Lack of Portal Grabs

[4thecats]

The portal genre is new and quickly evolving. Strategies are still trying to be figured out and trends will eventually show in the future.
I have not seen MSU grab any significant interest or signees from the portal, and I see others taking advantage and filling spots with proven game changers.

Did MSU playing in the Championship put us behind in the portal grab? Of course, this is a great problem to have and I wouldn't trade places with anyone.

Os there a trend when the portal slows down, a date when most teams grab the best players and after a certain date, the pickings are far and few between?

I'm not complaining at all, just seeing the griz getting some great talent and the Cats not making many moves.
I am just curious about the recruiting process and wondering if this is a normal trend.

Unless I'm missing something, MSU has two committed transfers (Polidore from Air Force and Chambers from Wyoming) and UM has three. Not exactly a huge discrepancy there. The best way to build a consistently top-level program is to recruit and develop talented high school players and fill in gaps here and there with transfers who are too good to pass up or who fill a position of immediate need. I'd be more concerned if MSU was going after a bunch of transfers as that would suggest a lack of talent among its freshmen and sophomores who will be stepping up to replace the seniors from this year.

You right. We can always get better but going and hitting the portal for a bunch of over-hyped, over recruited players that left a program because they didn’t win the starting position their freshman year. The portal is loaded with players w inflated sense of self worth and/or trouble kids that are bad for any program. Yes, there are exceptions - I’d be happy if we brought in a grad transfer for the younger position groups, i.e. Nate Stewart, or someone the coaches have previously recruited. But idgaf about getting a kid that was a 3, 4, or even 5* that is looking for a home because he couldn’t beat out his competition. Gimme a HS stud that we can indoctrinate into the program!

Interesting perspective. I didn't think of that aspect. You could be right on with this. Of course not ALL will fall into this category. Sometimes a city, team chemistry, coaching change can have a player decide to switch schools.. Not all for quitters.

I guess that's when the coaches connections will gia long ways in determining the best fit for our program.

I also agree that building a team from high school recruits was the best way in the past, but maybe this portal thing gives a different option.. Of course you won't go 80% portal, but maybe more than before since it is a new wrinkle

[GrizgradCatFan]

I am hoping we have a couple of guys we are looking at picking up to help back up or maybe even staters on the defensive side. I think we have capable guys to get us to the chipper. My only concerns is they can't play the whole game and some positions are young. If we want any chance to beat NDSU we have to have equal guys going off and coming back onto the field. I don't feel all our ones and twos are equal at this time.

GO CATS!

[CelticCat]

Interesting to see how people's opinions of transfers has changed over the years.

[tdub]

Interesting to see how people's opinions of transfers has changed over the years.

I think it is due to some good recent success with transfers. MSU went for a big stretch of time where the percentage of transfers that worked out was pretty small. Suddenly guys like Travis Jonsen, Nate Stewart, Amandre Williams, etc become very good Bobcats and transfers are okay again.

[JDoub]

Interesting to see how people's opinions of transfers has changed over the years.

I think it is due to some good recent success with transfers. MSU went for a big stretch of time where the percentage of transfers that worked out was pretty small. Suddenly guys like Travis Jonsen, Nate Stewart, Amandre Williams, etc become very good Bobcats and transfers are okay again.

Agree - my opinion has changed, because the overall quality of transfers has changed for the better (ability and character) - guys like Nhale who could ball, but blew their last chance at D1 football here, seems to have been more common in the past.

Portal: Jonsen, Stewart, Williams +
Webb
Manning
Hehl
Sain
Porter
Alston

JC xfers
Hardy
Bailey
Regimbal
Kessler
Seymour

I think the way the Portal works makes it easier for guys who can play and have the character necessary to succeed.

I believe most, if not all, of our current transfers have played. Webb & Manning were key guys in the DB room. Hardy & Williams all beast. All these guys contribute to the team.

[jgrilley406]

Interesting to see how people's opinions of transfers has changed over the years.

I think it is due to some good recent success with transfers. MSU went for a big stretch of time where the percentage of transfers that worked out was pretty small. Suddenly guys like Travis Jonsen, Nate Stewart, Amandre Williams, etc become very good Bobcats and transfers are okay again.

