Florida State cornerback Ja'Bril Rawls will not enter transfer portal

The only transfer portal window of the college football offseason is just one sleep away. Kentucky’s new coaching staff will be busy filling needs for the 2026 roster. Cornerback is expected to be at the top of the board. A potential top option is off the board.

Ja’Bril Rawls is staying at Florida State after initial reports indicated that the starting cornerback would enter the portal.

BREAKING: Florida State DB Ja’Bril Rawls will return to the Seminoles in 2026, he tells @On3Sports

The 6’1 185 DB totaled 58 tackles, 3 PD, & 1 INT through 3 seasons

He was ranked as one of the Top DBs in the portal and received major interesthttps://t.co/RlUbB6Fk7q pic.twitter.com/TY3rAuES6S

— Hayes Fawcett (@Hayesfawcett3) December 31, 2025

The former three-star recruit out of Pensacola (Fla.) Catholic signed with the Seminoles during the 2023 high school cycle and spent his first three seasons of college football in Mike Norvell‘s program. After taking a redshirt in year one, Rawls was a rotational player as a redshirt freshman in 2024 before becoming a full-time starter as a redshirt sophomore in 2025. The cornerback played just seven games but finished the year with 40 tackles and two pass breakups in 374 defensive snaps.

Ja’Bril Rawls was recruited by the previous Kentucky coaching staff and was expected to be a target for the new Kentucky staff in the transfer portal. That will not happen now. Luckily, the cornerback market is expected to be strong. After losing starter DJ Waller Jr. and reserve Nasir Addison to the portal earlier this week, Kentucky will need to address the position. Rawls is off the table but there are plenty of quality options at cornerback as that is shaping up to be one of the strongest positions in the portal.

Luckett’s Play Sheet: What Kentucky could find in this year’s transfer portal market (KSR+ column)

Kentucky Football Portal Tracker

The transfer portal does not officially open until Friday, Jan. 2, but so far, we know of 12 players who will be looking for a new place to play college football this offseason once it does. The portal window officially closes Jan. 16.

• LB Landyn Watson
• EDGE Steven Soles Jr.
• QB Stone Saunders
• WR David Washington Jr.
• WR Preston Bowman
• CB Nasir Addison
• DT Austin Ramsey
• WR Troy Stellato
• DL Javeon Campbell
• CB DJ Waller Jr.
• EDGE Jacob Smith
• DL Jerod Smith II

To keep up with the latest players on the move, check out On3’s Transfer Portal wire. 

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