By Mark Pszonak
As the reliance of the transfer portal has increased for many programs during the last few years, it has been proven that it isn’t a guaranteed source of success. There are many examples of this, but most notably by Florida State and Colorado. Indiana is the next extreme test sample to watch in 2025.
The Hoosiers took the college football world by storm in 2024. Just typing that still seems awkward considering Indiana had only played in five bowl games since 1993 prior to last season. Then, under the leadership of new head coach Curt Cignetti, the Hoosiers went 11-2, made the College Football Playoff and finished #10 in the final AP Poll. And none of this would have been possible if it hadn’t been for Coach Cignetti’s aggressive use of the portal.
But once you take an extremely deep dive into the portal pool, it is almost impossible not to consistently do so to replenish your roster on an annual basis. And that is where the problem may lie for Indiana and every other program that is reliant on transfers.
A year after bringing in 31 transfers, many of which were vital to Indiana’s success in 2024, the Hoosiers have already brought in 20 during the current winter cycle. The most recent of these came only a couple of days ago when Notre Dame offensive lineman Pat Coogan joined the Hoosiers:
Never Daunted. Let’s get to work! pic.twitter.com/A75JPiDRYd
— Pat Coogan (@coogs53) January 31, 2025
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However, as mentioned above, being aggressive in the portal does not necessarily translate into success. Florida State figured it out in 2023, but then flopped in 2024, while Colorado disappointed in 2023 before finding their groove in 2024. These successes and failures were mostly due to the transfers that both of these programs brought in. Expectations were high during all four of these seasons, yet only two proved to be successful.
And that brings us back to Indiana. Just because they excelled in 2024 will mean little to nothing in 2025 since many of these transfers are gone. If Hoosier fans want an example of a program that has successfully navigated the portal in an aggressive manner for consecutive seasons, then they should look at Louisville. Since head coach Jeff Brohm returned prior to the 2023 season, the Cardinals have compiled a 19-8 record while being one of the more active portal programs in the country.
Developing a consistent winner on the football field through the portal is a difficult business. But Coach Cignetti is trying to prove that he has the answers to the puzzle. Whatever the preseason projections will be, nobody will truly know if he did find all of the correct pieces until we all get into the meat of the 2025 season.
Indiana is the transfer portal’s success story right now, but everyone may have a different opinion of this by the conclusion of this year.
