LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Make that back-to-back commitments for the Louisville football program, and yet another offensive line portal pickup.

Former Mississippi State offensive tackle Makylan “Mak” Pounders has committed to the Cardinals, he announced Saturday.

Pounders is the second transfer commitment of the day for Louisville, joining Rutgers defensive end Wesley Bailey. He’s also the third offensive lineman to commit to the Cardinals from out of the portal, following Purdue offensive tackle Mahamane Moussa and FIU offensive guard Naeer Jackson. Add in WKU linebacker Darius Thomas, and Louisville has landed five transfers.

Pounders played just one season at Mississippi State after starting his career at Memphis. In his lone season with the Bulldogs, the 6-foot-5, 310-pound left tackle played in 11 games while making seven starts, and allowed just three sacks and 19 total pressures over 334 pass block snaps and 574 total blocking snaps.

The Byhalia, Miss native played in just three games for Memphis as a true freshman in 2021, then made seven appearances and two starts in 2022. During his final season with the Tigers in 2023, he allowed only a single sack and 12 pressures in 399 pass block and 673 total blocking snaps.

Over the course of his collegiate career, Pounders has allowed just five sacks and 38 total pressures in 840 pass blocks snaps and 1,451 blocking snaps overall.

Monday, Dec. 9 marked the first day of college football’s 30-day winter transfer portal window. So far, Louisville has seen 16 players of their own enter the portal.

Louisville finished the 2024 regular season, the second under head coach Jeff Brohm, with an 8-4 overall record and 5-3 mark in ACC play. The Cardinals will cap off the year with a matchup against Washington in the Sun Bowl on New Year’s Eve.

(Photo of Makylan Pounders: Mark J. Rebilas – Imagn Images)

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Mississippi State transfer wideout Mario Craver has narrowed down his potential destinations. As of Friday evening, a quartet remains, according to On3’s Hayes Fawcett.

Craver is choosing between a trio of SEC schools and one historic ACC power: Texas A&M, LSU, Alabama and Florida State.

Craver has three years of eligibility remaining for his college career.

Craver appeared in eight games this past season with three starts. He finished the year with 17 catches for 368 yards and three touchdowns.

Craver committed to Mississippi State as a four-star prospect in the 2024 class out of Clay-Chalkville High School in Pinson, Alabama. He ranked as the No. 279 overall player and No. 46 receiver in the cycle according to the On3 Industry Ranking, a weighted average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies.

Craver scored his first career touchdown in the season opener against Eastern Kentucky.

The Bulldogs recently hosted a touted transfer quarterback

Transfer QB Luke Kromenhoek has scheduled his first visit that he’ll take in the portal.

Per On3’s Hayes Fawcett, Kromenhoek will be taking a visit to Mississippi State from Dec. 15-16.

This comes with the Bulldogs being active in the transfer portal with possible quarterback options. Since it opened earlier this week, Mississippi State has now been connected to Kromenhoek and Oklahoma’s Jackson Arnold while losing Michael Van Buren and Chris Parson. Amidst that news was also the return of Blake Shapen for next season.

Kromenhoek appeared in six games this season, including starts in the final two of the fall, as a true freshman for Florida State. After issues with DJ Uiagalelei and Brock Glenn, FSU eventually reached Kromenhoek on the depth chart by season’s end. In those snaps, Kromenhoek was 44-84 (52.4%) for 502 yards, three touchdowns, and two interceptions. During the two starts, he was 28-48 (58.3%) for 349 yards and all three of his passing scores with each of them coming in their 41-7 win over Charleston Southern.

Coach Jeff Lebby and Mississippi State football bolstered its receivers’ room on Friday after losing Kevin Coleman Jr. and Mario Craver to the transfer portal.

Former Oklahoma receiver Brenen Thompson reportedly signed with the Bulldogs on Friday, according to On3’s Pete Nakos. Thompson entered the transfer portal after two seasons at Oklahoma on Thursday.

The speedster saw a large role for the Sooners in 2024 following a slew of receiver injuries, starting 11 games. The 5-foot-9 junior caught 19 passes for 230 yards and two touchdowns in his second season at Oklahoma after transferring from Texas, where he spent his freshman season.

Thompson reunites with Lebby, who was Oklahoma’s offensive coordinator when Thompson initially transferred to the Sooners.

The 3-star transfer prospect according to 247Sports was originally a four-star recruit out of high school, tabbed as the No. 131 player nationally and No. 20 receiver of the 2022 recruiting class. The Spearman, Texas, native also ran track at Texas as a freshman, but didn’t run at Oklahoma.

REQUIRED READING: Kevin Coleman Jr., Mississippi State football’s top wide receiver, won’t return for 2025 season

Thompson is Mississippi State’s fifth transfer commitment of the cycle, joining Nevaeh Sanders, Redd Hibbler, Jahron Manning and Jayven Williams. Lebby has clearly put an emphasis on reuniting with his former Oklahoma connections, as the Bulldogs also flipped former Oklahoma receiver Gracen Harris in the 2025 recruiting class.