UNLV's Dan Mullen Sounds Off on Transfer Portal: 'It Teaches Bad Habits to Kids'

The UNLV Rebels football team have brought in Dan Mullen this offseason to be their new head coach. Mullen is now in the full swing of football season with spring practice under way.

Spring ball is in full swing 🏈 pic.twitter.com/ebT8Dr9hHX
— UNLV Football (@unlvfootball) March 27, 2025

One of the things that have changed since Mullen was last a college head football coach is the transfer portal becoming significantly more relevant. He recently appeared on the "See Ball Get Ball" podcast and sounded off about the transfer portal, making it clear that he's not a fan of it.

Dan Mullen Sounds Off on the Transfer Portal:

"It teaches bad habits to kids. Just start what you finish," Mullen said. "Listen, I'll give you the benefits (of cutting the spring transfer portal window.) If you do that, you know what your roster looks like in January. It makes February signing day more valuable... More opportunities for high school kids because you're gonna sit and say, 'Hey, I don't have to save scholarships for the spring transfer portal window. I'm filling up my roster right now. Sign the high school kids. We're gonna coach and develop them.' It allows you to start team building in January and know what your roster's gonna look like. There's so many different benefits to it. But that is what it is."

This has become a popular opinion amongst many people around the game, especially old-school coaches. Nevertheless, it's the new reality in college sports and it looks like it's here to stay. While sometimes it does seem to give players an easy way out and allows them to not put in the work like they would have had to in the past, it also gives some student-athletes a great opportunity to have more control over their career than ever before. This is something that is going to be debated for a long time.

Dan Mullen Sounds Off on the Transfer Portal:

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