On the football field there’s so much to see, a perfect 11-player lineup with talented athletes and coaches motivating the men on the field. 
But what’s arguably more important is what’s behind the scenes, the football family and the environment. This can significantly impact athletes’ decisions on whether to stay or leave the university.
The NCAA Transfer Portal was established in 2018 to allow collegiate athletes to spread their horizons by finding a different university to call home, according to the Daily Utah Chronicle.
Originally players could enter the transfer portal at any point in the year. Nevertheless, as Rebel Walk revealed, there are now only a few specific time periods for athletes to enter the portal. 
One of these time frames is after the selection of championship games has been determined in December as well as after spring camp in May. However, both of these times are rather limiting for students to get their name out there since so many athletes enter the portal at once. But athletic teams want to ensure that their players commit to the season, which is understandable, yet it still feels like a trap to keep athletes.
As an undergraduate student that could hypothetically leave LSU at any moment, it’s difficult to imagine being a student-athlete at a school where perhaps you could get better name and likeness deals somewhere else, you’re miserable because of the conditions or the fit just doesn’t feel right. 
“Before the portal, it was sometimes tough for players looking to transfer to get their name out there. Players had to get their current coach’s permission to contact other schools. If their request was turned down, there was a ladder of different administrations the player would have to ask to get permission,” said Sam Herder, a sportswriter for BET MGM.
The whole idea of grown adults asking their coaches for permission to transfer to another university is utterly ridiculous. I think some coaches have failed to realize that they’re dealing with adults, not children. Though what BET MGM disclosed are some of the past issues with the portal, some coaches are still trying to dig their claws into students to keep them from entering the portal. 
This includes but is not limited to a 247 Sports article written by Brandon Marcello, where he included pieces of information from many “unknown” coaches. “Players can transfer as long as they’re academically eligible,” Marcello said. Student-athletes must have a 2.0 GPA at most colleges to enter the portal, according to NCSA Sports.
One Power Five Conference assistant suggested that players have a 3.0 GPA to enter the portal, according to Marcello. Some other pitches included that students cannot transfer until one year after their enrollment at their initial university and players only have the opportunity to leave if their head coach is fired or leaves. 
Many of these suggested changes to the requirements are a little far-fetched. Schools obviously want good players, but they also want good students who aren’t a liability, meaning that they won’t sit on the bench or get kicked off of the team just because of their grades, but how far should we go in ensuring that? A GPA of 3.0 seems a bit much, given how much time these players give to their teams.
As for the idea that students cannot leave until their head coach is fired or voluntarily leaves, how does that make any sense? If the players at the University of Alabama had that rule, then they would have been stuck there, considering that head coach Nick Saban has been coaching there for nearly two decades. 
Speaking of Nick Saban, in December of 2022, Saban expressed his real opinion about the transfer portal on Sugar Bowl Media Day. “I gave them all the opportunity to play in the game if they wanted to, and they didn’t. I don’t know if that’s a good thing for players, not to stay committed to their team for an entire season,” Saban said.
This whole statement is ironic considering that in 2019 Saban advocated for players’ rights to enter the transfer portal to find a better fit and hopefully become the best student-athlete they can be. In an article conducted by Bleacher Report, Saban said, “I’m for whatever benefits the players.”
Though Saban may have made up for his “professional mishandling,” reported by Bleacher Report, it still doesn’t take away from the fact that a coach complaining about his current players committing to the NFL or not participating in the Sugar Bowl and entering the transfer portal is the same coach who bailed after two rough seasons in the NFL.
Saban is one of many coaches that have issues with the NCAA College Football Transfer Portal, and the only thing I can say about that is that coaches need to stop seeing college athletes as children. They’re grown adults who can make their own decisions about their lives and careers. So, declaw yourselves, crabs, because these players are the only ones who can answer the question: Should I stay, or should I go?
Taylor Hamilton is an 18-year-old mass communication freshman from Tallahassee, Florida.