Transfer Portal Rules To Live By As A College Football Fan
Take a deep breath and remember these rules when your team looks like it's being raided in the portal.
Despite the fact that we've had literally hundreds of players declare their intentions to leave their current schools over the past few weeks, the transfer portal for college football only officially opened this morning at midnight.
You can rest assured, this year's transfer portal will be one of the wildest ever, given the number of prime job openings coupled with the fact there is now a dedicated window to enter.
Kids will be clamoring to get in and out of the portal before it closes for good, so I fully expect things to get out of control in the coming weeks.
READ: Coaches Are Being Fired At An Alarming Rate
With all the craziness, it's good to remind yourself of some important rules to follow as fans to get you through these trying times in college football.
1. If Your Team Lands A Transfer, Regardless Of Who It Is, He's A "Great Get"
The former five-star left tackle who hasn't played a snap at his current school? He just needs a chance to start. He'll be dominant.
The wide receiver from a Division II school you needed Google Maps to figure out where it was? He's an underrated gem and your staff are "fantastic evaluators."
The point is, it doesn't matter who the player is or where he's from, you have to spin it as a great get and rub your rivals' noses in it.
2. If Your Rival Lands A Transfer, He's Trash
Everything I said about those same transfers above, flip it on its head.
"That five-star never played for a reason, he's a bust!"
Division II? Really? Your poverty program couldn't pull a receiver from a real program? Sad."
It's so easy, and that's a good thing, too, because you will be doing a lot of it.
3. Spin Every Player Transferring From Your School As "Trimming The Fat"
If a player transfers away from your school, that's a good thing.
"They couldn't handle the heat here."
"New staff came in and told him to beat it."
"He wanted waaaaay too much money for only having *insert some of his worst stats*."
Never mind the fact that you probably pissed yourself with excitement when you landed this player as a recruit just 18 months earlier; this is a "what have you done for me lately" league.
4. If You Whiff On Landing A Transfer, He Sucks
A lot like rule number two, it's always important to remember you will whiff on your share of portal targets.
If that happens, there are plenty of excuses to pull out of the grab bag and use to cope.
If he goes to a different conference, it's because his game didn't translate to your team's conference.
Or maybe he doesn't have the requisite arm length your coaching staff is looking for.
Either way, remember, it's never your school or coach's fault. You dodged a bullet by not landing this guy and he's going to go on to be a bust at a different school.
5. Transfer Rankings Are Stupid If They Underrate Your Transfers, Geniuses If They Overrate Them
Transfer rankings? Who needs 'em?
"They're such an imperfect science and all they do is prop up teams like Georgia and Ohio State so they look like they have the best players."
"What's that? That new edge rusher we got from Penn State is a five-star transfer? I love the transfer portal rankings! I've always said how accurate they are."
You should be flip-flopping on your opinions as much as high school recruits flip their commitments to different schools, which is to say quite often.
Remember these five rules and that should get you through this transfer portal period just fine.