Jared Verse’s move from Albany to Florida State is a transfer portal success story in the making

FLORIDA STATE DEFENSIVE end Jared Verse owes his future to the transfer portal.

It is a simple but truthful statement, one that helps illustrate the positive impact the portal can have for players.

“Honestly,” Verse said during a recent phone conversation, “it was life changing.”

Verse is not exaggerating. In three short years, he went from being an undersized high school tight end with zero FBS scholarship offers, to going through a position switch as a freshman at FCS Albany, to being one of the most coveted players in the transfer portal this winter, with more than 30 offers from many of the biggest programs in the country.

His story is both improbable and inspiring, begging the question, “How did he do it?”

IT ALL STARTED with Albany offensive line coach Nate Byham, the school’s lead recruiter in the Pennsylvania area, where Verse played in high school. Byham texted Albany defensive line coach Bill Nesselt a video of the 6-foot-2, 205-pound senior and wrote, “Bill, I’m telling you, there’s something about this guy.”

“We were looking for long, athletic guys that we could mold into pass-rushers,” Nesselt said in a phone conversation. “He fit that to a T.”

Verse, who was part of the state champion 4×400 relay team in addition to playing football, had no scholarship offers, so the Albany coaching staff figured they had stumbled onto a hidden gem. Headed into the 2019 season, Nesselt said the coaches wanted to change how the Great Danes played up front, opting for faster, more agile playmakers across the line. The staff thought if Verse put on some weight, he could develop into a force on the defensive line.

The Albany coaching staff presented Verse with the plan as part of their recruiting pitch, and he agreed to it. Year 1 would be a redshirt season. Verse learned behind a veteran group that included Eli Mencer, another player the Albany staff helped transform into a dominant defensive end. Mencer began his career as a running back, but in his senior season — as Verse…