Transfer portal
44 entries tagged Transfer portal, newest first. Open in the filterable browser.
No verbatim quote recorded for this entry; summary of the source only.
In his media days address, Sankey laid out the national standards he wants, including health and safety, scholarship protections, oversight of agents, athlete participation in governance, and uniform eligibility and transfer rules.
“I have experienced the impact of NIL, the transfer portal, conference realignment, evolving eligibility rules, and the many changes shaping modern college athletics.”
Testifying on the Protect College Sports Act, said a national NIL framework would remove 'gray area' for athletes and that behind every policy debate are real students; noted coaching turnover disrupts development.
“I wouldn't call any team my favorite, but I do represent the team I currently play for, which is the University of Utah”
Asked by Sen. John Curtis to name his favorite team after playing for several schools, gave a diplomatic answer; Cruz joked he might run for office. Said a national NIL framework 'eliminates a lot of the gray area.'
“Congress does need to fix the mess in the courts and create a national framework so the people inside college sports can enforce fair rules.”
Testifying before the Senate Commerce Committee in support of the Protect College Sports Act, Saban asked Congress to create a national legal framework so people inside college sports can enforce fair rules, distinguishing real NIL from disguised pay-for-play.
“Free agency with a collective, now you're talking about bidding war for players.”
At the Senate hearing Saban proposed one transfer opportunity, with another allowed after graduation or in extenuating circumstances, arguing unlimited transfers plus collectives create free agency and bidding wars that hurt development.
“I don't think the portal should exist at the same time that football's being played.”
After Oregon's spring game, Lanning backed a proposal to start the season earlier. He said the portal shouldn't be open while games are still being played and that the season should end close to Jan. 1 to line up with academic terms and coaching transitions.
“I found a system that quickly was defined by unlimited free agency and no salary cap and complete chaos.”
Yormark said he found a system of 'unlimited free agency and no salary cap and complete chaos.' He backed the SCORE Act as 'progress over perfection' and called for regulating agents, who he said charge excessive fees and push athletes into the portal.
“The issue isn't the NIL, the issue isn't players making money. The issue is the ability for players to transfer to teams to other teams, and another team, but if we do it for the players, we gotta do it for the coaches.”
Responding to Nick Saban's White House remarks, Newton called returning the focus to education 'hogwash.' He proposed two- to three-year player contracts and limits on excessive transfers, with matching accountability for coaches, including in-season job changes and buyouts.
“We need some type of commissioner.”
On ESPN's First Take, Sanders called NIL unsustainable and said the sport needs a commissioner to set uniform rules for compensation. He also criticized the January portal window for disrupting academics.
“I think the Power 4 needs to break away, create their own world, create their own governing body.”
At Super Bowl LX radio row, Herbstreit laid out three fixes. He called for a national commissioner, for the Power 4 to break away with its own governing body (leaving the Group of 6 its own playoff), and for players to unionize so they can collectively bargain rules that hold up against antitrust suits.
“I think we try to stay in our lane unless we're invited in to be part of the solution.”
At his Super Bowl LX press conference, Goodell said college football needs to bring clarity to all the disruption, and the NFL would help if asked but otherwise would stay in its lane.
“To be honest, I think it's teaching young kids how to run away from their problems. Number two, it's ruining college sports.”
On The Big Podcast with Shaq, said NIL plus the portal teaches kids to run from problems and is 'ruining college sports'.
No verbatim quote recorded for this entry; summary of the source only.
Proposed a three-step eligibility fix: players locked to their school for three years, free to transfer at the same level in year four, and given a fifth-year transfer option as a reward for graduating.
“Love the last part. Need to incentivize a degree. Out on 1–2. It's not just about the players. Sometimes the coaches do not get it right about a guy. Three years is too long of a lock-in. Two would be great. One-time free transfer”
Responding to Clay Travis's plan, proposed a two-year lock-in, a one-time free transfer, and a transfer-eligible fifth year as a reward for graduating.
“You've created a system that inherently rewards what defies a team concept, and in a team sport, it just makes no sense.”
Ahead of Georgia's CFP Sugar Bowl quarterfinal, Smart criticized the portal system for rewarding only players who leave, arguing it defies the team concept.
“I wasn't trying to leave (Florida State). I didn't want to leave, so I just had to, and the portal was closing up.”
Blamed a bad agent, who allegedly texted schools pretending to be him, for forcing him out of Florida State and into repeated portal moves. (Quoted from ESPN in a Deseret News column.)
“Honestly, like, being with the transfer portal and NIL, it was actually a huge pay cut from the other schools. But it was, I believe, looking back on it, it was the right decision.”
Said transferring to Indiana was a 'huge pay cut' compared with other schools' NIL offers, but he chose development under Cignetti.
No verbatim quote recorded for this entry; summary of the source only.
The CFBPA's 10-point 'Platform for Change' calls for collective bargaining covering independent medical care, safer practice standards, long-term health protections, a protected offseason, revenue sharing with league minimums, and player-negotiated free agency/eligibility rules and season length/playoff expansion. It also wants union-facilitated group NIL and union certification of agents.
“College football is messed up.”
On The Pat McAfee Show, said the playoff boosted interest but the 'underbelly' is bad for player development; the sport must choose between a pro developmental league and college athletes; he called player movement a bigger issue than money.
“We want to better connect the regular season & postseason. We want more conference games to matter in November.”
At Big Ten media days, Petitti pitched a playoff format with more automatic bids for the Big Ten and SEC so more conference games matter in November, and said models that lean more on committee picks would struggle to win Big Ten support. The Big Ten was also the lone FBS league backing a spring portal window over January.
“The biggest decision that needs to be made in college football right now, by far, is when is the portal window and is it one or two.”
