Did Former Bruin Kyle Ford Open the Door to a Loan System in College Football?

The world of college football is as sensible as it is predictable and for its teams; the transfer portal madness could end with an outrageous idea.

Dec 16, 2023; Inglewood, CA, USA; UCLA Bruins wide receiver coach Jerry Neuheisel (right) and wide receiver Kyle Ford (19) celebrate a victory after defeating the Boise State Broncos in the LA Bowl at SoFi Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images | Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images

Kyle Ford did something unprecedented in his collegiate career when he transferred from USC to UCLA and then back to USC the following year. One of the new byproducts of the transfer portal, players are free to go anywhere they please and thus, programs are trying to figure out how to manipulate the system to their benefit.

Well, a problem in the modern world of college football is that players who don’t receive playing time as freshmen often hit the portal to see more of the field. On the flip side, coaching staffs force players into the portal if they don’t have a plan for them.

In European soccer, they do not have a collegiate system, and professional players can be as young as 16-year-olds. In order to get them playing time, their teams will loan them to another. Typically, the parent club or the club that owns the player's rights will send them to a team in a lower league. We have the same power dynamic in college football. P5 verses G5. It just decided this year's Heisman race.

Though the idea is absolutely insane, especially for amateur sports, we must come to the reality that there's nothing amateur about college football. The players with NIL are paid professionals and are subjected to the laws of modern athletics. In the next 20 years, we could see a loan system adopted in college football.

The greediness of man knows no bounds and for the top college coaches, they want to keep their young stars. Coaches at weaker schools want those players to help them get the win that saves their jobs. Smaller schools will never get that caliber of player, bigger schools get to give their players game time without losing them to the portal. Of course, unlike in soccer, the player must also agree to the move, but the concept is a legit possibility whether we like it or not. Side note. We do not.

Kyle Ford showed the country that a player could leave a school and return one year later as if nothing happened. Not only did he do that, but he did also it with a crosstown rival. The stigma of transferring is gone. Perhaps the game might evolve past the point of recognition.

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