College athletics has shifted tremendously from its inception due to the NCAA transfer portal. Now, the potential House v. NCAA settlement could add to the changes.
These widespread changes do not only affect current college athletes, but also high school athletes trying to earn a scholarship to continue their athletic careers in college.
High school student-athletes at Norman Public Schools are already experiencing the impacts of the changes already in effect and are bracing for the potential additional changes this summer, which could completely uproot recruiting opportunities for many student-athletes.
“There’s been a coach I talked to, he’s like, ‘to be honest, I really like you, but we have one spot left because we have so-and-so coming in the transfer portal,’” Norman North High School junior linebacker/safety Max Beaty said.
In 2023, over 31,000 athletes entered the transfer portal, with 55% being left without a new opportunity. The significant amount of portal entries have forced new forms of roster building, as schools are now bringing in more transfer athletes than in years past.
Now, the recruiting process might even get more difficult for high school athletes if the House v. NCAA settlement passes this spring. In the settlement, athletes will be able to receive revenue-sharing from their school and there will also be scholarship increases for most sports, combined with a roster limit, significantly limiting walk-on opportunities. Athletic departments are not required to increase their scholarships for each sport.
The Norman North Football program has noticed these recruiting changes since the transfer portal began in 2018.
“Recruiting has changed tremendously,” Norman North High School Head Football Coach Jason Jones said. “Colleges were all signing 25 high school guys, in filling their classes up, because back then the portal didn’t exist and NIL didn’t exist.”
“The transfer portal is really taking effect and they’re taking up the spots where the kids that are coming out of high school,” Norman North High School junior offensive tackle Daniel McMorris said.
The House v. NCAA settlement potentially limiting teams from allowing walk-ons is also a concern for high school athletes, as it is an additional opportunity for them to play at the collegiate level.
“Just being a football fan, there’s been so many great walk-on stories and players have turned out good and it’s just taking away the opportunity,” Beaty said. “ I don’t think it’s good for the game.”
The transfer portal and the potential House v. NCAA settlement does not just affect football; all sports will experience changes. Norman High School Girls Basketball Frankie Parks sees the impacts on his former and current players.
“Now, with the transfer portal, a lot of schools are going directly to the portal before they’re going to the high school levels to recruit,” Parks said.
Coaches, athletes and everyone involved in high school athletics are continuing to monitor the changing landscape of the NCAA transfer portal and the House v. NCAA settlement, hoping for a future solution that allows high school athletes to thrive at the collegiate level.
“The opportunities have really shrunk for the high school athlete and that’s the unfortunate thing,” Jones said.