Over the last couple of seasons, the Transfer Portal windows in college football have been a topic of discussion. The winter window guts rosters for teams that are not in the College Football Playoff every year. Then there is the spring window that comes following spring practices.
Coaches have been calling for changes to the portals, and on Monday, the NCAA approved changes that cut the portals down to one.
NCAA approves college football changes to the Transfer Portal
The NCAA's FBS Oversight Committee on Monday approved a modification to insert a January Transfer Portal window from Jan. 2-16. There are bowl games scheduled for Jan. 2 this year, as well as the College Football Playoff that goes into mid-January. Teams that play on or after Jan. 12 will have an opportunity to initiate the process to enter the portal during five days beginning the day after the player's final contest.
There is one more step that the Division 1 Administrative Committee must approve at their October meeting in a couple of weeks.
This eliminates the spring portal window, which really needed to go. It also allows players who play for a team that makes a bowl game can play in it before the window opens. According to Chris Hummer of CBS Sports, more than 1,000 players used the post-spring window.
The 30-day transfer window that begins when a coach is fired does not change. Virginia Tech fans saw that come into play first-hand a couple of weeks ago when the school fired Brent Pry. At the time this article was written, the Hokies had some players enter the portal, including cornerback Dante Lovett, wide receiver Tucker Holloway, and linebacker Michael Short. There will likely be more before the 30-day window closes, as some players have not played in the last two games since Pry's firing.