Clemson football doesn’t lose transfers like other programs around the country
In this day and age of College Football, no one is immune to being hit by the NCAA Transfer Portal and that includes Clemson football.
The Tigers have lost several key reserves and even a starter or two over the last few years to the Transfer Portal, and we can expect that to continue to be the case as the transfer portal continues to grow and the one-time transfer rule leads way into CFB free-agency.
Dabo Swinney has recognized the need for being able to evaluate at a high level and use the transfer portal to his advantage. Swinney created a ‘Director of Scouting’ position that will be manned by Danny Pearman beginning this year that will deal with in-house evaluations, recruiting evaluations, breaking down opponent film and looking into the NCAA Transfer Portal for potential fits that might benefit the Tigers.
This is- without a doubt- an important step for the Clemson football program as the Tigers look to stay ahead of the nation and maintain their status as one of the elite teams year-in and year-out in the CFB Playoff mix.
That being said, Clemson simply doesn’t lose transfers like many other programs around the country and we think that needs to be highlighted.
In the last three years, Clemson football has seen 14 total players enter and leave through the NCAA Transfer Portal
On the surface, 14 players in the last three years- and that number will almost undoubtedly rise later this spring and summer- seems like a lot.
However, it should be noted that, of those 14 transfers, eight were graduate transfers and had already earned their degree from Clemson University before leaving.
In the same time span (the last three years), here’s a look at the number of transfers from other nationally relevant programs:
- Alabama: 25
- Ohio State: 15
- Florida: 26
- Oklahoma: 42
- Georgia: 22
- LSU: 31
- Notre Dame: 24
Just this year alone (and keep in mind we’re not done with decisions yet), Oklahoma has had 17 transfers while Notre Dame has had 14 and LSU has had 10.
Other than Ohio State– who has had one more transfer than Clemson in the last three years- the Tigers have had nearly double-digits less transfers than basically everyone else on the list. Georgia has had 22, which would put them second with eight more transfers than Clemson.
The point of this post isn’t to say that the Tigers don’t need the transfer portal because there are spots that absolutely can be filled through the portal, but it is to show the cosmic difference between Clemson football- particularly in recruiting- compared to everyone else.
Alabama brings in 5-star after 5-star with no regard about players at the position, but the Crimson Tide also lose some to the transfer portal.
Clemson recruits based off the long haul and there’s something to be said for this conservative approach that the Tigers take in high school recruiting and how that may, in fact, help them when it comes to the transfer portal. The numbers at least indicate that as truth.
The coaching staff looks for players who are committed and want to be a part of the program and, as a result, you see players who are willing to stick it out and wait their turn, at least to an extent.
It’s not always the case and no one is immune to the transfer portal- that will continue to be ever-so-prominent in the coming years and beyond- but there is something to be said about how this program has been run and what that has meant in terms of retaining players that many other programs around the country simply wouldn’t have.