Transfer Portal Policies

[bonarae]

One of the most critical voices against ETSU, Marky Billson, has a new piece stating a new ETSU athletic policy that once ETSU student-athletes enter the portal or are dismissed from their teams, they can't return to the programs -- literally.

That's one of the harshest policies to come from any scholarship FCS program. (FYI, link is on Medium, and you need a Medium subscription to view.)

I know the Ivies have one of the biggest pet peeves of FCS football fans, but what else do you think of? xchinscratchx xdontknowx

[Milktruck74]

THe interim AD put this into place, because ETSU had a ton of kids enter, test the waters and then return...it made it very difficult for the school to figure out recruiting and which holes needed to be filled. I see it both ways. I kinda figured this was a given...but... I mean if you don't want to be here, then move on. Unfortunately, many of the kids realized the harsh reality that the portal is not a guarantee to land a starting role at some big name school...actually it is quite the opposite. The majority of kids (like 70%) arent on rosters of any type the next year.

Now, as a coach if a kid comes to me and says, "hey I'm stuck deep on the depth chart and I want to see if there is somewhere I can get a shot to play." of maybe "Coach I'm a star here but the stage is small, I think I need to test the waters at a bigger school to see if the NFL is a possibility or to gain more exposure." THen things don't work out, I can see bringing that kid back....But not having a discussion with your coach is the big issue i see...Be a man, look him in the eye and discuss it.

If I was the HC, it would all depend on how it was handled.

[uofmman1122]

The transfer rules took a lot of the power away from schools and gave it back to the student athletes.

This is just one way a school is trying to get some of the power back.

FWIW, I don't think Montana explicitly has a stated or written policy of not letting guys back if they look to transfer, but coach Hauck has been pretty adamant that if you don't want to be here, then you aren't getting your spot back if you leave and it doesn't work out.

[MSUBobcat]

The transfer rules took a lot of the power away from schools and gave it back to the student athletes.

This is just one way a school is trying to get some of the power back.

FWIW, I don't think Montana explicitly has a stated or written policy of not letting guys back if they look to transfer, but coach Hauck has been pretty adamant that if you don't want to be here, then you aren't getting your spot back if you leave and it doesn't work out.

I don't agree with Booby often... but in this case, he's right. If a player thinks he's too big for the school/program, good, make the decision and leave. I don't want every player thinking they can test the waters and have a safety net when things go south and greener grass doesn't emerge. I might add a caveat to the policy to allow some exemption for players if the HC, coordinator or position coach leaves the program. Kinda like, "I had a contract with HIM, not the school, and he breached the contract first by leaving."

[KnightoftheRedFlash]

I like it.

Want to act like mercenaries? Be treated like mercenaries.

[FUBeAR]

Simple…

1) Player must have a 1-on-1 with the HC before entering portal. Failure to do so forfeits the Player’s scholarship in all but the most extenuating of circumstances as determined on a case-by-case basis
2) Assuming Player’s reasons for considering change are ‘pure,’ Coach advises Player of his status upon entering portal
a. Coach mutually agrees that finding a place for a fresh start would be best all around. Thanks Player for his prior service and offers to be of assistance in finding Player the right place for him.
b. Player is now a “Recruit” with a Committable Offer. Withdrawal from Portal commits Player to offer. Until that time, Player’s offer is subject to being rescinded immediately, and without notice, if Team receives a commitment from another HS or Portal Player, who, in essence, commits to accepting Player’s former scholarship/current offer.

Professional, business-like, mature, clear expectations, maintain as much control as possible, no noses cut off to spite one’s face.

Recruit
Develop
Retain


https://youtu.be/P8E7_u2qgjE?feature=shared

Oh…and you don’t ‘cut’ your recruit ‘misses.’ That’s your fault. Better get better at “Develop” if you ain’t so hot @ the “Recruit” part

[uofmman1122]

I don't agree with Booby often... but in this case, he's right. If a player thinks he's too big for the school/program, good, make the decision and leave. I don't want every player thinking they can test the waters and have a safety net when things go south and greener grass doesn't emerge. I might add a caveat to the policy to allow some exemption for players if the HC, coordinator or position coach leaves the program. Kinda like, "I had a contract with HIM, not the school, and he breached the contract first by leaving."
I'm all for more power to the players, but I don't think Bobby is wrong for doing it.

The only thing is that I highly doubt had Samori Toure come back before the '21 season and said "Hey, actually I think I want to stay" that Bobby would've told him to pound sand, which is why I think we don't have an official policy on this. So really it's more like "you're not welcome, unless you're really good, in which case it's water under the bridge", and that doesn't sit well with me.

[ElCid]

If a kid says they are hunting elsewhere fine. That's a big boy decision to be made. But you gotta face the consequences of your decision. It's not harsh to say "you are done here." Why waste time and effort on someone who may be gone the next cycle if he doesn't get picked up the first time. And if he has dreams of playing the big time, and makes the decision, then how hard you think he will put out for fear of injury? He "may" do just enough to keep his hopes alive. That's just one downside possible example. There are too many variables to consider how it will affect everyone involved from themselves, to the coaching staff, to other players, etc, for any head coach to want to be worried about a player's dedication to the squad. I certainly understand how someone might feel differently, but I got no problem with any coach who draws this line where he sees fit.

The good news for schools having a clear cut termination policy is that players will think twice, or three times before they initially commit or before they seek to transfer. Might cut down on the musical chairs.

[JALMOND]

I don't believe Portland State has a set policy on the portal either. If the player wants to come back, I'm sure Barnum would let him come back. We lose a fair bit to the portal every year, but we also pick up our share of transfers as well. Most of the time the ones we get are ones that committed to us early, then received an FBS offer later. We tell them to keep us in mind if it doesn't work out and sometimes they look us up again. Before the portal, we had an understanding with Oregon State (and to a lesser extent, Oregon) that if they had someone who wanted extra time, but was buried on the depth chart, to put the buzz in their ear about Portland State.

[Milktruck74]

I would bet this is the "rule" for 95% of the programs out there. ETSU was just bold enough to put it in writing.

At the end of the day Coaches care about their kids. Sometimes it is in the best interest of the kid to enter the portal. I think coaches should be having year end evaluations with EVERY PLAYER and some of those conversations may be that the portal is a good option. Like FooBare said, be an adult, be professional, man-up, and handle business.

Actually, the Mocs have picked up a few players out of the portal that were "shopped" to the staff by their previous coaching staff. The first time UTC Staff ever heard of Chase Artopoeus was when his coach at UCLA called Rusty to say, "here is a great kid that would fit in your system, you need to take a look." So, i'm not opposed to giving the kids options through the portal, I just think there is a right way and a wrong way to utilize it.