Ohio State Balancing Playoff Preparations With Early Signing Period, Transfer Portal
Ohio State head coach Ryan Day doesn’t get much sleep these days, as he’s balancing preparations for the College Football semifinal against Georgia with the upcoming Early Signing Period and the transfer portal, which reopened last week.
“Growing up, when you hear the month of December, you think about Christmas and holiday times and everything else,” Day said during his press conference on Tuesday. “When I think about December, I think about bowl practice, I think about recruiting, I think about home visits, I think about the transfer portal, I think about all these different things.”
Of course, Day welcomes his busy schedule, as the Buckeyes are one of just four teams still playing for the national championship instead of preparing for a non-playoff game that mostly acts as a springboard to next season.
“That’s December in big-time football,” Day said. “Our guys are working really, really hard and you don’t get to see your family that much this time of year, but you want to be in the CFP, you want to be involved with great recruits, you want to have all this going on, and that’s exciting.
“It’s energizing because you’re relevant this time of year, you’re involved with some great recruits and you’re swinging as hard as you can. This is exactly the way you want it, even though sometimes you wake up with not a lot of sleep.”
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It’s a unique situation, as professional sports teams don’t have to worry about players coming and going in free agency as they prepare for the postseason. But that’s the hand college football programs were dealt, though it’s a wonder why the NCAA would create such a calendar.
“I can tell you I’ve asked myself that question a few times over the last couple of weeks,” Day said. “There’s a lot going on. I think what happens is – because there’s so much change – that when decisions are made, we don’t always know what the ramifications are two or three years out.”
“The Early Signing Period made a lot of sense for a lot of folks. It saves a lot of energy and time in January, but it makes for a hectic December. Then, with the portal opening up, it made it even more hectic. As time changes and things change, we try to adapt the best we can, but all these happening at once has certainly made December crazy.”
Ideally, the transfer window and Early Signing Period wouldn’t begin until after bowl season is complete. But Day acknowledged there’s no easy fix, and that pushing back one or both could create unintended consequences elsewhere.
“In a perfect world, you’d like to be with your team this time of year,” Day said. “But that’s not the way it is. Those are the rules and we’ll just make it work.”
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