Dan Lanning calls for college football season to end on January 1, one transfer portal window to follow

Earlier this month, the NCAA Football Oversight Committee voted to move the winter transfer portal window from December to January. The committee also voted to eliminate the spring window, giving transfers a single 10-day period in January to enter the portal.

The vote requires approval from the Administrative Committee by Oct. 1 to take effect this year. On Wednesday, Oregon head coach Dan Lanning weighed in on the potential change.

“I support one window more than anything,” Lanning said. “I’ve always been a big advocate of the season should end January 1. If the season ends January 1, and then you’re able to figure out who your team is in January, I think that’s ideal.

“I don’t think it’s ever ideal to have a portal while the season’s still being played. But, ultimately, I think it’s better to have one window and not have a spring window.”

One window in January would prevent players from entering the transfer portal after the regular season, which has led to teams having insufficient rosters for bowl games. Marshall experienced this issue first-hand last season.

After losing head coach Charles Huff to Southern Miss and subsequently suffering an exodus of players to the portal, Marshall was unable to play against Army in the Independence Bowl. The Sun Belt fined Marshall $100,000 for not playing in the bowl game.

As for the spring window, coaches have claimed its timing allows players to learn about their team’s schemes, only to take them to an opposing program. Moreover, it gives other programs a larger timeline to poach players. Several teams, including Nebraska, eliminated their traditional spring game this year due to this concern.

While the single January window would prevent most teams from having to deal with the transfer portal during their respective seasons, the timeline would still overlap with College Football Playoff teams. The proposed 10-day window would start on Jan. 2, one day after the CFP quarterfinals are completed.

For this reason, not every coach has been as quick to endorse the change. Ohio State head coach Ryan Day was particularly critical of the idea of a January window.

“No, I don’t think it’s a good idea at all,” Day said. “And the conversations we had with the Big Ten coaches, I think the majority of them agree. I just don’t quite understand how teams that are playing in the playoffs are expected to make the decisions and sign their upcoming players while they’re still getting ready to play for games. It doesn’t make any sense to me.”