2026 Transfer Portal

[Thumper]

On 4/30/2026 at 1:58 PM, JWC said:

Portal closes at midnight.  After that it's the good 'ol enroll at a different school in the summer trick

Edited May 2 by Thumper
DELETE

[MPhillips]

Thumper just pulled out the single "double" quote.

"Boom! Roasted!"

[Thumper]

On 4/30/2026 at 1:58 PM, JWC said:

Portal closes at midnight.  After that it's the good 'ol enroll at a different school in the summer trick

Wrong, in point of fact they can NOT do that as the following information about the new term of the "Ghost transfer" makes clear:

 

1. The "Ghost Transfer" Crackdown

The NCAA recently adopted emergency legislation to stop "ghost transfers"—players who withdraw from school to join another program without entering the portal during a valid window. Any school that signs or allows such a player to participate now faces automatic, severe penalties: 

• Head Coach Suspension: The head coach is suspended for six games (50% of the regular season).

• Budget Fines: The school is fined 20% of its entire football budget. 

2. Remaining Transfer Options

While the standard Division I path is effectively blocked until January 2027, a few specific options may still exist:

• Coaching Change Exception: If a team's head coach is fired or leaves, a special 15-day window opens for those players starting five days after a new coach is hired.

• Transfer to Non-NCAA Levels: Players can often transfer more freely to NAIA or Junior College (JUCO) programs, which do not always follow the same portal window restrictions as the NCAA.

• Walk-On Status: A player can technically leave and attempt to walk on elsewhere, but they still cannot be recruited or have contact with other coaches until they are in the portal.

 

The recent NCAA "Ghost Transfer" crackdown, effective as of April 1, 2026, applies across all Division I sports, not just football. [1, 2, 3, 4]

While the issue was largely driven by football, the NCAA officially adopted the new rules for all D1 sports to ensure consistency, prevent the issue from spreading, and ensure accountability.

[MPhillips]

Pure witchcraft going on with Thumper...

[Simpleman424]

12 minutes ago, MPhillips said:

Thumper just pulled out the single "double" quote.

"Boom! Roasted!"

[Tyler Perry]

22 hours ago, flyingcement said:

 

Am i crazy or did Kendrick Hodge not commit to SIUE previously,

[flyingcement]

21 minutes ago, Tyler Perry said:

Am i crazy or did Kendrick Hodge not commit to SIUE previously,

You may be crazy, but you are not wrong here.  He had previously committed to SIUE and then switched to Rider.

 

[JMill]

14 minutes ago, flyingcement said:

You may be crazy, but you are not wrong here.  He had previously committed to SIUE and then switched to Rider.

 

Best way to maximize one’s NIL is to represent multiple teams, right?

I think a lot of these guys are posting their commitments before going through admissions. Once they find out enough of their credits won’t transfer to keep them eligible, they have to go to plan B.

Edited May 2 by JMill

[juniorvarsity]

So no last minute portal entries? I'm surprised. 

[MoveCountermove]

13 hours ago, juniorvarsity said:

So no last minute portal entries? I'm surprised. 

Same. Handful of solid names I expected to maybe see drop at the end there.

Still some coaching changes on the horizon that open a new portal period for a few teams, some have said. I’m not in the know enough to be aware of which teams that would be, or exactly the rules (is it when you LOSE your existing head coach? Do associate HC count? Is it at the time you hire on the new coach?)

Still expected a little more action in the eleventh hour

[Idaho]

13 hours ago, juniorvarsity said:

So no last minute portal entries? I'm surprised. 

Portal closed midnight Thursday... teams have 2 business days to enter names into the portal, which means Monday by midnight. We could still see a few names drop - I don't know if we will, but it is still possible. 

[flyingcement]

 

[flyingcement]

 

[flyingcement]

Non-D1 teams involved in the D1 portal so far:
 

Team	Outgoing	Incoming	Net	Gross
Central Oklahoma (DII)	0	2	2	2
Indian Hills (NJCAA)	1	1	0	2
Western Wyoming (NJCAA)	2	0	-2	2
Wisconsin-Parkside (DII)	0	1	1	1
Wisconsin-La Crosse (DII)	0	1	1	1
Vanguard (DII)	0	1	1	1
Southeastern (NAIA)	0	1	1	1
Providence (NAIA)	0	1	1	1
Oklahoma City (NAIA)	0	1	1	1
Northern State (DII)	0	1	1	1
New College of Florida (NAIA)	0	1	1	1
Montevallo (DII)	0	1	1	1
Minnesota State-Mankato (DII)	0	1	1	1
Iowa Western (NJCAA)	0	1	1	1
Gannon (DII)	0	1	1	1
Central Methodist (NAIA)	0	1	1	1
Brockport (DIII)	0	1	1	1

Edited May 4 by flyingcement

[flyingcement]

These DI teams have not participated in the portal at all this year:

American

Brown

Cal Poly

Davidson

Franklin & Marshall

George Mason

Lock Haven

Northwestern

[ScottishSteel]

9 hours ago, flyingcement said:

These DI teams have not participated in the portal at all this year:

American

Brown

Cal Poly

Davidson

Franklin & Marshall

George Mason

Lock Haven

Northwestern

Of the Ivy's, how many of the remaining 5 that did participate in the portal were "forced" to participate - like a graduate who has to move on because of Ivy rules

[flyingcement]

Swawbomb:

 

[flyingcement]

 

[flyingcement]

There are still about 2/3 of the portal entrants that have not yet made a decision (out of 265+)

Lots of portal excitement left to be had.

[cowcards]

11 hours ago, flyingcement said:

Swawbomb:

 

Should be called a SwaWoooo...

[MoveCountermove]

11 hours ago, flyingcement said:

Swawbomb:

 

Would take Goff at 197 in the UM wrestling room

[Idaho]

3 hours ago, MoveCountermove said:

Would take Goff at 197 in the UM wrestling room

For the low low price of $4,999 per month you can have Goff in your room. Act now and we will throw in the exclusive Goffee Mug ... take it anywhere that wrestling takes you! 

[MoveCountermove]

3 hours ago, Idaho said:

For the low low price of $4,999 per month you can have Goff in your room. Act now and we will throw in the exclusive Goffee Mug ... take it anywhere that wrestling takes you! 

***tries SAVE27 coupon code from BTN+***

[flyingcement]

 

[flyingcement]