So you believed the previous transfer portal openings were crazy for college football? Unfortunately for schools all over the country, we are three months away from what could be the most chaotic period since the portal was established, based on coaching changes and potential alterations to NIL rules this offseason.
The most recent instance of potential disorder occurred on Thursday morning when Georgia State head coach Shawn Elliott stepped down from his position to become the tight ends coach at South Carolina. This move occurred three days into the program’s spring practice, causing the athletic director to halt all activities and postpone the spring game.
This is just the latest example of a head coach realizing that being a head coach was taking away the everyday life that some of these coaches are missing. Unfortunately for some individuals, the NIL narrative doesn’t apply to this situation, as Elliott’s return to South Carolina offers him a fresh start as he enters a crucial year at Georgia State. Additionally, his family still had a residence in Columbia, South Carolina, making the transition easier for the former head coach.
However, it is the players and assistant coaches who suffer the most from a move like this, as they were already preparing for the upcoming 2024 season. Although Elliott did not leave after spring practice, which I mentioned on Thursday would be the next domino to fall in the coaching community, this move still had a significant impact on the current roster.
Since classes have already begun at Georgia State, it will be challenging for players to take advantage of the thirty-day window now available to them to enter the transfer portal. While other schools may be seeking assistance, Georgia State players may have to wait until the spring window to enroll at a different institution if they choose to move on.
They can certainly express their intention to enter the portal or actually do so. However, it would be extremely difficult, almost impossible, to find another school within the next thirty days. Therefore, the next step is to wait until the transfer portal reopens on April 15, with 15 days to enter their name and potentially find a new home. It’s important to remember that players do not have to immediately enroll at a new school after the 15-day portal period ends, but they must at least enter their name into the database.
The real question is how chaotic this portal window in April will be for schools that were forced to hire new head coaches in the past month. One of the significant changes in this new era of college football could arise from a lawsuit currently pending in an East Tennessee Federal Court, but more on that later.
Three different programs in different conferences experienced a significant shakeup that will be discussed for years to come, while players prepare to explore their options, possibly in a discreet manner. The ripple effect of Nick Saban’s retirement has put some programs in a challenging position of trying to maintain their roster or add to it.
Washington’s Kalen DeBoer took the job to replace Saban at Alabama, leading to the Huskies hiring Jedd Fisch from Arizona, which then prompted the Wildcats to hire Brent Brennan from San Jose State. These moves have placed players in a difficult position due to the timing. While they had thirty days to find a new home if they so desired, the fact that it occurred in late January and early February didn’t help.
Therefore, the next step for players at Alabama, Michigan, Washington, Arizona, Boston College, and Georgia State is to go through spring practice and determine if their current situation and relationships with coaches are satisfactory enough to stay.
Simply put, these upcoming months serve as auditions for both players and coaches, as they try to determine if they can establish a relationship that will either keep them at their current school or compel them to explore other options.
“We are always paying attention to the transfer portal or the rumors of who might enter,” one Power-5 assistant stated. “Don’t forget about the NIL part of this as well. We are aware of what’s going on with the NCAA and those two states (Tennessee, Virginia) lawsuit. That could end up being a gamechanger. If they allow it (Injunction on NIL Recruiting Ban), I’ll be interested to see how much it changes our portal recruiting.”
This coach’s statement is valid, and NIL will undoubtedly play a role in the decisions of many players leading up to the upcoming portal window.
One of the main questions that most NIL collectives currently have revolves around how much influence they will have in the next portal window. It is no secret that many of these players are signing agreements with a school collective based on their on-field abilities, essentially a pay-for-play situation. However, if the Attorneys General for Tennessee and Virginia have their way, NIL negotiations will become transparent discussions about the monetary compensation offered for their services.
A judge in East Tennessee recently heard arguments from both sides, with the NCAA arguing that their rules prohibiting players from discussing exact dollar figures with collectives have not caused any significant harm. However, this has not prevented top college athletes from receiving substantial compensation for their services.
Judge Corker specifically asked the NCAA if these athletes were being kept in the dark about their future earnings. In response, NCAA lawyers argued that the current rules were sufficient for the system, although they were unable to distinguish between a player discussing potential earnings with a collective and reaching an overall price agreement to sign with that group.
This brings us to the spring transfer portal period, where athletes could engage in public bidding wars between schools. It is during this portal window that collectives across the country are preparing for an influx of players willing to transfer.
For players at schools that recently lost their head coaches in the past month, the next few months will be a combination of getting to know the new coach while potentially exploring other options.
If coaches can leave during the initial month of workouts or even spring practice, perhaps it is time to establish a new calendar for college football.
One thing is certain: those 15 days in April have the potential to be a chaotic month, and conversations about it are already taking place.
According to the Source outkick.com