University of Miami transfer Wooga Poplar is returning to his Philadelphia roots. On Wednesday, June 5, he committed to Villanova and signed with the Wildcats for his final season of college eligibility.

Jeff Neiburg from The Philadelphia Inquirer was the first to break the news.

Poplar, a 6’5 guard, entered the NBA Draft after his junior season with the Hurricanes and withdrew on May 29 to stay in the transfer portal. Poplar was also a top transfer target for Oregon and Kentucky and made visits to those schools prior to announcing his commitment to Villanova. 

“We’re excited to bring another tough Philly guard to our team,” head coach Kyle Neptune said. “Wooga is an explosive athlete and big-time scorer. He does a great job playing off his shot, and attacking mismatches. At the other end of the court, he is a big-time defender that impacts winning.”

In 2023–2024, Poplar averaged 13.1 points and 4.8 rebounds while starting in all 29 games in which he appeared for Miami. He finished the season shooting 42.6 percent from the field and leading the Hurricanes with 86.4 percent shooting from the free throw line. Poplar was briefly sidelined due to an ankle injury. 

Poplar set his sights on Miami as a four-star high school recruit out of Math, Civics, and Sciences Charter School in Philadelphia. 

After playing his freshman season off the bench, Poplar worked his way up to a starting spot for the Hurricanes during their 2022–2023 NCAA Final Four run.

Poplar will likely become a key member of Villanova’s starting five.

Bringing in the talents of Poplar, Boakye, La Salle transfer Jhamir Brickus and Penn transfer Tyler Perkins, Neptune is continuing to use the portal to strengthen a new team for 2024–2025.

Villanova currently has two more open scholarships left to complete the roster.