On Tuesday morning, news broke that star Wake Forest Demon Deacons quarterback Sam Hartman intended to enter the NCAA transfer portal and already had a likely destination in mind with the Notre Dame Fighting Irish. But as many in the college football world quickly pointed out, this report seems to indicate that Notre Dame was breaking some NCAA recruiting rules.
According to NCAA rules, programs are prohibited from making contact with players before they enter the NCAA transfer portal. Doing so would be considered “tampering,” which has become so prevalent lately that high-profile coaches and even star players have spoken out against it.
But with Notre Dame emerging as the favorite even before Hartman officially entered the portal, many are accusing Notre Dame of tampering.
Tampering. It's been out there for weeks he's most likely headed to ND. https://t.co/B7TEzEwjvz
— jbook™ (@jbook37) December 27, 2022
“Tampering. It’s been out there for weeks he’s most likely headed to ND,” Ohio State Twitter personality JBook said on Twitter.
but i don't understand how they could know where he's going if he hasn't even entered the portal yet and can't talk to any other schools https://t.co/OJqRhqAjPy
— Tom Orr (@TomOrr4) December 27, 2022
“but i don’t understand how they could know where he’s going if he hasn’t even entered the portal yet and can’t talk to any other schools,” Ohio State football reporter Tom Orr said in a Tweet.
Definitely not tampering when there's an expected landing spot immediately (not that this is unusual). https://t.co/M2ZiIKLtJ1
— Jeff Ermann (@Jeff_Ermann) December 27, 2022
“Definitely not tampering when there’s an expected landing spot immediately (not that this is unusual),” Maryland football reporter Jeff Ermann said in a Tweet.
How do you already have an "expected landing spot" when you just entered the portal. https://t.co/KFxnvoM43T
— Weapons formed did in fact prosper (@anchorofgold) December 27, 2022
“How do you already have an ‘expected landing spot’ when you just entered the portal,” Anchor of Gold said in a Tweet.
It’s certainly a shady move by Notre Dame, but it’s also not uncommon in this era of college football.
