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Syracuse quarterback Jakhari Williams plans to enter the transfer portal, he announced on social media Saturday. Williams never appeared in a game for SU, despite being a highly-touted three-star recruit in the 2023 class, according to 247sports.

Williams committed to the Orange in June 2023, during Dino Babers’ tenure. Even when Babers was fired five months later, Williams remained committed to Syracuse. As a true freshman, Williams redshirted after being buried on the depth chart behind Kyle McCord, Michael Johnson Jr. and Carlos Del Rio-Wilson. McCord had a historic season, and Syracuse won 10 games in its first season under Fran Brown.

In 2025, Williams’ playing time stayed sparse. Brown brought in Steve Angeli (Notre Dame) and Rickie Collins (LSU), who battled for the starting job. When Angeli went down in September with a season-ending injury, a two-month quarterback carousel ensued. After Collins struggled mightily during his first three starts — throwing seven interceptions as opposed to three touchdowns — Brown turned to walk-on Joe Filardi against North Carolina on Oct. 31.

Collins started the next contest against Miami, before Filardi returned versus then-No. 9 Notre Dame. True freshman Luke Carney also received snaps during various games during this stretch.

During the blowout loss to Notre Dame, NBC’s Dan Hicks mentioned on the broadcast that Williams was unavailable due to injury. Brown never disclosed the injury during the year, but during SU’s regular-season finale with Boston College, Williams was sporting a sling. With Williams in the portal, Angeli, Collins, Filardi and Carney are Syracuse’s remaining quarterbacks.

Published on December 13, 2025 at 5:20 pm
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