The NCAA transfer portal has become the increasingly important factor that has transformed college football into its current state. The system that worked as a database for athletes to find new opportunities has developed into a process that changes team structures and the entire recruitment process. The transfer portal allows college athletes to put their name into an online system that signals they are willing to transfer schools. 

     The system’s actual impact has grown significantly after recent rules were established. Players can now transfer and play immediately without sitting out a season and earn a paycheck. Many players are entering the transfer portal more than once in their careers due to these rules. The combination of NIL opportunities and the transfer portal system gives college football programs an NFL free agency-like feel, which helps players with negotiations in the future. The portal system gives players who feel stuck on the depth chart more opportunities, given widespread unhappiness with coaching changes, or players simply looking for a better system. Freshman Reese Wiegand said: “I think the transfer portal is good for players because they can make money playing football just like NFL players.” These students have the ability to search for schools that provide better opportunities for themselves. This includes getting more visibility, and increasing their chances of winning. The portal system provides athletes who lack public recognition a chance to restart their careers with a second chance at success.

     However, the portal system has created an ongoing roster management process for coaches throughout the year, many coaches find this unfair. Coaches have to split their time between two tasks because they need to recruit current players from other schools and search for new talent at the high school level. Andy Wiegand said: “I’m a fan of Kentucky football and we can’t compete because big schools like Alabama have too much money. The entire system is fraud.” Also, many of the schools have a substantially higher amount of money. This leads to schools just buying players and not leaving smaller schools a chance to compete. College programs now depend on transfers to occupy important roles while developing young athletes.