Relax, new transfer portal opening Sunday not allowing free agency

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — It was a move that, on paper, looked like it could upend college football’s summer when the NCAA allowed yet another transfer portal window.

It's not that big of a deal or we would have heard something from Arkansas coach Sam Pittman or athletics director Hunter Yurachek by now. It's not like they don't have other stuff to worry about, either.

As the one-time transfer portal window opens on July 7, the mood across Power Four front offices is something less than anxious.

“Big nothing-burger,” one general manager told CBS Sports, summing up the expectations for the new 30-day window with a flatness that’s become the norm in recent weeks.

A NCAA logo flag at the NCAA Track and Field Championships at Hayward Field. | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

While the NCAA’s Committee on Legislative Relief billed the policy as a relief valve for players facing roster crunches, inside football’s most powerful programs, nobody is expecting fireworks.

The new transfer portal window, which runs through August 5, only applies to players labeled as “designated student-athletes” by their schools.

The catch? These aren’t the stars or even the key backups most fans debate on message boards. They’re largely walk-ons or, at best, end-of-roster scholarship players.

“No one of note will be entering during this window,” a high-ranking Power Four official told CBS Sports. “These are kids that we essentially don’t find good enough.”

The mechanics of the rule are simple. The one-time waiver allows schools to off-load players who would otherwise count against the new 105-player roster limit.

The old system capped scholarships at 85 but let teams stack walk-ons to fill depth charts. Now, with new legal settlements and evolving NCAA regulations, teams have to be more selective.

There won't be as much buddy spots on the roster any more.

Schools have until July 6 to submit their lists of players and once designated, those players are free to seek opportunities elsewhere. The consensus is the schools have all the power on this one.

“(Players) don’t have any leverage,” said another Power Four general manager to CBS Sports. “During this time period, the schools have all the leverage.”

Arkansas coach Sam Pittman with athletic director Hunter Yurachek before the game against Louisiana Tech | Nilsen Roman - Hogs on SI Images

The NCAA’s rationale for the window is to allow compliance with the new 105-player roster limit and giving a fair shot to players squeezed out by roster math.

Few expect any really good players in position with NIL deals to force a team to designate them eligible to enter the portal.

The process is “at the school’s discretion.” If a player is out, it’s because the staff has decided so.

The timing of the window also works against major movement. By July, most teams have settled their depth charts. Fall camp is just weeks away.

Scholarships are spoken for, summer workouts are in full swing, and coaches are focused on refining schemes, not reshuffling rosters.

For the walk-ons and fringe scholarship players who do hit the portal, the odds of landing at a new FBS destination are slim.

The data from previous cycles shows it.

Of the 1,194 players who left Power Four schools during the last regular portal windows, only 42% signed with another Power Four program, and 31% dropped to the Group of Five. Many won't find a new home at all.

This is the latest new rule for a college football landscape that has changed rapidly since the transfer portal’s debut in 2018.

It’s a tool for the Razorbacks to use and keep a strong roster, not a lifeline for players with options.