Transfer Portal Is A Dead End For Many

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Gophergrandpa said:
www.bestcolleges.com

Half of College Athletes in Transfer Portal Go Unsigned | BestColleges

The NCAA's new transfer portal dashboard is designed to help college athletes make informed decisions about transferring.
www.bestcolleges.com www.bestcolleges.com
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40+% of college football portal entries in 2021 and 2022 never found a new home--and that was with temporarily-relaxed rules that allowed teams to have more than 85 scholarship players on their rosters. With even more transfer portal entries in 2023, and a hard 85 scholarship limit on FBS rosters back in place, it isn't unreasonable to think that 50+% of 2023 portal entries could never find a new home. There are only so many scholarship roster spots, and there are a couple thousand HS players entering the equation each year, as well.

The portal works well for a good many, and is a good thing for them. For the chosen few, it is clear that a lot of back-channel tampering is going on (via family and friends, HS coaches, etc.). The lucky few know either where they are going to land, or that they will be courted by several schools. But the portal can be a disaster for marginal or even decent players who enter the portal, forfeiting a free education at a P5 school, without a clue as to how their "candidacy" will be received.
 

Gold Rush said:
I think they really opened up the Pandora's Box with this one and there's no going back from here. Eventually, maybe they can get back to the one year penalty on transfers - that should discourage it a little bit.
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This is exactly right, especially when combined with the “Covid year”. Roster size needs to be managed, so each school has to unload 20 players with the extra year of eligibility. THe portal for many is the soft landing instead of those who were previously kicked off the team, flunked out, or just vanished from rosters. Though NIL gets all the media attention, that likely only impacts a small percentage of transfers. There simply isn’t enough D1 roster spots available for everyone.
 


Can a coach withdraw a scholarship when an athlete enters the portal?
 



It says something about recruitment methods and follow through on what they promise.
 






Plato said:
The Transfer Portal elevated players from being serfs to free citizens.
I fail to understand why many fans hate it.
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Why? Many fans don't care about a players dreams or ambitions. They don't care if a kid was told he'd get a honest shot at playing time and ended-up behind a better player, or in some cases a Coach's favorite.

They care about their team having depth if and when the player is needed. They get irritated when one of "their" players enters the transfer portal and giddy if a good player from another school transfers to their's.

For many fans, the term "fan" is truly derived from fanatic.
 
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Because of the portal, coaches have to push people out who won't compete. I was adamantly against this practice prior to the portal (and new rules associated) but now it's a requirement. A lot of these guys aren't leaving for greener pastures. Additionally, there was always attrition - those guys also just enter the portal by default. Some of this stuff isn't new, it's just called something different.
 

Portal means you have a chance to play where otherwise possibly not at all anyway….
 





Bob_Loblaw said:
Because of the portal, coaches have to push people out who won't compete. I was adamantly against this practice prior to the portal (and new rules associated) but now it's a requirement. A lot of these guys aren't leaving for greener pastures. Additionally, there was always attrition - those guys also just enter the portal by default. Some of this stuff isn't new, it's just called something different.
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If players are being forced into the portal, something is very wrong. It was wrong by another name and it’s wrong now. Classic case of giving up some security for a low percentage chance at a big advance in career. Not sure I think 19 year olds should be making that decision without trusted advice. People who benefit directly from their decisions are by definition not to be trusted.
 

Holy Man said:
If players are being forced into the portal, something is very wrong. It was wrong by another name and it’s wrong now. Classic case of giving up some security for a low percentage chance at a big advance in career. Not sure I think 19 year olds should be making that decision without trusted advice. People who benefit directly from their decisions are by definition not to be trusted.
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I'm not arguing that the new system is right, I'm just arguing that coaches are forced to play by a new set of rules and if we don't use the portal to "make room", we'll never compete.
 

Bob_Loblaw said:
I'm not arguing that the new system is right, I'm just arguing that coaches are forced to play by a new set of rules and if we don't use the portal to "make room", we'll never compete.
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Fair enough. It’s not a good system but it has been created to benefit the few at the expense of the many. You and I are not changing it.
 

I don't see the portal as bad. Scholarships are year-to-year. Theres no 4 year guarantee.
 

USAF said:
It's a shame all these guys are forced to enter the portal.
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I’ve not heard of one player forced to enter the portal. Yes players get pushed, but can a player legally be forced out of their scholarship if they refuse to leave?
 

I mentioned when it started that there would be some sort of tipping point where there would start to be diminishing benefits. I think that time is close. Then more and more players will only enter of they have a known option.
 

Almost every player recruited to the P5 level was a rock star in high school. Some carry on that level in college, but many don't, and that's just life. If a player leaves a major P5 school to drop down a level or two, so they can actually see the field while still going to school, I get that. They want to play the game as long as they can.

The big issue is the players who think they're still rock stars and aren't, and assume that they got screwed by their current coach/team, and think they're going to become a rock star again at some other P5 program - because they're delusional.
 

And to add to what I posted above. The players essentially wanted a form of free agency. They now have it. But that's not all sunshine, lollipops and rainbows. There's an element of personal responsibility there too. You might make a decision that doesn't work, or that you regret. That's the tradeoff for this newfound freedom.
 

disco said:
Almost every player recruited to the P5 level was a rock star in high school. Some carry on that level in college, but many don't, and that's just life. If a player leaves a major P5 school to drop down a level or two, so they can actually see the field while still going to school, I get that. They want to play the game as long as they can.

The big issue is the players who think they're still rock stars and aren't, and assume that they got screwed by their current coach/team, and think they're going to become a rock star again at some other P5 program - because they're delusional.
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An example of a player transferring and dropping down a few levels is former Gopher QB Jaran Roste
He enrolled in Bethel and as a senior was selected as the MIAC Offensive Player of the Year. He is also one of four finalists for the 2022 Gagliardi Trophy that goes annually to the most outstanding football player in Division III. The winner will be announced Friday, Dec. 16.
 

btowngopher said:
I’ve not heard of one player forced to enter the portal. Yes players get pushed, but can a player legally be forced out of their scholarship if they refuse to leave?
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Adjust your sarcasmeter.

That's my point.
 

Plato said:
The Transfer Portal elevated players from being serfs to free citizens.
I fail to understand why many fans hate it.
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Agreed. If you quit your job, imagining you can get hired elsewhere for more money and benefits, but another company hasn't offered yet, you are taking a risk that may fail. You have to do a cost-benefit analysis and then choose. It's no different with the portal. It's too bad kids don't have a basic grasp on simple economics.
 

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