By Mark Pszonak
The transfer portal has quickly become a major part of the college football. The winter and spring are dominated by news of which players are transferring and where they end up. But how vital are transfers to the success of teams, especially the elite teams?
There are plenty of ways to try and figure this out, but if you take a look at the recently released Athlon Sports Preseason All-American Team, then transfers suddenly don’t seem very important. The First-Team Offense does not have a single 2024/2025 transfer, while the First-Team Defense only has one, safety Dillon Thieneman, who made the move from Purdue to Oregon. There are 25 players named to the First-Team, yet only one is a new transfer.
The First-Team Specialists do include a second recent transfer, kickoff returner Keelan Marion, who went from BYU to Miami-Florida. He will likely also see time at wide receiver but was brought to Coral Gables for his special teams’ talents.
The Second and Third Teams are also only sparsely littered with transfers. The Second-Team includes running back Makhi Hughes (Oregon from Tulane), tight end Jack Endries (Texas from Cal) and kick returner Barion Brown (LSU from Kentucky), while the Third-Team only includes kick returner Kam Shanks (Arkansas from UAB).
The transfer portal is vital for many reasons, but according to these lists, it is not a good method to obtain elite talent. Another way to look at it is that schools have done an impressive job of being able to keep their top players from going elsewhere, which has resulted in the available talent being notch below elite. However, schools can use the portal to add depth and try to replenish specific positions.
The transfer portal isn’t going anywhere, but it is important to temper the expectations surrounding arriving players. Also, while the preseason All-American lists are a good conversation starter, it is the post-season lists that truly matters. So, who many 2024/2025 transfers will end up on the post-season lists?
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