Breaking down Dillon Gabriel's options in transfer portal

Dillon Gabriel should have no shortage of options to choose from after entering the transfer portal when it opened Monday. The quarterback is on the move for the second time in his college career after spending the past two seasons at Oklahoma, which he transferred to from UCF in 2022.

Gabriel had arguably his best season yet in 2023 to finish with a career-high 3,660 yards passing along with 30 touchdowns to six interceptions. He also set a career-best with 373 yards rushing and 12 TDs, leading the Sooners to a 10-2 record that included a Red River Rivalry win against Texas.

That ranks him as the No. 2 overall player in On3’s Transfer Portal Rankings at the moment. On3 transfer portal reporter Pete Nakos joined the Andy Staples On3 podcast on Monday to break down why and list some early candidates to land Gabriel.

“I think the experience playing at Oklahoma, you could argue that’s a top 10 program in terms of national spotlight,” Nakos explained. “That drive against Texas in the Red River Rivalry, can you get much better than that? That’s very impressive. So the experience, he’s obviously been in Jeff Lebby’s offense. His name is gonna be arguably the most highly sought-after in the portal.

“Oregon, USC and Mississippi State are all gonna be some schools to watch.”

Gabriel going to USC would seem like deja vu for Sooners fans, as that’s where former OU coach Lincoln Riley and Caleb Williams went following the 2021 season. Gabriel was brought in to replace Williams, who is likely to be a top pick in the 2024 NFL Draft.

However, Oregon and Mississippi State appear to be the more likely landing spots at the moment. Jeff Lebby, who was Gabriel’s offensive coordinator at Oklahoma and UCF, was named the Bulldogs’ next head coach. Given the obvious connection, it wouldn’t be shocking to see Gabriel team up with Lebby for one more year.

At Oregon, Bo Nix is set to graduate after his fifth college season, leaving the Ducks in need of a new quarterback. They would seem in a better position to compete for a national title than Mississippi State after coming just short of a Pac-12 title this season.

Staples believes the system that Oregon runs could be to Gabriel’s benefit, making the Ducks an intriguing option.

“Mississippi State makes sense because Jeff Lebby’s the head coach there,” Staples said. “That’s his offensive coordinator from Oklahoma and UCF. So here’s very comfortable in that system. But I can’t help but imagine him running the offense Bo Nix ran this year.”

According to Nakos, Oregon is quickly emerging as one of the top teams targeting Gabriel.

“Just talking to sources and stuff, I really think that is coming together,” he said. “But obviously it’s only day one and we’re gonna have to follow this thing throughout.”

Ultimately, we’ll likely have to wait a while to see where Dillon Gabriel ends up deciding to transfer. The portal will remain open until Jan. 2, so he still has plenty of time to mull things over.