Lane Kiffin Prepared To Take Advantage Of 'S---ty System' That Will Cause Chaos In Upcoming Transfer Portal

We are just a few weeks away from what could potentially be the most chaotic transfer portal period in college football since its inception, and Lane Kiffin is again ready to take advantage of the ‘shitty system’ if he needs to. 

The new portal rules that allow players to transfer as many times as they see fit has caused an uproar around athletic departments across the country. Not only are coaches having to worry about a player only sticking around for a semester, to go chase playing time and money, but the unlimited amount of times they can do this has forced coaches to adapt within the system. 

Right now, we are seeing a college football model that could create chaos thanks to a number of late coaching moves, thanks to the Nick Saban ripple effect just a few months ago. Schools like Washington, Arizona, Alabama, Boston College, UCLA and even Michigan are trying to get ahead of what could potentially be a chaotic few weeks of portal movement. All of these schools mentioned were dealing with coaching turnover that forced some players to make hasty decisions when it comes to either staying or going at their respective college, with a lot of the situation centering around classes starting at other potential transfer destinations. 

Now, it didn't stop a player like Kadyn Proctor from leaving Alabama for Iowa once Nick Saban retired, only to then leave Iowa after two months and transfer back to Tuscaloosa. It's fair to say we're going to see a lot of this type of movement once the portal opens, especially with NIL playing a major factor. 

"Here again, it’s a really stupid system," Lane Kiffin said, according to Rebel Grove. "Hey, it’s good for the players, maybe. It’s good for them financially but I’m not really sure it’s good for them that they can leave anytime something goes wrong. They’re just going to run, no matter what. I think what you’re going to see — I said this when they first started this —is people that, ‘I’m going to go somewhere, get their money and having never played a down as a transfer, and I’m going back in right after spring ball and go somewhere else and get their money.’"

Guess what? Lane Kiffin is right again. We are living in a time when college sports are running crazy and the folks in charge have no idea how to stop the train. There are players in college football that are having to pay buyouts to their first school (collective) just so they can attend another school and receive more money for their services. Think about that for a minute, let it marinate. They are buying back their rights, almost as if this was some type of Grant of Rights like the ACC continues to rely on to prevent anarchy within the conference. 

We are no longer dealing with a system that can be managed. It's now in the hands of the agents, runners, collectives and anyone looking to bolster their roster. One school is paying a player six figures? Sorry, that's not enough because the next school is willing to pay the athlete more. But the main problem lying inside all of this centers around student athletes not being held to their word for at least a year. 

These scholarships that coaches hand out every year are really just one-year deals, which should be common knowledge by now if you're a fan. But the problem is that these paid athletes now have a way to get out of a deal within a month, or six months. And most of the time it comes down to how much the player can get, and that's the new norm in college athletics.

I have zero problems with players getting paid, I've been saying this since NIL was first introduced. Let these athletes make all the money they can while their in college, especially if their name carries value. But when it comes down to whether or not that same student-athlete is going to stick around for more than six months, that's when you know the game has changed. 

NIL Rules For Collectives Mean It's Open Season On Poaching Talent

Now that the NCAA has decided that it will not be going after schools for potential infractions tied to NIL, after multiple court room losses, let the bidding wars commence April 15. Collectives can now have open conversations and discuss financial contracts with student athletes, which means that these players will know how much they make before stepping foot on campus. 

Also, this will turn the NIL situation into a more NFL-like market when it comes to players inside the transfer portal. Additionally, it will lead to agents being able to negotiate a price for their client's services without worrying about the NCAA looking over their shoulder. 

It's a bidding war for the best players, and I would imagine that there will be a few more situations like Kadyn Proctor, who is now returning to Alabama. 

Lane Kiffin Offers Up A Good Idea To Get Players To Stay For At Least One Year

The Ole Miss coach is known for calling out the system, while benefiting from it at the same time, and he's not afraid to admit it. There's also a good chance that the smartest coach in college football when it comes to the transfer portal is Lane Kiffin, because at least he's also offering ideas on how to fix the current problems, while partaking in them. 

If Kiffin were to only sit around and talk about how messed up the system is, but not use it to his advantage, he wouldn't be the head coach at Ole Miss. He's done what has been needed in Oxford to win football games, even if he knows the system which he plays in everyday is full of problems that some folks around the sport want to celebrate. 

So what could be done to keep a player at one institution for at least a year? Make them sign an agreement that involves NIL which would force them to stay a year. These players can make all the money available at one college for a calendar year, but hold them to it. Sure, there are different circumstances as to how an athlete could get out of the deal, but stop making it so easy for these athletes. 

PASADENA, CALIFORNIA - JANUARY 01: Offensive lineman Kadyn Proctor #74 of the Alabama Crimson Tide blocks during the CFP Semifinal Rose Bowl Game against the Michigan Wolverines at Rose Bowl Stadium on January 1, 2024 in Pasadena, California. (Photo by Ryan Kang/Getty Images)

That's the gist of what Lane Kiffin, and others, around college football are trying to hammer home at the moment. We are living in a completely different world compared to just three years ago, and that should freak these administrators out, if they weren't so blinded by the new television money and trying to get fans to pay for these new players, along with stadium projects. 

At the end of the day, we are in the middle of a seismic shift in college athletics. I don't expect leaders to come up with a solution in the next six months, or even a year. But we have to stop acting like everything is ok, when some of the most popular coaches in the sport, like Lane Kiffin, are telling you just how crazy it really is. 

"It’s really a shitty system. It is. Now, we’re going to utilize it, just like the players do. I’m not mad at the the players. They utilize the system, and we’re going to utilize it and make the best roster that we can."