With the popularity of the transfer portal and the increasing importance of NIL (name, image, likeness) opportunities to recruits and players, the jobs of big-time college coaches just get more complicated. It’s not “just” recruiting and coaching anymore; as the role of money in the college game increases, meeting players’ expectations gets harder and harder.
Earlier this week, I read an interview with Nick Saban. Ostensibly, Saban was speaking about the transfer portal, about the impatience that a lot of blue-chip players have about their playing time. He remarked candidly that many of his top players at Alabama didn’t start as freshmen, didn’t start as sophomores, and really had only one year as a solid, first-string player before declaring for the NFL draft.