How Will UCF Adjust to Transfer Portal Departures?
Article profile picture: former UCF cornerback Davonte Brown
Are the UCF Knights in “mass exodus” Transfer Portal mode? It sure seems like it.
Among the players that have left during the past few days, with more likely to come, include prime starters on both sides of the football. Plus, a few players that might have been good in time but chose to take their talents elsewhere.
Mikey Keene, quarterback
Ryan O’Keefe, wide receiver
Jordan Johnson, wide receiver
Jeremiah Lewis-Baptiste, linebacker
Terrence Lewis, linebacker
Davonte Brown, cornerback
Travion Shadrick-Harris, cornerback
Taking the Keene situation aside because that’s about playing time and it’s plain as day, there are some situations to discuss.
The number of UCF players that are entering the Transfer Portal is alarming; the number of top-notch UCF players seeking another place to play college football is more concerning.
That leads to the following possibilities. Either something is off with what’s going on with UCF, at least in the minds of these players anyway, or the primary purpose of the Transfer Portal is at a loss.
Its intent is for certain players to find a new home when things go awry. That’s definitely not what is happening with the Transfer Portal.
Let’s start with the volume of players leaving UCF and why that may be the case. For anyone that knows head coach Gus Malzahn, or members of his staff for that matter, there’s little concern that the UCF football program is organized and well run. He’s a disciplined man and expects the same from everyone with his football organization.
So, could these transfers be from something else that relates to the coaching staff?
Potential personal conflicts between staff and players could be at the heart of the situation for any one of them. It’s plausible. Playing time being the centerpiece of discussion and disagreement, much like Keene. There could be other personal issues as well. That’s life. That’s big-time college football. The more concerning issue for the Knights stems from top-notch players leaving.
O’Keefe, Jean-Baptiste and Brown all start for UCF and contribute at a high rate. Suddenly, they just decide to go to the Transfer Portal? A few theories here as well.
Wanting a fresh start to gain a different perspective before moving on to take a shot at the NFL is certainly realistic. That’s also fine. Like it or not, the players leaving the Knights have the right to expand their options. If any one of them believes that a better shot to make it to pro football awaits via another institution, that’s certainly okay to at least consider. More on that down below, as it’s a slippery slope.
Another theory stems from the belief that coaches are going to leave UCF. Perhaps they even know it's going to happen (again, at least in their mind). College football players tend to get upset when coaches leave, especially if they are their specific position coaches.
If this situation is correct for any of O’Keefe, Jean-Baptiste or Brown, so be it. Nothing wrong with wanting to be around certain coaches. The last theory is the one that’s most concerning.
Perhaps players think they know better than the UCF coaches. For instance, needing to be more of a feature player, change positions, train differently, etc. As any recruiting analyst and/or college football writer can tell a person, trying to change the mind of a top-rated recruit/college player can often be all but impossible.
There are endless other possibilities as to why players are leaving UCF. Those above are just a few of the potential answers. Bottom line, it’s concerning to see UCF’s veteran talent walk out the door. Now, the Knights could rebound and sign several big-time players from the Transfer Portal as well. The Transfer Portal gives and it takes away.
The Transfer Portal is just now beginning to take shape after the 2022 college football season, too. For instance, if any UCF fans think there are issues in Orlando, check out what’s going on in Coral Gables.
Miami is losing a boatload of players. It’s pushing towards 15 players already. That’s insane. With that, a great comment from a good friend and someone that’s been around recruiting and in the seven-on-seven world for a long time.
Maybe all of this truly does boil down to playing time for most of the players. Even so, Mr. Johnson’s tweet still holds true. Are all of these players, UCF or otherwise, entering the Transfer Portal truly going to be better off?
Not all of them are heading to the NFL. That's a fact. Every day, however, more and more players are jumping into the Transfer Portal. This is going to be a very interesting next couple of weeks, for UCF and college football as a whole, entering bowl season.
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