Joel Klatt argues over Caleb Williams with ESPN commentator

The NCAA transfer portal continues to take twists and turns by the day, and Monday was no different with Oklahoma quarterback Caleb Williams announcing his intentions to enter.

The move by the freshman comes after his head coach, Lincoln Riley, left the Sooners for USC. Williams took over for Spencer Rattler in the second half of the Red River Showdown and held on to the starting job for the remainder of the season.

Following Williams’ announcement Monday, FOX college football analyst Joel Klatt took to Twitter to offer his thoughts on the move.

“Caleb Williams is a free agent ‘exploring my options,'” he wrote. “Also ‘who will pay the most?’ Every player is now a free agent every single year! I have always argued that players should enjoy more autonomy over their careers than what they have had in the past. … This is our new reality and it is not necessarily a bad thing.

“The Transfer Portal needs to be tweaked, but for the most part is allows players to find the spot where they can best succeed as a player and person.”

ESPN commentator Mark Jones took issue with Klatt’s comments, responding on Twitter. “Caleb Williams went to Oklahoma to play for a coach Lincoln Riley who deuced out on him for money and opportunity. What about the coach accountability? You can miss me with all these PHD’s. … Real ones know.”

Joel Klatt did not waste any time responding to Jones’ response. The former Colorado quarterback called out Jones for missing his point.

“Mark, if you would have just read the following tweets you would have understood that I am in favor of his autonomy,” he said. “Way to be a ‘real one’ who declined to see the whole picture. You can ‘miss me’ with your grandstanding!”

Father of Caleb Williams details keys to transfer destination

Oklahoma quarterback Caleb Williams has made the decision to enter the transfer portal, he announced Monday via Twitter. The true freshman quarterback will explore his options while not completely ruling out returning to Norman, he said.

His father spoke with Yahoo! Sports’ Pete Thamel following his announcement and detailed what Williams is looking for at his next school.

“Professional development. We want Caleb to be ready to play when he becomes a pro. You go to college to get prepared for your career. His chosen career path is professional football. We want him to be prepared for when that time comes,” Willams said.

The freshman threw for 1,912 yards and scored 27 total touchdowns as OU closed the year with an 11-2 record.

Williams came to Oklahoma as the No. 1 overall recruit in the 2021 class according to On3 Consensus, a complete and equally weighted industry-generated average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies.