Ohio State safety Marcus Hooker enters college football transfer portal

Ohio State safety Marcus Hooker entered his name into the college football transfer portal on Tuesday, according to a report from On3 Sports.

The defensive back signed with the Buckeyes in the 2018 football recruiting class from Pennsylvania as a consensus 3-star prospect.

Over four seasons, Hooker racked up 31 total tackles for Ohio State, with his best season coming in 2020, when he recorded 15 combined tackles and his first career interception.

Later in the season, Hooker served a suspension after driving while impaired during the spring, but he rejoined the team during summer workouts.

Hooker is the younger brother of former Ohio State defensive back Malik Hooker, who was a first-round pick for the Indianapolis Colts in the 2015 NFL Draft.

Hooker the younger is immediately eligible to play thanks to the new college football transfer rules.

NCAA transfer portal

The NCAA created the transfer portal on Oct. 15, 2018. That decision has helped transform the game of college football by giving players an easier opportunity to change teams and direct their playing careers.

Players no longer require permission from their coaches in order to transfer. They just have to request that their school’s compliance department enter their name into the portal.

Names appear in the transfer portal in one or two days, and schools are free to contact transferring players without restriction thereafter.

Players that enter their name into the transfer portal don’t necessarily leave their schools. A player is free to take his name out of the portal at any time. But schools are not under an obligation to keep transferring players on scholarship once they put their names into the portal.

(h/t On3's Matt Zenitz)

Follow College Football HQ: Bookmark | Facebook | Twitte r