Welcome to episode 49.5 (episode 50 needs one more week to be perfect)! We have a mountain of portal news to cover, with new landing spots for stars like Lamont Butler and Rytis Petraitis, to the John Tonje chronicles! We also hit you with the most important updates from the CFB spring transfer window, and we end the show by going over both of the players from the Mountain West that got drafted into the NFL, along with all of the players who have been signed as undrafted free agents! Enjoy, and make sure to tune in for an awesome episode 50!

Welcome back everyone, to the Hike’s Peak Podcast, thank you for coming back to the mountain! We’re getting into the thick of the offseason now, with movement in basketball’s transfer portal happening constantly and football’s spring camps coming to a close. First off, we’ll get you caught up on the latest portal news, with some massive commitments and entries that you have to hear about, and then we’ll switch over to the gridiron! It’s been too long since we’ve talked football on here, so to start us off, we’ll go over my current starting quarterback power rankings, complete with projections and backstory for why certain players have the edge over others. Fun episode this week, let’s dive right in!

Show Notes:

1. Transfer Portal Update: UNM star Jake Hall enters, plenty of P4 commitments, & trouble brewing in San Diego
2. Way-too-early QB Power Rankings:
   1. ???
   2. ???
   3. UNLV SR Jackson Arnold (Auburn)
   4. ???
   5. ???
   6. San Jose State SR Luke Weaver (Hawaii)
   7. ???
   8. ???
   9. San Diego State SR Jayden Denegal
   10. ???
   11. ???
   12. Nevada JR Luke Duncan (UCLA) OR SO Carter Jones
3. Way-too-early QB Power Rankings: North Dakota State vs. UTEP; Oregon State vs. Texas State vs. Washington State

That is it for this week’s episode of the Hike’s Peak Podcast, thank you so much for listening! With transfer portal season back in full swing, make sure to follow me on Twitter @JackTalksCFB and turn post notifications on so you don’t miss any Mountain West or PAC 12 movement! If you like the show and enjoy our coverage, leave a rating on whatever platform you’re listening on, every single one of those helps us out immensely. Follow us on twitter at MWCConnection and find all of your Mountain West news at MWCConnection.com. Also, check out the brand new transfer portal tracker, which is live on the website now. It’s complete with bios, stats, and previous stops for every player on the list, and is updated daily, so bookmark that to never miss out on transfer news! Thank you again for listening, being able to do this every week is a dream come true! Until next time, I’m Jack Thompson, and thank you for coming back to the mountain!

Welcome back everyone, to the Hike’s Peak Podcast, thank you for coming back to the mountain! Transfer portal season is back, with the gates officially opening on the day this releases! Obviously, we all know there’s been lots of movement already, so we’re spending this week going over every team’s offseason outlook and goals! I’ll tell you each team’s biggest portal losses, most important retentions, and how I feel about their roster going into 2027. Fun episode this week, let’s dive in!

Quick plug: The transfer portal tracker is officially live! Complete with all 77 players currently in the portal from the Mountain West and PAC 12, this is the best resource for fans to see who’s leaving and who’s staying from their favorite team, as well as their rivals. Check it out whenever you can, as it’s updated daily whenever news drops.

Show Notes:

1. Opinion: Transfer Portal = College Basketball Free Agency (and how to deal with it as a fan)
2. Portal Report for all 11 '25-'26 Mountain West teams (Air Force not included)
   1. Most impactful retentions/departures
   2. Outlook for 2027 roster, key players to watch

That is it for this week’s episode of the Hike’s Peak Podcast, thank you so much for listening! With transfer portal season back in full swing, make sure to follow me on Twitter @JackTalksCFB and turn post notifications on so you don’t miss any Mountain West or PAC 12 movement! If you like the show and enjoy our coverage, leave a rating on whatever platform you’re listening on, every single one of those helps us out immensely. Follow us on twitter at MWCConnection and find all of your Mountain West news at MWCConnection.com. Also, check out the brand new transfer portal tracker, which is live on the website now. It’s complete with bios, stats, and previous stops for every player on the list, and is updated daily, so bookmark that to never miss out on transfer news! Thank you again for listening, being able to do this every week is a dream come true! Until next time, I’m Jack Thompson, and thank you for coming back to the mountain!