Midseason college football transfers? Ryan Silverfield prepared for it

Memphis coach Ryan Silverfield believes college football is going to change in a major way. And soon.

“We’re going to get to the point, I think, in two or three years, obviously you guys are going to quote me on this, where I do think there’s going to be midseason transactions,” he said at his Monday press conference. “Because there’s people in the portal.”

The transfer portal has been a constant talking point in college athletics, especially college football, since 2021. That’s when the NCAA did away with the rule that required transferring athletes to sit out a year.

College football teams routinely have dozens of players transferring in and out after each season. Memphis’ defense, for example, has more transfers than returning players in the starting 11.

Roster rules are constantly changing in college football. The court case that will fundamentally transform college athletics, House v. NCAA, is currently being finalized. That deal would create a new revenue-sharing system that would allow schools to pay athletes more than $20 million a year.

It would also create new roster rules for some sports and remove scholarship caps. In football, that would mean a 105-player cap, and teams would be allowed to use scholarships for every player on the roster. The current scholarship cap is 85, but the roster cap is 120. If the settlement is approved before next season, most teams are going to have to reduce the number of players on their roster to hit the 105-player cap.

Silverfield believes there could be a system where teams can put players on injured reserve and get a replacement from the portal.

“If they limit the roster number, and then all of a sudden people are getting hurt, now we can go put these two guys on IR and go bring in these two out of the portal,” he said. “I think that’s where we’re at. Especially if we’re going to reduce the number from 127 or 120 to 105.”

Reach sports writer Jonah Dylan at jonah.dylan@commercialappeal.com or on X @thejonahdylan.

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