2025 Transfer Portal

[Idaho]

Any new portal news? 

Interesting guy in there is Andres Gonazalez... I thought he was going to be a great pick-up, but his results have been mediocre. Had some decent wins, but also some very bad losses. Kinda surprised he went all four years at tOSU. I think he could be a good pickup for a low/mid level team as a 133lber - I think his best results were there. 

 

[nhs67]

36 minutes ago, BAC said:

I think maybe you're just more willing to accuse decent people of massive fraud and recruiting violations than I am, and more willing to assume the existence of sprawling nefarious conspiracies on the thinnest of pretexts.

You clearly don't know Vak.  As far as people go, he is probably the least appreciated person for what he does IRL on these forums.  Were he dead he'd be a mfckn Saint.

Edited yesterday at 04:21 PM by nhs67

[Elevator]

5 minutes ago, nhs67 said:

You clearly don't know Vak.  As far as people go, he is probably the least appreciated person for what he does IRL on these forums.  Were he dead he'd be a mfckn Saint.

If we are going to pivot to a Vak appreciation string of this topic, I will say that I like his contributions to this forum and note my appreciation.   

[nhs67]

19 minutes ago, Dark Energy said:

What did the tweet say?  I missed it and can’t find it.  

He deleted it once Ryder entered the portal, but it was 'Ryder all day.' Or very similar and to that narrative.

[nhs67]

3 minutes ago, Elevator said:

If we are going to pivot to a Vak appreciation string of this topic, I will say that I like his contributions to this forum and note my appreciation.   

Not really my intention.  My intention was to point out that @BACcalling @VakAttack's character in to question is baseless, ignorant, and shows his own lack of character.

Edit: To be clear, I am not saying you lack character, BAC.  That statement exhibits it, though.  I don't believe you to be ignorant, either.

Edited yesterday at 04:32 PM by nhs67

[Dogbone]

8 minutes ago, BAC said:

One, the fact that PSU had Ryder, who most see as being on Welsh's level, making it illogical for PSU to affirmatively seek out Welsh as a replacement. 

Two, the fact that Welsh had a prior history of discontent at OSU that is unrelated to PSU, with a confirmed visit to OSU back in December and Ryan having to publicly quell the fire back.

Three, Welsh's stated reason for preferring PSU -- that he wanted a stronger training room -- meshes well with his discontent at OSU, where he asked them to get better RTC guys but they weren't able to.

Four, Welsh's own words, disclaiming that PSU was ever a foregone conclusion, but rather was one of a couple of frontrunners at the time.

Fifth, the fact that the Mineo "done deal" tweets proved to be false (unless you call Welsh a liar), given his indication that he fielded numerous offers, and given the fact that he didn't commit right away.

Sixth, the fact that PSU was offering less $ than other schools.

Seventh, the fact that Welsh isn't exactly Cael's "type":  all tatted up, a temper, apparently not recruited by PSU in high school.

Eight, Starocci's pro-Ryder tweet, and Ryder's later departure, suggest that all of this happened very suddenly from PSU's perspective, as it wasn't pre-vetted with the team or Ryder.

Ninth, the general absurdity of the notion that Cael, with a bunch of consecutive titled and strongly favored to win at least the next couple as well, would suddenly throw it all away by engaging in massive recruiting violations that could cost him his job and get him and his team suspended from competition.  

Tenth, the utter lack of any facts or evidence cutting the other way.  Even Ryan, who's quick to whine about virtually everything, hasn't said a single sour word toward PSU about this.

***

How about you. Do you have any facts that this was a massive conspiratorial rule-violating poaching of a competitor, planned and executed by those evil cackling PSU miscreant coaches?

I'll wait.

Holy Strawman, Batman...   Saying the word "fact" before making a statement doesn't actually make it true.

What are you talking about?? Not one person has accused PSU of a rule violation or a massive conspiracy, including myself, who just challenged the ridiculous notion that Rocco is only getting some minimal NIL deal that all PSU athletes get.    Just because you offer less than somone else doesn't meant PSU is offering nothing or the minimum deal everyone else gets. 

Cael recruiting over Ryder isn't a crime, rule violation or conspiracy, but it is a fact because it actually happened.  

