Life and Times in the Transfer Portal 2021 Edition
How did we get here?
The transfer portal was created to give players a more streamlined method to transfer to a new school with no strings attached. If you remember previously, coaches had all the power and could decline a player release thereby restricting the schools a student athlete was able to transfer. Case in point, Mike Gundy eliminated 45 schools from consideration for QB Wes Lunt in 2013 leaving him to decide between Illinois and Louisville!!!! (https://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/08/...transfer-rules-to-limit-athletes-options.html)
At first, no one really knew what to expect out of portal. Although, many of us saw this coming when graduated players started transferring to compete for their last year (e.g. Russell Wilson). I expected a slow start, but eventually the onset of NCAA free agency for good or bad would be upon us. In the 2019-2020 season, 1,695 players entered the portal. Things changed drastically when the NCAA made the unprecedented move to grant a 1 time transfer waiver to all players currently in college football in late December 2020. Needless to say, this opened the floodgates. The impact of the NCAA’s decision was seen in the portal with ~2,500 players entering during the 2020-2021 cycle. I spent time last year digging into the portal (see posts below).
https://michiganstate.forums.rivals...post-but-some-much-needed-perspective.226217/
https://michiganstate.forums.rivals...post-but-some-much-needed-perspective.226217/
In brief, there were 3 buckets of players: FBS transfers, FCS transfers, and those left in limbo out of football. The experience of these players has varied as can be seen in this article from SI (https://www.si.com/college/alabama/...-players-perspective-the-ncaa-transfer-portal). Hell former 5 star Michigan LB Jordan Anthony entered the portal in December 2019 and didn’t find a new home until June 2021. In a nutshell, the portal is not a place for the faint of heart.
Round 1 goes to Tuck
After a brutal 2-5 Covid shortened season, Mel Tucker had a hell of a challenge in front of him. Due to Covid, he was unable to implement his program as he had anticipated when taking the MSU job in Feb 2020. Further, he noticed quickly that there were several talent deficiencies across the roster (OT, LB, QB, etc). He tried to address talent by hitting the HS ranks. This would prove challenging given the late hire date, the lack of on-campus visits, and the inability to scout players in-person for over 15 months. Case in point, most people forget this, but Tucker was only able to host recruits unofficially twice before COVID hit (e.g. a few 21 recruits like Hamp Fay, and 22 recruits at the OSU basketball game March 2020). If HS recruiting wasn’t going to turn things around quickly, the only other answer was the portal. A situation that was ironic given his February 2020 quote- “There is no transfer portal in the real world”, which his critics continue to harp on to this day.
We’ll never know what went into Tucker’s portal operation, but we do know that Tuck was comin. I imagine that they took a very NFL approach to things with players ranked on boards based on evaluated tape, measurables, and positions of need. Tucker preaches being relentless, and relentless they were. His staff was all over it, and turned the portal inside and out looking for players. If a player entered that they felt could help turn MSU around, they were in touch early and often. The only other schools that I felt were as active as MSU were: FSU, Temple, Auburn, WVU, PSU, USC, Miami, UCLA, OU, and Texas. In hindsight when you factor in that list with how the 21-22 season went, this should further highlight that Tucker crushed the portal and had an amazing season. OU was going to be a 9-11 win team regardless of who transferred in. UCLA (7-4) figured out something that Harbaugh and Gattis never did- Give Zach Charbonnet the ball and good things happen. FSU (5-6) was crowned as a preseason NC contender, but they took on water early out of the gate. Temple (3-8) has been a disaster with both the Iverson Clement saga (https://www.crossingbroad.com/2021/...ing-back-says-he-was-mistreated-by-staff.html) and D’wan Mathis re-entering and now withdrawing from the portal. Sark ran into a mess in Texas (4-7) with an upcoming move to the SEC likely to cause more heartburn in Austin. Auburn (6-5), Miami (6-5), WVU (5-6), and USC (4-6) also underachieved this year. It’s ironic, but two of the better portal teams are playing each other on Saturday MSU (9-2) vs. PSU (7-4).
In a nutshell, the portal is a coinflip just like recruiting. Although with these guys, you have college tape to help your evaluation. Despite this, its not an exact science. To illustrate this, I looked back at the “top 10” portal players from last cycle per college football news. Very mixed results here- only 3-4 really lived up to their billing
- Tyler Shough TTU- Out for the season with broken collarbone; 872 yds. 6 TD/3 INT
- Arik Gilbert UGA- Has yet to play a snap for UGA due to personal issues
- Derion Kendrick UGA- Solid season 31 picks, 2 INTs (needed a get right year after legal woes once he entered the portal)
- Henry To’o To’o BAMA- 84 tackles, 4 sacks (lived up to the hype)
- Eric Gray OU- 69 carries 330 yds 2 tds
- Wanya Morris OU- Was projected to start at LT, but has been a backup RT all year (big disappointment)
- Jordan Stratchan South Carolina- 17 tackles, 1.5 sacks
- Ty Chandler UNC- 167 carries, 1004 yds 13 tds (excellent year)
- Keaontay Ingram USC- 156 carries, 911 yds 5 tds (solid year)
- Charlie Brewer Utah- Left the team after losing the QB battle after a few games
11 months later, we all know the deal. K9 has had one of the greatest single seasons in MSU RB history. I am proud to say that I’ve watched live the best DB (Darquez Dennard) and best WR (Charles Rogers) maybe ever at the school. I’ve been reluctant to say this, but K9 is the best RB in MSU history. I saw him at NW and at Rutgers. Each time I could not take my eyes off of him running from his first touch at NW to the 94 yarder at Rutgers. It was beautiful especially considering the average to above average blocking that he was getting. Some things he has shown on tape were pure athletic ability and want to. He’s a walking Joystick that has broken more ankles than anyone in recent memory. I knew that he was special after the 2 games I watched, but I kept thinking what will he do against the big 3 left on the schedule: UM, OSU, PSU. Due to our recent downturn, Walker won’t win the Heisman, but his Heisman moment was the UM game. We have no chance in that game if he doesn’t keep choppin. He’s a hell of an athlete, a great person, and someone that I will follow for the rest of his career. Whether he plays or not tomorrow, Spartan Nation you need to applaud this young man. We just watched greatness come through East Lansing.
Year 2 of the Tucker is almost over. Mel now has results to pair with selling hope. Last portal cycle, Mel had to sell results on MSU. Now all he has to do is put on tape of K9 and say do you want to come be him next year. I don’t profess to know who we will get. I do know that I’m here for all the ups and downs of this next portal round because we all know TUCK IS COMIN. Oh what a time to be a Spartan folks.
