Jaren Hamilton is headed west for his next football journey.
The former Alabama wide receiver confirmed to On3 that he will be transferring to Arizona State. Hamilton, a four-star recruit from the 2023 class according to the 247Sports Composite, spent two seasons with the Crimson Tide. He was ranked as the No. 35 receiver in the nation in that class and hails from Gainesville, Florida.
During the 2024 season, Hamilton appeared in four games: against Western Kentucky, Wisconsin, Mercer, and in the ReliaQuest Bowl against Michigan. Across those games, he logged 17 special teams snaps and 30 snaps on offense, with 23 of those coming against Mercer, per Pro Football Focus. Although he did not record any catches, Hamilton did contribute with one tackle.
Hamilton is part of a wave of receivers who entered the transfer portal in December and January. Among those joining him were Caleb Odom, Kendrick Law, Kobe Prentice, Emmanuel Henderson, and Amari Jefferson. Of this group, Prentice was the most productive, tallying 11 receptions for 129 yards and a touchdown.
Meanwhile, Alabama has been active in bolstering its receiver corps, adding Isaiah Horton from Miami and returning key players such as Germie Bernard and Ryan Williams for 2025. Other young talents like Cole Adams, Rico Scott, and Jaylen Mbakwe (who recently switched from cornerback to receiver) are also in the mix.
As the winter window for players to enter the transfer portal has now closed, those in the portal can still finalize their decisions on where to continue their careers.
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Oddsmakers more optimistic about Alabama football in 2025 than the media
As the clock ticks down to next week’s National Championship game between Ohio State and Notre Dame, oddsmakers have already begun projecting the odds for next season’s title contender. Early numbers suggest that, despite recent narratives, Alabama still holds strong favor among betting circles, even if the media sees things differently.
The prevailing storyline in the media has been that the Crimson Tide’s dynasty is officially over. This narrative, fueled by constant roster turnover in today’s college football era, argues that it’s increasingly difficult for any team to sustain a dominant run like Alabama’s in the past.
However, after a solid 9-4 season in Kalen DeBoer’s first year at the helm in Tuscaloosa, the media narrative seems to be shifting too far in the opposite direction. Notably, Andy Staples of On3 excluded Alabama from his Way Too Early Top 10 rankings, released just a couple of weeks ago. Similarly, our sister site, Saturday Blitz, placed the Crimson Tide shockingly low at No. 16 in their early Top 25 for next season.
Despite this, the oddsmakers remain much more optimistic about Alabama’s prospects. According to FanDuel, the Tide hold the sixth-highest odds at +1400 to win the national title, placing them third among SEC teams, trailing only Texas and Georgia. Meanwhile, Bet Online also gives them the sixth-highest odds at +1600, tied with Notre Dame, and again ranking behind Texas and Georgia.
While it may seem surprising not to see Alabama among the top two or three teams for national title odds, the confidence from oddsmakers in Kalen DeBoer’s second year suggests that they are far from ready to count out the Tide.