At SEC spring meetings, Smart called the number and timing of portal windows the biggest decision in the sport, said coaches unanimously wanted one window in January, and complained that it wasn't clear who was deciding.
“It needs to happen sometime in January.”
Smart argued against a spring-only portal, saying it would make tampering worse during January through March, and said an AFCA coaches meeting unanimously agreed there should be one window in January.
“If you're in high school and you're getting offered that, go wherever they're paying you the most.”
On The Dan Patrick Show, Burrow said he would have transferred from Ohio State much sooner if today's rules had existed, and told players to take full advantage of NIL money.
“I feel like if I could've had NIL in my third year, I could've bought my dad a kidney, and maybe he wouldn't have died”
A four-school portal veteran, said the system rather than the schools failed him; his father died of kidney disease before NIL could help.
“The season's not over yet, and there's a free-agency window open.”
On a Gator Bowl coaches' Zoom call, Kiffin called the calendar 'a dumb system' because the portal opens while teams are still playing, and compared it to NFL free agency opening before the playoffs.
“If the transfer portal opens before I can complete negotiations with Anchor Impact, I will be trapped between abandoning those negotiations or foregoing possible opportunities with other colleges”
Sued the NCAA over its five-year rule, arguing that JUCO seasons shouldn't count against Division I eligibility; said the transfer portal calendar would trap him if the court didn't act.
“This NIL stuff's not real money. It's just starting money, I would say.”
Called NIL 'starting money' and said the media overstates what players make; life-changing money is in the NFL.
“It's whoever wants to pay the most money, raise the most money, buy the most players is going to have the best opportunity to win. I don't think that's the spirit of college athletics.”
At a Capitol Hill appearance with Sen. Cruz, said NIL plus free agency means whoever raises the most money buys the best players.
“Can you imagine in the NBA or NFL, free agency were to start in the playoffs? I mean, it would never happen.”
On an SEC coaches' teleconference, Kiffin said the portal windows are timed before the season is over, which invites tampering, and called the whole system reactive rather than thought out.
“We, the adults, have done a lot to really screw this thing up.”
At a pre-Citrus Bowl news conference, Ferentz said the sport was in worse shape than two years earlier and blamed the adults. He called for a college football commissioner and a summit of Power Five commissioners, ADs and coaches to 'blow everything up and try to start over.'
No verbatim quote recorded for this entry; summary of the source only.
In an open letter to athletes about his 'Project D1' proposal, Baker said the new subdivision could write its own rules on scholarships, roster limits, recruiting, transfers and NIL, and invited athlete feedback.
“If you want to go to a college, it should be because you want to play football there, not because somebody pays you more than the other guy”
Said he has no problem with players earning money but NIL arrived without limits or uniformity; the portal erodes team bonds; called college football 'kind of upside down'.
“Somehow it's got to get fixed because there's no system around it.”
In his SEC Media Days opening statement, Kiffin called the state of the sport 'a disaster.' He said NIL had become pay-for-play and the portal was free agency twice a year with no salary cap, and that huge roster overhauls aren't good for college football.
“I've always said, when asked, shorten the [transfer portal] windows, so at least we know what your roster is and not so many chances for players.”
Kiffin said he used to favor making players employees so teams could sign multi-year contracts, but now thinks employment would create more problems than it solves. His consistent fix is shorter transfer windows.
“It changed my life, to say the least, for sure.”
Said NIL 'changed my life'; he did no NIL deals in his year at Oklahoma, but after transferring to USC he could support himself and buy gear for walk-ons and teammates.
“One thing the NFL has figured out is that they've got even playing rules for all 32 organizations.”
Ferentz compared the portal plus NIL to the early days of NFL free agency. He noted the NFL has equal playing rules, equal roster sizes and a salary cap, and said he would run recruiting like the NFL.
“But to take a kid out of high school and pay him eight million billion dollars to go to your school, I think that's insane.”
At the Little Rock Touchdown Club, Herbstreit said he had no problem with NIL for players with established brands, but wanted to end big booster payments to high school recruits and objected to power programs poaching starters from smaller schools.
“We need some intervention, and then my bigger concern is: Who's going to do it, right?”
At Big Ten Media Days, Ferentz said the sport lacks basic operating rules, that nobody could fully explain NIL, and that it needs intervention from one stabilizing voice. He opposed bidding for high school recruits combined with unlimited transfers.
“The game on the field has never been better. Once you walk off the field, it's never been more chaotic.”
Fitzgerald agreed with Ferentz on the portal, NIL and a never-ending recruiting calendar.
“It's gonna become the NFL. You have these two conferences, the transfer portal is free agency. Will there be a player's union at some point? There's no governance right now.”
Predicted college football 'is gonna become the NFL', with two super-conferences, the portal as free agency and possibly a players' union within three to five years.
“There's no rules, no guidance, no nothing. It's out of control. It's not sustainable.”
Swinney criticized the unregulated NIL environment, calling it unsustainable and warning that players would make decisions for the wrong reasons.
“They should get paid; they should be able to transfer. Coaches do it all the time.”
Backed NIL pay and free transfer ('if coaches can do it, players should'), but said the lack of rules turned it into the wild, wild west.
“To not be able to get paid for something like that, I say it's kind of crazy.”
Early in the NIL era, Williams defended athletes getting paid because their days are longer than most people's. He called transferring to run from competition 'a little weak-minded' but said coaching changes uproot players.
“So for them to have the final say as to where I can go for my future, it's kinda ridiculous in my mind because they didn't pay for anything”
Challenged transfer rules that could cost a walk-on a year of eligibility for an intra-conference transfer, calling it ridiculous that a school that paid for nothing controlled his future.
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