Kirk Herbstreit weighs in on overlooked college football storylines
Kirk Herbstreit has a few college football topics he thinks should be focused on more than they currently are.
Sports Seriously
Welcome to the state of college football in 2026, where a tight end on a current NFL training camp roster can also simultaneously be in the NCAA transfer portal.
Former Ole Miss tight end Dae’Quan Wright, among others, was granted a temporary restraining order in Louisiana state court on Wednesday, Aug. 19, resulting in numerous players on NFL training camp rosters gaining the chance return to college football for a fifth season. Wright, a second-team All-SEC selection last season, suited up for the Cleveland Browns’ preseason game against the Buffalo Bills on Saturday, Aug. 22, while trying to return to college.
Browns coach Todd Monken, the offensive coordinator at Georgia from 2020-22, had quite the reaction when asked about Wright’s situation after the game.
“Ain’t this (expletive) crazy?” Monken said. “I mean, I don’t even know what to say. As far as I know, he had a medical issue that hasn’t allowed him to practice. That’s a medical issue, has nothing to do with me. Then he was cleared, so we dressed him just in case we had to have him, but when you don’t rep it’s hard to put him on the field.
“… I wondered why Lane Kiffin reached out a week ago. Now I know. (Expletive) I didn’t know, now I know. I didn’t call him back, I guess now I should’ve.”
Wright was one of the Rebels’ top pass-catchers last season, finishing 2025 with 39 receptions for 635 yards and five touchdowns.
Wright was able to enter the transfer portal thanks to the injunction, which was a result of judge Charlotte Sweeney’s ruling on class of 2022 players in Colorado state court on July 31. The NCAA adopted a new eligibility rule for 2026 allowing players to play five seasons in five years, but didn’t offer the opportunity to players who most recently exhausted their eligibility.
NFL teams cut down their rosters to 53 players on Aug. 30, and many players, including Wright, could find themselves back on college rosters after being cut.