ESPN ranks UCLA's transfer portal class as the seventh best

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It’s not just UCLA Bruin fans that are excited about Bob Chesney’s first transfer portal haul for UCLA. ESPN’s Bill Connelly ranked the Bruins as having the seventh-best transfer portal haul of the offseason.

The Oklahoma State Cowboys got Connelly’s top pick, with reigning College Football Playoff champions Indiana being the only Big Ten Conference team ranked ahead of the Bruins.

Chesney has an advantage, with many of his James Madison players following him to Westwood, including running back Wayne Knight and freshman star Sahir West.

After a woeful season of football under DeShaun Foster and Tim Skipper, things appear to be looking up for the Bruins in 2026.

“When UCLA hired James Madison’s Bob Chesney, it also signed up for the inevitable JMU Influx,” Connelly wrote. “Knight, West and Barksdale were some of the Dukes’ most high-upside players — and JMU was much better than UCLA last season — and Chesney also brought with him a pair of all-conference offensive linemen (guards Riley Robell and Carter Sweazie) and a couple of other disruptive defenders (DE Aiden Gobaira, LB Drew Spinogatti).”

Chesney didn’t limit himself to strictly former James Madison players either, finding valuable pieces from across the country.

“In addition to a few smaller-school stars — OL Derek Osman (Harvard), DE Dallin Havea(Utah Tech), CB Jhase McMillan (Montana State) — Chesney complemented that with a number of less-tested recent blue-chippers. If the likes of WR Aidan Mizell (Florida), DT Maxwell Roy (Ohio State), Anthony Sacca (Notre Dame) and safety Malik Hartford (Ohio State) start to develop too, then Chesney might have pulled off a double upgrade.”

We’ll see how much of a difference the transfer portal class can make on the field for the Bruins this fall.

This article originally appeared on UCLA Wire: ESPN’s Bill Connelly has high praise for UCLA’s portal additions

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