Penn State football head coach James Franklin has always been outspoken about the issues with the Transfer Portal, particularly when it interferes with the academic year or football postseason. Rather than have two windows per year, Franklin advocated for a one-window model.
The NCAA Football Oversight Committee voted on Sept. 4 in support of the one-window model. However, it wasn't the timing Franklin was hoping for. The 10-day window is expected to open on Jan. 2, which is in the midst of playoffs. That's one day after the College Football Playoff quarterfinals with the semifinals slated for the following week starting Jan. 8. The portal also closes before the national championship game is played.
Last season, Franklin ran into an issue with backup quarterback Beau Pribula who had to suddenly get up and leave as the Transfer Portal didn't allow him enough time to ride out the postseason with the Nittany Lions. He didn't have the luxury to wait until the second window as a quarterback.
Timing-wise, it was a lot of chaos that didn't need to be the case if the portal opened at a reasonable time in consideration of the postseason.
"It really just comes down to that . . . I think most of the coaches in the Big Ten feel that you don't want to be playing a season and dealing with the Transfer Portal at the same time," Franklin said in midweek media ahead of the Villanova game. ". . . I don't think anybody thinks it's a good idea to have it during the season, right?"
On top of the portal interfering with the postseason, it can also disrupt the academic schedules of certain schools. Whether the school runs on semesters, trimesters, or quarters, it impacts student-athletes' transitions in and out of the Transfer Portal academically.
"I think there's some other conferences that probably wouldn't disagree with that, but it's hard to find a spot in the calendar that makes sense for everybody based on all the different academic calendars," Franklin said to reporters.
Finding a 10-window period that works for all schools, teams, and athletes is nearly impossible. However, it's a calendar adjustment that needs to be made outside of the season in order to consider all factors that can disrupt athletic and academic schedules. A one-window model is a step in the right direction, but the timing isn't favorable to all teams across the country.