SMU DT Damarjhe Lewis enters NCAA Transfer Portal

SMU defensive tackle Damarjhe Lewis, who began his career at Indiana University and spent years with Purdue, is in the NCAA Transfer Portal, he announced.

He spent just one year with the Mustangs, playing against Missouri State and Boston College. His career has been riddled with injuries and he’ll hope to get back on the field in 2026 elsewhere.

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Lewis visited Louisville, Texas A&M and USC before ultimately picking SMU to spend the 2025 season. There was hope he’d find his health and step up for Calvin Thibodeaux’ group, but he played in a reserve role all season.

“Damarjhe is a guy that has Big Ten experience. Been banged up some, but when you watch the tape, you’ve seen the skill set. I was able to get a lot of good information from a guy who worked here, Kevin Kane. Just kind of the background and what are these guys made of, what’s inside,” Thibodeaux said when SMU signed Lewis. “Coach spoke really high of those guys, and I’m just excited to get an opportunity to work with him. If we keep him on the field with his skill set … he’s done a great job with us so far.”

Lewis was also sidelined for a portion of fall camp before the 2024 season. He ended up playing five games and had 14 tackles, three tackles for a loss and a block. In 2022, he missed the season with an injury. In 2023, he played in the first two games before sustaining an injury.

Lewis, the 3-AAAAA Defensive Player of the Year in 2019 for Griffin High, did not see any game action in 2020 at Indiana. He then left for Purdue where he played in 12 games, made three starts, and finished with eight tackles, three solo stops, and one tackle for a loss in 2021.

The 2025-26 college football transfer portal will last 15 days, spanning from Jan. 2 to Jan. 16, the NCAA decided. While players have just over two weeks  to enter the portal, they’re not under a deadline to commit when they enter. Traditionally, the cut-off for committing has been how late a school can enroll a player through admissions, so it varies throughout the sport.

To keep up with the latest players on the move, check out On3’s Transfer Portal wire. The On3 Transfer Portal Instagram account and Twitter account are excellent resources to stay up to date with the latest moves.