James Franklin expresses concern over the transfer portal
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Monday is the first day the college football transfer portal is officially going live, and Penn State will once again be expected to be a program that sees a handful of players enter their names in the NCAA database. Penn State could also benefit from pulling talent from the portal to fill some needs going into 2023. But as the transfer portal gains steam for the benefit of the student-athletes, there are growing concerns over how programs are treating it.
Penn State head coach James Franklin was asked about some of his concerns with the transfer portal in today’s game, and he didn’t hold back in suggesting it could have a damaging effect on the game as it steers away from a player’s overall college experience to just focusing strictly on football.
“What my concern is, the more coaches I talk to and the more people I see, academics is less and less a part of some of these decision-making processes,” Franklin explained on Sunday in a conference call with the media. “It’s strictly about football. I do think there’s still a balancing act that I think needs to happen and can happen, you know, where a kid can reach all of his goals from an academic perspective and still be able to chase his football dreams.”
Penn State has seen a number of players move on to other schools by way of the transfer portal, some having more success than others on the football field. Penn State also filled some of its own football needs with recent transfers like wide receiver Mitchell Tinsley Jr. and defensive lineman Chop Robinson. But it is Franklin’s hope that players will see being at Penn State is a valuable asset on and off the field as the temptation to transfer for football reasons continues to influence the transfer process for many in the sport.
“That’s why being at a place like Penn State is so important and it’s so special, because the young men in our program have the support and resources to achieve all their goals and all their dreams,” Franklin said, making a not-so-subtle sales pitch to any recruit or transfer portal player catching wind of his comments. “That’s not the case everywhere, you know, that’s not really the case everywhere. So to be fortunate to be at a place like Penn State, as a coach or a player is a phenomenal thing. I think it’s magnified right now in the landscape of college football.”
A few Penn State players have already announced they will be entering the transfer portal, including backup quarterback Christian Veilleux. Expect more to be on their way as the week goes on while Penn State prepares for the Rose Bowl against Utah.
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