Nate Kalepo transfer portal: 5 landing spots for the Washington OL ft. USC

Washington Huskies offensive linesman Nate Kalepo entered the transfer portal on Sunday, becoming one of many UW players to leave the program after former coach Kalen DeBoer joined Alabama.

Kalepo played all 15 games of the Huskies’ 2023 season and was a key part of the Huskies’ offensive line, giving quarterback Michael Penix Jr. the time to throw down the field.

But as many Huskies have been doing since DeBoer was announced as the new head coach of the Alabama Crimson Tide, Kalepo has decided to move away from the Huskies program.

Where could he go? Let's look at five possible teams where Nate Kalepo could end up.

5 Possible Locations for Nate Kalepo in the Transfer Portal

#1. USC Trojans

The Trojans enter the 2024 season without quarterback Caleb Williams, who has declared for the draft and is likely to be the No. 1 pick. But, even with Williams, the Trojans offense struggled in the 2023 season. USC will need as much help as possible on its offense to protect any new quarterback.

Offensive lineman Andres Dewerk has entered the transfer portal, so bringing in Kalepo could fill that gap. The program can use his impressive skills to stop the strong Big Ten defenses from getting to its quarterback, whoever that may be.

#2. Florida Gators

The Gators have been struggling ever since Urban Meyer left the program. Just last season, Florida allowed quarterback Graham Mertz to be sacked 31 times, which limited him to only 20 touchdowns.

Gaining Nate Kalepo would be a steal and a massive improvement for the Gators. Additionally, Florida will face the Alabama Crimson Tide next year, so Kalepo could use this as a revenge game over Kalen DeBoer.

#3. Ohio State Buckeyes

OSU's offensive line has been something that coach Ryan Day needs help fixing. These problems have held the Buckeyes back, and with an expanding Big Ten next season, they will need to gain skilled talent quickly or risk struggling to defeat the likes of Michigan, Oregon and Washington.

Ohio State has already recruited the highly-rated Ian Moore to its offensive line. Adding Nate Kalepo to work with Moore could transform this line into a solid wall to protect the replacement for Kyle McCord, who has signed for Syracuse.

#4. Colorado Buffaloes

Colorado is a team that many players may want to play for, mostly due to its coach, Deion “Coach Prime” Sanders. Last season, CU's offensive line struggled, as quarterback Shedeur Sanders was sacked 52 times. This offensive line was like butter and needs talent to improve.

While it seems a long shot that a highly talented player like Kalepo would go from a program that made the national championship last season to a team that finished 4-8 last year, stranger things have happened.

#5. Alabama Crimson Tide

Kalepo could follow his coach at the Huskies and join him in Alabama. As with the Huskies, the arrival of DeBoer and the departure of Nick Saban has led to a mass exodus of players from Alabama.

They need to replace this talent to help coach DeBoer start strong as the Crimson Tide coach. If Nate Kalepo joins the program, it will reunite the player with a coach and system he is familiar with.

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