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Another change could soon be coming to the transfer portal. According to a report from Yahoo’s Ross Dellenger, the NCAA is considering eliminating the spring transfer window and moving forward with just 1 transfer window on the college football calendar.
The NCAA Football Oversight Committee recommended the change to the Division I council this week, per Dellenger. If the council adopts the legislation, it would take effect immediately and eliminate the 15-day portal window next April, per Dellenger. All 4 Power conferences are in favor of the change, as is the American Athletic Conference.
Per Dellenger, the DI Council meets via video conference in September and will hold an in-person meeting in October.
Should the proposal be approved, the lone transfer window would open after conference championships conclude and remain open for 30 days. This year, that would run Dec. 9 through Jan. 7.
This year’s College Football Playoff National Championship Game takes place on Jan. 20. Some fans have pointed to the Playoff schedule and questioned why the portal wouldn’t open at the conclusion of the national title game; under the current structure, Playoff participants could lose pieces or even chunks of their team while their season is still going on.
With the Playoff expanding to 12 teams, the season getting longer, conferences getting deeper, and depth becoming all the more important, the winter portal window might present new challenges for coaches this season. The elimination of the spring window would force players on contending teams into a decision that might have otherwise waited.
There’s also another potential issue for the proposal. As Dellenger writes, the House v. NCAA settlement looms as a complicating matter:
Part of the settlement is an athlete revenue-sharing model with new roster limits — 105 in football — that necessitates the cutting of players. Most power conference rosters are at or above 120 players.
In preparation for the implementation of the model — on July 1, 2025 — those cuts are expected to come next spring and into the summer. The elimination of the spring portal window may adversely impact players cut from teams, leaving them with no ability to transfer and immediately play.
At meetings over the next few weeks, the DI Council is expected to review the recommendation and the potential issues with the elimination of the spring window.
The proposal comes at a time when leaders are grappling with an ever-destabilizing roster. With the transfer portal open, the NIL market free, and the NCAA’s enforcement wing handcuffed, roster construction and retention has turned into rocket science. According to 247Sports’ Chris Hummer, more than 3,800 FBS players were in the transfer portal as of May 1 — a record high. More than 1,200 of those names entered during this spring’s 15-day window.
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Derek Peterson does a bit of everything, not unlike Taysom Hill. He has covered Oklahoma, Nebraska, the Pac-12, and now delivers CFB-wide content.
