Matt Rhule calls for college football to have only one transfer portal window

There are two transfer windows in college football. The winter window begins on the Monday following the conclusion of the FBS conference championship games. This past season, the winter window opened on Dec. 9 and closed on Dec. 24.

Then, there is a 10-day window in the spring. This year, the spring window will take place from April 16 to April 25. During these transfer windows, players are allowed to enter their names into the portal and hear from other teams that are looking to acquire talent.

In October, the NCAA Division I Council reformed the college football transfer windows by shortening them from a combined 45 days to 30 days. However, Nebraska head coach Matt Rhule believes more change is still necessary.

“Basketball has one portal [window]. So why would basketball have one and we have two?” Rhule said during an appearance on The Pat McAfee Show Thursday. “… How many people leave in April and have a lot of success two months later? Like, I literally could, if I wanted to, I could say, ‘Who am I playing Week 1?’ And see who goes in the portal for them, and take them and then know what they’re going to do against us.

“But I’m with you, whatever is best for the student athlete, but I think we should pick one. I don’t want to negotiate a contract with a guy in December and then renegotiate again in April. Like, you sign up with us. You should sign up for the year. Coaches sign up for the year. And so, let’s do once a year.”

As Rhule mentioned, many players use the windows as opportunities to renegotiate their NIL deals with their respective programs. If the NCAA eliminated one of the transfer portal windows, teams wouldn’t have to worry about negotiating with their players for the year after they come to an initial agreement.

Additionally, Rhule pointed out that the spring window could be exploited by teams that are looking to gain an advantage against an opponent they face early in the season.

For example, Nebraska’s season opener in the upcoming season is against Cincinnati. If Rhule recruited a player from Cincinnati in the spring window, he may be able to gain valuable information about Cincinnati’s game plans and schemes from that player.

In the end, Matt Rhule wants what’s best for his players while preserving the integrity of the game.

“I think one portal window would be way better,” Rhule said.