Why some recent undergraduate transfers are expected to be immediately eligible for new teams

The spring transfer portal window closing hasn’t stopped the buildup of new college football free agents this summer.

Despite the spring portal window ending April 30, there have been 88 FBS scholarship players to enter the portal these last three months, including 41 undergraduates.

Although most of those non-graduates won’t be eligible to play this season (since undergrads entering the portal at this point aren’t eligible for the one-time transfer exception), there are some exceptions.

Two examples are transfers who committed to new schools on Sunday: former Northwestern offensive lineman Dylan Senda, who committed to Auburn, and ex-Miami cornerback Chris Graves, who’s headed to Ole Miss.

The Graves situation is particularly interesting.

While Senda and other recent transfers from Northwestern are immediately eligible because of the Wildcats firing head coach Pat Fitzgerald, Graves is expected to be eligible because of a lesser-known exception.

Like others such as former Baylor and new Texas Tech defensive back A.J. McCarty, Graves’ aid was cancelled by his previous school. The cancellation of aid, according to sources, is why players like McCarty and Graves are expected to be immediately eligible this season despite being undergraduates and despite entering the portal outside of the portal windows.

An interesting potential loophole, right? That exception isn’t for everyone whose aid is cancelled, though.

For example, another recent Ole Miss addition, ex-Clemson linebacker T.J. Dudley, isn’t expected to be eligible this season even though his aid was cancelled by Clemson. The reason for that seems to be, per sources, because Dudley was dismissed at his previous school for a violation of team rules. Being dismissed for a violation of team rules apparently prevents a player from being immediately eligible for a new team even if his aid was cancelled by the previous school.

To keep up with the latest players on the move, check out On3’s Transfer Portal wire. 

Transfer portal background information

The NCAA transfer portal, which covers every NCAA sport at the Division I, II and III levels, is a private database with names of student-athletes who wish to transfer. It is not accessible to the public.

The process of entering the portal is done through a school’s compliance office. Once a player provides written notification of an intent to transfer, the office enters the player’s name in the database and everything is off and running. The compliance office has 48 hours to comply with the player’s request and that request cannot be refused.

Once a player’s name shows up in the portal, other schools can contact the player. Players can change their minds at any point and withdraw from the portal. However, once a player enters the portal, the current scholarship no longer has to be honored. In other words, if a player enters the portal but decides to stay, the school is not obligated to provide a scholarship anymore.

The database is a normal database, sortable by a variety of topics, including (of course) sport and name. A player’s individual entry includes basic details such as contact info, whether the player was on scholarship and whether the player is transferring as a graduate student.

A player can ask that a “do not contact” tag be placed on the report. In those instances, the players don’t want to be contacted by schools unless they’ve initiated the communication.

The portal has been around since Oct. 15, 2018 and the new calendar cycle within the portal begins each August. For example, the 2021-22 cycle started Aug. 1. During the 2020-21 cycle, 2,626 FBS football players entered the transfer portal (including walk-ons). That comes after 1,681 entered during the 2019-20 cycle and 1,709 during the abbreviated 2018-19 cycle. In comparison, 1,833 Division I basketball players entered the portal during the 2020-21 cycle after totals of 1,020 in 2019-20 and 1,063 in 2018-19.

Track transfer portal activity

While the NCAA transfer portal database is private, the On3 Network has streamlined the reporting process tracking player movement.

If you find yourself asking, ‘How can I track transfer portal activity?’ our well-established network of reporters and contacts across college athletics keeps you up to speed in several ways, from articles written about players as they enter and exit the transfer portal or find their new destination, to our social media channels, to the On3 Transfer Portal.

The transfer portal wire provides a real-time feed of player activity, including basic player profile information, transfer portal ranking and original On3 Consensus recruiting ranking, as well as NIL valuation (name, image and likeness).

The On3 Transfer Portal Instagram account and senior national college football reporter Matt Zenitz’s Twitter account are excellent resources to stay up to date with the latest moves.