On Monday, Florida edge rusher Jayden Woods declared his intent on entering the Transfer Portal when it opens on Jan. 2. Woods is a true freshman who has three years of eligibility remaining for whatever team picks him up. That team might just be Penn State.
Penn State players' post-Pinstripe Bowl exits to the Transfer Portal have begun
BREAKING: Florida true freshman standout EDGE Jayden Woods plans to enter the @TransferPortal, his agent tells @On3Sports
— Hayes Fawcett (@Hayesfawcett3) December 29, 2025
This season he appeared in all 12 games, totaling 28 tackles, 2.5 sacks, 1 INT, 5 TFL, & 1 PBU
Earned Freshman All-SEC honors https://t.co/RlUbB6Fk7q pic.twitter.com/5kN954DQ4j
Florida edge rusher Jayden Woods enters Transfer Portal and that's great news for the Nittany Lions
Woods played in all 12 games for the Gators as a true freshman and made two starts. He made 28 total tackles, five tackles for loss for 28 yards, 3.5 sacks for 23 yards, three quarterback hurries, one forced fumble, one fumble recovery, one interception ran back for 25 yards, and one pass breakup. He made Pro Football Focus' 2025 All-Freshman Team and collected a Freshman All-SEC Honors recognition.
Woods was a four-star edge rusher from the Class of 2025, ranked 142nd nationally among all recruits, according to 247Sports Composite rankings. He was also 14th out of his position and No. 5 recruit out of Kansas.
During his recruitment, Penn State was initially the school Woods committed to. He committed on June 19, 2024. After making an official visit to Florida, he de-committed from the Nittany Lions' program one week later on Nov. 29 and flipped the same day to the Gators.
Aside from Penn State, Woods also received offers from Notre Dame, USC, Texas A&M, Oregon, Missouri, Miami, Iowa State, and Alabama. That means Woods is familiar with both head coach Matt Campbell (Iowa State) and incoming defensive coordinator D'Anton Lynn (USC). In other words, there are a lot of factors falling in favor of the Nittany Lions to pick up an elite, young edge rusher.
Especially with true freshman and edge rusher Chaz Coleman heading to the Transfer Portal as well, Penn State will want to get young talent Campbell has to work with for a longer period of time. The roster turnaround isn't just due to players entering the portal, the Nittany Lions must suffer a mass exit of veterans to the NFL Draft. Young players gives Campbell an opportunity to build a strong foundation that lasts beyond one season — Woods can be part of that.