Clemson Football has completed its spring practice schedule with the playing of the Orange vs White game this past Saturday. There is no such thing as time off anymore, however. In addition to high school recruiting, which will ramp up over the next month, the Tigers will have to navigate the waters of the transfer portal again.
The spring window for entry into the transfer portal will open up for Division I Football on April 15th. It will be open for fifteen days and close on April 30th. This is when most of the players who want to transfer will make their entry official.
According to Morgan Thomas’s most recent chart, it looks like Clemson has 83 players on scholarship, meaning they could add two players from the transfer portal, even if no one leaves this spring. That’s not a completely impossible scenario – Clemson has one of the better retention rates for players in the power conferences.
The most likely scenario, however, is that at least a couple of players will leave, possibly more. Which players leave could drive just how active they will be in the portal.
As Clemson fans should know and understand by now, a need to bring in players from the portal does not mean that the Tigers will change their basic philosophies. Head coach Dabo Swinney reiterated his opposition to making any recruitments transactional during his pre-Spring Game press conference.
Swinney says "to each his own" if recruits want NIL coming in the door, but that's not for Clemson.
— Jon Blau (@Jon_Blau) April 3, 2024
"Our NIL is for retention, not recruiting."
Says NIL has "made my life easier" because he is able to not spend time on recruits who are overly focused on that aspect.
This means Clemson will have to look far and wide to find players who are interested in what they are selling. It remains to be seen what quality of player will find Clemson attractive without up-front NIL offers.
The April 30th deadline is simply the last day that players can enter the portal. They will be able to decide on their destination after the portal window has closed. The portal will remain open after April 30th for players who have undergraduate degrees. If there are any more changes to head coaching positions, players from those programs will be able to enter the portal for thirty days.