Big blow for Northwestern: Brandon Joseph enters the transfer portal

2021 was a rough year for Northwestern football, and the end of the year brought one more loss that will make a rebound in 2022 that much harder.

Former All-American safety Brandon Joseph entered his name into the transfer portal on Thursday. The redshirt junior played 24 games in three seasons for the Wildcats and will have at least two years of eligibility remaining.

Joseph was a breakout star of the 2020 Big Ten West championship team that finished 10th in the final AP poll, the highest finish for the program since 1995. A first-year starter, Joseph led the nation in 2020 with six interceptions to become just the 14th Wildcat to earn consensus first-team All-America honors. His name is on the facing of the second deck at Ryan Field.

The College Station, Tex., native made 52 total tackles and had eight passes defensed as the Wildcats went 6-1 in the COVID-shortened 2020 regular season to earn a berth in the Big Ten championship game. There, Joseph made a spectacular one-handed interception in the end zone against Ohio State, an iconic moment that will no doubt be his legacy. The Wildcats eventually lost to the heavily favored Buckeyes, 22-10, but rebounded to thump Auburn in the Florida Citrus Bowl, 35-19.

Voted a team captain after making just about every preseason All-Big Ten and All-America team, Joseph made significantly fewer big plays in 2021 as the Wildcats went 3-9 (1-8 Big Ten) and fell from first to worst in the Big Ten West. He finished third on the team with 69 tackles, and picked off just two passes. Most noticeably, Joseph missed several tackles in run support and sometimes took bad angles in pursuit.

Still a stalwart for the Wildcats, the highlight of Joseph's season may have been his 111 yards on two punt returns against Indiana State, the most since Venric Mark in 2012.

Joseph was named second-team All-Big Ten by the media and honorable mention by coaches.

The loss of Joseph deals a big blow to a Northwestern defense looking to improve on a disastrous season in Jim O'Neil's first year as coordinator. The Wildcats, who ranked fifth in the nation in scoring in 2020, saw their points per game average balloon by almost two touchdowns, from 15.9 to 29.0 points per game. They also finished 119th in the nation and last in the Big Ten against the run.

Joseph is the seventh player, and the fifth one on scholarship, to announce his intention to leave the program via the transfer portal since the end of the season. The Wildcats have landed one incoming transfer in that time; another decided to pull his name out of the portal and stay in Evanston.

Below is a tally of the incoming and outgoing Wildcats.

Status: Graduate

Years remaining: Two

Davis had 44 tackles, 5 TFL and 2 sacks in his career at Pittsburgh, where he played for Panther defensive coordinator Randy Bates, a former linebackers coach at Northwestern. Davis started the first two games in 2020 before suffering an injury that ended his season. He played in eight games in 2021, starting six, and collected 27 tackles, 3.5 TFL and a sack. Davis's last game was against Miami on Oct. 30. He announced his intention to transfer just a few days later. A versatile 6-foot-2, 240-pounder, Davis Davis played the Mike, or middle, linebacker position, at Pitt, but Northwestern coaches think he could also play the Will, or weakside, spot for the Wildcats.

MORE: Transfer LB Wendell Davis looking for new challenge at Northwestern

Status: Sophomore

Years remaining: Three

Cornerback Garnett Hollis entered his name in the portal shortly after the end of the 2021 season but then decided to remove his name from the portal and return on Dec. 20. Hollis did not see any game action in 2020 but played in five games this season and made five tackles. He had a career-best three tackles in a loss to Wisconsin on Nov. 13. A big corner at 6-foot-1 and 197 pounds, Hollis was on the two-deep as the fourth corner all season, behind Cameron Mitchell, AJ Hampton and Rod Heard.

MORE: New CB coach had role in Garnett Hollis' return

Status: Graduate

Years remaining: One

Blake, a grad transfer, was never able to find a home at Northwestern. A three-star prospect, he chose Northwestern over 13 other offers, including nine from the Power Five. He started out as an offensive lineman at NU but was moved to defensive line and appeared in six games as a backup as a redshirt freshman in 2019. Blake never cracked the rotation, however, and that turned out to be the most action he saw in a single season. He played in five games in 2020, making tackles against Iowa, Illinois and in the Citrus Bowl. The writing was on the wall when Blake appeared in just four games this season.

Destination: Northern Colorado

Status: Sophomore

Years remaining: Three

A three-star prospect out of Ohio, Edwards chose the Cats over 24 other offers. The sophomore appeared in only five games during his Northwestern career, including three in 2021 as a depth defensive tackle. His debut came in the Wildcats' win over Wisconsin in 2020, and he made his first career tackle later that season against Illinois. A telling sign was when Edwards couldn't get steady playing time in 2021, even with Northwestern's run defense being gashed on the ground throughout the season.

Destination: Illinois

Status: Graduate

Years remaining: One

He'Bert, who dealt with a litany of injuries during his Northwestern career, leaves Northwestern as a grad transfer after four seasons in Evanston. He served as the backup to Peter Skoronski at left tackle in 2021, appearing in six games. He made his debut in 2019, as a redshirt freshman, during the Cats' win over UMass. NU was He'Bert's only Power Five offer out of high school.

Destination: UTSA

Status: Graduate

Years remaining: One

Northwestern had high hopes for Rivers out of Logansville, Ga., in 2018, but he was hampered by injuries and was never able to make much of an impact in four seasons, serving as a reserve linebacker and special teams player. Rivers made his college debut as a true freshman in 2018, getting his first action against Rutgers and making the first of his five career tackles the next week against Wisconsin. He had his best game in Northwestern's season-opening win over Maryland in 2020, recording three tackles. Rivers was on and off the inactive in 2021 and played in just two games, making a tackle against Ohio.

Destination: TBD

Status: Graduate

Years remaining: One

Whittaker came to Northwestern as a quarterback and leaves as a tight end. The three-star prospect was an A-list recruit in 2018 despite playing in a Wing-T offense at Rockford (Mich.) that rarely threw the ball. He didn't last long as a quarterback in Evanston, switching to tight end after his freshman season. He moved back to quarterback in 2019 and got his only action as a signal caller in a game against UMass. He opted out of the 2020 season before returning in 2021 as a tight end and playing minimally.

Destination: TBD

These are transfers that are leaving Northwestern but won't count against the program's scholarship allotment because they were walkons.

Status: Graduate

Years remaining: Three

Finison handled kickoff duties in all 12 games as a true freshman in 2019. The Tuscaloosa, Ala., native appeared in just one game in 2020. In 2021, he kicked off in three games and made an extra point against Ohio.

Destination: TBD

Status: Graduate

Years remaining: Three

Krause, a walkon from Olathe, Kan., appeared in one game in 2019 and one game in 2021. He did not record any statistics in his three years in Evanston.

Destination: TBD