Agree - my opinion has changed, because the overall quality of transfers has changed for the better (ability and character) - guys like Nhale who could ball, but blew their last chance at D1 football here, seems to have been more common in the past.

Portal: Jonsen, Stewart, Williams +
Webb
Manning
Hehl
Sain
Porter
Alston

JC xfers
Hardy
Bailey
Regimbal
Kessler
Seymour

I think the way the Portal works makes it easier for guys who can play and have the character necessary to succeed.

I believe most, if not all, of our current transfers have played. Webb & Manning were key guys in the DB room. Hardy & Williams all beast. All these guys contribute to the team.

Also Sterk, and even though he didn’t get to play because of the lost year, you’d have to think Scrempos would’ve made a impact for our interior D line.

[Catsrgrood]

Interesting to see how people's opinions of transfers has changed over the years.

I think it is due to some good recent success with transfers. MSU went for a big stretch of time where the percentage of transfers that worked out was pretty small. Suddenly guys like Travis Jonsen, Nate Stewart, Amandre Williams, etc become very good Bobcats and transfers are okay again.

Agree - my opinion has changed, because the overall quality of transfers has changed for the better (ability and character) - guys like Nhale who could ball, but blew their last chance at D1 football here, seems to have been more common in the past.

Portal: Jonsen, Stewart, Williams +
Webb
Manning
Hehl
Sain
Porter
Alston

JC xfers
Hardy
Bailey
Regimbal
Kessler
Seymour

I think the way the Portal works makes it easier for guys who can play and have the character necessary to succeed.

I believe most, if not all, of our current transfers have played. Webb & Manning were key guys in the DB room. Hardy & Williams all beast. All these guys contribute to the team.

Also Sterk, and even though he didn’t get to play because of the lost year, you’d have to think Scrempos would’ve made a impact for our interior D line.

Scrempos did play in 19 and he was a very solid part of the DL rotation.

[kennethnoisewater]

Vigen has said he was only looking for a couple players from the portal. I feel like the guys MSU would be looking for are borderline FBS guys, and those players are going to hold out for FBS offers for a while IMO.

It's definitely a new era for transfers though. I've heard some experts say Clemson didn't embrace the portal like other schools did, and that's why they had a little drop off. I don't know if that's true or not, but even if a program like that doesn't get absolute studs in the portal, getting solid players to build depth can help. For smaller programs I think the goal is to find impact players and build depth through HS recruits. It's going to be interesting to see that balance of using the portal and building from HS recruits. I think MSU wants to build with HS recruits but I think they're open to getting a few portal guys every year.

I have a feeling we'll see a couple more come through the portal this spring but not a huge number. Some teams will get 15, some will get 2-4 a year. I'd rather be closer to that 2-4 number but always on the lookout for quality players that fit the needs and the culture.

[Bobcat4Ever]

There are a couple of reasons that our transfers have been better lately — character and connections. Choate learned a quick and hard lesson about character. With Sterk and Williams and others, there were previous connections. Choate was really connected at the FBS level, having coached in four or five programs. It paid off big time for us. I believe it’s essential to have a coach that’s part of an FBS tree, and thankfully Vigen is not pure FCS.

[Long Time Cat]

I'd like to see us get a couple dropdowns from the NFL. Some of those guys are pretty good.

[imacat]

I think the Kramer years soured many of us on transfers. I think the coaches since then have done a good job of focusing on a kid being good fit and not just on talent.

[Bocephus]

Vigen must have a pretty good eye for transfers. Just saw a thing on MaxPreps, Josh Allen sent out a letter to 1,000 schools and got one offer. Wyoming.

Vigen had a big part in that and he just destroyed the Patriots.

[BLACKnBLUEnGOLD]

There has to be a couple big DT floating around out there....

Like 6’3”, 300 lbs, athletic, former 3 or 4 star recruits, with a couple years experience under their belts... looking to join a national contender....

Is it really too much to ask?

Every coach wants 3 of this guy to rotate and he doesn't grow on trees to begin with. I'd settle for 6'1" 280-290 and wrestled in high school.

[The Butcher]

I think the Kramer years soured many of us on transfers. I think the coaches since then have done a good job of focusing on a kid being good fit and not just on talent.

The good old days when August came around and there were more new faces in the locker room than old ones... That was absolutely crazy the number of transfers Kramer brought in (while hardly graduating anyone).