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The world of NCAA football could soon be undergoing drastic changes. FBS college football coaches unanimously voted to shorten the transfer portal window, per ESPN. The NCAA would need to adopt the changes, but the coaches clearly want to see a shortened window where players would be allowed to transfer.
The coaches approved having the transfer portal open for 10 days in early January. If approved, players could enter the portal from January 2 to January 12. Currently, the transfer portal is open twice in the year. Players can enter in December, and then again in April.
“These recommendations are intended to allow a student-athlete and coaches more opportunity to focus on their season while preserving the opportunities for students who choose to transfer to still be able to do so for a traditional spring semester,” American Football Coaches Association president Craig Bohl said, per ESPN. “We looked at all kinds of information. I'm convinced our coaches care deeply about the student-athletes, so this decision was made through the filter of allowing them more stability and to be able to move forward.”
Changes to the NCAA football transfer portal have been discussed following the portal opening in the midst of bowl season.
College Football Playoff teams lost players to the portal before the season ended
College Football Playoff teams lost players to the portal before their CFP games could be played, which caused much blowback. The most high-profile case may be Penn State quarterback Beau Pribula, who left the Nittany Lions during bowl preparations.
Coaches expressed dismay about having to deal with this while trying to prepare for a national championship.
“We want to protect the season and the sanctity of that, but at the same time, you're trying to fit a competitive or an academic calendar to sync up, that's a challenge,” SMU coach Rhett Lashlee said. “We're the ones on the ground and we know the problems and probably the best solutions, so to be all on the same page and come to a consensus on what the best path forward is, I think we did that.”
The proposed changes are for NCAA football only. It's unclear at time of writing if basketball players, as well as players in other sports, would have to adhere to this same window.
“It was important as coaches to express some of the challenges the student-athletes have encountered,” Bohl added. “When we rolled out the windows there were good intentions but there were unintended consequences. As a result, we spent a significant amount of time discussing those challenges and how we can make a decision for the betterment of football.”
The NCAA still needs to accept these changes.
