The state of collegiate sports has changed drastically ever since changes have come to the transfer portal, as well as the implementation of NIL deals for athletes.
Players are now able to play the next season after transferring, and many are making their transfer decisions based on how much NIL money they can receive on the open market.
There have been many critics of how things have changed, with high-profile coaches like Nick Saban and Lane Kiffin saying that recruiting in college football now feels comparable to an NFL free agency.
ESPN college football analyst Matt Barrie discussed the current state of college sports on social media on Saturday, where he had some harsh words for those who pushed for these changes.
“People screamed ‘let ’em transfer!!”
“People screamed ‘pay them!!”
“Screamers never have a responsible plan to make it work. They just scream nonsense to be the loudest.
“This is now college football.
“Well done.”
People screamed “let ‘em transfer!!”
People screamed “pay them!!”
Screamers never have a responsible plan to make it work. They just scream nonsense to be the loudest.
This is now college football.
Well done.
— Matt Barrie (@MattBarrie) April 30, 2022
While there were some that agreed with Barrie on his stance, the majority of reactions to this post seem to believe that college sports are in a far better place now than they were before the changes.
this mostly tells me he hasn’t been paying attention to the last decade of CFB reporting and analysis, and instead decided to insult his audience.
it would be smarter to insult the ncaa for botching every step of this and thinking the supreme court would save it https://t.co/RuWNMMN0X5
— Brian Floyd (@BrianMFloyd) April 30, 2022
1. Players could always transfer. Now, they can do so without sitting a year or dropping a level. Objectively good.
2. “Screamers never have a responsible plan…” – plenty of ‘screamers’ had a responsible plan. It was the governing body that didn’t bother to put one in place. https://t.co/pvGA5oLCFv
— Austin Burlage (@CoachBurlage) April 30, 2022
never blame the power or the institutions. always blame the labor and the people who think they should be able to profit off their work. it's an old playbook with a modern twist! https://t.co/Q5ppkmdh5G
— Joshua Brisco (@jbbrisco) April 30, 2022
There are some that understand Barrie’s grievances, but believe that the problem lies with how the NCAA handled the changes instead of Barrie blaming fans who were calling for players to be compensated fairly.
The NCAA had seven years between O Brannon and Alston to devise a responsible plan and punted right up to the bitter end. Zero sympathy. https://t.co/QyCVOfLrAX
— Stewart Mandel (@slmandel) April 30, 2022
If you believe in free markets, you should believe athletes who drive an insanely profitable endeavor deserve to share in those profits. NCAA could have solved this decades ago with real stipends/benefits, but didn’t. Now the free market will figure it out. https://t.co/10foI1v5Am
— Steve Schale (@steveschale) April 30, 2022
https://twitter.com/The_BrakeDown/status/1520441929896534021
It is clear that unless the NCAA regulates what NIL deals classify as college sports will continue to head down the path of operating more and more like a professional sports league.
Given the amount of money that collegiate sports generate, it makes sense that this shift has occurred.
Whether or not people like Barrie want to accept it or not, college athletes will continue to make decisions that are in their best interest in the open market with all of the NIL money being thrown around.
