The Reality of the Transfer Portal

The first weekend into the transfer portal has been mayhem. After a few days of the transfer portal opening for 2026, more than 4,500 D1 players have entered (per ESPN). That's roughly 28% of College Football... I don't need to explain how crazy those numbers are (especially one day in). I do want to address whether or not the transfer portal truly benefits College Football as a whole, and if we're doing the right things to regulate it.

Per JD Crowe ai.com

I want to start out by saying this: The transfer portal is good for CFB. However, we are far from figuring out how to use the transfer portal in a way that is ethical and benefits everyone involved (players, coaches, schools). I will never hate on players chasing a bag and getting paid. I will never hate on players going to schools with better opportunities. The majority of these players won't play professionally, so by all means, get paid.

The reality of the transfer portal is the system only benefits the best of the best. We all hear about the success stories of the 1% of players. Let's take Cincinnati QB Brandon Soresby for example. This guy is about to get paid. Many are projecting him to make around 5 million with Texas Tech next season. Hell yeah. Not everyone can be Brandon Soresby.

Transferring to another school ≠ transferring to a better situation. Last year, 15% of FBS players who entered the transfer portal never found a home. Another 6% transfered and lost their scholarship. This means 20% of CFB who entered the transfer portal ended up in a worse situation. That might not seem like a lot, but when you consider 11,000 players entered the portal, that means 2,200 got screwed.

More in-depth data on transfer portal by @Evan_Hand

With the amount of players entering the transfer portal growing exponentially year after year, we can expect this year to be much worse.

Tom Brady has a really good take here on how the transfer portal could've negatively affected his career.

I also want to point out another harsh reality of the transfer portal: many players aren't leaving by choice. It's not uncommon to see schools forcing out players they made commitments to. We've created a system that enables schools to shop for something shiny and abandon kids they promised to develop.

Assistant Head Coach and Defensive Backs Chadd Braine on the transfer portal from the coaches pov.

Every year on January 1st in College Football every player essentially becomes a free agent. With 28% of all players declaring for the portal the same day, we can naturally assume there have been conversations going on prior. Conversations that involve players, agents, school, and financial benefits. Conversations that may or may not be legal due to the lack of regulation.

Heres the solution: Fix the CFB calendar

• Start the season one week earlier

• Bowl season starts the Saturday after conference championships

• National Championship on January 1st

• Transfer portal opens after January 1st

  
  

This should clear things up. We need to be able to finish the season in a timely manner and declare when you can and can't talk transferring. Let everyone know what you can and can't say. Have set windows that allow everyone to be on the same page. The lack of a calendar suggests schools can tamper throughout the season leaving some schools in the dust. No one is in charge...

It's tough to have sympathy for Alabama, but point made.

At the end of the day, College Football is a business. In business, there's always winners and losers. The real winners of this system are the top 1% of schools with massive NIL funds. I think it is important to say this: the reality of the transfer portal is it's really just a gamble that often ends in a loss for these players. Without any sort of regulation, tampering is inevitable. Allowing players to change their minds about where they want to play isn't an awful idea. The way the NCAA regulates it, is.