need to give a chance to a recruit (Emory Williams? Luke Nickel?) in part so high school prospects do not conclude that they will never get a chance here, and so that other schools don’t start using that against Miami in recruiting.
That might end up happening by default next season.
And it wouldn’t necessarily be a disaster. With a loaded running back and receiver room and a strong offensive line that is adding the nation’s top offensive line recruit (Jackson Cantwell) to supplement Samson Okunlola and Michael McCoy and SJ Alifatuli, perhaps a game manager such as Williams would run the offensive competently.
UM is expected to pursue Colorado transfer Jordan Seaton, a former five-star offensive tackle.
247 Sports says the top remaining quarterback in the portal is Tennessee’s Jake Merklinger, who has thrown 23 passes in two seasons. The available QB with the most Power 4 experience is Beau Pribula, who has 20 TDs and 10 interceptions in two years at Penn State and one at Missouri.
So the Canes’ options to supplement Williams, Nickel, Judd Anderson and freshman Dereon Coleman are limited at this point. A veteran could be added but it won’t necessarily a sure-fire starter.
But there is one rabbit UM can pull out its hat: convincing a quarterback from another team to enter the portal before Friday’s 11:59 p.m. deadline. UM is exploring that option, CBS reported.
▪ All 30 of UM’s freshmen are enrolled and on campus except linebacker Karsten Busch. They’re permitted to practice this week as Miami prepares for Monday’s national championship game against Indiana at Hard Rock Stadium (7:30 p.m., ESPN).
This story was originally published January 14, 2026 at 1:56 PM.