[MPhillips]

31 minutes ago, Dark Energy said:

If you don’t believe that, you don’t know much about world history, geo-politics, global economic disparities, and military budgets / experience.

 

 

WTF are you going on about? Did I post about believing or not?

[1032004]

22 minutes ago, nhs67 said:

He deleted it once Ryder entered the portal, but it was 'Ryder all day.' Or very similar and to that narrative.

He deleted it prior to Ryder entering the portal.  Was it because he heard Ryder was entering the portal, or just because it wasn’t very sportsmanlike, who knows 

[BAC]

26 minutes ago, VakAttack said:

No.  You are choosing to interpret things in the way that most aligns with what you want to be true.

Well, you're not entirely wrong. I don't want PSU to be engaging in recruiting violations, I don't want their coaches conspiring to act unethically, I don't want wrestlers telling bald-faced lies to the public.  But it's not PSU-specific.  I don't want ANY school or ANY coach or ANY wrestler to be engaging in that conduct, and I'm definitely not going to presume it or make accusations without real facts. 

Here, there's just no evidence of it, and all facts point the other way.  I think you know that too.

Honestly, it sounds to me that you're still kind of salty about accusations people made last year about Iowa's transfers which you think are unjust. You're probably right about many of them, as people are quick to accuse Iowa of recruiting violations too.  So I guess this is your payback?  I dunno Vak. I'm all for pointing out hypocrisy, but I'm just not sure that making baseless allegations against other schools is the best way to go, especially when you're calling into question the integrity of the coaches and honesty of the wrestlers.  That's just spite, and I think you're better than that.

[BarSeries]

[BruceyB]

1 minute ago, BAC said:

Well, you're not entirely wrong. I don't want PSU to be engaging in recruiting violations, I don't want their coaches conspiring to act unethically, I don't want wrestlers telling bald-faced lies to the public.  But it's not PSU-specific.  I don't want ANY school or ANY coach or ANY wrestler to be engaging in that conduct, and I'm definitely not going to presume it or make accusations without real facts. 

Here, there's just no evidence of it, and all facts point the other way.  I think you know that too.

Honestly, it sounds to me that you're still kind of salty about accusations people made last year about Iowa's transfers which you think are unjust. You're probably right about many of them, as people are quick to accuse Iowa of recruiting violations too.  So I guess this is your payback?  I dunno Vak. I'm all for pointing out hypocrisy, but I'm just not sure that making baseless allegations against other schools is the best way to go, especially when you're calling into question the integrity of the coaches and honesty of the wrestlers.  That's just spite, and I think you're better than that.

This is a clown take. I'm sure Welsh was begging to be let on the PSU team for little to no money while David Taylor was at his door step offering him a huge bag to change his mind. 

[BAC]

25 minutes ago, nhs67 said:

Not really my intention.  My intention was to point out that @BACcalling @VakAttack's character in to question is baseless, ignorant, and shows his own lack of character.

Edit: To be clear, I am not saying you lack character, BAC.  That statement exhibits it, though.  I don't believe you to be ignorant, either.

It isn't my intention to question Vak's character, and I disavow that implication.  I like Vak and think he is a good dude. But I think a fair reading of his comments is that he's accusing PSU of having intentionally induced Welsh's entry into the transfer with improper conduct, which would be a recruiting violation and highly unethical. That, to me, is a bridge too far and ought not be done without solid basis.

[BruceyB]

1 hour ago, BAC said:

Because it's what the facts point to. 

I think maybe you're just more willing to accuse decent people of massive fraud and recruiting violations than I am, and more willing to assume the existence of sprawling nefarious conspiracies on the thinnest of pretexts.

In any case, it's hardly the best version of events for Penn State. They did an even-up trade for a guy who may or may not gel with his teammates, who has one less year of eligibility and has a history as a bit of a hothead, while losing the homegrown recruit.  The Starocci tweet suggests they didn't adequately vet it with the team, and the fact that Ryder left suggests they didn't make enough of an effort to secure his buy-in.  I'd say it's just about the worst version of events for PSU, unless one is willing to demean themselves with baseless accusations of lying, fraud, violations, conspiracies, etc.

