From the HERE City National Desk
College football’s transfer portal will open for a single 10-day stretch in early January under changes approved Wednesday by the NCAA Division I Cabinet, which also moved to keep coaches away from other teams’ games.
For both the Football Bowl Subdivision and the Football Championship Subdivision, the new window begins the first business day after Jan. 1. With Jan. 1 falling on a Friday, the portal would open Monday, Jan. 4, while four teams are still alive in the College Football Playoff. Football will have only one transfer window a year.
The cabinet also set new windows for other sports. Cross country and track and field athletes will get a 15-day window after the cross country championships plus a 10-day period after the outdoor track and field championships. Women’s gymnastics will have a 15-day window starting the Monday after the national championship.
In men’s basketball and football, coaches and other team-specific staff will now be barred from attending preseason, regular-season and conference officials noted tournament games involving other teams. Exceptions apply when their own team is competing at the same event or a family member is playing. The NCAA said the rule is meant to cut down on in-person recruiting of potential transfers and deter tampering before athletes enter the portal.
Football staff can still attend certain postseason games, including College Football Playoff games, and men’s basketball staff can still attend NCAA championship and other postseason contests.
