Here’s where five of Penn football’s finest will play for their final year of collegiate eligibility

Next season, five of Penn football’s star players will continue their career elsewhere.

Although the Quakers are current seniors, each played four or less games during their freshman year, extending their collegiate eligibility for an additional season. The Ivy League does not allow its players to compete as graduate students, which routinely leads to players transferring to non-Ivy League schools for an added year.

The players will join teams in the ACC, Big Ten, and Big 12 conferences. Their commitments come after Penn football finished third in the Ivy League during the 2025 season.

Jared Richardson to Duke University 

The All-American angel is becoming a Blue Devil.

Standout senior wide receiver Jared Richardson is transferring to Duke University for his final year of eligibility. Richardson led the conference with over 1,000 receiving yards and 12 receiving touchdowns — making him the sixth Quaker in program history to receive over 1,000 yards in a single season. The Blakeslee, Pa. native was named a finalist for the Walter Payton Award in addition to numerous first team All-American honors. 

Liam O’Brien to University of Cincinnati 

The king of the gridiron is heading to the Queen City.

Star senior quarterback Liam O’Brien heads to the University of Cincinnati to fill the vacancy left by recent transfer junior Brendan Sorsby. O’Brien threw 2,376 yards with a 67.2% completion rate during the 2025 season, earning first team and academic All-Ivy selections. The Boulder, Colo. native became a campus sensation after reaching a record-breaking seven touchdowns in his second career start.

John Lista to University of Connecticut

The Huskies picked up a rabid defender.

Senior linebacker John Lista is off to Storrs, Conn. to add his experience to one of the two independent teams in the FBS. He was a team captain and a unanimous first team All-Ivy selection in his senior season, following a second team All-Ivy selection in his junior season.

The Fair Haven, N.J. native became a starter for Penn midway through his sophomore season, and quickly established himself as a defensive cornerstone for the team. In his senior season, he was fifth in the league in solo tackles and posted a career-high 8.7 tackles per game. 

He joins a UConn team that went 9-4 in the 2025 season for their second winning season after a 13-year drought, but they are experiencing a lot of change during this offseason. The Huskies just brought in a new coach in Jason Candle, and a lot of transfers seem to be heading to Connecticut for 2026.

Bisi Owens to Purdue University

Senior wide receiver Bisi Owens is ready to boiler up and hammer down.

One of Penn football’s favorite offensive targets is heading to West Lafayette, Ind. for one last year of college football. He was a first team All-Ivy Selection in his final season at Penn, which capped off a stellar senior season for the Maryland native.

In the 2025 season, Owens recorded 69.6 receiving yards per game, good for third in the Ivy League and improving even further on his junior season’s 53.8 yard average. His 66 receptions almost doubled his earlier season totals.

He joins the Purdue Boilermakers, who are looking to improve a lackluster 2025 season that saw them going 11-2 overall and 9-0 in the Big Ten. As a result of the subpar performance, there will be some turnover both on the coaches’ and the players’ side heading into next season.

Netinho Olivieri to University of Pittsburgh

He’s booking a ticket on the Keystone Corridor. 

Senior offensive lineman Nehtinho Olivieri is crossing the state to join the Pitt Panthers for his final year of eligibility. Olivieri made his first start during a successful sophomore campaign where the Quaker offense averaged 286.1 yards per game, finishing second in the conference and eighth in the nation.

The Newton, Mass. native played an instrumental role in his junior season, protecting then-sophomore running back Malachi Hosley in his Ivy League Offensive Player of the Year campaign while covering the quarterback’s blind side at left tackle. His senior season saw similar action, with the Penn offensive line averaging 378.1 total yards per game while only allowing 1.6 sacks per game.

Olivieri notched an AP All-American Honorable Mention to conclude his time with the Quakers. He enters a Panther pit rife with instability and turnover on the offensive line. The Panthers allowed 40 sacks in the 2025 season, the second most in the ACC behind Stanford University. 

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