MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – The transfer portal giveth and it taketh away.
 
It seems everybody involved with college sports has an opinion about the portal these days. Clemson's Dabo Swinney says it has enabled "tampering galore" in college football. Ole Miss' Lane Kiffin told the Clarion-Ledger that "free agency has arrived" in the game.
 
And, West Virginia's Neal Brown admitted yesterday that recruiting now includes his own players.
 
"Look at some of the programs that have lost kids recently," he said toward the end of his 39-minute signing day news conference. "I think there are a few different elements to it. There is one element that we probably don't think too much about or give credence to - and we probably should is - they see on social media, 'Oh, (transferring) is an option and maybe I need to pursue that.' It's kind of a follower mentality maybe a little bit. It's easier for me to stomach if the kid has graduated. Several of the ones that have left are graduates. 
 
"I appreciate the ones that handle it the right way and come and talk to you and explain where they're at," he continued. "Most of them go because they want an increased role, and while you don't want them to leave, you at least understand where they're coming from. They're either not playing and they want to be in the two-deep or they're a backup and they want to be a starter."
 
He added, "There are some where you go, 'Oh man. What did we do wrong?' There are some you can beat yourself up and there's some that there is nothing you could have done. It's different and you still want to hold on to all of the ones you want to keep, but that's probably not the reality that we live in right now."
 
Indeed, West Virginia is no different than every other football program in the country today. A built in consideration for each coach now is factoring in roster deletions because of the transfer portal.
 
That means roster compositions aren't what they used to be and probably won't return to the way it was unless rules are changed. 
 
Brown explains.
 
"I was on the phone earlier in the week with another head coach and we were having a conversation," Brown said. "The way we used to do rosters was to have, say five quarterbacks, 15 offensive linemen or six running backs. Now, there is no way you are ever going to have five scholarship quarterbacks.
 
"There's probably a good chance that you're not going to be able to hold on to 15 scholarship offensive linemen," he said. "If you are in a one-back offense, the odds of you holding on to six scholarship running backs is very, very low. I think you have to have a minimum number that you have to be at and so that's what you've got to maintain. And then you've got to have the scholarship availability where if something happens you can go and fill that immediate need."

With the seven additional scholarships this year, Brown believes West Virginia can get close to the maximum 85 scholarship limit this fall, but he also has to anticipate more players leaving once spring practice is completed.
 
"We'll have some attrition after spring ball," he admitted. "I know our fans think we're the only ones who lose them. Honestly, I used to take it really, really personal. There are some when they leave I'm like, 'Man, that's a lot of time in that relationship.' But this is the era of college football that we're in right now.
 
Brown cautions that there are some dangers in solely relying on the transfer portal to build your football team. It can be a useful tool, for sure, and West Virginia has used it already to land Clemson running back Lyn-J Dixon and Cincinnati defensive lineman Zeiqui Lawton. And while not technically a transfer portal addition, junior college linebacker Lee Kpogba began his collegiate career at Syracuse.
 
Think back to 2020 and what a great addition Arizona linebacker Tony Fields II was to the team.
 
Baylor went from a two-win season in 2020 to 11 wins and a Big 12 championship this year, in part, because of its work in the transfer portal. The Bears got their starting center Jacob Gall (Buffalo) and starting right guard Grant Miller (Vanderbilt) from the portal, as well as a starting defensive tackle Siaki Ika (LSU). Mike linebacker Dillon Doyle (Iowa) was a 2020 transfer addition, while former Dartmouth receiver Drew Estrada played a role in the West Virginia win.
 
"They hit on two O-linemen, which were huge hits. The D-lineman was a difference maker and without a doubt those were big," Brown said. "Now they made a change in offense, they didn't turn the ball over this year, so I wouldn't say (transfer portal additions) was the main reason for their turnaround."
 
True, but how often do you sign three immediate starters in a recruiting class, or get an immediate Heisman trophy contender like Michigan State did when it landed Wake Forest running back Kenneth Walker III, who rushed for 1,636 yards and scored 18 touchdowns for the Spartans in 2021?
 
Michigan State also got big-time immediate help from Arkansas State tackle transfer Jarrett Horst, Tennessee linebacker Quavaris Crouch, Alabama cornerback Ronald Williams and Purdue tight end Maliq Carr.
 
The Spartans were picked to finish last in the Big Ten East, so it's clear that the portal was helpful in getting Michigan State right in a hurry, a fact Brown concedes.
 
"Michigan State had a bunch, but I haven't studied how much of a factor they made," he said. "Obviously, their running back did because he had a tremendous year. But they also had a lot of older guys in their program that played at a higher level, too.
 
"Is the portal a tool to help your team? Yes, for sure. It absolutely is a tool, but I think you have to be careful that you are adding the right pieces. Is it something that we're going to use? Yes. We added two today. There could be five or six more that we'll add, but can it be the sole (solution)? I don't know," he concluded.