You love PSU more than Lucas Byrd loves his 6'3" girlfriend. 

[Elevator]

11 minutes ago, BruceyB said:

This is a clown take. I'm sure Welsh was begging to be let on the PSU team for little to no money while David Taylor was at his door step offering him a huge bag to change his mind. 

Could be closer to the truth - kid bets on himself in a prove it deal knowing he will have NIL leverage if he can return to the NCAA finals.

[Idaho]

Remember when it was only Iowa fans that were insufferable.... I'm worried about some of you. Look what NIL and the portal has done to your lives. Come back to us. 

[1032004]

13 minutes ago, BAC said:

It isn't my intention to question Vak's character, and I disavow that implication.  I like Vak and think he is a good dude. But I think a fair reading of his comments is that he's accusing PSU of having intentionally induced Welsh's entry into the transfer with improper conduct, which would be a recruiting violation and highly unethical. That, to me, is a bridge too far and ought not be done without solid basis.

Well how are we defining “improper” here?  As long as the coaches weren’t involved it seems they didn’t do anything against the rules (and neither did Iowa in getting Buchanan and Teemer)

[BAC]

16 minutes ago, BruceyB said:

This is a clown take. I'm sure Welsh was begging to be let on the PSU team for little to no money while David Taylor was at his door step offering him a huge bag to change his mind. 

Sounds like you're just throwing rocks from the sidelines.  What specifically did I say that you disagree with, and what specifically is your take, and the facts that support it?

[Dark Energy]

2 hours ago, MPhillips said:

WTF are you going on about? Did I post about believing or not?

Huh?  You wrote 

‘American Exceptionalism is the belief that …’

You wrote it’s a belief.  

I’m confused.

I wrote that ….. ahhh, perhaps I should have said ‘If a person doesn’t believe that …’   You seem to be thinking that I was attacking you ….

Still, not sure how since I used the word ‘if’ … but anyway, I made no assumption on what your belief is.   Feel free to correct me.

Skins can be thin.

 

 

 

Edited yesterday at 06:46 PM by Dark Energy

[MPhillips]

3 minutes ago, Dark Energy said:

I wrote that ….. ahhh, perhaps I should have said ‘If a person doesn’t believe that …’   You seem to be thinking that I was attacking you ….

Quote

If you don’t believe that, you don’t know much about world history, geo-politics, global economic disparities, and military budgets / experience.

 

I never posted about my beliefs...

 

[CHROMEBIRD]

16 hours ago, Wrestleknownothing said:

The universities do not yet pay the athletes. NIL $'s do not come from the universities themselves. The coaches absolutely have a say in who gets paid by whoever makes the payments (NIL collectives, individual boosters, maybe even businesses), but the money is not the university's to give. And it is not theirs to make public.

When (if) the House settlement is approved next week, that will change in some places and not in others. Then at least some of the numbers will likely be published by public universities. But that will only affect direct payments from the schools. NIL will still be private.

It's assumed that programs will setup their own NIL deals with athletes if the House settlement is finalized as planned. Most departments are already making anticipatory moves and signing MOUs with recruits now. Third-party collectives and direct sponsorship NIL can continue to co-exist with the new framework.

https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6197275/2025/03/14/college-football-transfer-portal-nil-contract-buyout-clauses/

 

Also, about getting details of NIL transactions out in the open: there are pending bills in congress right now that include reporting of NIL deals (among other reforms), sanitized of personal information, to provide athletes with a better idea of their fair market value. Agents are now becoming a thing in college sports, and since none of this is well-regulated with little to no uniformity, a lot of kids are expect outrageous numbers and end up signing predatory deals disguised as high-interest loans, or that take a cut of the athletes future pro salary, and who knows what else.

[Dark Energy]

15 minutes ago, MPhillips said:

I never posted about my beliefs...

 

I agree.  Never said you did.

[flyingcement]

1 minute ago, Dark Energy said:

I agree.  Never said you did.

but I BELIEVE that he MUST

[VakAttack]

2 hours ago, nhs67 said:

You clearly don't know Vak.  As far as people go, he is probably the least appreciated person for what he does IRL on these forums.  Were he dead he'd be a mfckn Saint.

