Syracuse football WR room takes a hit as starter Darrell Gill plans to transfer

This one stings. Syracuse football wide receiver Darrell Gill Jr., a starter for the Orange this past season, plans to enter the transfer portal, per a report on X by Chris Hummer of 247Sports and CBS Sports.

Wishing Darrell all the best moving forward! The transfer portal will be open from January 2 to January 16. The 6-foot-3, 190-pound Gill, a junior from Atascocita, Texas, is the 25th 'Cuse player from the 2025 campaign who has revealed plans to enter the portal when it opens.

He's also the fourth wide receiver who will seek to transfer, joining redshirt senior Umari Hatcher and a pair of redshirt freshmen in Jaylan Hornsby and Emanuel Ross. While 25 (and potentially more) players electing to depart the Hill is a decent-sized number, it's not overly concerning to me, given that Syracuse football had a rough 2025 term (3-9 overall), there are a lot of new assistant coaches coming in, and the team has a stellar 2026 prep class.

Still, Gill's production will be missed. In 2025, he hauled in 32 passes for 506 yards and five receiving touchdowns. His total receptions were 3rd on the team, while Gill was second in receiving yards and tied for first in TDs through the air.

Redshirt junior quarterback Steve Angeli was leading the country in total passing yards in 2025 before he suffered a season-ending injury in the squad's road win over Clemson in September. Angeli, assuming he's fully healthy, will be the Orange's starting signal-caller in 2026, while the 'Cuse staff looks to bring in several transfers for its quarterback room.

Syracuse football's WR group took a hit with Darrell Gill Jr. planning to transfer.

Other Orange wide receivers on the 2025 roster who could return include junior Johntay Cook II, freshman Darius Johnson, freshman Darien Williams, redshirt sophomore Tyshawn Russell and freshman Gabe Daniels.

In the team's 2026 recruiting cycle at the prep level, wide receiver signees include five-star Calvin Russell III, four-star Amare Gough, three-star Darnell Stokes Jr., three-star BJ Garrett, three-star Phoenix Henriquez and Zamondre Merriweather, a three-star JUCO commit.

So the 'Cuse should have a sufficient number of wide receivers in 2026, plus, the staff will likely look to add more via the portal. However, Gill is a veteran, proven wide receiver.

Here are the 25 Syracuse football players who plan to transfer when the portal opens:
Junior wide receiver Darrell Gill Jr.
Sophomore linebacker Jahide Lesaine Jr.
Redshirt senior wide receiver Umari Hatcher
Freshman defensive lineman Quante Gillians
Redshirt junior defensive back Greg Delaine
Sophomore running back Yasin Willis
Redshirt sophomore offensive lineman Joshua Miller
Redshirt sophomore linebacker James Heard
Sophomore running back Jaden Hart
Freshman quarterback Luke Carney
Freshman defensive back Ta'Ron Haile
Redshirt junior offensive lineman Carter Clark
Redshirt sophomore wide receiver Nick Armentano
Redshirt junior defensive back Jalil Martin
Redshirt freshman linebacker Fatim Diggs
Redshirt freshman wide receiver Jaylan Hornsby
Redshirt freshman wide receiver Emanuel Ross
Freshman defensive back Kaylib Singleton
Redshirt junior long snapper Ethan Stangle
Redshirt freshman quarterback Jakhari Williams
Sophomore linebacker Caden Brown
Sophomore running back/return man Malachi James
Redshirt freshman defensive back Ibn McDaniels
Redshirt senior linebacker Derek McDonald
Redshirt senior defensive lineman/tight end Chase Simmons