Over 4,000 Division I football players have entered the transfer portal. With the window officially opening Jan. 2 and closing Jan. 16, many new faces will join the Bob Chesney train in Westwood and several will depart the Bruin program for good. Daily Bruin Sports editor Connor Dullinger tracked who has left, who has come and names to watch out for in the first transfer portal update of 2026.

Who is new?

The Bruins have already added eight new faces to the new-look Chesney squad, four of whom came from his former James Madison team.

Right guard Riley Robell and edge defender Aiden Gobaira make up the most premier of the former Dukes. Robell – a three-star transfer – started 11 of the Dukes’ 13 games and received a Second Team All-Sun Belt selection. He will be an immediate upgrade to a depleted UCLA offensive line.

UCLA tied for No. 96 in the country in fewest sacks allowed, with the offensive front allowing 27 quarterback takedowns through 12 games of the 2025 season.

Gobaira was a former four-star recruit and Notre Dame player. He played in all 14 games with the Dukes, making one start on the defensive line, but still garnered four sacks and 7.5 tackles for loss.

With UCLA’s 2025 defensive line all but gone, Gobaira could see an elevated role. The Bruins garnered just 10 sacks this season, ranking dead last in the nation and illustrating the need for a fortified defensive front come the 2026 campaign.

Edge Ryan McCulloch will join Gobaira in Westwood for a refreshed defensive line. The California linebacker registered 4.5 tackles for loss and three sacks through 10 games.

While the linebacker struggled with an injury, he could excel under the leadership of Vic So’oto – his co-defensive coordinator and position coach at Cal and future linebackers coach at UCLA – in a new setting and little competition at the position group.

While McCulloch joins Gobaira on the defensive line, Boise State offensive lineman Hall Schmidt will join Robell on the offensive front.

Although Schmidt missed the entirety of the 2025 campaign, he started 12 games in the 2024 season where an Ashton Jeanty-led Boise State made the College Football Playoff.

In 2024, Boise State ran for 3,365 rushing yards and in 329 opportunities allowed just one sack. The addition of Robell and Schmidt on the right side of the offensive line replaces the departures from UCLA’s 2025 unit and provides a much-needed upgrade – if Schmidt can live up to how he played before the injury and if Robell can translate his play from the Sun Belt to the Big Ten.

Outside the trenches, Chesney has also tackled the Bruins’ secondary after the graduation of free safety Key Lawrence and the potential departures of junior nickel cornerback Scooter Jackson and junior outside corner back Andre Jordan Jr. Both are in the portal but have yet to pick a destination.

Related: [https://dailybruin.com/2025/12/01/defensive-back-scooter-jackson-announces-plans-to-enter-transfer-portal]

The first pickup was cornerback Dante Lovett. The former Virginia Tech defensive back, like Schmidt, played just two games in the 2025 season due to injury. In his first two seasons for the Hokies, he played in all 26 games – making just two starts but still garnering seven pass breakups, an interception and a fumble recovery.

Lovett could take over the starting nickel corner position if Jackson chooses to depart Westwood. If not, Lovett will be a solid depth piece in the UCLA secondary.

The Bruins also picked up free safety Ta’Shawn James, who will most likely replace Lawrence and work alongside redshirt sophomore strong safety Cole Martin on the backend of the UCLA defense. Across the past two seasons at Iowa State, James combined for 74 tackles, six passes defended and two fumble recoveries.

Lastly, the Bruins added two depth pieces from the Dukes’ squad, including offensive lineman JD Rayner, who redshirted this season, and tight end Josh Phifer. Phifer will most likely be the team’s backup tight end, particularly considering he caught just four passes for 40 yards and a touchdown last season.

Who is gone?

Besides Jackson and Jordan, the biggest names to enter the portal from the 2025 roster are redshirt sophomore linebacker Isaiah Chisom and sophomore wide receiver Kwazi Gilmer.

Chisom – who started every game at middle linebacker alongside JonJon Vaughns – still had three years of eligibility remaining and garnered 84 tackles, which ranked No. 18 in the Big Ten, in his first season at UCLA.

The former Oregon State linebacker has yet to choose a new destination. This means he could still return to the Bruins, but considering the entrance of a new position coach and the exit of his former linebackers coach Scott White, Chisom may no longer don the blue and gold.

Gilmer represents the most impactful loss from the 2025 UCLA offense. Gilmer led receivers in receptions, receiving yards and touchdowns – garnering 50, 535 and four through 12 starts as the Bruins’ No. 1 receiving option.

The then-true freshman broke out during the 2024 campaign despite the presence of former Bruins J.Michael Sturdivant, Logan Loya and Moliki Matavao. He has some of the most trustworthy hands in recent memory at UCLA.

Gilmer will most likely garner a lot of attention, given what he was able to do with UCLA and reach the level many Bruin fans thought he would.

Defensive linemen Siale Taupaki, Keanu Williams and A.J. Fuimaono have all entered the portal after composing the main group along the center of the 2025 defensive line. While the Bruins’ defensive front was nothing to write home about, the trio are veteran defenders and decent run stuffers.

Another notable departure is defensive back Kanye Clark, who largely played a special teams and depth role in the Bruin secondary. Despite the lack of a starting role, he registered 23 tackles, two pass breakups and a forced fumble through nine games. He was one of the quickest players on the team and was a nice piece to the solid Bruin defensive back room.

In total, 20 Bruins have entered the portal – but none have chosen a destination. Ten days still remain in the portal and more names will come in, only resulting in more faces leaving. Expect many names to come and go as the week goes on.