Saint feels...not quite strong enough.  Omniscient deity is more like it.   

 

2 hours ago, BAC said:

Well, you're not entirely wrong. I don't want PSU to be engaging in recruiting violations, I don't want their coaches conspiring to act unethically, I don't want wrestlers telling bald-faced lies to the public.  But it's not PSU-specific.  I don't want ANY school or ANY coach or ANY wrestler to be engaging in that conduct, and I'm definitely not going to presume it or make accusations without real facts. 

Here, there's just no evidence of it, and all facts point the other way.  I think you know that too.

Honestly, it sounds to me that you're still kind of salty about accusations people made last year about Iowa's transfers which you think are unjust. You're probably right about many of them, as people are quick to accuse Iowa of recruiting violations too.  So I guess this is your payback?  I dunno Vak. I'm all for pointing out hypocrisy, but I'm just not sure that making baseless allegations against other schools is the best way to go, especially when you're calling into question the integrity of the coaches and honesty of the wrestlers.  That's just spite, and I think you're better than that.

That's the thing.  You are calling things facts that are not facts.  They are you interpreting circumstances in the way that is most favorable to your pre-decided position and then calling those interpretations facts.  For example:

Quote

who most see as being on Welsh's level, making it illogical for PSU to affirmatively seek out Welsh as a replacement. 

Neither of these things are facts, they are opinions.

 

After that, you're most relying on the statement of Welsh himself and insisting they are facts even though there's no evidence other than the word of Welsh, who is highly incentivized to make himself and his new institution look as good as possible, and dismissing disinterested parties, like Willie Saylor or Justin Basch (although you could argue Mr. Basch is a somewhat interested party) making the immediate reports.  Everything after that just seems like window dressing to most of the rest of us, since he never actually met with anybody, but more ofa  reaction of it looking bad that he had already committed to Penn State immediately after being in the portal.

And I want to be clear, I'm not stating that what I am saying is fact.  Clearly I'm stating my opinion based on what we're seeing; I would just posit that most of the non-Penn State fanbase would say my interpretation is the more likely and logical way it played out.

 

Later you accuse me of being salty about previous accusations against Iowa, but no, I believe Iowa probably did a lot of the things we're talking about here, too.  That's the game now, whether you like it or not, and Penn State is playing it, which you appear to be doing everything in your power to convince yourself they are not.

[Wrasslin]

3 hours ago, Idaho said:

Any new portal news? 

Interesting guy in there is Andres Gonazalez... I thought he was going to be a great pick-up, but his results have been mediocre. Had some decent wins, but also some very bad losses. Kinda surprised he went all four years at tOSU. I think he could be a good pickup for a low/mid level team as a 133lber - I think his best results were there. 

 

Andre Gonzales . . . now there's a name I haven't heard in a while! TBH, not surprised . . .I wasn't super high on him outta HS- he won a CA state title as a senior @ 113, but besides him, the top 8 were FR/SO (as is the case in HS). He got majored the year before in semis at 106 by none other than Virginia's Jack Gioffre (who played spoiler to Paniro Johnson) at NCAAs, who in the finals got teched by Richie Figgs. Poway is a power program, but he was far from the best they've produced, although I enjoy seeing CA guys do well in college! 

[BruceyB]

2 hours ago, BAC said:

Sounds like you're just throwing rocks from the sidelines.  What specifically did I say that you disagree with, and what specifically is your take, and the facts that support it?

My opinion has been made clear on this topic under different threads. In one sentence, there are no enforced rules in todays transfer/NIL era.. the only dummies are those that pretend that their team is engaging in the activity in a more "morally upright" way than the rest of the programs. Exhibit.. you.

None of us know the finer details going on behind the scenes. It's dumb to attack PSU over their transfers, but it's even dumber to blindly protect them based on the "lack of evidence" for them doing anything wrong.

Justify it however you'd like, but PSU has been much more cutthroat than any other program when it comes to bringing in outsiders over their own current athletes. Only the most woefully naive can convince themselves to believe the sentiment "These wrestler's are begging to come to PSU, what is Cael supposed to do? Say no?"