By Sarah Turner, Sports editor 

My Saturdays usually involve flipping through channels in search of the best college football game of the day. A few weeks ago, I stumbled across the James Madison Dukes and the Georgia State Panthers in a snoozefest of a game, a tight 7-7 battle in the third quarter.  

Suddenly, Panthers quarterback T.J. Finley graced my screen, and was immediately sacked by JMU’s defense. I was shocked. Finley had been a name I had heard at other programs over the past few years. He was still playing college football?  

A quick search confirmed it. Finley has spent time at six different schools across the country in the last five years, where he started at four of them. While social media often mocks his transfer history, Finley’s journey reflects a much larger shift in college athletics. 

The transfer portal has become a necessary tool for player empowerment in college football, but without stronger regulation, it risks undermining the stability and integrity of the sport. 

The landscape of college sports completely changed in 2021 when transfer portal rules were revised. The revisions removed the mandatory 12-month sit-out period for a first transfer for student-athletes. What used to be a difficult, sometimes career-altering decision is now as simple as hitting the portal and starting over elsewhere. 

Critics say that the transfer portal, in combination with Name, Image and Likeness policies, is ruining the NCAA as we know it. How does playing at six different schools in five years benefit you as a college athlete? You never really have time to acclimate to a program, coaches, or teammates.  

The current transfer portal regulations almost feel like a chaotic version of NFL free agency, allowing players to jump ship whenever they want for better opportunities and bigger endorsement deals.  

But the issue is, in the current college football landscape, it’s more important now than ever to take advantage of the portal.  

One of the best case studies of this claim is the Clemson Tigers’ football program. Just a few years ago, this program was dominant in the ACC, and was consistently in the hunt for national championships. In 2025, they started their first four games 1-3, barely squeaking a win over unranked Troy in their second game of the season. 

Dabo Swinney, Clemson’s head coach , has been one of the sport’s most outspoken critics of transfer portal misuse. He has consistently avoided using the portal for recruitment, relying almost exclusively on incoming freshmen to build his roster each year. 

“It’s a crazy time, although I’m not sure a lot of people in our sport should be surprised. I’m just glad we’re not a part of it,” Swinney told ESPN in April.  

Is Swinney’s lack of portal use the only reason for Clemson’s downfall this year? Not entirely, but it definitely doesn’t help.  

While other top programs reload through the portal, Clemson has chosen to stay loyal to its long-term development model. Elite recruiting and coaching once was enough to create the best class of incoming freshman, but the portal has opened up an entirely new style of recruiting. 

Clemson’s roster hasn’t kept pace with the rapid changes of the big programs in the sport. They don’t have enough roster depth because they don’t pull from the portal. 

But obviously, some transfers are necessary if an athlete’s health or well being is at risk. It can also give younger players a second chance to prove themselves at a high level and pursue professional opportunities. 

Transferring gives players who did spend time and develop themselves a chance to start over. Take quarterback Joe Burrow for example. After being buried on the bench as an Ohio State Buckeye, Burrow went to LSU and won the Tigers their first national championship in over a decade back in 2019. 

But going back to T.J. Finley, why does transfer portal misuse happen? Some athletes may see the portal as an easy way out, opting to transfer rather than competing for a spot on the depth chart.  

While the portal could give players a chance to thrive in a new environment, and maybe to escape a setting that just didn’t work out, it also doesn’t allow for the true growth and development that comes with sitting behind elite starters for a year or two. 

So is the transfer portal ruining college sports? It can be a blessing or a curse depending on how it’s used. But right now, the message to college football programs is clear: Adapt or die.